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Our Clinical Offer

Understanding the Whole Student

Every student brings different strengths, experiences, needs and aspirations. Our integrated clinical approach brings specialist expertise together with education to deepen that understanding and shape the environments and support that help every student participate, develop and thrive.

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Clinical Excellence

As part of OFG Education, our clinical approach is designed for students and guided by evidence, professional expertise and continuous learning. Through an integrated education, clinical and behaviour and culture model, we create affirming therapeutic environments that are trauma-informed, neurodiversity-affirming and focused on each student’s strengths, interests and aspirations

Our interdisciplinary clinical teams work alongside education colleagues and the Behaviour and Culture Team to translate specialist knowledge into meaningful everyday practice. Together, we aim to reduce barriers, strengthen participation and wellbeing, and prepare our students for their best future

Working in Partnership with Students and Families

Students and their families are central to our clinical approach. Individual preferences, priorities and aspirations inform assessment, planning and support, ensuring that each student remains at the centre of decision-making.

We understand that many families have experienced lengthy and, at times, challenging journeys to access the right support for their child. We work alongside families with empathy, openness and respect, ensuring every voice is valued and helping to build strong, collaborative partnerships.

Our schools offer families an opportunity to connect, share experiences and access workshops or supportive spaces. This strengthens communication, shared understanding and collaborative solution-finding across home, school and wider support networks.

Affirming Therapeutic Environments

Our aim is to create environments in which students feel safe, understood, included and able to participate. Practice is informed by our Trauma Informed Practice (TIP) and Ask, Accept, Develop® (AAD) approaches, which support colleagues to understand underlying needs, build on strengths and respond thoughtfully to communication, development and behaviour.

Reflective Practice Groups are facilitated by clinicians and provide dedicated spaces for education colleagues to pause, reflect and learn together. These sessions support colleagues wellbeing, strengthen professional curiosity and provide opportunities to explore the needs, experiences and behaviours of students through a relational, trauma-informed and neurodiversity-affirming lens.

By creating space for reflection, education teams can develop shared understanding, strengthen their practice and respond more effectively to the students they support.

Interdisciplinary Clinical Teams

Our interdisciplinary teams bring together professionals from psychology, psychological therapies, occupational therapy, speech and language therapy and other clinical disciplines. They work collaboratively with education colleagues, Behaviour and Culture specialists to develop a holistic understanding of each student and provide joined-up support across their environment.

Our clinical teams are led operationally by Regional Clinical Leads, who provide professional leadership, oversight and support across schools. Working closely with education leaders, they help ensure that clinical expertise is integrated into school culture, planning and everyday practice, rather than operating as a separate or isolated service.

This approach recognises that meaningful and sustainable change is often achieved by supporting students within their everyday environments, alongside providing enhanced or specialist intervention where needed.

Integrated Education, Clinical and Behaviour and Culture Support

A key strength of Outcomes First Schools is the integration of education, clinical and Behaviour and Culture expertise. By bringing together these complementary areas, we support schools to develop relational, inclusive, therapeutic and responsive environments where students can thrive.

The Behaviour and Culture Team works closely with clinical and education colleagues to embed evidence-informed approaches across school culture, policy and everyday practice. This includes supporting relational and inclusive practice, attendance, belonging, emotional wellbeing and positive participation in education.

This collaborative approach enables us to align clinical knowledge, educational practice and Behaviour and Culture support to create sustainable whole-school improvement. It helps ensure that support is consistent across systems and environments and embedded within student’s everyday experiences, rather than delivered in isolation.

Practice and Standards Team

Our interdisciplinary Practice and Standards Team provides leadership for the quality and development of each clinical discipline. The team leads on professional standards, clinical guidance, quality assurance, governance, service development and the sharing of effective practice across OFG Education.

The team delivers a comprehensive programme of continuing professional development, including discipline-specific learning events, professional networks, communities of practice and opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration. This helps clinicians remain connected to emerging evidence, professional guidance and developments within their fields.

Our qualified clinicians practise in accordance with the standards and ethical requirements of their relevant regulatory and professional bodies. Clinical supervision, reflective practice and continuing professional development support safe, effective and accountable practice.

Research, Evidence and Innovation

Our clinical offer is informed by research, professional expertise and the experiences of the students and families we support. We are committed to understanding what works and continually developing our approach in response to emerging evidence and best practice.

Our Advisory Board and Research, Innovation and Development Board bring together leading clinical, education and research expertise to support the ongoing development and evaluation of our approaches. This helps ensure that our work remains evidence-informed, innovative and responsive to the evolving needs of students.

By fostering a culture of curiosity, reflection and continuous learning, we support our teams to translate research into meaningful improvements in practice and outcomes.

Our Commitment

Through partnership with students and families we provide clinical support that is integrated, affirming and focused on meaningful outcomes.

By bringing together interdisciplinary expertise, evidence-informed practice and continuous learning, we create environments in which students can participate, develop and thrive.

The Clinical Practice & Standards Quality Team

  • Dr. Freya Spicer-White

    Chief Clinical Officer

  • Dr Zoe Johnson-Marsh

    Director of Practise and Standards

  • Dr Helen Hughes

    Clinical Director

  • Sarah Carpenter

    Clinical Director

Explore Our Approaches

Connect, Co-regulate,
Co-reflect (Trauma Informed Practice-TIP)

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Neurodiversity Strategy: ASK, ACCEPT, DEVELOP

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Latest Insights

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“Hearing pupils say that they feel safe, understood, and supported is incredibly rewarding. Many of our pupils have not attended school regularly for a long time, or have only managed part-time attendance, so seeing them engage positively and attend consistently is truly remarkable.”
— Amy Guest, Assistant Headteacher (SENCO), Willow Park School
“When pupils get the support and course options that suit them, they can achieve recognised qualifications in practical subjects that support their transition into adulthood and set them up for their future career.”
— Educational Quality Advisor
“My role allows me to drive innovation and enhance practice through the development of inclusive curricula and standards for sensory-informed schools, which foster participation, belonging, and meaningful engagement in learning.”
— Shirley Tudor, Head of Occupational Therapy
“I feel privileged to support our Speech and Language Therapy team and work alongside colleagues across the organisation to help create inclusive environments where every child and young person can communicate, learn, participate and be heard.”
— Lucy Shortt, Head of Speech and Language Therapy
“I value OFG’s commitment to close-to-practice research, learning from and working alongside leading experts in our field, and creating opportunities to share the incredible work happening across our schools through publications and wider sector engagement.”
— Dr Leanne Johnson, Director of Behaviour and Culture Careers Team
“Working in partnership with families, schools and multidisciplinary teams to help students thrive and achieve their potential is incredibly rewarding.”
— Lucy Shortt – Head of Speech and Language Therapy
‘What makes OFG special is the opportunity to bring together education, clinical practice, research and innovation in a way that genuinely improves outcomes for children and young people. As both a qualified teacher and clinical psychologist, I enjoy working with different disciplines and bridging different perspectives to support meaningful change.”
— Dr Leanne Johnson, Director of Behaviour and Culture

Technology & Innovation

From QTrobot to immersive classrooms, we’re pioneering the technology shaping the future of education for our students.

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Personalised Career Pathways

Trauma-informed and neurodiversity-affirming, our clinical approach nurtures well-being and celebrates every student’s strengths.

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Support & Advice

Parenting a child with SEN brings challenges and joys. Access practical, expert-backed guidance to support you both.

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