Staff at the Grafton Centre are celebrating Condover College’s recent recognition at the Natspec Innovation Awards, where they won the award for Innovative Interdisciplinary Working. This win highlights the college’s groundbreaking approach to integrating physiotherapy and speech and language therapy, two disciplines that traditionally operate independently. By combining these therapies and embedding them into learning activities, staff have created a personalised, holistic approach that has had a significant impact on students with profound and multiple learning disabilities (PMLD).
Lorraine Mulroney who judged this award noted, “Condover College staff and students past and present should be proud of the work they have done in ensuring that interdisciplinary working is at the heart of what they do. The fact that this been driven by listening to student’s experience is what matters. They have truly worked their magic to combine physiotherapy and speech and language therapy (which is not common practice between professions) to ensure a personalised and holistic approach delivers impact and progress for all students. Speech Language and Communication is the key to everything! This way of working has shown wider benefits to all staff and students.”
The success of Condover College not only underscores the value of listening to students and tailoring education to their needs but also demonstrates how collaboration between disciplines can deliver more effective and meaningful results for student with complex needs. For staff at the Grafton Centre, this win is a source of immense pride and inspiration, and Tracy Gillett Director of Education had this to say “We are so pleased that our person-centred approach to delivering and embedding therapies into education has been recognised in this way. We have an amazing team of expert staff at the Grafton centre who work in collaboration to maximise the impact that therapy can have on each learners’ progress”.
