Liverpool Hospital School

Liverpool Hospital School is a goverment school (NSW Department of Education and Communities, Public Schools NSW). The school is based in the Children's Ward of Liverpool Hospital in the south west of Sydney NSW. Liverpool Hospital is a teaching and research hospital affiliated with the University of NSW and the University of Western Sydney. The hospital is a major trauma and critical care facility and provides state-wide services. Students of the school are inpatients who may be hospitalised for medical procedures, surgery, trauma, accident, illness, mental health, social or chronic illness. The school provides continuity of education for Kindergarten to Year 12 (K-12)  hospitalised students and differentiated learning through the development of quality Individual Learning Plans (ILP's).  Students are enabled to access the curriculum in hospital through the teaching and learning programs conducted in the classroom or in the wards. Wireless internet access and a range of technologies are available to allow students to undertake online learning, to connect to their home schools and teachers and to access work or assessment  tasks on their home school's intranets. Connecting to Video Conferences and to other schools allows students to interact with peers and to access experts and learning in real time and to bring the real world into the classroom in hospital. The hospital school provides individualised quality teaching and learning  to suit the learning needs and the learning stage of the student. Consultation with students, parents, home schools and members of the health and multi-disciplinary team allows hospital school staff to develop appropriate teaching and learning plans for K-12 students. Staff maintains a record of learning and achievement for all students and sends reports to home schools for long term students.   In the hospital medical and multi-disciplinary team environment, staff works collaboratively  and communicates daily with all stakeholders to ensure the best health and educational outcomes for all students. The Principal, teaching staff and SASS (School and Support Staff) are supported through membership of the NSW Hospital Schools' Association Incorporated. Collaboration, networking, collegiality, sharing and professional learning for all staff is planned throughout the year and provides an opportunity for staff to feel supported professionally and personally by peers who work in similar unique schools.