We are a school who introduce school pets to our children as a way of teaching them responsibility and providing a source of pleasure and learning.

During the Summer holidays 2024 our Cockapoo puppy, named Bennie, joined the Kirkby Avenue family.

Cockapoos are renowned for their friendly, outgoing temperament and hypoallergenic fur. They are immensely intelligent and trainable making them suitable for roles such as therapy dogs. Cockapoos have a lively and energetic spirit, they are affectionate and thrive on interaction with children and other pets.

Bennie is lucky to have two owners, Ms Hedge and Miss Bainbridge and shares his time with each of their families when not in school.

Bennie will develop his role and become immersed in the life of school, not only providing therapeutic intervention but also supporting the curriculum. For example, he will be able to help the children learn concepts in subjects such as Maths.

Research studies have shown that school dogs have been proven to help develop pupils reading skills, improve behaviour, attendance and academic confidence, as well as increasing pupil understanding of responsibility and develop empathy and nurturing skills.

We will keep this page updated with Bennie's work in school and his journey towards becoming a Kirkby Avenue Role Model!

On Thursday 21st November 2024, Jenny Duckworth, the founder of the Dog Mentor programme visited school to work with us.

Bennie completed his training with Jenny and became an official Dog Mentor. Mrs Clifford, Miss Bainbridge, Ms Hedge and Miss Jones also completed dog handler training too.

We achieved Bronze and Silver awards and can now work towards Gold award as Bennie's role develops in school.

The Dog Mentor Programme in schools was implemented in 2012 and has a huge portfolio with more than 550 schools and more than 650 dogs actively working in primary and secondary schools.

Jenny is the founder of the Dog Mentor Programme. She has accumulated extensive knowledge over the years from various fields such as teaching, running a youth centre, Head Teacher of a Pupil Referral Unit, being a dog trainer and behaviourist along with studying neuro-linguistic programming and adolescent coaching. With her diverse experience, she developed the Dog Mentor Programme, which has transformed countless lives. 

https://www.thedogmentor.co.uk/

Welcome Bennie!