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IN TOUCH – The New Principal of New College Worcester, Smaller Guide Dog Organisations

TX:Ìý 07.02.2023Ìý 2040-2100

PRESENTER:Ìý ÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌý PETER WHITE

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PRODUCER:Ìý ÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌý BETH HEMMINGS

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White

Good evening.Ìý Tonight, after our story about the woman who trained her own guide dog, we look at a couple of the organisations who are offering alternatives for people trying to avoid long waiting lists for a new or first dog.

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Seeing Dogs focus on one thing and one thing alone and that is training dogs to guide blind and partially sighted people.Ìý I was given Barney in 2016 and I waited about six months from the moment of application.Ìý It’s worth noting, I’d never had a dog before.

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White

But, before that, the principal of New College Worcester has just completed her first term in the job.Ìý The education of blind children has undergone something of a revolution over the past 50 years or so, with a greater emphasis on blind and partially sighted students being educated in mainstream schools.Ìý But, there’s been a residential school for visually impaired pupils at Worcester for over 150 years.Ìý Initially for boys, now co-educational, independent and run by a trust.Ìý New College Worcester continues to believe that it has skills to offer students that the mainstream model can’t.Ìý It offers secondary education up to university level and training for independent living.Ìý While last September Rachel Perks took over as the new head.

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Rachel, first of all, I mean, what attracted you to the job?

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Perks

Well, it’s a journey that I’ve been on personally since I was born because I was born with a vision impairment myself and I received support from the RNIB.Ìý I then went on to have surgery, so, vision impairment is something that’s been – that is – and remains, quite close to my heart.Ìý My previous experience was in a residential school for children with SEND and I could really see the real benefit in a waking day curriculum.Ìý I’d been fortunate enough, as well, to have some interactions with some of the students here and just their whole attitude to education was something that really inspired me.

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White

Well, you’ve now been there for just over a term, starting your second, what are your initial impressions?Ìý I mean any surprises compared with what you were expecting?

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Perks

Oh, my initial impressions?Ìý It’s a really happy, vibrant and inclusive place.Ìý And I think, probably, I’m more surprised by the level of opportunities.Ìý Nothing is a barrier.Ìý Where it is a barrier, we just work hard to overcome it.Ìý A little example is that students are off skiing in a couple of weeks, I tell some of my other colleagues, my other friends in other schools, and they say – how does that work, how do you do your risk assessment for that.Ìý And we just overcome it.Ìý Giving opportunities is the thing that really, really is what drives me to be here and drives the staff to be here as well.

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White

It’s interesting that you mention risk assessments because there was an Ofsted report on the college based on an inspection, before you took over, which while very complementary in many respects about the atmosphere at the school and the level of help offered to the pupils, both while at school and even after they’ve left, still said there were areas which needed improvement and they referred specifically to the effectiveness of leaders and managers which they said required improvement to be rated as good to comply with the minimum standards required by residential special schools.Ìý And one of the things they talked about was risk assessments and the whole idea of documentation.Ìý I mean what do you say to that?

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Perks

Well, we’ve come quite a way since that report was written.Ìý So, we’ve had our return visit from Ofsted in November and they recognised the good progress that’s been made, they say that safeguarding is effective.Ìý And I think really it’s an area now that all schools have to be good at and it is only right that our safeguarding procedures should be as good and better as they possibly can be.Ìý A school like New College Worcester has two different Ofsted ratings, so it’s seen annually for residential and the rating for that is Good and Ofsted has returned in November ’22 and we’re making good progress towards coming out of the category that we find ourselves in at the moment.

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White

So, was there maybe a bit of an attitude of well, we know what we’re doing and we are safeguarding?Ìý Because what they seemed to imply was risks were identified but there weren’t always records about how they’d been followed up or how plans that had been made had been followed up?

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Perks

I think that’s true to a certain extent.Ìý That first Ofsted, that you’re referring to, was after the period of covid, I think a lot of schools were managing or had just come out of that period where keeping children safe and educating them online was the first priority.Ìý And we’d obviously got a new Ofsted framework, as well, which had taken many schools by surprise. ÌýNow lots of schools have gone from Outstanding to less than outstanding, that’s something that’s captured the national press recently.Ìý So, I think we were – we were a victim of that as well.Ìý But there are improvements to be made.

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White

What are your views about the long-term viability of the college?Ìý And I ask you that because given the recognised reluctance of some local authorities to finance pupils – and the fees are high, they’re comparable with the most expensive public and private schools in the UK – and also local authorities’ argument that we have adequate provision in our own area.Ìý What do you say to that?

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Perks

We’re looking at a 10 year plan and a business model that moves beyond the amount of children that are onsite and instead, over time, will move towards much more of a partnership and further developed outreach model but maintaining the expertise onsite and maintaining the school with its residential provision.Ìý I would challenge you a little bit in terms of the cost of fees there, Peter.Ìý It’s something that we know that we have to be competitive with.Ìý Some of the other provisions for students, perhaps, with other needs cost more money.Ìý I think we’re comparable to a lot of schools for the expertise that we provide, I really do.Ìý I wouldn’t disagree with you that a lot of students are catered very well for in mainstream, I would never deny that but I do think that New College Worcester offers a wonderful place for students for whom that isn’t the case.

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White

So, are you saying that with this 10 year plan with greater outreach and so forth, are you trying to, in a way, cover that argument by offering the best of both worlds – a residential centre where you can offer very specialised teaching but also more contact with the community that you live in?

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Perks

Absolutely.Ìý I think that you’ve got to recognise that New College Worcester is unique in the fact that it’s charity, a school and a business and like any business it has to keep evolving.

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White

The Ofsted report dwells quite a lot on the recognition of risks and dangers.Ìý I have to say that my own experience of the school, because I did actually go there a long time ago, was the amount of freedom which we were given, which I felt, in retrospect, prepared me for the risky business that is life as a visually impaired adult.Ìý Do you feel there is a tension between safeguarding, which obviously is taken very seriously, and preparing your students for real life?

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Perks

There is a tension.Ìý For us it’s about what can we do to mitigate the risk whilst ensuring that our students have the best possible access that they can have to a sighted world, in effect.Ìý And sometimes that’s not possible.Ìý But we find that a lot of the time it is.

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White

Any innovations that you want to bring in, either because you’ve seen something that’s not there at the moment or something that’s just something you’re very enthusiastic – any changed we can expect?Ìý You’ve mentioned a 10-year plan but I wondered on a more kind of individual down to earth basis.

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Perks

I would say not at the moment, we’re on a wonderful site and that 10-year plan is something that I hope to be able to talk to you about in future opportunities really, Peter.Ìý We’re looking towards and growing changing, not being complacent, we want to think big.Ìý I would say in the short-term it’s our links with other schools in Worcestershire that is something that we’re really working on to provide meaningful engagement for our students.Ìý So, we’ve got some wonderful links with other schools, other secondary schools, where we’re joining with them for university talks and visits, for PE activities, parliament trips and those are the types of things where we’re focused on, perhaps, in the short-term.

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White

Rachel Perks, thank you very much indeed.

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Now, a couple of weeks ago, we talked to Isabel Holdsworth about the pros and cons of training your own guide dog.Ìý And on that programme the major charity for training guide dog partnerships, in this country, admitted that with their waiting lists as high as they are, they could quite understand why some people would look for alternative strategies for getting a dog.Ìý So, we decided to look at a couple of those alternatives.Ìý In a moment, I’m going to be talking to a representative of Pawtected, now that’s an organisation which offers advice and virtual training to people wanting to go it alone.Ìý But first, the Seeing Dogs Alliance.Ìý I’m joined by a trustee of the organisation and a former trainer of guide dogs who worked for the Guide Dog’s charity for many years – Neil Ewart.

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Now, Neil, the alliance really grew out of the Guide Dogs Association I guess, so, how did it start and why?

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Ewart

Well, it first started quite a few years ago and it was a group of guide dog owners, I think, they felt they were not happy with it being a monopoly and they wondered whether they could do better and instead of moaning and groaning they actually got up, did something and formed the charity.

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White

So, the idea was really that there should be a choice, that people should have alternatives?

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Ewart

I think that’s a fair comment, yes.

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White

So, what does it offer – what does it offer and what doesn’t it offer?

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Ewart

Right, well because we’re small we’re able to offer a very personal service I think, that’s fair to say.Ìý Our training is certainly up to the standard of anybody else and I would say, to clarify that, we have been accepted as members of the International Federation of Guide Dog Schools, which means we’ve had to meet their very strict criteria and be inspected.Ìý What we’re not able to offer are too many financial incentives because we simply haven’t got the money.Ìý Every penny we get, really, goes on obtaining and training dogs and trying to get more and more people through the system.

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White

So, what that means is perhaps things like vets’ fees, those kinds of things?

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Ewart

Indeed.Ìý We know what it costs to train a dog and to train a person pretty well, it’s the unexpected and you’re absolutely spot on when we you mention vets’ fees.Ìý We have struggled to get vets’ insurance and we’re still working on it.Ìý And, of course, we’ve got some puppies that walk now.Ìý When the unexpected happens, it can certainly deplete our finances.Ìý We have now three instructors, which is an increase of two.Ìý They’re all ex-Guide Dogs for the Blind.Ìý And a figure you might like, with myself and the three instructors, between us, we’ve got 148 years’ experience training guide dogs.

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White

I guess your problem really is the one that you’ve identified – size and resources – because, after all, if you had a surge in membership you would end up with the same problem as Guide Dogs wouldn’t you – longer and longer waiting lists?

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Ewart

Exactly.Ìý At the moment, our waiting lists are pretty well closed and there is a sound reason for this.Ìý We don’t want to be dishonest with people who might apply for a dog and then find they can’t get one.Ìý So, we pace ourselves and we also do give anybody that’s had a dog already with us absolute priority when it comes to replacing the dog.Ìý So, we hope that they’re only 24 hours without a dog.Ìý By doing very thorough aftercare trips, you know, when a dog’s beginning to get on a bit, you can generally work out when that dog needs to retire.Ìý We don’t want to take away anybody’s independence.Ìý But it does mean, of course, the pressure’s on for newcomers.Ìý But it’s something we just need to battle with and keep working at, which we’re determined to do.

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White

Well, also with us is Stephen Anderson.Ìý Stephen, you’re on your first dog but what was it that made you go down the route of the Seeing Dogs Alliance?

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Anderson

The main reason, really, was that I had a girlfriend at the time who had been with the leading organisation and then moved over to Seeing Dogs.Ìý There were several things that really stuck out.Ìý One of them was that Seeing Dogs focus on one thing and one thing along and that is training dogs to guide blind and partially sighted people.Ìý Also, the cost of training and any fundraising that may need to go towards that is significantly lower.Ìý I also, greatly value, as somebody who, in the years gone by, had been a dog owner myself, I appreciate the total freedom on medical procedures.Ìý So, the rule is, as long as your vet is happy with it, you can do whatever you like but you must continue to complete the vet book.Ìý And when there was a problem a few years ago, I had a call from my instructor, within 48 hours of me sending it, and it was quickly dealt with as there was a reason that it was understandable.

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White

Now, we’ve been talking about waiting lists, this was your first dog, how long did you have to wait for your dog?

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Anderson

I was given Barney in 2016 and I waited about six months from the moment of application.Ìý

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White

And have you ever considered training your own dog?

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Anderson

I admire anybody who does so, I just haven’t got the wherewithal to go down that road.Ìý So, as I say, my greatest admiration for those who do but in my case, no.

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White

Well, also joining us and listening to that is Abigail Hughes, she’s the head trainer with an organisation called Pawtected.Ìý Abigail, your focus is on people wanting help in training their own assistance dogs and they can be assistance for a number or reasons.Ìý What form does your training take, how do you do it?

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Hughes

So, we support owners looking to train their own assistance dogs, be that for a variety of reasons.Ìý And our services are currently provided online, that gives you a lot of flexibility in terms of when you do your training, where you do your training.Ìý So, it’s predominantly written instructions online but we can provide videos or video calls if needed.Ìý Our members also get access to an online journal where they upload what they’ve done during the week, any problems they faced and their trainer responds to that and helps support them.Ìý They work their way through a variety of courses, which they have to complete in order to get their different levels of certificate.Ìý And because it’s a very personalised process we can work out what disability mitigation tasks work best for that person.

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White

Now you’re dealing with a number of different disabilities and therefore a number of different tasks.Ìý I would have thought, as a blind person myself, that a guide dog’s job is a very specific one.Ìý How qualified do you think you are to give that kind of assistance to people who have other alternatives, as you’ve just heard?

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Hughes

The alternatives aren’t always a viable option for everyone.Ìý It might be that they’re not close enough to a catchment and they’re not eligible, it might be they don’t meet the criteria.Ìý So, working alongside a lot of people with visual impairments and blindness, as well as various different trainers to help produce our programmes, we do have the capabilities and the strategies in place to help people train their own dogs.

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White

Can you give me any idea of the sort of proportion of the people you train who would be thinking of using their dogs as guide dogs?

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Hughes

It’s fairly equally split between all of the different disabilities.Ìý Often people aren’t just coming with just blindness, they will come with various other conditions alongside it.Ìý So, we’re working on multiple different areas.Ìý So, it’s fairly evenly split between all of them.

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White

Now you don’t supply the dogs do you?

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Hughes

We don’t, no, we work with the owners training their own pet dogs to become assistance dogs.

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White

Do you hear many stories – do you come across many people who have gone down the self-training route?Ìý I’m thinking now, particularly, because this is the nature of our programme, of guide dog owners as opposed to the other disabilities that you cover?

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Hughes

Yes, so we came together because there was a lack of provision and people were struggling to find those services and those dogs that they needed.Ìý And while there are some amazing guide dog organisations, it doesn’t work for everyone.

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White

Just want to go back, quickly, to Neil, Neil Ewart, from Seeing Dogs Alliance.Ìý I mean I just wonder what your thoughts on the self-training route are.

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Ewart

I have had experience of helping several people in the past who have trained their own dogs.Ìý There was a pattern, the best ones have had a bit of sight while they train their dogs.Ìý I have huge admiration for people who can do it because it is not easy.Ìý Once trains with any dog, and I don’t know whether you qualify them and say well that’s it, who deals with problems if things go wrong later on.Ìý However, this is not to knock anybody that’s trying to help this big backlog.

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White

Well, thank you all very much – Neil Ewart, Abigail Hughes and Stephen Anderson – thank you and that’s all we’ve got time for, for today.

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You can send your thoughts and opinions on anything you’ve heard in tonight’s programme to intouch@bbc.co.uk or you can leave voice messages on 0161 8361338 or go to our website bbc.co.uk/intouch.Ìý From me, Peter White, producer Beth Hemmings and studio managers Simon Highfield and Sue Stonestreet, goodbye.

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