My Oasis teachers are highly experienced and provide a modified version of the national curriculum to students. They deliver outstanding lessons around the core subjects of English, Maths and Science, as well as teach various additional subjects which may be of interest to a young person, such as Health and Beauty or Art. We try to ensure My Oasis offers a broad and balanced curriculum to meet the needs of all students who are referred to us, whilst also offering an education which prevents young people slipping behind their mainstream peers. As many students come to us from commissioning schools which are following varied curricula, we tend to follow AQA guidelines and their corresponding curricular due to most of the mainstream schools we work with also doing so. However, staff at My Oasis will liaise with a student’s mainstream school to ensure they are following as close a curriculum as possible, with the aim of reducing the likelihood of this acting as a barrier to them returning. Unlike most other alternative provisions in the area, KS4 students on long-term placements with us work towards studying for their GCSEs as opposed to functional skills.

As well as using comprehensive assessments, informative and summative assessments are completed by teachers throughout a student’s placement with us. Teaching is delivered in various ways, including through small groups in the My Oasis classrooms, 1:1 face-to-face or online tutoring, teaching outdoors and/or through the various enrichment activities and programmes we offer. We do this to allow for the development of strong relationships, which we see as being key in helping each young person to succeed and reach their full potential. By offering specialist education to students delivered by highly qualified staff, we ensure any gaps and barriers to learning are reduced and any learning needs supported. Teaching and lessons are differentiated in line with a student’s learning needs and which will be identified within their personalised learning plans, with specialist SEND assessments for students being provided where necessary by an external provider we work alongside at an additional small cost.

Many of our students leave My Oasis from KS4 with sufficient breadth of subjects and high grades at GCSE to be able to access A Level courses at college or go on to study for an apprenticeship. If absolutely necessary, some students have the option of staying on at My Oasis for another year until their transition into post 16 is likely to be more successful and they are less likely at risk of becoming NEET. At My Oasis we ensure all KS4 students are provided with sufficient information and career guidance to allow them to make informed choices regarding their future career choices. We recognise that when students leave us, they need to be able to reintegrate successfully back into school and their environment, becoming confident members of society and reaching their full potential in life.