EVC Summer 2026_magazine_AWdigital - Flipbook - Page 18
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When Stephen Steinhaus realised how often the system failed to help excluded students,
he was determined to do better. Now, as the CEO of the Solihull Alternative Provision MultiAcademy Trust (SAPMAT), he and his team are on a mission to inspire and support the young
people in their schools, helping them to find a new direction in life. We spoke to Stephen about
why learning beyond the classroom is a vital part of every student’s education.
us a little about
Q Tell
SAPMAT’s approach.
offers a balance of
A SAPMAT
academic and pastoral
intervention for children who aren’t
thriving in mainstream education. We
challenge them, but in a therapeutic,
supportive environment. In short,
we aim to give them something
different, because whatever they’ve
done so far hasn’t worked.
“The child who
never goes on
a trip is the one
that desperately
needs to go
on a trip”
18
are educational
Q Why
visits so important for
your students?
of our students have
A Some
never even left their local area;
they’ve never met someone who’s
been to university. Many come from
several generations of unemployment.
So visits are one way of telling them
there are other options. We’re also
showing them that there are people
like them who are working these
jobs, building lives and enjoying
these experiences.
Many of our students have been
gradually excluded from offsite visits
because of behavioural problems;
some have never been on a school
trip at all. But they are the kids who
need it most. And it’s not just about
what subject can I study, but what
sports can I play, what skills can I
learn, what opportunities are there to
perform and create? We know what’s
going to turn them off but we don’t
always know what’s going to switch
them on. So we try everything.
There’s another reason, too, which
is that students who fall out of
education learn about the world from
other sources, including social media,
and we’re all aware of the risks and
harms that go with that. Going out
into the world with a teacher as a
guide can really help; they can start
to question the messages they’re
being targeted with.
kinds of visit do you
Q What
organise?
curriculum visits, such as
A From
going to see a play that they’re
studying, to competitions like the
National Engage Football Finals at
St George’s Park, we take every
opportunity to get out into the real
world. We go on therapeutic outings
to the countryside and to local farms.
We also run enrichment visits that
go into greater depth. For example,
we took some students to a
Holocaust service, even though it’s
not necessarily on the curriculum.
It was powerful; it made a real impact
on them.
