Many schools access therapy through external services. At Coombe House, we employ our own therapy team, enabling specialist expertise to be embedded within everyday school life.
Our team includes professionals with expertise in Speech and Language Therapy, Occupational Therapy and Educational Psychology, and other external specialists as required. Their role is to help us better understand children, identify barriers to learning and development, and strengthen the support available across the school.
However, we do not see therapy, education and pastoral support as separate.
We believe it is important that pupils experience one school, one plan and one approach.
As with every aspect of life at Coombe House, relationships come first.
We know that children are most likely to engage with support when it is delivered through trusted relationships and meaningful connections. For many pupils, the most effective support does not happen during a scheduled therapy session. Instead, it happens through the hundreds of interactions that take place throughout the school day with adults who know them well.
This means therapeutic expertise is often delivered through the wider team, helping staff understand pupils more deeply and respond more effectively to their needs.
Our therapy team helps us look beyond what we can immediately see. They help us understand:
This understanding enables staff to make informed decisions and develop personalised approaches that help pupils succeed.
Not every pupil needs the same support and not every pupil needs to see a therapist directly.
Through our graduated response, support is matched to need and reviewed over time. Some pupils may benefit from strategies embedded within everyday school life, whilst others may require more targeted or specialist intervention.
Our aim is not for every child to receive the same support but for every child to receive the right support.
One of the most important roles of our therapy team is to build the skills, confidence and understanding of the adults around each child. This may include:
By increasing the understanding of the wider team, therapeutic expertise reaches far beyond individual appointments and becomes part of everyday practice.
We do not measure success by the number of therapy sessions delivered.
Instead, we look at the difference our collective approach is making in a child’s life.
Families often tell us they notice changes beyond school:
When specialist expertise, strong relationships and high-quality education work together, meaningful progress becomes possible.
