Author: Mr Stones

Falkirk Council has published application forms for Key Worker places in January 2021 – please click here to download it.

Many thanks to Fraser Haulage, who have very kindly donated a shipping container to the school. Since merging all the different parts of the service onto one campus, we have been really short of space for storage, and this is a fantastic solution to our problem. Plans are already in place to decorate it!

Our good friends and supporters at Spirit Aid have very kindly donated Christmas gifts for all of our pupils, as well as supplies to help families who may find it difficult to source everything they need at Christmas. Thanks to everyone at Spirit Aid, who have been extremely generous to IWBS over the years, both in terms of donations of goods as well as providing support with film making and employability development opportunities.

Wellbeing can be understood as how people feel and how they function, both on a personal and social level, and how they evaluate their lives as a whole.  Our Wellbeing Booklet provides a platform with which to explore young people’s views on a termly basis.   Pupils and young people are able to rate their wellbeing using a variety of resources in a supported way.  This booklet provides a tool to facilitate discussion using the Wellbeing Web, SHANARRI indicators, the four capacities and dialogue. Staff are then able to use this data to inform planning for assessment and subsequent interventions.

Our October Newsletter is now available for download HERE

The Scottish Government is gathering opinions about the impact of Covid-19 on the lives of young people aged 11-25. If you want to take part, you can fill in the survey here

Pop up parents group

At present we are unable to have parents in the school building therefore we are planning to offer Pop up parent groups at various locations within the Falkirk district. This will take the form of a gazebo and fold up chairs (2m apart).We will hopefully be able to offer a varied programme of activities from our pop up base in the near future.

Walk and Talk

We have started our new walk and talk sessions for parents/carers which are proving to be very popular. During lockdown and the school holidays this service was offered to pupils and was a great success. Pupils and staff learnt a lot about the local area and enjoyed various walks around Denny, Bo’ness Harbour, Grangemouth, Carron Valley and Falkirk.

During our walks with parents we are encouraging them to practise mindfulness. A mindful walk is an excellent way to clear the mind of clutter and restore your sense of focus. Several studies have shown that taking a break to look at or be in nature can have a rejuvenating effect on the brain, helping to free up the mind when you feel stuck and boosting levels of attention.

Garden/Craft group

Our new Garden and Craft group is due to start on Monday 28^th September. This group will take place on a Monday and Wednesday mornings. We will be offering pupils a ranges of activities within the school garden and when our Scottish weather is unkind to us we will move indoor and enjoy a range of garden related crafts.

One of the first activities will be to plant spring bulbs. This activity will be open to everyone. If you would like to take part please speak to Joyce or Gail

Schools, including IWBS, are now reopening for pupils. To ensure the safety of all pupils, staff and parents and carers, pleased follow the following guidance:

• If your child, or anyone else in your household, displays symptoms of Covid-19 (see below), do not send your child to school.
• Members of the household should follow NHS advice to self-isolate for 10 days and arrange to get tested (see link below)
• Symptoms of Covid-19 include any of the following:
  • Persistent cough
  • High temperature
  • Loss of taste or smell
• Click HERE to access links to NHS guidance and HERE for links to testing

Sealock House has issued the following document regarding school risk assessments following the return from the summer break.

Click here to download

Falkirk Council have just published important dates for next term – please note that at this time, the main Falkirk Council school holidays page has not been updated.

• Staff return to IWBS from Monday 10th August 2020
• Pupils return to IWBS from Wednesday 12th August 2020 (see communication from IWBS to check your child’s exact start date and schedule)
• The October holidays will now run from Monday 12th October to Friday 23rd October (inclusive). This is now 2 weeks rather than 1 week due to the shorter summer break.