Special Provision

Welcome

Beacon Academy would like to extend a warm welcome to current and prospective children, parents and carers of children to our Moderate Learning Difficulties (MLD) unit. We hope that this page gives you an insight into who we are and what we can offer your child should you choose to become a part of our school community.

What is a Specialist Unit?

Beacon’s MLD unit provides additional specialist facilities within our mainstream school site for up to 36 pupils with an Education and Health Care Plan (EHCP). Pupils in the unit must have a primary need of Moderate Learning Difficulties (MLD).

The purpose of the MLD unit, assisted by parents, families and multi-agencies, is to provide a team of specialist staff, equipment, resources and teaching methods /strategies that will support the pupils on their learning journey.

The staff in the unit work closely with a range of specialist services to ensure the best provision for children with MLD. These include Autism and Learning Support Team, Vision and Hearing Impaired team, Educational Psychologists, Speech and Language Therapists and the School Nurse Services. As well as this we enjoy close links with the onsite Nursery and other local specialised settings, in addition to our mainstream school.

Our vision for your child’s education

We aim for all our children to be supported, valued and nurtured in order to flourish at Beacon Primary Academy MLD unit. We will facilitate children in finding their own path to a remarkable life and to ensure that children with MLD are an integral part of our family and community.

Aims

We want all of our children to:

  • Be proud of who they are and their achievements.

  • Gain the skills, knowledge and confidence to achieve excellence.

  • Develop a love of learning and understand the importance of resilience.

  • Broaden their experiences and understanding of the wider world, knowing they are valued for who they are.

  • To have a variety of opportunities to be a part of the whole school community and build relationships with their peers within the special provision unit and mainstream school.

In order to achieve this, we work closely with all stakeholders to deliver a personalised learning journey, taking into account pupils and parents views, EHCP recommendations and outcomes.

Partnership with the mainstream

Pupils in our MLD Unit spend the majority of their time in their specialist classes. However we recognise the value of inclusion within the whole school community and the importance of shared experiences for all pupils. Children from the special provision unit can attend mainstream lessons where appropriate, taking into consideration a child’s individual needs and wishes. Pupils may also have opportunities to work alongside their mainstream peers during interventions. Pupils in the special provision unit are on the roll of the mainstream school.

Teaching and Learning

Children in our MLD Unit are grouped taking into consideration the details on their EHCPs and individual needs. During the school day, children are given opportunities to work in small groups, 1:1 and whole class situations which builds confidence, resilience and independence.

We have a flexible, child-centred approach to education where we incorporate a variety of approaches to learning and we meet the needs of the individual students. By adapting lessons, we endeavour to embed opportunities to achieve individual targets throughout the curriculum and through personalised learning with additional opportunities during intervention activities.

Our pupils enjoy a broad and balanced cross curricular and inclusive curriculum. In addition, starting from foundation stage, children have the chance to swim every week in the school pool.

Home links

Both home and school encourage the success of each child. Both have a positive role in supporting each other, helping to foster understanding and openness. It is vitally important to maintain regular contact between home and school. Parents require regular information about progress and performance as well as having access to professional advice.

Some of our children are local, however we also have children from across the county who receive local authority transport to travel to school. To facilitate communication, all pupils have a home/school communication book. Should parents want to have further discussions regarding their child’s education they are welcome to make an appointment with their class teacher through the school office.

How to apply for a place within the Specialist Provision:

If you have a child with an EHC Plan for Special Educational Needs, specific to Moderate Learning, you would be welcome to come and have a look at our facilities and meet with our SENCO, Miss Jones.

We encourage all parents to visit the Academy prior to naming our school for your child's provision. This will make sure that you have made the right decision for your child and in addition will have given you the chance to ask all of the questions that you need prior to making this decision. If your child is currently in the specialist placement at the Nursery, the staff at the Centre will provide a full transition for your child. We can be flexible to starting, often children begin with part time and build up to full time when both school and home believe that your child is ready to make the transition. It is very important for us that the move into our Specialist Provision is a smooth and happy one.

We are sure that when you choose our placement that you will not be disappointed. We look forward to meeting with you soon.