Case Study The Wenlock School

Patrick Holness is the Designated Safeguarding Lead at The Wenlock School in Dudley. The Wenlock School supports boys and girls between the ages of 7 and 18 years of age who have a range of social, emotional and mental health needs and also pupils who have been diagnosed with autism or demonstrate behaviours associated with autism.

Loudmouth has been delivering sessions at The Wenlock School since 2019 and in 2024/25 alone, delivered 8 different sessions across all Key Stages.

In this article, two of Loudmouth's Senior Actor / Facilitators, Kayleigh Talbot and Elliott Mortimer, interview Patrick about the reasons why The Wenlock School choose to use Loudmouth and how the sessions impact their learners.

What do you think are the main benefits of using Loudmouth?

The main benefit from using outside visitors, such as Loudmouth, is that it brings a fresh perspective to the school. Loudmouth also bring specialist knowledge and the theatre performance provides a dynamic delivery style that complements our own curriculum. The sessions are largely around safeguarding and RSHE themes and so that embeds the curriculum within the school.

Why do you book Loudmouth every year?

We book Loudmouth every year because of the relationship and trust we have built between the school and yourselves. The students all really look forward to your sessions and often ask us, 'when are Loudmouth coming in?'. We book a lot of your sessions each year as we have to make it very fair for all our Key Stages and so we book sessions that go throughout all of the school. This is because if one Key Stage receives Loudmouth and they are talking about it, then the other Key Stage want it as well! We keep booking because of your consistency in delivering impactful, trauma informed sessions, which is a big part of our ethos.

What do you think some of the barriers are in bringing in companies like Loudmouth?

I would say funding is probably the most common barrier, particularly for SEND and SEMH schools, as resources can be stretched. The second most common barrier is timetabling. We need to ensure that sessions are booked in in line with the learners and their needs. That can be a barrier because of the complex needs that our particular pupils have.

However we get round these barriers by prioritising high impact partnerships in our budgeting process. We work collaboratively with Loudmouth to plan the sessions around our pupils and their routines and their emotional needs. I think this works very effectively.

Why do you prioritise the funding for Loudmouth sessions?

Because the outcomes are worth it, 100%. That is first and foremost. Our learners often face barriers in accessing high quality, real world, PSHE and I think that Loudmouth helps us to deliver content in a way that's safe, creative and therapeutic. We see a lot of improvements when Loudmouth come into our school as the learners get such a good understanding of some key issues. We prioritise Loudmouth because of the confidence that we see develop. We see learners' confidence grow because of the repetition used in the workshops and how it builds self-esteem in the pupils.

What do you value about the way that Loudmouth adapt to work effectively with your learners?

Loudmouth staff adapt the language, the pacing, their interaction style to suit our learners' different communication needs. The sessions are inclusive and the facilitators are very responsive to the group dynamics. They read the emotional cues very, very well as well as showing strong sensory sensitivities. This really supports both the staff and pupils in that regard.

Can you share any positive outcomes or impacts as a result of using Loudmouth in your school?

I would say the main impact is the increased awareness of the pupils. I think Loudmouth staff engage our learners in good discussions around the content that's been delivered. They explore issues around consent, healthy relationships and personal safety. We've had students reference Loudmouth sessions in restorative conversations and disclosures so we know that it's a key part of our wider safeguarding culture. Plus the sessions boost confidence. They improve social interaction and help our learners to know how to interact outside of school. I think that's a very important impact that Loudmouth has on our pupils. I really appreciate the service that Loudmouth has given the school over the years and I know that our pupils appreciate it too. It goes a long way.

If you would like to discuss how Loudmouth can support your SEND / SEMH students then contact us on 0121 446 4880 or email enquiry@loudmouth.co.uk