Meet the Team
Here at Carrant Brook, we believe that in order for a child to succeed, they should receive a holistic approach to their education. What we mean by this is that a child needs to thrive emotionally in order to be ready to learn. We know that all children are different, requiring different levels of support, both emotionally and academically and all our staff work hard to accommodate the individual needs of the children, empowering them to become life-long learners and valuable contributors to society.
Pupil Support & Wellbeing is lead by our SENDCo Miss Lauren Thompson and our Family Support Worker Ms Anna Carey. Miss Thompson and Ms Carey work very closely together to support the holistic needs of all children.
Both Miss Thompson and Ms Carey are part of the Safeguarding Team at Carrant Brook, supporting the Safeguarding lead (Mrs Budd) in promoting the welfare of children and protecting them from harm.
Special Educational Needs
Special Educational Needs in Carrant Brook Junior School is overseen by Miss Lauren Thompson, our SENDCo.
Miss Thompson moved to Gloucestershire from Northern Ireland in July 2021, having worked in a primary school for almost ten years, initially as a class teacher, then SENDCo and Acting Head Teacher. She developed a particular interest in SEND and passion for inclusion very early on in her career, and decided to go on to study psychology in her spare time to further her knowledge in how best to support the learning and development of children with additional needs.
Children learn in different ways, and Miss Thompson’s role includes ensuring that children with additional needs have the opportunities and provision they need to access high quality education along with their peers, enabling and empowering them to reach their full learning potential (and she is really quite passionate about it!).
Miss Thompson takes a very child-centred approach to her job, liaising with teachers, school leaders, parents, the LA and other professionals to ensure that each child’s specific needs are met in school, so that they have the same opportunities as their peers.
Parent & Pupil Pastoral Support
Pastoral support in Carrant Brook Junior School is overseen by Ms Anna Carey, our Family Support Worker.
Miss Carey is a registered Children's Nurse with over 25 years of experience in child health. Prior to joining the staff at Carrant Brook Miss Carey spent several years as a School Nurse working for the NHS providing both emotional and physical health support to school aged children both at home and within the community. With a desire to develop her pastoral role further Miss Carey joined the team at Carrant Brook in January 2019.
Every child is unique and may face different challenges and life experiences as they grow. Alongside all school staff Miss Carey supports each child in meeting their full potential, thriving both physically and emotionally whilst they are at Carrant Brook.
Miss Carey uses both her knowledge in child health and emotional wellbeing to support children and parents within Carrant Brook, providing a wide range of targeted interventions to support parents and pupils with their engagement, attitudes to learning, as well as their social, emotional and overall welfare needs. This may include but not limited to signposting, Nurturing group work , 1:1 support, referrals to other agencies, and ensuring the medical needs of the children are met.
Having completed a Post Graduate Diploma In Education (Nursing) Miss Carey is also able to support the teachers with the RSHE curriculum and will participate in lessons around healthy living and relationships.