We would like to introduce you to Brandy, our trainee Dog Mentor who will be based at The Hundred of Hoo Academy for the year before graduating to Leigh Academy Rainham
from next September. She has a very important role in supporting all members of our community; our pupils, our parents and our staff.
She has been formally assessed by Jenny Duckworth who runs the Dog Mentoring Programme in schools to ascertain her suitability for the school setting and passed with flying colours as part of her training in the summer.
She is making excellent progress in her training at The Hundred of Hoo Academy supporting pupils. In the last couple of weeks she has supported pupils with ASD in our specialist provision, relieved the anxiety of individuals at the gate who have struggled to find the confidence to come onto the Academy site and she has brought comfort to pupils who have received upsetting news and experienced trauma at home. She absolutely adores the pupils at The Hundred of Hoo Academy and while she often stages a ‘sit down protest’ when raining, usually enjoys roaming the site to share her unconditional love with anyone that needs it!
Brandy is also available to work with children (and adults) who have had bad experiences with dogs or other animals. With parental permission, over a period of time children who react fearfully to dogs will be supported in approaching, handling and gaining confidence in managing their fear. We would urge you to please contact the Academy if you feel your child would benefit from this