ABOUT US

St Philip's School provides residential care and education for boys between the ages of 12 and 16. It is run by a voluntary board of managers and is a registered charity (SCO 30019) and is currently registered for 38 residential placements.

St Philip's School is an approved examination centre with the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) and is registered with the Care Commission and is inspected twice yearly by the Care Commission and at regular intervals by Her Majesty Inspection for Education (HMIE).

The school has 4 residential units' currently in use. Morar unit and Mallaig unit house 11 boys and Arasaig unit caters for 6 boys who require intensive support. Each young person has his own room and in Arasaig all rooms have en-suite toilet and shower facilities. Each unit has its own living/dining/kitchen area with each unit having visiting and activities facilities.

The gatehouse caters for 2 young people who are preparing to leave residential care. This throughcare project offers a wide range of opportunities which relate to their future, e.g. financial planning, employment, cooking etc.

St Philip's school offers each young person an Individualised Education Programme, which is designed to identify and support progress towards achievable educational targets. Young people are supported and encouraged to undertake examinations leading to recognized awards.

The Education Department works closely with the In-House Psychological Service and Care Staff in supporting the Educational and Social needs of the young people.

The staff pupil ratio is 1:6 but in reality, with classroom assistants and day support from a dedicated residential care team who also work in classes, the ratio is often 1: 3/4.

The school offer a wide range of subjects including English, Mathematics, Science including aspects of Biology, Chemistry and Physics, Social Subjects, Physical Education, Home Economics, practical Craft Skills, Information Technology, Art and Motor Vehicle Mechanics. Individual tuition is also made available in other specialist areas such as music.

A new purpose motor vehicle maintenance learning centre is being constructed partly funded through a grant from the Scottish Government. Learning Support is available to Young People as appropriate.

All teaching staff are well qualified and registered with the General Teaching Council of Scotland (GTC).

All pupils have an Individual Education Plan (IEP) which incorporates targets set in all subjects and which is used by teachers, care staff and pupils at regular meetings which monitor progress. The plan is also used to inform parents and carers at Open days and Parents? Meetings as well as external agencies such as social work.

When a young person is admitted to St Philip?s, a proportion of the first weeks will involve an Initial Assessment to establish a baseline and achievable targets for an Individualised Education Plan. Pupils have access to Standard Grade, Access 2, 3 and Intermediate 1 across the curriculum.

Morar Unit

Morar offers 11 places to young people usually of age 12-14 yrs who have a history of trauma and non-offending behaviour. Programmes offered include life skills and anger management.

Mallaig Unit

Mallaig is designed for young people of age 14-16yrs where the focus is dealing with offending behaviour using a restorative justice model. Programme intervention is supported by our psychological service. 11 young people can be accommodated in this unit.

Arasaig Unit

Arasaig is a solution focused unit which caters for 6 young people age 12-16yrs. Work in the unit is usually short term, targeted intervention, based on an integrated multi-model approach. Staff have been trained in Neuro Linguistic Programming which helps young people learn techniques to change their attitudes, beliefs and behaviours and to develop problem solving skills and resilience.