Daniel Lawrence
It gives me great pleasure to introduce myself as Daniel Lawrence - the Headteacher of The Ryes College. Here at The Ryes College we really strive to understand the unique needs each of our pupils have and to develop an education package that meets these needs. Our Vision, Ethos and Values all represent our commitment to providing a caring environment that understands each student's background, the difficulties they may have experienced so far, and to help build self-belief and positive experiences moving forwards.
The aims of The Ryes College are to provide pupils who are at a crisis point in their education, a caring, calm and safe environment to succeed in school. We will provide a programme that supports pupils back into school, and allows them to flourish personally, socially as well as academically. On leaving school, we will have afforded our pupils, every opportunity to develop the skills needed to live an independent life and make a positive contribution to wider society.
The Ryes College is set in a spacious and unique setting in a rural location close to the Dedham Vale Area of Outstanding Natural beauty on the Essex Suffolk border. The college provides a safe space for those who have struggled in education, including those who have been excluded. A large number of our children have missed significant amounts of school education. We have a strong curriculum programme where the core focus is on personal development, social interaction and community building. We achieve this through personal development sessions, play, activities in the community and have a growing programme of offsite activities. That said, we want our pupils to achieve the highest levels, and place a strong emphasis on learning. We have an increasing outreach programme which extends to the furthest extents of Essex. At the heart of our success is the incredibly close relationships that we build with parents and carers building positive relationships working to transition pupils fully back to school. Increasingly parents are seeking out The Ryes College as the place to go.
The Ryes College currently has 24 pupils ranging from 11 to 16 years of age. They come with very different backgrounds and all have different aspirations. Many had spent considerable time out of education and we are incredibly proud of the progress that they have made and the contribution that they make to our school.
We believe we make the vital difference for children who have struggled to cope in Education, and we have forged strong links with local authorities to be the place of choice for their children. Our school serves pupils with Social, Emotional and Mental Health issues, and is strongly placed to re-engage pupils who have struggled to learn in other schools. All of our pupils have needs that need fully investigating before they start so that we can produce the very best plans to help them integrate in to the school and thrive.
