My name is Helen. I work at Brook View School, based in Wethersfield, and have been working for Exceptional Ideas for 4 Years.

My role is the Operational Senior Student Mentor and Assessment Lead at Brook View School.

As a Senior of a school, I am responsible in the running of the school, this could be anything from running daily staff briefings or debriefs to conducting multi-agency meetings around our students. As Assessment Lead of Brook View School, I work with induction and current students and parents to conduct baseline assessments to allow us to gain an understanding of each child’s attainment to ensure the curriculum is tailored to their needs. I also am part of a small in-house team that reviews each student every 10 weeks, in which my responsibility is to work with the student and staff to write targets for their Individual Education Plans. On top of these roles, I am part of a group of student mentors that work 1:1 to teach the curriculum in a fun and imaginative way using therapeutic tools to support our student’s progress.

No two days are the same at Exceptional Ideas. Creativity and outside-of-the-box thinking is celebrated and encouraged throughout the schools which is what attracted me to the role in the first place. Being a part of a small team allows me to feel fully supported in all my roles.

A huge bonus to the job is having 13 weeks off to unwind and re-energise ready for the next term! It’s not just the students that need it!

Our teams are diverse with a huge range of skills that we are continuously looking to expand on. If you are a team player, have a passion for improving the lives of young people, and enjoy a trip to the farm every now a then, this is the right company for you.

Hi! My name is Clare and I work at Primrose Hill School in Chelmsford. I have been working for this company for two years now as a student mentor. Previous job roles have included being a Learning Support Assistant in a mainstream school, teaching English in both Brazil and Denmark, and various hospitality roles.

I really like my job because I am passionate about teaching, especially when students progress and understanding is grasped, and when they are motivated and enthusiastic to learn further. Additionally, I can apply my educational background within my role and there is always the opportunity to enhance my skills further.

This job is rewarding especially when you see students make a breakthrough with something they have been working on for a while. I took this role at Exceptional Ideas as I wanted to inspire students who have diverse learning needs to go for their dreams and goals regardless of what obstacles may face them in life. With the hearing loss that I have, this is something I am very passionate about, and I endeavour to be a good role model for them.

I like how the team here at this company is supportive and comes from all walks of life, each bringing their own unique experiences, skills, abilities and personalities, making it an interesting company to work for. This company also offers staff members opportunities to progress and develop their CPD, which consists of training days. Moreover, I have had the privilege of teaching British Sign Language (BSL) to our team and this was thoroughly enjoyable.

If you love working with children and want to make a difference in their lives by being a beacon of light, offering hope and encouragement to reach their potential then why not come and join this company? We would love to hear from you!

My name is Jess, I am the Therapeutic Lead at Brook View School and have worked for Exceptional Ideas for 7 years. I started my journey as an Assistant Student Mentor and after a short time of working at Brook View School, I progressed to a Student Mentor. This meant I could have more responsibility, complete more tasks including visiting/ mentoring students with home visits if needed, and support writing new lesson plans to make them more fun. I have also extended my responsibilities, and lead in set subjects, vehicle checks, and computer maintenance.

After building in confidence, I applied for a middle management position, a role I would never have had the confidence to apply before. I have been in this post for 5 years and I love it. My role includes completing risk assessments and writing plans to support the students with life skills and understanding areas in their lives that they may find difficult.

If you are like me, you have a passion for supporting others to grow, develop, and understand themselves, enjoy completing projects in a fun way, and would like to support students to build a bright future, then look for a career in one of our therapeutic schools.