TRIATHLON DAD RAISES IMPORTANT FUNDS FOR DAUGHTER ’ S SCHOOL
DOG ATTENDS CLASSES AT WORTHING HIGH SCHOOL
EDUCATION
EDUCATION NEWS
TRIATHLON DAD RAISES IMPORTANT FUNDS FOR DAUGHTER ’ S SCHOOL
The Brook School in Maidenbower has a strong supporter in Simon Nicholls . Living next door to the school , and with a daughter in Year 1 , he has always felt a close bond with the school , so when the call went out for volunteers and donations to help create a memory garden within the school grounds , Mr Nicholls knew what he needed to do .
It may not be the first thought for many of us , whose minds might stray to bake sales and tombolas , but Simon Nicholls has decided to enter the Ironman Triathlon for 2017 in order to assist his daughter ’ s school . Even before completing the competition – Simon entered in 2016 and finished the swimming and most of the cycling heats , but injury prevented him from continuing with the running aspect – he has gained over £ 800 in sponsorship , all of which he has given to the school . This has been topped up with £ 100 from Nationwide , for whom Mr Nicholls works .
Simon Nicholls is no stranger to endurance , he has run 5K and 10K races in the past , as well as marathons , and had he not hurt his foot last year he would have one complete Ironman Challenge under his belt . His next challenge is the Brighton Marathon in April .
DOG ATTENDS CLASSES AT WORTHING HIGH SCHOOL
A new addition to classes has made quite an impact at Worthing High School . His name is Buddy , and he is a Border Collie . Buddy isn ’ t a confused dog who has wandered in by mistake though , in fact he has a job to do at the school , and it ’ s an important one too .
Buddy is there to help students integrate into the school and to relax those with social difficulties . At just three years old , Buddy is already joining in with classes four days a week including emotional literacy , which teaches children about how to understand facial expressions and gage reactions – something that can be difficult for people with some forms of autism .
Buddy is said to calm students and staff , and allow for more peaceful , productive lessons , which in the past had been difficult to achieve . Now , learning and understanding is much better – Buddy even offers one-to-one relaxation work for students who find it particularly difficult to carry out daily activities .
It was pupil Max Older , 15 , who came up with the idea of a dog to help at the school . He arranged for Buddy , who had recently been adopted from Clymping Dog Sanctuary by Mrs Gatford , assistant headteacher at Worthing High School , to come in on a trial basis , and the plan worked so well that Mrs Gatford brings him in every day that she is working . The rest of the time he lives with her at home .
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