Parent & Carer Handbook
Welcome to the Parent & Carer Handbook section of our website. This area is designed to provide you with quick access to information or answers to questions you may have.
It will help you understand a bit more about how life at Lighthouse Futures Trust works and what your young person will be doing.
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Some things you need to know
Safeguarding
Everyone has an important role to play in safeguarding the welfare of children and vulnerable adults and preventing their abuse. As well as our Designated Safeguarding Lead and Deputies, all staff receive regular safeguarding training. Our Safeguarding Policy is available to read here.
We also follow the ‘Prevent Duty’ guidance, training staff to spot signs of radicalisation, exploitation and grooming as part of a national counter-terrorism approach. The college promotes the British values of understanding and respecting the law, nurturing mutual respect, individual liberty, tolerance of other beliefs, equality, and democracy.
Attendance
Interns are expected to arrive on time and actively engage in all areas of college. This is key to preparing them for the world of work but also means they will get the most out of their time with us. If they miss sessions or tutorials, they miss vital coursework and could fall behind. It is particularly important they achieve 100% attendance during examination periods.
Our Attendance Policy can be found here, and we ask parents and carers to arrange activities, such as those listed below, outside of college or internship time:
- Doctors and dentist appointments
- Driving lessons and/or theory tests
- Holidays
If you do need to organise an emergency medical appointment or know your young person may be late arriving to college, call us on 0113 340 0006 between 8am and 9am.
If an intern is having a significant number of unathorised absences, this could result in:
- Withdrawal of any financial assistance, such as bursaries
- Interns being withdrawn from the programme
- Interns being subject to our disciplinary procedures for poor attendance
- Parents and carers being charged for examination fees if interns are absent without authorisation, during the exam period
- Parents and carers being charged for paid-for trips and activities if interns are absent without authorisation and are frequently absent
Dress code
When interns are at college, we operate a smart casual dress code for everyone attending sessions at Carlton House and White Rose House. We want our young people to be comfortable, but as we are often on visits to employer sites and other locations around the city, we ask that everyone be presentable at all times. This also helps the students to become more accustomed to dress codes that employers may require during their internships.
We understand that some students may also need to wear specific items of clothing as part of their condition and/or coping mechanism and we ask that staff are made aware of this. Please note that these items will be acceptable providing that they do not create a risk to themselves or others.
Whilst on supported internships, dress code will vary according to their employer. This can range from business dress, such as a suit, to smart casual which is increasingly the norm within business and usually consists of items such as smart trousers and a shirt etc. This will be discussed with students once their placement is agreed but please do plan accordingly for potentially purchasing new ‘work’ clothes.
Food and shopping
Pre-Interns: Interns have access to an on-site kitchen which is monitored by staff. Many bring their own packed lunch. For those in receipt of a bursary, lunch will be provided and will include a sandwich, crisps, fruit, snack bar and a drink.
Some interns walk into Headingley town centre (5-minute walk) to buy their lunch. If an intern is under 18, we require parental permission for them to leave college at lunchtime as they are not accompanied by staff.
If being able to shop independently is part of an intern’s Education, Health and Care Plan goals, we will offer a phased approach whereby staff will accompany them to buy lunch until they, and staff, are comfortable and confident in shopping independently.
If interns are over 18, and you have concerns about them leaving college unaccompanied, please speak to us about this during induction.
Supported Internships: The facilities and options vary considerably across employer sites. Some offer free or subsidised meals, others provide kitchen facilities for interns to bring their own food. Most sites have on-site or nearby shops where interns can purchase their own food.
For those in receipt of a bursary, arrangements will be made for lunch to be purchased. Dietary requirements will be catered for as far as possible.
Careers
As a college with a focus on supporting all students to move into paid employment, providing advice about options is high priority. Our dedicated employability job coach is a qualified careers advisor. They provide direct support, via one-to-one meetings and group sessions and are responsible for ensuring all job coaches are trained in the effective provision of appropriate advice and guidance. Staff are then able to offer confidential and impartial advice and guidance to support all aspects of career planning.
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Personal development and independence
Trips and visits
A key part of our programme is encouraging independence for all students and developing their understanding of the world of work.
The pre-internship programme has a clear focus on introducing students to a range of opportunities linked to employability. This includes inviting employers to visit us at college, as well as taking students out to visit employer and other sites.
At the beginning of each term, we will provide parents with a list of planned visits and a single permission form (for those that require permission) which will be used for all visits. We carry out detailed risk assessments before we embark on any trip or visit and ensure that the staff to student ratio is appropriate. We either use public transport or our own minibus, ensuring all drivers have appropriate training and that our insurance is in place.
Student safety
We take the safety and security of all students very seriously. We have a signing in and out process on all our sites, and staff and students wear badges/lanyards at all times when on college premises.
ID cards are issued to each student during their induction period, and they must be displayed at all times. If a student forgets to wear or loses their card, they will need to obtain a temporary or replacement card to enable them to enter our buildings.
Enrichment activities
The college follows a programme called Preparing for Adulthood which has four parts: Employment, Independent Living, Community Inclusion, and Health.
We know how important it is to be able to also help students develop self-confidence, gain independence and make friends. Whilst much of this is delivered via our day-to-day curriculum, we also have activities that take place outside of standard college hours.
Access to all on-site activities is free of charge, although students will need to be independent travellers, or will need to have arrangements to pick them up in place. Please note, that if you use paid-for transport for the local authority, they do not extend provision to pick up from after-college activities.
The range of activities can change each academic year, depending on what our students would like to do, with some taking place weekly, fortnightly, and monthly. See later in the handbook for this year’s timetable.
We also run a club called Connections Club for current and former students. This monthly club, often in Leeds city centre, requires students to be independent and all activities need to be paid for on an individual basis. More details later.
Intern welfare
We have three dedicated members of staff available to support intern welfare, providing help and advice on a wide range of issues, other than academic matters, which can affect life at college.
SENDCo: Our SENDCo is responsible for ensuring we are responding to any medical or behavioural needs, and that we are delivering on the key aspects of interns’ Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP).
Pastoral: Our Pastoral Lead and Safeguarding Officer focuses on the social, emotional and mental health of interns, and manages any incidents.
Counselling: We commission a qualified counsellor who provides free, confidential talking therapy to interns at the college. Young people can self-refer or be referred via their job coach. The counselling provision offers an initial series of up to eight 50-minute sessions, which are either face-to-face in our dedicated counselling room, or online. Our counsellor works in a person-centred way, with a neuro-affirming and flexible approach, tailoring the sessions according to each individual’s need.