Many schools over the past few years have explored using therapy dogs and other animals within school to help with students who are not confident readers and who suffer with extreme anxiety. Research has shown these strategies to be highly successful in helping student s gain confidence in school and therefore improve their levels of progress.

At Bushey Meads School we have been hoping to acquire a therapy dog for a number of years and I am happy to say we now have one!

Bonnie is a trained hypoallergenic therapy dog who is owned by our new SENDCo Mrs Dillon. Bonnie is an extremely friendly dog who is very comfortable around children as she has lived in a house with 4 children from a very young age.

Bonnie has already had a positive impact on some year 7 students who were suffering with anxiety and she will develop her role in supporting a range of students in building confidence with learning and overcoming any barriers.

A full risk assessment is in place and no children will be asked to work with Bonnie if they feel uncomfortable.

This is a very exciting development for us as a school and we will keep you updated with Bonnie’s progress in supporting the students.