Tiverton School
WPH CHARITABLE TRUST AWARDS £6,000 TO SENSORY PROJECT
Children with learning difficulties at Coventry’s Tiverton School are enjoying state-of-the art sensory facilities in their new premises with the help of the WPH Charitable Trust.
The primary school, which has relocated from Kingsbury Road in Coundon to the site of the former Alice Stevens School in Ashington Grove, Whitley, was awarded £6,000 from the Trust.
The money has helped pay for a sensory room and sensory integration room within the new £10.5 million school, whose pupils range from three to 11 years old.
Carolyn Claridge, headteacher at Tiverton School, said the facility will allow the children, many of whom are vulnerable with additional needs such as medical conditions, physical conditions, sensory disabilities and autism, to learn and socialise in a motivating, exciting and relevant environment.
The sensory room is a key area which aims to stimulate the children’s five senses – sight, sound, touch, smell and taste – as well as more abstract senses such as wellbeing, space, time and the feeling of togetherness.
Carolyn said: “The provision of a sensory room enables the children to engage in whatever way is best for them at any given moment in time – to completely relax, or to interact with and control all the elements.
“It enables the children with any degree of disability to change and influence their environment in a positive way. Use of such an environment can help them to begin to make choices and to develop ways of communicating to begin to take control.
“It also provides a calm space for children who may have become distressed or upset. At such times, a calming environment can promote a greater sense of health and wellbeing.”
Costing a total £40,000 the sensory area is among a whole host of new facilities which will allow Tiverton School to increase its intake. Already since the move, pupil numbers have increased from 42 to 60, and the number is set to rise to 70 between now and September this year.
Tracey Bawden from Friends of Tiverton, said: “We are so grateful to WPH for their support in funding this project. We know that there will be significant benefits for our pupils in using these new resources to enhance their learning and enjoyment. Without this support it would not have been possible to develop these areas using the school’s allocated budget alone.”
The WPH Charitable Trust provides funding for groups and individuals who work to prevent, relieve and cure sickness in Coventry and Warwickshire. The Trust provides grants for medical research, buildings, equipment and other forms of medical care for residents of the region. All applications are made via the Trust’s website and are assessed on a quarterly basis.
For further details log on to our website
Alternatively, applications can be sent by post to: Secretary to the WPH Charitable Trust, c/o Blythe Liggins, Edmund House, Rugby Road, Leamington Spa, CV32 6EL.
