A Nottingham principal has shared the importance of alternative provision after winning a national award for her school's innovative teaching. Kerrie Henton, principal of Stone Soup Academy, in High Pavement, was awarded one of the eight Inspirational Educator Awards by The Worshipful Company of Educators for her "outstanding contribution" to the alternative learning provision.
Speaking of the award body, Kerrie said: "They focus on education but each year they have a different category that they focus on and this year they have shined a light on alternative provision." Stone Soup Academy is a secondary school in Nottingham known for its unique approach to education, and has won several awards for its teaching.
Kerrie said: "The work we are doing is very innovative, such as our pastoral sixth form, the work we do with virtual reality across our subjects and the work that we do externally with many partners across Nottingham that all add breadth and quality to the educational provision and would be a bit different to the normal really." Kerrie explained that it is important for alternative provisions to think outside the box in order to better capture the attention of its students and encourage them to learn.
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She explained: "If we can provide an education that is innovative and engaging for them then they are more likely to participate in that education. It is through that participation that enables our young people to make sure great progress and achieve so much.
"It's about how everything we do stems for what is best for the young people, and it just happens that what we do is different and innovative and allows us to gain recognition nationally, which makes me very proud of the academy. When we win an award we celebrate that as an academy and show that in our awards cabinet at the front of the academy.
"What's really important is that these young people come from mainstream where they see the quality in the mainstream that they are going to, and that they see that alternative provision is not a step down from what they have been used to and can actually provide them a quality education that in some aspects will meet their needs really well and allow them to achieve."
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