We offer full-time, term-based provision, either in-person at Centres or at Red Balloon of the Air, which offers a hybrid of online and face-to-face support (up to 15 hours per week).
Our approach puts wellbeing at the core of our students’ education experience, with a strong emphasis on mental health, personal development and positive social interaction alongside academic teaching.
We are not a normal school
At Red Balloon, we focus on wellbeing, education and social engagement to ensure our students are gaining the skills and confidence they need to reintegrate with their peers.
Our tailored approach means we can meet students’ individual needs to help them reach their goals, be it academic or personal progress.
An integrated approach
The strength of our programme is its holistic approach. Our highly qualified and experienced staff provide wellbeing and therapy to support students’ mental health and to help them re-engage with the wider world. We’re firm believers in social and emotional learning: all staff are interested in and actively involved in the wellbeing of all students, and mental health support and personal development are an integral part of the entire day, not just restricted to designated sessions.
Tailored learning
Our students follow an individualised timetable of lessons, alongside our effective and carefully planned wellbeing curriculum. Lessons are in small groups, and with qualified teachers, who plan individualised teaching to suit the needs and interests of each child. As the relationships with their teachers develop, students become more confident and resilient learners and build the skills they need to successfully return to education, work or further training.
We provide academic teaching from Entry Level to GCSE in subjects of students’ interest or which are helpful to them in their future plans and offer our students PSHEE and Careers Guidance.
Small class sizes
Our supportive learning sessions have from one to six students. New students often begin with one-to-one lessons. As they grow in confidence and they are willing and able to interact with their peers, they will join group sessions.
A safe, positive environment
We know returning to a school is a source of anxiety for our students, so our Centres are purposefully based in houses so that they do not feel like traditional schools. We want our students to feel comfortable and safe when with us, so we strive to make our Centres as homely as possible. We have a casual dress code, staff are called by their first names and at our physical Centres, the student and staff family sit down together to lunch each day.
Students hold an absolute right to be treated with respect and care, and that right is not contingent upon their behaviour or the quality of their academic performance. Each member of our Centre family agrees to our policy of unconditional positive regard – every member of the community (staff or student) should always treat others with respect and dignity, regardless of the situation.
Transition support
Each student has regular sessions with a Link Mentor (at RBAir) or a Transition Lead (at physical Centres). These are the key people who link together our academic, personal and social development programmes and liaise with commissioners. Our Link Mentors and Transitions Lead guide our students throughout their time with us, from their first steps to helping them move on to the next stage of their learning and lives.
Registered exam Centres
We know that some young people miss out on gaining qualifications because they can’t go to school to sit their exams. All our Centres are also registered exam centres, where students can sit their exams in a safe, comfortable and familiar environment.
A hybrid of online and face-to-face support (RBAir only)
Not all of our young people feel comfortable leaving the house when they first join us and some have struggled to successfully learn in face-to-face environments for various reasons.Red Balloon of the Air offers a hybrid of online and face-to-face support to those young people who can’t attend in person daily, helping them progress towards attending either the RBAir Centre in Milton, Cambridge, or RBET’s Learning Hub in Danbury, Essex, when they feel comfortable to do so.
Our three components
Read more about the three components of our provision on the pages below.
Wellbeing
Supporting students to flourishSocial re-engagement
Helping students to re-engage with their peers and their communitiesOur Centres
Physical Centres(Aylesbury [coming soon], Cambridge, Reading, Norfolk, Norwich and Worthing)
We have five physical Centres based in houses. Students attend each day at the Centre, where lunch is provided, and follow a personalised timetable of lessons (including PSHEE, careers and PE) and counselling/therapy. As with a normal school there are trips, extracurricular activities and social events throughout the year. Find out more about each of our physical Centres on their Centre pages.
Hybrid Online / Face-to-face Provision (Red Balloon of the Air)
Red Balloon of the Air offers a hybrid of online and face-to-face support to students. Students are provided with a laptop to access online sessions, and log on at the relevant times each day to undertake real-time sessions with a dedicated teacher or therapist. In addition, social and learning activities take place face-to-face where students can travel to the RBAir Centre in Milton, Cambridge, or RBET’s Learning Hub, Dandbury, Essex, to meet other RBAir students. Find out more about RBAir and our other Centres on our Centre pages.