Player Ready ‘Level Up!’  Online Alternative Provision

PLAYER READY ‘Level Up‘ tech-education ALTERNATIVE PROVISION ONLINE  (or find a physical venue provision here)

DESIGNED FOR CHILDREN & YOUNG PEOPLE with SEND/SEMH/ASD/PDA/ADHD and/or NOT ACCESSING MAINSTREAM EDUCATION OR ON A LIMITED TIMETABLE.

Our Mission

Our mission is to support children & young people with SEND or additional needs to reach their full potential with bespoke, flexible, highly personalised specialist mentoring support through the lens of digital education. We here at Player Ready wholeheartedly believe that teaching many technical subjects such as coding, robotics, 3D modeling, video-editing, and much more gives children strong, sought-after skills for the future and increases their confidence and self-esteem. We understand that some children struggle to learn in traditional educational environments, so we are proud to be able to deliver our sessions in one of our five venues face-to-face or, alternatively, online to suit a child’s needs.

Who are we, and what has been our journey?

Player Ready’s ‘Level Up’ alternative provision was founded by its Director, Stephen Parkinson, who has been diagnosed with ADHD. Stephen’s vision was to recruit staff who share his passion for teaching children and young people technical education in a way that was accessible for children with SEND and other additional needs. The team started to offer Minecraft and Coding clubs, teaching children and young people how to code and import these creations into the game, with the team’s Master’s qualified Game Designer Kalvin Malloch creating lessons that build upon each other each week. These quickly took off as demand grew, and it became obvious that there was a huge need for more alternative provisions across the United Kingdom.  

Stephen’s wife Karen joined Player Ready full-time to support this growth and lead on Safeguarding. Karen has years of management experience in Children’s and family social work and family-based therapeutic interventions and is also an Associate Lecturer at the University of West England, teaching students social work at Master’s level. Sharing the team’s passion to make our services available to as many children and young people as possible, they got to work building relationships with parents, carers, schools, and local authorities to offer groups and 1:1 sessions for children with EHCPs/EOTAS and SEMH needs.   

Our Provision Offer

Face to Face provision (In venue)

We offer 1:1 and group alternative provision for children and young people aged 7 to 18. These sessions can be face-to-face in one of our five venues in Truro, Exeter, Plymouth, Portsmouth and Taunton. Please click here for details.

Online provision

We offer basic and more advanced coding, digital skills, Minecraft Education, and more, depending on the child’s or young person’s needs. Although we offer a core curriculum, it can be flexible, adapted as needed, and delivered at a manageable pace. We work with EHCPs and educational goals identified by everyone involved, and we can produce progress reports for EHCP reviews and TAC meetings. 

Although our online sessions are educationally focused, we believe that the relationship between the mentor and student is paramount. It sets the scene for good quality, enjoyable learning, and some time will be spent on getting to know each other first.

 Player Ready advocates for education through play and interaction, aiming to meet individual needs while enhancing tech and creative skills aligned with STEM subjects such as science, maths, and reading. We believe technology is a comfortable space (when used safely) for children and young people, and we use it as a platform for life skill development and emotional growth. Consistency in regular sessions fosters relationships between their mentors and peers, allowing for genuine connections and making our sessions more than just educational—they are a pathway to confidence, social skills, and personal development, ultimately empowering young minds in a digital age.

Our ‘Level Up’ online Alternative Provision at Player Ready is offered on a flexible timetable, including weekends and evenings where appropriate. Sessions during school holidays and outside of these hours may be accommodated by arrangement with stakeholders. These can be funded as part of an EOTAS, EHCP Provision, or Direct Payments. Parents and guardians can also make arrangements to directly cover the cost of the provision.

We are excited to announce that Player Ready’s ‘Level Up’ alternative provision service is currently onboarding as an AQA Unit Award Scheme Centre. From September 2024, we will soon be able to offer Level 1-3 AQA Unit Awards and entry-level modules on various bespoke subjects, all delivered via our Online Learning Platform.  

Player Ready Alternative Provision is always tailored to individual children and young people, with outcomes and goals agreed upon with partners such as the young person, school, parents/guardians, and other professionals. Our mentors all work in our venues and are recruited per our strict Safer Recruitment policy. They all hold Enhanced DBSs and are experienced in working with young people who are Autistic (ASD), ADHD, anxiety, trauma/anxiety, and PDA. 

To review our Safeguarding and Key Policies, please click here.

HOW TO ENROL A STUDENT

Professionals & Parents/Guardians please use the correct referral link button below to start your enquiry; alternatively you can email us at alternativeprovision@player-ready.co.uk