The Place Programme | Support for Home Based Learning

Corona Virus Update

Support for home based learners from early years up to GCSE

PLACE is a Bedford Local Authority support service for home educating families managed by Biddenham International School and Sports College. To be eligible to register with the scheme, children should be Bedford Borough residents on the elective home education (EHE) register of the Bedford Borough local authority.

The PLACE Progamme provides significant support for PLACE-registered GCSE learners, including part-time specialist support for a number of GCSE subjects and entrance for public examinations.

PLACE also runs a busy enrichment programme for enrolled youngsters from ages four to sixteen and, in addition, provides guidance and signposting for special educational needs issues.

Back in the LabsMay 26, 2021PLACE families are now back face-to-face in the lab after being on-line for more than a year. It is this lab work which reminds us how vital the ‘hands-on’ experience is when it comes to learning science. In attendance at one of our lab sessions was PLACE manager June McDonald, who took a typically ‘hands-on’ approach resulting in a hair raising experience… It is hoped that by mid-June all of our GCSE courses will be back face to face. PLACE sporting activities such as multisports, swimming classes, gymnastics and trampoline have been “live” since April. When restrictions ease further, our programme of arts activities will also resume face-to-face....
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Chris PulestonMarch 11, 2020One of the things we are trying to do with PLACE music is to give our youngsters as diverse and accessible a musical experience as possible and to encourage them to feel that they can all find something in music to enjoy and with which to get involved. To this end, our music tutor Debbie Milton invited multi-instrumentalist Chris Puleston along to one of our sessions. Chris is nothing if not diverse – when did you last see a sitar, didgeridoo and Tibetan singing bowl all on the same bill? This was such an exciting session for our youngsters, with Chris demonstrating instruments and music from across many cultures. Chris is a wonderful entertainer who demonstrated a great rapport with his young audience and got everyone fired up and actively engaged! Have a look at the little videos below to see Chris and the PLACE kids (and some mums!) in action. And as a bonus, a few photos of our session …...
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Audley End HouseFebruary 28, 2020This term’s theme is “The 19th Century”. To help us to explore this period, we visited Audley End, one of the nation’s grand country houses. Our visit focussed on the role of the servant on these great estates. Working as a servant in a stately home was considered to be a ‘good job’ – mainly because the food was of high quality and clothes were provided in the form of house uniforms – but the hours were long, the pay for most was poor (especially for women) and there was no job security. Servants could be sacked for a trivial misdemeanour or on the whim of the master. It was a time when a long and happy life was for the few, not the many, and those who worked hard to create wealth saw few of the benefits. It wasn’t until the political changes of the next century that we started to see a fairer society, and Audley End was then taken into public ownership … but that’s another story and another visit, e.g., Manchester in July… Here are a few “below stairs” photos of our visit: ...
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Silly Sock DayFebruary 16, 2020Autism Beds has operated for 25 years and works hard to improve the lives of Beds folk with autism. The charity provides social activities, helps to improve skills, runs a helpline, training courses for parents and autism awareness training for professionals. PLEASE SUPPORT THEM AND THEIR WORK and wear your most silly socks to PLACE activities on and around 2nd April – and please donate a little money to assist their sterling efforts!...
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PLACE Kids Make Big MoneyFebruary 2, 2020To celebrate the launch of the new £20 note featuring JMW Turner (possibly Britain’s most famous painter), PLACE decided to commemorate the event with a larger-than-life mural. The event was led by our long-time arts tutor, Paul Nicholson, who took PLACE youngsters through a little history of Turner and his links with Bedford, and then coordinated the creation of the mural. Below are a few snaps of the event … Thanks, Paul, for giving us this exercise in: history, art, teamwork – and counterfeiting (no, not the last one – that would be wrong)....
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Not just bricks …December 12, 2019As part of our autumn “Engineering” theme, we were visited by “Creative Builders”. Creative Builders offer hands-on workshops with a HUGE amount of bricks and equipment enabling youngsters to design and build using LEGO® bricks. Workshops like this give our youngsters a chance to develop a whole range of skills: teamworking, creative thinking, following a plan, and communication skills. Lego – it’s not just bricks! And, of course, on top of all this skill development, everyone had a great time – thanks in no small part to our workshop leader, Stephen Pilling. Many thanks, Stephen! Have a look at our gallery below to see Lego work in progress – and the finished articles. ...
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