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2023-03-31-accounts

‘LITTLE DISCOVERERS’

WEST NORFOLK SCHOOL FOR PARENTS (WNSfP)

Charity Registration Number: 1125400

REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

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Little Discoverers WNSfP Our Aim Active learning for disabled children and their families Little Discoverers (West Norfolk School for Parent) aims, in partnership with parents, to provide quality, holistic early education opportunities for children 0-5 with motor learning difficulties, delayed development and other complex needs. Through use of structured play, the Early Years Foundation Stage of the National Curriculum and the principles of Conductive Education children are encouraged to achieve stepped goals that enhance skills for independence in everyday life and boost esteem in both child and parent. By working and playing together, families learn to celebrate success and recognise the potential in every child. Little Discoverers (West Norfolk Schools for Parents) will continue to seek to improve the accessibility to a suitable session, for all families particularly those from hard to reach groups. LittlÈ Discoverers WNSfP 2022-23 Pago 2

CONTENTS

ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS .......................................................................... 4 WEST NORFOLK SCHOOL FOR PARENTS (WNSfP) ................................. 5 STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT ................................... 9 SAFEGUARDING ........................................................................................... 9 CHAIRMAN’s REPORT TO THE AGM ......................................................... 10 OUR TEAM LEADER’s ANNUAL HIGHLIGHTS .......................................... 13 SOME INCREDIBLE ACHIEVEMENTS ....................................................... 18 MONITORING OUTCOMES ......................................................................... 19 OUR LOCATION .......................................................................................... 23 HOW WE COMMUNICATE .......................................................................... 24 FINANCIAL REVIEW .................................................................................... 25 INDEPENDENT EXAMINER’s REPORT AND EXAMINED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS ............................................................................................. 27 APPENDIX 1 –CONDUCTIVE EDUCATION ................................................ 35 APPENDIX 2 – PARENT AND PROFESSIONAL OBSERVATIONS ........... 36 APPENDIX 3 – ENLARGED VERSIONS OF THE PARENT AND PROFESSIONAL FEEDBACK CHARTS ...................................................... 38

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ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS

Charity Registration Number: 1125400

The following were Trustees of Little Discoverers West Norfolk School for Parents (WNSfP) during the period 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023:

Contact details for WNSfP:

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WEST NORFOLK SCHOOL FOR PARENTS (WNSfP)

Background

Following a survey by Scope in 2002, work started to set up a School for Parents in West Norfolk and since 2005 we have been running a successful West Norfolk School for Parents for children and families in this region, eliminating the need for a long round trip to the closest other School for Parents in Norwich. In 2008 we registered as a charity independent of Scope but operating as part of Scope’s School for Parents network. By the end of the year under review we had been successfully running Conductive Education sessions for children with complex motor problems and their families in West Norfolk and surrounding areas for 18 Years.

We follow national School for Parents guidelines and have our own set of policies that are regularly reviewed and updated.

As a result of a suggestion made by the[1] parents West Norfolk School for Parents is known as Little Discoverers WNSfP.

Little Discoverers WNSfP

The Little Discoverers programme provides support to children under 5 with complex physical and emotional difficulties and their parents. Our aim is to enable each child to achieve their maximum potential. We do this by providing individually designed programmes for each child based on the ideas of Conductive Education from Peto in Hungary (see Appendix 1) and are the only people in the West Norfolk area working in this way, with this age group in a group setting.

Nothing the parents have learnt in their previous life has given them any indication of the complex challenges they will meet and how to overcome them. Families can feel very isolated when their child is diagnosed. Little Discoverers provides a safe, friendly and fun early learning environment for pre-school children with difficulties in movement and delayed development that puts parents at the forefront of their child’s learning and development and recognises that parents know their child best.

Our aim is to develop children’s abilities and confidence in the pre-school years, which will help them at home and later at school. We do this by supporting them to improve their physical skills, their ability to communicate and their social skills. To achieve this we create a three way relationship between parent, child and specially trained Little Discoverers staff. Each child has their own individual education plan.

When the parents and children attending our sessions get to know each other they form a support network of understanding friends. Parents of older children can reassure new families and help them through stressful times. Parents feel relaxed in Little Discoverers, working with families who face similar problems and who jointly celebrate even the smallest achievement of each child.

1 ‘ Parent’ refers to any adult with a parenting role

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Who can benefit from Little Discoverers WNSfP

We work within one of the UK’s 10% most deprived areas and our free sessions ensure our service is accessible to all. Due to a lack of resources in West Norfolk there is an inability to provide sufficient support for these vulnerable families. Our annual parent and professional feedback forms show how much the families and local professionals greatly appreciate the support and learning we provide. And, as the charity has now entered its 19[th] year in 2024, we have had the privilege of witnessing first-hand the effects that early intervention and Conductive Education can have on a child’s life, as the first cohort of attendees are now adults.

Little Discoverers is for children aged 0-5 within West Norfolk and the surrounding area. The children may suffer from physical problems, motor learning problems, delayed development and demonstrate a wide range of abilities. They may have learning difficulties, visual, hearing and communication problems. Often our children do not yet have a formal diagnosis, but an example of some of the conditions we work with are: Cerebral Palsy, Downs Syndrome, hydrocephalus, global development delay and genetic disorders.

Children may have physical problems such as being unable to hold up their heads, focus their eyes, roll, sit, stand, or walk. Children may be unable to open or close their hands, use them for play or self-help activities. Some children have sensory problems, not wanting to touch different textures or being upset by noises. Many children have feeding problems, such as choking, being unable to finger feed or use a cup (rather than a bottle).

Some children are deaf or have partial hearing. Many children are unable to communicate; unable to point with their eyes or hands; unable to make noises, sounds/words; unable to use sign language. Many children find it difficult to interact, smile or laugh, be sociable or have fun. They may not be able to make their needs known.

A child can be referred to Little Discoverers in a variety of ways, for example by a Health Visitor, Therapists, GP or by parents themselves. After first contact, the parent and child will be[2] visited at home and invited to visit the group. Parents are then given time to consider whether this is the right service for their child. If a Conductive Education approach is not the most appropriate for the child, staff will suggest other support.

We aim to reply to any referrals within 5 working days and we have been achieving this.

We had 28 new referrals over the course of the year, and we have been able to offer places to 27 of these children (and have recommended alternative services to the remaining 1).

During this year we supported 40 vulnerable families in need in the West Norfolk area and from adjacent areas of Lincolnshire and Cambridgeshire. This year we have supported 19 female and 21 male children with ages ranging from 8 weeks to more than 4years.

We are inclusive of all nationalities and ethnicities and have families who use English as an additional language.

How we support the children and their parents

Parents are key to their child’s development and the early years have been shown to be vital in stimulating the brain to enable the child to maximise their potential. Parents of children with complex health needs and impairments can feel physically and socially isolated leading to increasing emotional difficulties for the parent and the child. Attending a Little Discoverers

2 If our ability to hold face-to-face visits and meetings is impacted by external events then we use other methods of communication to ensure all enquiries and referrals are responded to.

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group gives children therapy for 36 weeks a year in all aspects of their development, regular input that is vital for stimulating the development of new pathways in the brain.

Our approach is based on a unique form of early education focussing on all aspects of child development inspired by methods developed at the Peto Institute of Conductive Education in Hungary (see Appendix 1). This is a multi-sensory approach, stimulating the child’s senses and encouraging self-learning through activities and experiences that are fun for both children and their parents.

At Little Discoverers’ sessions parents and children learn the skills needed to provide motivation, communication and enjoyment of early learning through play. They are supported to break through the isolation barriers of disability and learn to communicate their emotional journey through contact with supportive professionals and other families on a weekly basis.

Children can start with us from birth and many children come to Little Discoverers under the age of twelve months and stay with us until school age. The average time that children stay with us is about 3 years. Progress is measured in small changes, for instance making eye contact, moving heads towards toys, progressing onto clapping and smiling.

As they attend our sessions children show increased independence, ability to communicate, confidence and self-esteem. Observations of older children include listening skills, playing alongside other children, sharing / turn taking, co-operative play and their response to the Team. At the end of each session, we list the achievements of each child and applaud these.

Some of our children attend nursery school and continue to come to Little Discoverers for a session each week.

The families learn the skills necessary to transfer the learning taking place in the session into the home and into the wider community of everyday activities including making the transition and integration into nursery. They receive information in many different formats - through physical activity, through illustrated information sheets and through exchanging knowledge with other parents about their child's impairment and how to

empower their child in many everyday and formal learning areas.

The parents support each other and the children make friends in an environment where they are having fun while they learn new skills. The staff work with referring professionals and monitor the outcomes of the children on a daily basis and twice a year create updated Individual Education Plans for each child.

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We support up to a maximum of 24 families at any one time in 3 sessions a week with a maximum of 8 children per session, for 36 weeks a year. Each session lasts approximately two hours including a short break for a drink and a snack.

A slow, structured session gives children time to try and to practise new skills, challenging themselves and maximising their potential. Parents feedback that large groups of active children can be intimidating, being fast moving and noisy.

Each of our sessions is planned to involve the children in programmes that look at all aspects of their development - physical, social, emotional and understanding. Themes are chosen to make these sessions fun. Development is encouraged through play, songs , art and craft. There is continuity in the staff members, encouraging attachment and attunement, the staff understanding what the child's needs are and the child learning what is required of them.

As a result of generous donations, we have been able to purchase specialist sensory and other equipment. This equipment is invaluable and continues to make a big impact on the way we can deliver our sessions.

As well as the regular sessions, we run a number of sessions to provide family and sibling support when the wider family is invited. These days help our groups of families keep in touch and help provide wider support to the children and their siblings. By putting on six sibling sessions a year, we hope to include the entire family in learning and involve the siblings in all aspects of their brother’s or sister’s development. It also gives the sibling a chance to be involved and feel important. The inclusion of the whole family is fundamental to the core values of the Little Discoverers approach and family sibling sessions are held during school holidays.

We encourage professional and parental feedback at all times, and we operate an annual formal feedback process and analyse professional and parental feedback forms to help us identify areas for improvement – these feedbacks continue to be highly positive (see Monitoring Outcomes).

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STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT

The Trustee and Management Group are all volunteers and receive no payments. Our main costs are associated with employing and maintaining the skill levels (training) of the 3 part-time members of the Team, the costs of room hire and the running costs of the sessions including purchase of resources and equipment. The voluntary Trustee and Management Group is responsible for the quality of our service provision, fundraising and approving all expenditure. All our Policies are reviewed annually on a rolling basis by the Trustee and Management Group to ensure we continue to reflect and demonstrate best practice. In addition, our staff are subject to annual appraisals the outcomes of which contribute to decisions on any pay increases that we decide we can afford to pay.

Team Member annual appraisals are undertaken by the Team Leader and the Team Leader’s annual appraisal is carried out by a Trustee. All staff appraisals are reviewed by the Trustee group.

Lynnsport provides direct support by charging a reduced room hire cost and indirectly supports us by the provision of help to establish and maintain the room we use and by organising their activities to ensure they do not disrupt our activities.

Our sessions with the children are planned and run by our Team Leader and the two Team Members who each take it in turn to plan and run sessions on a three-week rota. These are all part time roles aligned to the timings of the individual sessions with the children.

The Trustees and members of the Management Group monitor feedback from families and professionals and from nurseries and schools when children transfer to them. All the feedback continues to be very positive and constructive.

Trustees attend 6-weekly staff meetings and Trustees and members of the Management Group also observe some sessions and provide feedback.

There are monthly Trustee / Management Group meetings that the Team Leader also attends. The focus of these meetings continues to be on maintaining standards and establishing stable funding to ensure our long-term ongoing viability and as part of this, raising our visibility in the Region as an independent charity.

We maintain contact with the NANSA Centre in Norwich and share information on training and staff development opportunities when appropriate.

SAFEGUARDING

There were no safeguarding issues to report during the year.

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CHAIRMAN’s REPORT TO THE AGM

Today we celebrate the fact that for over 18 years Little Discoverers (West Norfolk School for Parents) has been providing a very much needed free service to parents and their children aged 0-5 years old with complex developmental needs. This has only been possible because of the wonderful work of our voluntary Trustees and Management Committee and dedicated staff members. To read the heartfelt comments we get through our anonymous feedback forms sent to the parents and professionals, makes us feel very proud of what we do and highlights the need for our service.

It now takes £50,000 a year to cover our costs. West Norfolk is an area with pockets of considerable social deprivation and our sessions are very important in supporting the aims of the local NHS and Norfolk County Council in reducing this and increasing services. To support us in this work we have again been given grants worth £10,000 each from these two bodies, for which we are very grateful and without which we would have great difficulty in funding our work. We hope that in the coming years this will increase in line with inflation. These grants form our main core funding which is then added to by applications and gifts from funders such as the Lottery, Children in Need, The Privy Purse and many grant making bodies. To assist in this vital fundraising, we are now paying our Team Leader for a dedicated 5 hours a week to work on this and it has proved very successful, shown by our stable bank balance. Keeping a good bank balance is very important to give financial stability to the staff, to keep providing our service so that families don’t suddenly lose their support and to cope with the vagaries of the funding systems and economic state of the country. Kat, our Team Leader now writes excellent applications which 2 members of the Trustees, Management Committee review before they are sent. This had added to the work of the volunteers, but they have taken this on without any complaint.

The Staff Team

We have a wonderful staff team who are providing an excellent service to our families, producing sessions with a range of exciting activities to keep the children and parents learning physical, social/emotional and communication skills, to keep them interested and having fun. We are now also providing our sessions for siblings free to enable all families to attend and just asking for donations if they can.

Kat Hunter has continued to do a great job in leading the team with excellent support from Pauline and Lauren the Team Members. The quality of the sessions is very impressive with a lot of work going into each child’s learning programme, increased use of Makaton signing, a large range of sensory experiences and new ideas being incorporated regularly.

All the staff had excellent appraisals and in recognition of this and the current rise in cost of living, all were given a 6% pay rise. Our staff are our greatest asset, and it is wonderful that so far, we have been able to reward them with annual increases.

The staff have also found ways of helping a range of children who may not have such complex physical needs but show more emotional and communication needs, by offering them, if space in the sessions allow, some short term (eg 6 weeks) attendance to the second part of the session. This is when there is particular emphasis on sensory motor learning.

The Management Team

We continue to have a wonderful and dedicated Management Team with members covering a wide range of skills. This year Lynn List our secretary left us and we were very fortunate to have Sally Edwards (a nurse) agree to replace her. Sally is the mother of Lilley Edwards who attended our first set of sessions in 2005 and had gone on to represent Britain in the Paralympics. A wonderful achievement. Lilley’s parents feel that having the sessions based at Lynnsport helped Lilley access sporting opportunities and helped Lilley feel more included with the local community, which is definitely one of our great aims. Lilley has also taken part in

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some YouTube videos which highlight dangers of the internet and these are now linked to our website.

Our hard working and much appreciated Trustees remain the same and all have agreed to stand again: Katie Fisher - Chair (Physiotherapist), Emma Fendley - Treasurer (Accountant), Andrew McShane (CEO), Susan Williamson (Teacher), Penny Sheerin (Solicitor).

On our Management Committee are Thomas Graves (staff at Lynnsport, wheel chair user), Jean Hale (Grandmother of child who attended Little Discoverers), Kevin Parker (Businessman), Alex Hodson (Teacher), Hazel Coley (parent of child who attended Little Discoverers and past Team Leader), Dave Carter (Designer), Megan Able (Parent) and Nikki Collins (Physiotherapist). All these people bring a wonderfully diverse range of opinions in a good-natured way, with not a single unpleasant meeting in our 18year history. A great credit to everyone.

Quality Control

The staff have continued to produce excellent anonymized case studies throughout the year and these are used for reflection and sending with grant applications, feedbacks and our Annual Report for the Charities Commission and Quarterly Reports for NHS and Norfolk County Council, which are very well received.

Our Annual Feedback Forms from parents and involved professionals are very positive (see Monitoring Outcomes). A comment from a professional who gave the service full marks; “Mum has commentated on how much peer support she gets from attending. She acknowledges that being with other parents who “get it” has been invaluable”. And a comment from a parent: “The staff at Little Discoverers are amazing. Without them and the other families I dread to think what my emotional state would be. Not only are they fantastic with all the children but they show such compassion and support to the families and will go above and beyond whenever they can to help. A fantastic charity and team”.

Staff meetings are held every 6 weeks in term times by Sue Williamson and Katie Fisher. We read and update polices, look at the annual timetable, answer queries, auditing data and data protection, check the children’s learning journals and discuss the running of the groups.

Regular training is fundamental to our activities and includes annual manual handing and back care, fire safety, using a computer, facilitation. The staff attended Makaton Signing training (This was also made available to parents and another Charity) for which we had applied for funding. The Team leader lists the other courses the staff have been involved with in her report.

The present and future

A big recent event was the move from the Dutton pavilion just before Easter, at the end of the period covered by this Annual Report, to the South Lynn Community Centre (what was previously the old St Michaels School). This was offered to us by the Council as they could see how we had outgrown the Dutton and what the problems there were of working there. The South Lynn Centre is a much better home for Little Discoverers at present. At South Lynn we share the Centre with the Charity Headway and this is working well. The only major problem is that it does not foster inclusion in the local community or sports world.

The staff now have a larger room of their own, which enables them to leave out equipment, so saving a considerable amount of time. They also have a storage room off the main room, which we fitted out with shelves and storage containers. This means for the first time our equipment is all in one place and so easier to find and look after. The staff also have a dedicated office with a desk each, which is secure and so much more pleasurable to work in than the kitchen at the Dutton. A great step up but we would still ideally like to be able to hire space in a purposebuilt Hub at Lynnsport which would help inclusiveness, reduce barriers, tackle inequalities,

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provide a route for children to move seamlessly into adapted sports and generally look to provide support for the children’s lives after Little Discoverers.

A CIO (Charitable Incorporated Organisation) was set up so that the Pelicans Hockey Club, Little Discoverers and the charity Little Miracles could work together towards building this Hub. This has been delayed while the Council looked to see if a revamp of the main Lynnsport could be achieved while still supporting the aims of the CIO. This has now been decided to not be possible, so the CIO is hoping to be moving forward with the Hub in the near future.

In May we were delighted that The Lady Dannatt, MBE, HM Lord-Lieutenant of Norfolk, was able to visit one of our sessions and are especially appreciative of the kind email that she sent following her visit.

In January 2025 we will be celebrating 20 years of providing Little Discoverers sessions and 22 years since I first set up Little Discoverers and it is at this point that I will retire from being Chair of the charity. I am sure it will survive and do well in the future without my direct leadership.

Katie Fisher BEM M.C.S.P.

24[th] May 2023

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OUR TEAM LEADER’s ANNUAL HIGHLIGHTS

Introduction

This year has presented many new and exciting times for Little Discoverers… We’ve had new faces join us on the Committee, at the end of the year a new venue to work from, a new fundraising job role and lots and lots of new referrals!

Last year we received a total of 8 new referrals, and since April 2022 we have received a whopping 28 referrals for vulnerable children in need in our area. These have come from a variety of sources, including several self-referrals, NHS and private health professionals and several have even been recommended to us from Children’s Services. We have offered places to 27 and recommended alternative services to the remaining 1. Five of these new referrals were accepted on a short-term basis. This was due to the children presenting a good level of physical ability; however, the families needed support with how to encourage their child’s communication, personal and social skills. This is something we are very proud of this year.

From April 2022 until April 2023, we have supported 40 vulnerable families in need in the West Norfolk area and from slightly further afield in Lincolnshire and Cambridgeshire too. This is in comparison to last year’s 27 families. We have supported 19 females and 21 males, and our youngest new starter of the year was just 8 weeks old!

We are inclusive of all nationalities and ethnicities and have families who use English as an additional language.

Many of our children graduated from Little Discoverers in September and started school. We have kept in touch with all these families, and we are so thrilled at the progress they are continuing to make. This year, many of our current attenders are younger, so only one child will be leaving us to attend school. We are so thankful for the hard work that his family has applied to give their child the best opportunities possible. We have loved building a relationship with them all and we so hope that they stay in touch as he embarks on his next adventure.

Sessions

Thankfully, our socially distanced sessions seem to be a thing of the past and we have had the pleasure of watching our families and children interact with one another for a whole year. This is so very important for our children to develop vital social, emotional; personal and communication skills and we are so pleased that we can provide this safe space for the children to achieve this. A positive impact from the Coronavirus pandemic has been our renewed respect for keeping one another safe. Our families have been very conscientious in keeping any bugs and illnesses at home and continuing to sanitise and wash their hands regularly.

Many of our children are extremely vulnerable and several have respiratory issues. Our new approach and thoughtfulness have ensured that the families of these children feel at ease and confident to bring their child to mix with others when they may not feel as safe in other settings. A cold to one child may just be a runny nose, to some of our children it may mean a stay in hospital.

We have so much fun at Little Discoverers! That is the beauty of what we do; the children hardly ever realise they are working hard. We use a holistic approach that considers the whole individual and their personality to support the development of each child’s social, personal, emotional, physical and communication skills. For example, we set up sensory trays to encourage them to work alongside one another. We practise skills needed at school such as turn taking and concentration during circle times. We practise speech skills and help families to access multisensory means of communication, such as the picture exchange as communication system (PECS) and sign language.

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One of the things that makes Little Discoverers a unique setting in West Norfolk is our use of Conductive Education methods. This year the staff have worked hard to explore these methods further, to give the children the best chance of developing new neural pathways for physical independence. We use our voices, our words and actions to encourage core strength, head control, rolling, sitting, taking steps and so much more!

Social Media

We believe that our increased local awareness and influx of referrals is in part thanks to our online presence and social media. We now have 84 heartfelt and informative videos available on our YouTube channel and they have accumulated more than 10,500 views!

Little Discoverers are “on the ‘gram”! A big thank you to Lauren this year for setting up and maintaining our Instagram account. Lauren has shared more than 25 posts and accumulated 150 followers in the last few months alone! This platform is really helping us to spread the word about our wonderful charity and its family and some of our videos have around 1,500 views. Thank you so much Lauren for working so hard on this and giving up your free time to ensure that our charity and its families are getting the recognition it deserves!

Fundraising

This year Kat has been lucky enough to take on a new role at Little Discoverers! Kat has been working for 5 hours a week to raise funds by applying to grant makers and funding bodies. This has been very much a team effort and a learning curve for the whole Committee. For every application and report that is written, at least two members of the management team proofread and feedback on how to make changes and give us the best chance of success. With the current cost-of-living crisis and the ongoing effect of the Coronavirus pandemic, fundraising is a challenge for every charity in 2023. This is the first time Little Discoverers have had a dedicated member of staff take on fundraising, as previously funds have been raised by the voluntary committee only. This year Kat has applied for over £200,000 worth of funds and achieved an 11% success rate of over £23,000. As our annual costs are currently around £50,000 per year, this boost in fundraising makes all the difference to our charity.

As always, we must thank all the wonderful families and friends of Little Discoverers who have taken on some mighty challenges this year! We’ve had members take part in the Great East Anglian Run, a triathlon and even the London Marathon, all in the effort to raise funds so that we may continue to support local vulnerable children and their families. Thank you all for your dedication and hard work!

Our New Home

A huge thank you must be said to all the Management Committee members who gave up their time voluntarily to help us move from the Dutton Pavilion to our new venue at the South Lynn Community Centre. The move itself went incredibly smoothly and we were so grateful for how well our team of movers worked together! We cleared the Dutton in just two days and within five days, our new venue was set up and ready to go!

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We were very sad to say goodbye to Alive Lynnsport as we have been so well looked after during our time at the Dutton Pavilion. However, the staff at the South Lynn Community Centre, along with our new neighbours at Headway, have gone above and beyond to ensure we have settled in and that the children are safe and happy!

Families

We have met so many new families this year! Our families are our inspiration and keep us working hard and striving to be better. Every parent/carer who attends sessions with their child demonstrates bravery. Many families are told that their child may never stand, walk, or talk and each one of them does the best they can to ensure their child has as much opportunity for independence as possible. We are a school for parents, but so often we are taught new methods and developments from the Mums and Dads we meet. We love hearing about other therapy techniques they have been trying or how they are using the Little Discoverers activities at home.

Families can borrow equipment from Little Discoverers over the school holidays. This is something that we are happy to say is well utilised and the benefits can really be seen when a child returns to us after a break. Often, equipment for special needs has a large price tag, so to be able to access this equipment for free is just another fantastic element of the service we provide.

We have had some fantastic sibling and family events this year! Each event has been so well attended and we have loved seeing our families mingle, bond and support one another during the school holidays. We have enjoyed our annual trip to Church Farm and a huge family play date at Little Sharks soft play centre. Families got to meet Santa on a 1:1 basis at Christmas in a relaxed and inclusive setting. We explored instruments from around the world with The Music Man and we even dived in at St. James swimming pool and had a group swimming lesson with Tracy Axall. A fabulous new development we have made this year, is that sibling and family events are now free for all!

Our families may make a small donation to the event if they wish, but we are so pleased that these events are now completely accessible - especially during the very difficult economic state.

Another way we have supported our families this year is by contributing towards petrol costs. The Hunstanton Lions kindly contributed £500 towards a fund that our families could access to support them with travel costs. This was started after a family struggled to attend due to finances and we wanted to make sure that financial circumstance could not impact a child’s opportunity to develop.

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Learning

As our Chairwoman, Katie, often tells me – we never stop learning! As medicine and technology improves, we are meeting children with much more complex conditions than ever before. We are very fortunate to work with such unique children, several of whom who are literally one in a million! This requires that the staff continue to learn, adapt, and grow to ensure we are meeting their needs and keeping them safe.

This year, if we have had spaces on our register, we have been supporting children who may have more developed physical skills, but whose parents are seeking support regarding fine motor skills, social and personal skills, and/or communication. We have learned from our families that there is a great need for speech and language therapists (SALT) and we are doing all we can to support the NHS through this. Many children who are demonstrating Autistic traits are being referred to SALT but are placed on a waiting list of around two years. We know that early intervention is key to helping these children to achieve their potential, so we have invited a total of 5 children this year on a short-term basis. Pauline has worked exceptionally hard this year to develop greater knowledge and a better understanding of Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Many of our children are being diagnosed with a dual diagnosis that includes ASD and therefore her knowledge has been so vital for many families. Pauline

took part in a 6-week course titled Understanding Autism NCFE CACHE level 2. This included 6 modules and written assessments around topics such as, learning about how individuals with autism process sensory information, understanding the characteristics that may be present in individuals with autism, commonly occurring conditions and methods of speech, language, and communication. Well done, Pauline! We are very proud of you!

At Little Discoverers we listen to our families every week and try our very best to help in whatever way we can. A common theme was occurring of families asking for help learning Makaton sign language, so we sought funding from the Norfolk Community Foundation’s ‘Love Norfolk’ and supplied free training for 15 individuals. This training was offered to our past and present families and covered 150 valuable, everyday signs. This training cost £1,600 and has already achieved some fantastic results for our children and their families.

Since the training, we have heard from several families regarding their experiences of using Makaton at home and beyond. One family explained how the child finally has a voice. The whole family have been using signs learnt on the course to communicate and they have experienced less frustration and challenging behaviour from the child. We even witnessed the child using the sign for "more" during a recent session. This simple request allows the child to have independence and feel in control in a world that may otherwise be very overwhelming for them.

Summary

We feel as though we have had one of our best years yet at Little Discoverers! We have supported more families than ever, continued to expand our online presence, broadened our learning and expertise, and moved into our new home in South Lynn. However, with extra local awareness and an increasing number of new referrals, comes more administration tasks and a greater workload for the staff. We are very hopeful that we will be able to expand our team in some way in the future, but of course with this comes a greater annual cost to the charity. We currently must raise around £50,000 per year to remain operational. This includes salaries for the three paid members of staff, room hire, training, resources and so much more. We hope

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that with continued hard work, that we will soon be able to raise the funds required to hire an additional member, but in the meantime, we welcome any volunteers who feel they may be able to contribute to the running of Little Discoverers either within the admin department or the management team.

There are many thanks to be said for the fantastic year we have had… Thank you to the Management Committee and Trustees, who work voluntarily behind the scenes to ensure local families have a safe place to learn new skills and to give their children the best chance of a bright future. Thank you to the families who place their trust and faith in our charity weekly and work so hard at home every day. It is a pleasure to share your journey with you! Finally, thank you to every supporter of Little Discoverers. Whether that be someone who has just mentioned us to a family in need, a professional who has come to visit a session, or a fundraiser that has contributed to our cause. Without the support of all of you, this vital service would simply cease to exist.

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SOME INCREDIBLE ACHIEVEMENTS

We celebrate every milestone we possibly can at Little Discoverers. We cherish every moment that a child succeeds, no matter how small, because many of them have been told that they would never have the skills they have now acquired. We meet many defeated parents who have been given the worst-case scenario of their child’s condition and therefore to help build their self-esteem and relationship with their child, we dedicate the end of each session to the achievements of every child. Here are some of their incredible stories.

Child A came to Little Discoverers after their mother was concerned that their child was not achieving their milestones at 16 months old. Child A has a diagnosis of Benign Enlargement of Subarachnoid Space (BESS) which may result in delayed motor and language delays. Upon our first meeting with the family, Child A would not make eye contact or demonstrate any acknowledgement that we were there. She stayed fixated on the television and would continually seek comfort and reassurance from Mum. Child A made occasional sounds, but struggled to communicate and their physical skills were placed at around a 10-month old’s. After just 8 months and lots of hard work from Child A’s dedicated family, we have seen a phenomenal difference in her development. Child A has several close friends in the session that she seeks out independently, she is able to bum-shuffle confidently around our space and can take independent steps whilst using the parallel bars. Child A’s speech has truly blown us away, as she will now speak in up to 4-word sentences, join in with our actions and even sing our songs! It has been such a pleasure to watch this journey and we can’t wait to see what she has in store for us next!

Child B joined Little Discoverers in 2022 on a short-term basis due to starting school in September this year. The child has good gross motor skills and can walk, run, and jump. Child B has a diagnosis of Microcephaly, which can occur because a baby’s brain has not developed properly during pregnancy or has stopped growing after birth, which results in a smaller head size. Child B can communicate verbally, but struggles with his confidence, socialising, and fine motor skills. During the 7 months that we have been working with Child B, we have seen a distinct increase in his participation and enjoyment of the sessions. Child B is now beginning to communicate verbally with staff, he uses new Makaton signs that he has learned during session time, he confidently sits on a school-like chair and joins in with our whole routine. He has also blown us away with his artistic skills and natural musical flair. We so hope that Child B continues to shine at school and beyond and we are thankful to have been a part of his journey.

Child C joined Little Discoverers in September 2022 and has a diagnosis of Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) Type 2. SMA is a rare, genetic, neuromuscular condition, that causes progressive muscle weakness and loss of movement due to muscle wasting. We feel, this child’s biggest achievement is their absolute determination to try. Her mother is her biggest cheer leader and works tirelessly to ensure their child has the best opportunity to achieve greatness. This shines through Child C who despite her daily struggles, strives to take part in every activity alongside her peers. For example, Child C was feeling tired after working hard during a recent session. She then spotted her friends taking steps along the parallel bars and proceeded to call out “I do it!”. A member of staff helped Child C to stand at the bars by supporting her hips and rocked them to transfer weight from foot to foot. Another adult helped the child move her feet so that she could take steps with her friends. The three children at the bars all took steps together and cheered each other on. It was a very special moment to be a part of!

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MONITORING OUTCOMES

The majority of children leave Little Discoverers to attend mainstream nursery and mainstream schools and our feedback indicates that we are continuing to successfully deliver in the key ‘Outcome’ areas of:

Children attending Little Discoverers sessions have varying abilities due to the nature of their disability and age. Progress is very individual to each child so each child has an individual programme and their achievements are celebrated at the end of each session and then recorded in each child’s individual learning journal.

In addition, we encourage informal feedback through comments in our Visitors Book and formal feedback through our questionnaires (now online) designed to capture Parents’ and Professionals’ views on the effectiveness of our approach to supporting each child’s development. This is the first year that we have used online instead of paper-based questionnaires and the approach has worked well.

The previous two COVID impacted years were especially challenging for our children and their parents and carers, the Little Discoverers staff and the Professionals from various Services with whom we have contact. Our inability to hold regular face-to-face sessions for most of the 2 COVID years challenged us to find ways to engage remotely with the children and their parents and as demonstrated by the Parent feedback we received during those difficult times our staff responded magnificently. Professionals’ feedback during that period was dominated by their inability to comment on our contribution to the progress of the children they were monitoring. During 2022-23 we were able to resume normal face-to-face operations and to welcome the Professionals’ to once again join us to observe the progress of the children they were supporting, and their feedback below is extremely encouraging.

The results of this year’s parent and professional questionnaires feedback are shown below.

1. Parent Feedback

Responses to our questionnaire statements. During 2022-23 it was no longer necessary to include our previous Covid related questionnaire statements but we did add an additional 11th statement to our ‘standard’ Parent Questionnaire: ‘Statement 11. Holiday Events. My wider family has benefitted from attending sibling/family events’ and responses to that are included in this year’s feedback.

For the first time all the Parent feedback questionnaires were completed online and this contributed to the increase in the number of responses received – 20 compared with last year’s total of 10.

20 (10 in 2021-22) questionnaires were completed online by parents. In total, in response to the 11 statements in each of the 20 completed questionnaires:

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Comparison with previous years Parent feedback

We identified and were able to address the reasons for the increase in Parents’ ‘Neither Agree Nor Disagree’ responses in 2018/19 and 2019/20 and the subsequent actions of our staff and the engagement of our parents and their children during the following 2 pandemic affected years meant that, as shown, we were able to continue providing an effective service even when we had to operate remotely.

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2. Professional Feedback

Responses to our questionnaire statements. During 2022-23 we added an additional 12th statement to our ‘standard’ Professional Questionnaire: ‘Statement 12. Wider Family. The wider family have benefitted from attending sibling/family events’ and responses to that are included in this year’s feedback.

7 (3 in 2021-22) questionnaires were completed and returned to Little Discoverers by professionals who had been able to return to visiting children and their families in the Little Discoverers setting.

In total, in response to the 12 statements in each of the 7 returned questionnaires:

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Comparison with previous years Professional feedback

The Professionals’ feed-back in the previous 2 pandemic impacted years highlighted the difficulty they faced in judging the benefits we deliver when they were unable to view the children in the Little Discoverers setting. Our online sessions were very well received by the parents and children but did highlight the challenge faced by the professionals when they were unable to join us. The feedback from the year under review when the professionals were able to once again engage in face-to-face sessions with families they and we were supporting is very positive.

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OUR LOCATION

This has been Little Discoverers 12[th] year at the Dutton Pavilion at Lynnsport in King’s Lynn, and we continue to be very grateful to Lynnsport and its staff for their support. However, we have been facing space constraints at the Dutton for running sessions and for the storage of our materials and equipment and a big event, at the end of the period covered by this Annual Report was our move from the Dutton Pavilion to the South Lynn Community Centre. This was offered to us by the Council as they could see how we had outgrown the Dutton and the problems of working there. From a practical point of view the South Lynn Centre is a much better home for Little Discoverers at present but a major problem is that being remote from the Lynnsport site it does not foster inclusion in the local community or sports world.

Looking further to the future we have identified the possibility of having a purpose built ‘Hub’ that would meet our and others’ needs in West Norfolk and surrounding areas. The vision is of a purpose-built Hub at Lynnsport which would support inclusiveness, reduce barriers, tackle inequalities, provide a route for children to move seamlessly into adapted sports and generally look to provide support for the children’s lives after Little Discoverers.

A CIO (Charitable Incorporated Organisation), Charity Number 1200560, has been set up so that members and supporters of the Pelicans Hockey Club, Little Discoverers and the charity Little Miracles and others can work together to raise the £3m+ funding needed to build the Hub. If built then Little Discoverers and others would rent space in it. In the meantime, the Council has looked to see if a revamp of the main Lynnsport could be achieved that would support the aims of the CIO. This has now been decided to not be possible.

During this last year the proposed Lynnsport based Adapted Sports Hub vision has been developed into a layout incorporating the requirements of groups who may want to use it. Activities are proceeding to turn the vision into reality and all support will be welcomed.

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HOW WE COMMUNICATE

OUR VIDEO

The College of West Anglia Film Department produced our current video to provide a good understanding of what we do in a session, so useful for potential families and people wishing to refer a family. We continue to receive positive feedback and are very pleased that the video has been so well received.

The families taking part have all given their written permission for the video to be used on our website.

OUR WEBSITE

www.littlediscoverers.co.uk

The web site was designed and is maintained for us by Simon Adams, son of Linda Adams who was a Member of the Management Group.

Photos of children taking part in sessions are included on the web site where parents have given written permission for this purpose.

The web site and video show clearly what takes place in a Little Discoverers’ session and how the children and carers benefit. The web site continues to be very helpful to potential families and funders.

OUR YOU TUBE CHANNEL

As an additional online resource, we have our very own Little Discoverers YouTube Channel, primarily to provide something that parents can access at home if they are unable to attend our sessions. It also enables parents to view wonderful memories, advice, tips, and a way of sharing the hard work they are doing in sessions with family, friends, and professionals.

We now have over 80 videos in total, including some that show the parents activities they can try at home such as speech skills, story massage, fine motor skills, Makaton signs and so much more. They are not only informative but continue to be a great success with the children.

SOCIAL MEDIA

A big challenge this year has been increasing our social media presence on Facebook and Instagram. We now have a public business page, with over 350 likes and 400 followers, and posts on there are often reaching over 1000 people.

We are also ‘friends’ with our current families and have a group for past attendees. Most of our families are choosing to use Facebook to communicate with us, using the Facebook messenger service as the primary source for contact. Several parents have shared events or donated equipment on both our current and past attenders’ pages, which are relevant to all families. It is lovely to see the support that our families give each other via the social media platform, and to see that it continues long after families have moved on from Little Discoverers.

Instagram has been a wonderful new addition to our social media platform. We have around 50 posts and 200 followers. Our highest viewed videos have between 1000 – 2000 views each and these numbers are growing every day.

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FINANCIAL REVIEW

I am delighted to say this financial year has been much improved on last year, with a total surplus of £1,788 (2021 – 2022 £10,397 deficit) and we have worked well within our budget. Our closing bank balances are £94,038 (2021 – 2022 £92,250).

Income

During this period income received totalled £49,740 (2021-2022 £41,359) an increase of 20% on last year.

----- Start of picture text -----
Income
Miscellaneous grants £15,000
Donations £13,823
NCC Childrens Services £10,000
NHS West Norfolk CCG £7,500
Income
Receipts from fundraising activites £2,529
Investment income £651
Other Income £237
£0 £5,000 £10,000 £15,000 £20,000
----- End of picture text -----

From the above graph you can see the largest income is from Miscellaneous grants (£15,000), this is a new budget heading and has come about because more financial work has been transferred to the Treasurer from the Team Leader and the Team Leader is now working 5 hours per week solely on grant applications and fund raising for Little Discoverers. This has worked really well and has been a brilliant first year for Kat. Well done Kat.

Donations for the year are £13,823 (2021 – 2022 £17,092) down by £3,269, fundraising activities are £2,529 (2021 – 2022 £4,173) which is down by 39%. Investment income is £651 - up by £635 (2021 – 2022 £16) a very welcome increase in interest rates for Little Discoverers.

We have received two grants for £10,000 each from Norfolk County Children’s Service (NCC) and Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) – these are the same as last year but as at the end of this financial year we had not received £2,500 from the CCG. Our Just Giving donations are 18.5% of our total donations and receipts from fund raising activities.

A massive THANK YOU to everyone who has donated or fundraised for Little Discoverers this year.

Expenditure

Our total expenditure for the year is £47,952 (2021-2022 £51,756). Our largest expense is wages and salaries and social security expenses together totalling £28,502 (£37,642 20212022) significantly down on last year. This is due to statutory maternity pay for our Team

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Leader, being refunded in this financial year reference maternity leave last year. Pension contributions are £991 (2021-2022 £499), an increase on last year as all three members of staff are now paying into the pension scheme, which we continue to pay as per the Government legislation.

Rent payable is £8,201 (2021-2022 £5,370) which includes £895 from the previous year and there has been rent increase this year of 5%.

Training costs are £2,081 (2021 – 2022 £404) this includes Makaton training at £1,600 which was funded by a Norfolk Community Foundation grant.

We have purchased some new assets (£1,878) this includes a new specialist chair for the children, a printer, shelving and set up equipment for the new venue.

Sundry costs are £4,616 (2021- 2022 £2,071) all individual expenditure is below £500 and all other costs are within acceptable levels and as expected and budgeted.

Budget analysis

Summary

This has been a successful year, with our income increasing from the previous year and this allows us to raise staff salaries to above the minimum wage. We have again not applied for the Children in Need grant within 2022-2023 but have submitted our application for 2023-2024. We are working well within our budget.

We have now moved from The Dutton Pavilion to South Lynn Community Centre. The move has and will increase our expenditure to set up the new establishment, although our room hire fees will remain the same.

Our total funds available to spend are £69,393, without restrictions. We have £3,645 in restricted balances. During the year we issued a new Reserves Policy and have increased our contingency figure to £21,000 (2021-2022 £10,000) being the higher fund balance between the Dissolutions Fund and the Continuity fund.

The trustees, management team and our members of staff will continue to carefully and regularly review the financial position and will strive to find ways to continue the good work.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank Stephenson Smart for their continued support. They have endorsed our financial management and accounting practices and are confident that they meet all the requirements as set out by the Charity Commission for England and Wales.

Emma Fendley MAAT Treasurer

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INDEPENDENT EXAMINER’s REPORT AND EXAMINED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

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Llttle Dlscoverers, West Norfolk School for Pafents Organisation Information Year ended 31 March 2023 Reglstered charlty name Little Discoverers. West Norfolk Schcol for Parents Chartty rogistsation number 1125400 Princlpal offlce clo Alive Lynnsport Greenpark Avenue King's Lynn Norfolk PE30 2NB Trustees Mrs K Fisher IGrealorex} Mrs S Williamson Mrs P Sheerin Mrs E Fendky MrA McShan8 Accountants Mr D Jaslrzebski Stephenson Smart (East Anglral Limited Chartered Accountants 22-26 King Street King's Lynn Norfolk PE30 1HJ Bankers CAF Bank Limited 25 Kings Hill Avenue Kings Hill Wesl Malling Kent ME19 4JQ LittlÈ Discoverers WNSfP 2022-23 PagÈ 28

Little Discoverers. West Norfolk School for Parents Flnanclal Statements Year ondgd 31 March 2023 Contsnts Page Independent examiners report Receipts and payments account statement of assets and liabilities Notes to the accounts Detailed receipts and payments account LittlÈ Discoverers WNSfP 2022-23 PagÈ 29

Llttlg Discoverers, West Norfolk School for Parents Indepèndent Examinerfs Report to the Trustees of Little Dis¢overers. West Norfolk S¢hool for Parents Y•ar end￿ 31 March 2023 l ￿pOrt lo the Iru518es on my exarninalion of the accounis of Little Discoverers. Wesl Nortolk School lor PaTents I'lhe charity'l for the year ended 31 March 2023 which comprise the summary of ￿ceiPtS and payments and the statement of assets and liabilities This report is made solaty to the charity's trust••s, as a body, in accordance wth section 145 of the Charities Act 2011. My work has b88n undertakan so that I might staté to thè charity's trustees thosè matters l am required to state to them in this report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent pemiitted by law. I do not accept or a55ume responsibility to anyone other than the oharty and the charrtl5 trustees as a body, for my work, for this report, or for the opinions I have formed. Responsibilities and basis of report As tho trustèes ol the ¢h8rily you affj rèspon$*le for the proparatth ol thè a¢¢ounts In a¢wrse rewrds I have no concerns and have come across no othei matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be dr￿7 in this report in order to enable a proper underslanding of the accounts to be rea¢hed. Oan JaSt￿@b$kI ACA CTA Stephanson Smart (Easi Anglial Limited 22-26 King Street King's Lynn Norfolk PE30 1 HJ 20th July 2023 LittlÈ Discoverers WNSfP 2022-23 PagÈ 30

Little Discovgr•Ys, W•st Norfolk School for Parents R•c•lpts and Payments Account Year frnd•d 31 Ma￿h 2023 2023 2022 Unrestricted Restricted Funds Funds Total Funds Total FundB R¢¢elpts Donatsons Funding Grants Receip15 from fundraising aclivili8$ Invesimenl Income 0th8r Income 12.120 18,043 1.160 13.280 18,043 15,0(KJ 2,529 651 237 49,740 17.092 20.( 15.0 4,173 16 78 41.359 237 32.639 17.101 Payments Charitable activities Governancè costs 31.605 1.248 32.853 15.098 46,703 1,248 47,951 50.220 1.536 51.756 15.098 Net recelptsllpayTr¢ntsl 12141 2.003 1,789 110.3971 FuTrJ transfers Surpluslldeficitl for year 12141 1,789 110.39n Cash lunds a131 March 2022 9).608 1.642 92.250 102.647 Cash funds at 31 IAarch 2023 .394 3.645 94.039 92.250 LittlÈ Discoverers WNSfP 2022-23 PagÈ 31

Llttle Dls¢oVè￿ts, West Norfolk School for Parents Statement of Assets and Llabllltles Year end￿ 31 March 2023 2023 2022 Unrestricted Restricted Funds Funds Total Funds Total Funds Monetary a$sg1s CAF Gold A¢count CAF Cash Account Petty cash 86,847 3,350 197 3,645 J,492 3,350 197 91.747 503 Totsl funds 90.394 3.645 94,039 92.250 Llabilltleg PAYE & NI Pension contributions 171 198 Total liabilitles 198 255 CLIENT APPROVAL We approve the financial stalemenls for the year ended 31 March 2023 and conlimi that we have mad8 available all relevant records for their preparation. 20th July 2023 Mrs K Fisher (Grealorexl on behalf of Little Discoverers. Wesl Norfolk Sehool for Parents LittlÈ Discoverers WNSfP 2022-23 PagÈ 32

Llttl• Diseoverers. We3t Norfolk School for Parènts Notes to the accounts Year ended 31 March 2023 1 R8Stricted Funds Balance at 31 March 2022 Balan¢e at 31 March 2023 Re¢èÉpts Pa￿ents Transfers Musical Se$$￿￿$ Albert Hunt Marsh Charitabl? Fund Hunstanton Li)ns Norfolk Community Fund Sibling sessions National Lottery Award fty all 1.642 1501 12.0001 13801 11751 11.6891 11.1921 19.6121 1.592 2,000 500 500 2,500 1,601 10,000 120 325 811 409 388 1,642 17,101 15,098 3.645 Fund Musical Se$s￿n9 Albert Hunt Marsh Charitable Fund Hunstsnton LK)ns Norfdk Community Fund Sibling sessions National Lottery Awaid foi all Purpose and restriction To provide mus¢l sessions For Team mernber salary For IT servicès To assist parents with travel costs For Makaton Training expenses aThJ ￿soUrceS Tts wovide sibliw 5e8sions To provide room hire and Team Leaders salary LittlÈ Discoverers WNSfP 2022-23 PagÈ 33

Lltlle Dbcovè￿rS. West Tr4ortolk School lor Par8nts D•1•11￿ recolpts and p•ym•ntS •¢¢oynt Yvar endté 31 March 2023 2023 2022 Unr•strfct•d Fund• Rostrlctsd Fun Tothl Fund¥ Total Furbd& R8c8iPi DrxBIKMIS 12.120 1.1eo 13.280 17.092 NCC CfL4dren's s8￿e$ NHS Wesl Norfclk CCG West Norfolk nls. Albert Hunt Gra Na￿￿al Lottery Award Norfolk CommuThty FouThl8iK)n Marsh Ch8riiable Fun Receipts Irtxm fundraislr¥J acb¥bts In%tslrrenl Inccn&". 8arKk Interest cthr IrK(Mi to.(Nx> 7.500 543 10.0 10.0 $43 10.CO) 10.000 2.500 2.529 4.1n 851 237 651 237 10 32.639 17.101 49.740 41.359 Payment8 Is ol charltstye atti￿$1￿5". Wa9es and sala￿$ Pension Contributions Social currty expetse Reni payable Equpmenl aThY musical se$$￿r￿a Insuran Trainin9 aTrY expenseg embership fees Travel Pnnling. P0518ge and $iatio￿ry Compukr Y￿s¢te 18.563 8.(67 26.6SO 37.282 1.852 4.676 1.925 1.852 -201 2.305 3.525 5.370 1.347 750 404 254 75 458 725 213 2.071 392 30 214 230 354 1.889 2081 30 214 230 354 159 2.533 79 General expenses Bank tharges Managemwl expenses Apaplive sw$ hub expen$e5 CowJ-1g arKI ¢￿a￿lf￿a expenses Govemance costs Pa￿11 and a¢¢wnlary costs 1.116 79 19 97 125 142 142 1.248 1.248 132.853) 115.0981 147.9511 151.7&91 P4gt rocolptsllpaymentsi 2.¢X13 1789 110 3971 LittlÈ Discoverers WNSfP 2022-23 PagÈ 34

APPENDIX 1 –CONDUCTIVE EDUCATION

Conductive Education (CE) is a holistic integrated therapy/education system which is primarily useful for children with physical disabilities that have impacted on a wide area of their development. Conditions such as Cerebral Palsy, Downs Syndrome and genetic conditions.

Andras Peto, the founder of CE, viewed children with neurological conditions as a whole, focussing not only on the body but also on the personality. He therefore chose methods of facilitation that not only made actions possible, but also developed the personality, the wish, desire and ability to be active and increased their confidence. CE perceives these children as facing a challenge of learning rather than needing treatment for a medical condition.

CE is based on the premise that despite damage to the nervous system, the brain has a degree of plasticity which gives it the capacity to form new neural connections which may take over from the damaged areas. However an active learning process stimulated by a multi sensory approach, using Rhythmical Intention (the staff use a phrase such as “I put my feet flat” to trigger a number of cognitive processes) and working in groups, is needed for this to happen.

Children without disabilities often learn quickly how to make use of their environment, how to connect with it and use it as a tool in their development. They learn to adapt and respond to the environment and its demands; in addition they learn to influence it, thus having an active interaction with the environment.

This situation however is different for children with neurological conditions. Disturbed mobility is accompanied by a challenge in their ability to perceive and understand. The impeded movement can restrict or prevent interactions with people and objects which would normally assist their development. This can result in negative experiences and frustrations which in turn affect personality. The dysfunction of the personality in turn restricts physical development and so a circle begins. CE aims to break this circle using group working, multi sensory input, facilitation using aids and equipment and programmes specific to the needs of the individual children.

The learning environment is critical to the success of skill development. The programme/sessions are structured, supportive, designed to maintain interest, to motivate, to reinforce learning, to praise and to challenge. It is important to also focus on transferring what is learned to the home environment by giving the parents the necessary skills and confidence.

Conductive Education is fun for both child and parent/carer.

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APPENDIX 2 – PARENT AND PROFESSIONAL OBSERVATIONS

1. Parent Observations

A selection of Parents’ comments:

….and some specific feedback on the Makaton training

“The Makaton training was fantastic. It will benefit me and my son to communicate and for him to build relationships with other people. I can’t thank you enough for giving me this opportunity.”

“I have found this course helpful. It will help to be able to communicate with my young brother and my autistic son when he is frustrated or distressed during a meltdown.”

“I as a parent have been desperate to learn Makaton however, I’ve not been in a financial position to do so. This course has given me the chance to be able to support and help my son in such a positive way in the future. Thank you.”

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2. Professional Observations

A selection of Professionals’ comments

The Professionals’ feed-back in the previous 2 pandemic impacted years highlighted the difficulty they faced in judging the benefits we deliver when they were unable to view the children in the Little Discoverers setting.

The feedback from the year under review when the professionals were able to once again engage in face-to-face sessions with families they and we were supporting is very positive and examples of comments from professionals who visited us during this last year are:

“Thank you for having me visit today, its great to see the children interacting together and developing new skills. I think sessions like this are invaluable for the children and families to provide opportunities to have fun whilst engaging in peer support and using important movements from a therapy point of view.

It’s so helpful for me to see what great work you do so I know if I can recommend my patients, or ask them to work on things when they are here.

So thanks again for having me and for the amazing work you do – I hope I can come back again!”

Paediatric physio - QEH.

“Another great visit today. Wonderful to meet all the children and loved today's sports theme, the water play was inspiring, and the children clearly loved it.

Fantastic team, supportive for the children and parents alike throughout the session. It is clear each session is planned using creative ideas to motivate and encourage learning.

Will not hesitate to recommend to the families I work with.”

Paediatric Physiotherapist, Movement Therapy for Kids

“I have really enjoyed visiting the session with Little Discoverers this morning. The activities have been so varied, stimulating and great fun. I enjoyed chatting with parents about why they value this session and it was amazing to watch the children moving around, joining in and having lots of fun whilst learning.”

Project Manager for Children and Young People - Norfolk and Waveney CCG

“Thank you for letting me observe your session. It was fantastic. I love how you adapt each and every part of the session to suit ALL of the children, and how you don’t force them to sit still! Love Love loved It!”

Assistant practitioner for the Children with Disablities Team, West Norfolk.

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APPENDIX 3 – ENLARGED VERSIONS OF THE PARENT AND PROFESSIONAL FEEDBACK CHARTS

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----- Start of picture text -----
– 100% of all professional responses Strongly
Agreed or Agreed with the questionnaire statements
ROFESSIONAL FEEDBACK
P
----- End of picture text -----

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