Our Learning Mentors work within our school to help children and families with any difficulties they may be experiencing. They are here to listen, offer support and practical advice. Learning Mentors are also able to promote positive behaviour, offer encouragement and build self-esteem, resilience and confidence. Our Learning Mentors work with individuals, groups of children, teachers, other members of staff, parents/carers and external agencies. The role of the Learning Mentor is to build confidence, raise self-esteem, build resilience and motivation, improve social skills, form relationships with friends, family and staff, improve attendance and punctuality, remove barriers to learning as well as help children achieve their potential. These are some of the strategies that the Learning mentors use:

• 1:1 mentoring sessions to discuss problems and address how these may be overcome
• Individual sessions focusing on particular issues such as behaviour, bullying, attendance etc
• Group activities - focusing on specific areas, such as resilience, self-esteem, friendships etc
• Utilisation of childs own hobbies or interests to enhance performance
• Liaise with parents and other agencies where necessary

Miss Bestford

Miss Bestford has over 10 years’ experience working with primary-aged children, and has been at Oxley Park Academy for over 8 years.

“My role focuses on supporting children with behavioural, social, emotional needs and special educational needs, working with them to support the development of their well-being and thus enabling them to reach their potential. As a learning mentor, I am here to support your child by supporting you as a parent during your child’s time at Oxley Park Academy. My role primarily focuses on helping children overcome barriers that may prevent them from gaining the most benefit and thriving from their time at school.”

Miss Bestford

Miss Robinson

Miss Robinson has been at Oxley Park Academy for 8 years working with primary-aged children in a variety of roles.

“I am here to offer support and guidance to you and your child to help overcome any factors that are preventing them from accessing their learning and getting the most out of their time at our school. Whether it be behavioural, emotional, social or SEN, I aim to provide support that’s as individual as your child and suitable for a diverse range of needs. I’m fully aware of the challenges we all face as parents and believe that by working together we can provide the best care for our children.”

Miss Robinson

This is a daily drop-in session during lunch break and works on fostering friendships and developing positive relations amongst the children. We provide a ‘safe environment’ where children can talk freely about their accomplishments, ideas, concerns, and stories. The group meets in The Treehouse with a Learning Mentor or Play Therapist. We practise polite manners and conversations. The students are encouraged to share something that makes them happy, excited or loving and then something that is bothering them, or makes them sad, angry or frustrated. We work on ‘feeling’ words vocabulary and then open the floor for questions or comments. We are learning to listen silently, share the stage, and offer support to our friends.

We offer a variety of parent sessions meetings and drop-ins.

Please contact reception for details of our forthcoming sessions.

Mental Health Foundation

NHS: Children and young people's mental health services (CYPMHS) information for parents and carers

Mind: Parenting with a mental health problem