Woodley School and College

Preparing our pupils for adulthood, independence, and meaningful futures

Our post-16 learning provision is based in our main site at Woodley school and College and our satellite provision, Blossom, in Huddersfield town centre. We provide highly personalised, supportive pathways to ensure each pupil develops essential skills and confidence for their future.

A Tailored Curriculum

Our Post16 curriculum is designed around the diverse needs, strengths, and interests of our students. The updated Gatsby Benchmarks emphasise equity, personalised planning, and accessibility, and we embed these principles, alongside the key Preparation for Adulthood (PfA) outcomes throughout our curriculum.

Key Curriculum Areas

• Functional English & Maths
  Developing practical literacy and numeracy for real life contexts - including budgeting, travel, personal organisation, and communication.
• Independent Living Skills
  Focused teaching in areas such as cooking, shopping, household routines, selfcare, and safe decision making.(PfA – Independent Living and Health)
• Community Participation
  Structured trips, travel training, and supported experiences to build confidence navigating community spaces.
  (PfA – Community Inclusion)
• Personal Development & Wellbeing
  Sessions supporting self-advocacy, emotional regulation, healthy relationships, and confidence.
  (PfA – Health)
• Work experience

Work experience is a core component of our post-16 offer. Our ‘College Can Do’ sessions focus on developing pupils’ practical work skills within the school and college. Pupils may also access supported internal or external work placements. Additionally, we have our own shop in the town centre, Blossom, where some college pupils are based to develop essential work skills and experience.
(PfA – Employment)

• Developing interests
  Opportunities based around pupils’ personal interests to explore the creative arts, horticulture and enterprise.
  (PfA – Employment)

Qualifications

At Woodley we believe in recognising and celebrating the steps of progress that our pupils make throughout their school journey and in Post-16 we extend these further to prepare for moving into adulthood.

We are an accredited centre for AQA and OCR, using AQA awards for life skills at pre-entry and Entry level and OCR Entry level qualifications in English and Maths. These certificates enable our pupils to progress to their next steps with a range of accreditations to formalise their learning.

Key workers

Pupils each have a designated key worker to develop essential and effective links with families and ensure that communication is relevant and ongoing throughout pupils’ learning journey.

A key worker is a named member of staff who is the student’s main advocate in school, the first point of contact for students and their families and a key member of staff with whom other staff can liaise for advice and support. This member of staff does not work with the student all of the time, but has an overview of their daily activities, challenges and successes. They are a consistent and caring presence throughout the students’ time in college, putting their needs and welfare above everything else.

Key workers meet and greet their key student(s) each morning, ensuring students know what is happening that day and have everything they need. They also take part in students’ reflection at the end of the day before transitioning them onto their transport home.

Key workers get to know students and their families very well, contacting home at least once a week for an informal discussion around progress that week, any concerns and signposting families to any relevant information as required.

Careers, Aspirations & Future Pathways

What post-16 pupils can expect:

• A stable, well-planned careers programme including personalised guidance for pupils and families and individual destination plans for each pupil from Y9 onwards.
• Meaningful encounters with employers, employees, FE colleges, HE providers and adult social care pathways
• Workplace experiences, visits into the community, and onsite work-based learning. Work placements in the community where appropriate.
• Transition planning that uses data on aspirations and destinations to tailor individual next steps.

Our goal is to help each pupil to explore fulfilling possibilities—whether further education, supported employment, volunteering, adult social care pathways, or community-based development programmes.

Next Steps & Transitions

Transition support is continuous throughout Post16. We work closely with families, colleges, local authorities, our careers advisor and social care providers to design smooth, well-planned next steps.

Our transition planning includes:

• Visits to different colleges, training providers, and adult services;
• Person centred reviews;
• Careers advisor guidance for pupils and families;
• Individual destination plans for all pupils from Y9 onwards.

Our aspiration is that every learner moves into adulthood with confidence, skills, and a meaningful future plan.

Working Together

Success in Post‑16 education is a shared journey. We maintain strong relationships with families, therapists, employers, colleges, other professionals involved in a pupils’ care and community organisations to ensure that every learner receives a coordinated, personalised, and ambitious pathway into adulthood.

If you would like more information about our Post‑16 pathways, curriculum, or transition support, please contact our team—we’re here to help every step of the way.