Watch heartwarming video as visually impaired pupils show how they thrive at their Luton school

The school’s visual impairment (VI) provision is led by Kate Collings, a qualified teacher for children with blindness or low vision who works as a special needs coordinator.

She has been at the school since 2006 and has made it her mission to encourage children with visual impairments to advocate for themselves.

Kate explained: “People don't seem to still understand what the VI provision is. There's a very dated view that the children will be taught in a separate room, and that will be very exclusive and isolating or that there's bullying that has historically happened in units over the years before, but not here."

“Our children are in every lesson, so we don't teach them separately. We are an inclusive school that makes sure that we are dealing with access to learning and support in class. The only reason they come out is for Braille lessons, for touch typing lessons, or enrichment trips.”

Kate enlisted the help of Year 6 girls, Maryam and Zuzanna, to star in the video ‘A Day in the Life of a Visually Impaired Student’.

In the nearly four-minute movie, they explore their sensory tent, audio pens, tactile table, light panels, magnifiers, touch typing and goalballs – all of which are specifically for children with visual impairments.

Different technologies and useful gadgets make learning more accessible for these children and allow them to feel included by still being in classrooms with their peers.

The tactile table, for example, has everyday items for them to get familiar with and allows them to practice their fine motor skills for things like placing items on a desk, while an audio pen reads text aloud to students, and touch typing means the students can write without looking at a keyboard.

Kate explained: “We don't want to do something called learned helplessness. We don't over-support in class because we don't want them to be reliant on an adult to get their own work done.”

No longer do children with VI have to sit at the front of the class to see – tablets mean they can read at their desks.

Magnifiers are given to those with severe sight loss to make sure they are still able to access the same resources as other children.

And it’s not just technology that helps these pupils, the ethos and attitudes of the school are integral to their education.

Kate said: “For many, many years now, our school has had visually impaired children, so other children genuinely don't bat an eyelid at a cane or a piece of equipment or anything that we have because it's just so ingrained in everything we do.

“Our children are not separated in a little room. They're taking part in everything. Our main point is if any child has a query, we educate them, and we usually get the visually impaired children to be their own advocate and explain it to that child.”

The video shows the girls going around the school, with their canes and interacting with pupils and staff. One clip shows a simulation of what visual impairments can look like, allowing the audience to step into the shoes of those with sight loss.

Kate said: “We encourage them to stand up and speak and especially with teachers because when they leave here, my goal for them is always to be able to go into any room in a high school and say: ‘These are my needs. This is what I have to have. I haven't got this. Could you get me that?’ They're going to need those skills in high school because it's not as easy as primary.”

Inspiring them to overcome challenges is one of the ways that Kate hopes to prepare them for further education. One of the ways this is done is through enrichment trips, like ones to the Inclusive Farm – run by the UK’s first blind farmer and his partner in Steppingley.

They can enjoy horse care, climbing sessions and swimming lessons to teach them life skills and build their confidence. The school had a visit from Clarke Reynolds, a blind artist, last year.

A spokesperson for Luton Borough Council said: “The council is always working to enhance opportunities for all children with SEND across a wide spectrum of needs, including Hearing or Visually Impaired, through to children with severe social and mental health needs.”

Kate also does outreach for babies and children up to the age of 11 with visual impairments in the town. She added: “When I go to my outreach children, I wish I could bring them here. I wish all children with VI could be here.”