Physical, mental and emotional health
Pupils at St Piers School and students at St Piers College have access to a fantastic range of facilities that nurture physical, emotional and mental health, personal development and essential life skills.
In addition to new classroom technologies and innovative learning environments, including enhanced autism provision and sensory immersion, they can enjoy state-of-the-art facilities for physical fitness, outdoor activities, art, drama and media, cookery and business skills.
On our farm and in our horticulture centre, they can learn how to handle, clean, feed and care for animals, sow seeds, grow flowers, discover how food is grown, and much more.
New technology and innovative learning
Technology and innovative learning environments are a great way for pupils and students to gain knowledge, develop skills, interact with each other and us, and grow as people.
In the classroom
As well as the very latest laptops and tablets, we have smart, interactive whiteboards in every classroom and one room dedicated entirely to IT.
The Imaginarium
The Imaginarium is a state-of-the-art, immersive sensory learning area, one of only two currently in use in the UK.
This facility stimulates the senses of sight, sound, smell and sensation through advanced audio-visual technology, scent, wind machines and vibrating seats.
Using this technology, teachers create virtual scenarios that transport pupils and students to different environments in their imagination –a rainforest, life in a Victorian factory, and so much more.
Common rooms
College life is as much about spending time with your friends and learning to live with each other as it is about academic achievements.
Our two common rooms play a big part in creating a home-from-home environment where College students can relax and catch up.
There are drinks and snacks and plenty of comfy sofas.
We're planning a new recreation room too.
Library
As with any college, St Piers College library is an important information centre for students.
We have exciting plans for the library, which include relocating it to a bigger, better space and building a new resource room.
Sports, exercise and activities
The physical, mental and emotional benefits of exercise and physical activity are well known and documented. That’s why, at St Piers, we have a fantastic range of facilities for all ages and abilities.
Fitness gym
Our fully equipped gym plays a big role in letting pupils and students – of all fitness and ability levels – enjoy a healthier lifestyle.
With a wide range of cardiovascular and resistance equipment, including treadmills, rowing machines, bikes, step machines and cross trainers, there’s something for everyone.
Several machines have been adapted to allow students with physical disabilities to use them safely.
We encourage all pupils and students to take part in low-intensity cardiovascular work and personal fitness programmes (where possible).
Beyond the obvious physical benefits of exercise, they get a real sense of achievement from setting personal goals in the gym and meeting them.
Outdoor Gym and Games Area
The Outdoor Gym and Games Area is suitable for ages four and above, and for all abilities.
Its cardiovascular and resistance equipment includes:
- A treadmill
- Shoulder press
- Chest press
- Leg press
- Cross trainer
- Recumbent bike
- Hand bike
- Spinning bike
- A mini-range of equipment suitable for ages 4–11
The Games Area is ideal for various sports, including:
- Football
- Tennis
- Basketball
While in use, the energy range of equipment generates electricity to power lights and charges mobile devices.
Sports hall
Our sports hall is the perfect space for children and young people to learn new sports, play with others and keep fit. It has:
- Four badminton courts
- Basketball court
- Indoor football pitch
- Equipment for various activities, including gymnastics, athletics and archery
- Go-kart track
- Trampolines, including rebound therapy
- Adapted cycling
We review the sports hall on a regular basis to make sure the equipment is suitable for the age range, abilities and needs of all pupils and students.
Low-level ropes
Mainly used for PE lessons, the low-level ropes area, a favourite fun adventure area, is available to all pupils and students.
It consists of a fantastic range of obstacles and challenges, including a balance beam, rope bridge and stepping stones.
It’s somewhere pupils and students can play together, learn team-building skills and generally let off steam.
Low-level ropes activity is designed to help with:
- Gross motor ability (use of large muscle groups – arms, legs, feet and trunk)
- Spatial awareness
- Kinaesthetics (conscious and unconscious awareness of your own body motions)
- Strength and agility
- Initiative and ingenuity
- Responsibility
The low-level ropes adventure area was generously funded and built by a team from Santander.
Aqua Centre
The swimming pool in the Peter Harrison Aqua Centre is available to all students.
The pool is fully tracked, allowing non-weight-bearing pupils and students to be lowered safely into the water.
The space has been designed with infinity features and diffused window panels to minimise reflections and ripples, creating a calming environment.
Boating pond
Children and young people love messing around in boats. The sensory experience of being on water is hugely enjoyable and often very calming.
The pond is a great place to do just that, without having to leave the campus.
It also has a hoist for helping people in and out of the water, making it accessible to all pupils and students.
Under supervision, pupils and students can take out kayaks, canoes and even a catamaran, enjoying a range of learning activities, including balance and kinaesthetic awareness (conscious and unconscious awareness of your own body motions).
‘Wheely Boat’
Our ‘Wheely Boat’ is a wheelchair-accessible boat that provides access to water-based activities at our local reservoir.
Art room
The art room is a spacious, relaxing place where students can experiment with different techniques and materials.
There’s even a kiln where they can fire their own pottery.
Drama and media
With a state-of-the-art lighting rig and multimedia suite, our dedicated drama and media hall is a fantastic space, where pupils and students can put on their own shows, plays and musical performances.
Food Technology Studio
The Food Technology Studio has adjustable tables, worktops, hobs and sinks.
Pupils and students of all abilities can enjoy the experience of cooking together, learning valuable life skills that will help them live independently in the future.
Farm
Originally set up more than 100 years ago, St Piers Farm is a fully functioning smallholding with sheep, calves, pigs, goats and donkeys, as well as a ménage of smaller animals.
The farm has six log-cabin classrooms, four animal shelters, a hay store and a wetlands sensory walkway.
In this stimulating learning environment, pupils and students can explore caring for others, learn valuable life skills, build confidence and face new experiences.
They can get up close and personal with all of the farm animals, learning how to handle, clean, feed and care for each animal.
They get to watch when the vet visits, learn how to sort, clean and sell eggs, and sell meat from the freezer.
St Piers College Students also get involved with the showing of livestock in local agricultural shows.
Horticulture centre
The Horticulture Centre, with its polytunnels, raised beds, a greenhouse, small orchard, grass areas and garden beds, is a place of calm for pupils and students.
Here, they learn to sow seeds, nurture plants, make hanging baskets, grow vegetables and flowers, weed and mulch, prepare beds and discover how food is grown.
The centre is also a nurturing environment in a much broader sense. Pupils and students can develop other important life skills such as working together as a team and how to care for living things.
They also get to visit local gardens, forests, parks, garden nurseries and places of interest to broaden their understanding.
St Piers College students can even take vocational and accredited courses in land-based learning.
Enjoying local community life and beyond
Much of what we do here at St Piers College involves preparing students for the future.
With a fleet of minibuses, we can provide access to facilities and activities in the community, as well as to local buses and train stations – giving students the freedom to experience life outside of the College.
