SEND Offer
SEND Information
Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENDCO) Mrs Leanne Jones
ljones@sthelensprimaryacademy.org
The AET SEND policy which is adopted by all academies can be found here
St Helen's Primary Academy SEND Responsibilities can be found on the statutory information page
The School SEN Information Report
This utilizes the LA Local Offer to meet the needs of SEN pupils as determined by school policy, and the provision that the school is able to meet.
What is the LA Local Offer?
The Children and Families Bill will become enacted in 2014. From this date, Local Authorities and schools are required to publish and keep under review information about services they expect to be available for the children and young people with Special Educational Needs (SEN) aged 0-25. This is the ‘Local Offer’.
The intention of the Local Offer is to improve choice and transparency for families. It will also be an important resource for parents in understanding the range of services and provision in the local area.
For details on Barnsley’s Local Offer: http://fsd.barnsley.gov.uk/kb5/barnsley/fisd/localoffer.page
What kinds of SEND do we provide for?
At St Helen’s we aim to support all children and their individual needs. We are able to provide for a wide range of SEND. This may include: Speech, Language and Communication Difficulties, Literacy and numeracy difficulties, Global Developmental Delay (GDD), Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD), Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), medical and physical needs. Each child will be assessed on an individual basis and given the support that is right from them depending on their specific need.
How do we identify children with SEND? How do we assess and review children’s progress towards outcomes and how are parents and children involved in this process?
All children are assessed regularly within their classrooms and more formally on a half termly basis. Children with SEND may be identified through concerns raised by their class teacher or parental concerns. Once a concern has been raised we will closely follow the assess, plan, do and review process as stated by the SEND code of practice 2014.
ASSESS
These are some of the ways we assess the children before making a decision to move them to SEN Support:
Teachers’ assessment and experience of the pupil.
Pupil progress, attainment and behaviour. (This is likely to be done though the termly Pupil Progress meetings with class teachers, the headteacher and SENDCO)
The individual’s development in comparison with their peers.
The views and experience of parents.
The pupil’s own views.
Advice from external support services.
Discussion by the SENDCo with the parents, child, class teacher, supporting staff, Senior Leadership team (this may be a selection of these but the child, parents and class teachers will always be part of the process.
However, it may well be necessary to explore further the precise gaps in the pupil’s learning and development and to clarify what the barriers to learning may be. Formal investigations may need to be carried out such as: Standardised tests, Criterion-referenced assessments and checklists, Profiling tools, for example for behaviour and speech, language and communication needs, Observation schedules and prompt sheets, Screening assessments, for example for dyslexia.
The SENDCo will make the final decision, alongside the headteacher, taking any of the steps followed above to move the child to SEN Support and help co-ordinate the Planning stage.
PLAN
Once the need for SEN Support has been identified, the Code is quite clear that the first step in responding to a pupil’s identified need is to ensure that high-quality teaching, differentiated for individual pupils, is in place. Essentially, this should be the teacher asking themselves, with the support of the SENDCO, what they now know – following the individualised assessments they have undertaken – that they didn’t know before about this pupil’s strengths, areas of need, barriers to and gaps in learning and the pupil’s and parents’ views, and then what changes or adaptations to quality- first teaching this new understanding means they need to make.
The Code says that ‘all teachers and support staff who work with the child should be made aware of their needs, the support provided and any teaching strategies or approaches that are required’.
· The planning process should take place in consultation with the parents and the pupil and should be ‘accurately recorded’. At St Helen's this involves the use of Edukey and Provision map to build learning support plans and provision maps. The child will have their own provision map to detail interventions, targets and the progress they are making, which will be reviewed and new targets set at least termly. The children are involved in this process and are able to state their likes and dislikes and what helps them within school.
· Class teachers retain responsibility for the pupil, even when the pupil is undertaking targeted provision away from the classroom, and therefore should be firmly at the centre of the process of planning this provision with the SENDCO and any specialist staff involved with the pupil.
· Parents and pupils must also be involved.
· Training is provided for all staff involved in delivering and monitoring targeted provision.
· The time and place for targeted provision to take place are established and adhered to regularly.
· Skills learnt during targeted provision are practised back in class.
· Time and a system for feedback from staff delivering targeted provision to class/ are planned for and this is carefully monitored.
· Time is available to prepare resources linked to targeted support.
· Teachers ensure that they seek and are provided with regular feedback on pupils’ learning/progress with targeted provision.
· Parents understand and agree on the intervention and support and the expected impact.
· Staff make sure that pupils are clear as to the key aspects of learning they will be working on during this provision.
DO
The SEND Code of Practice places the teacher at the centre of the day-to-day responsibility for working with all pupils, including those with identified SEN, whether receiving SEN Support or with an EHC plan (or current statement), even where interventions and targeted provision involve group or one-to-one teaching away from the class. The imperative is that teachers work closely with any teaching assistants or specialist staff involved to plan and assess the impact of targeted interventions.
Teachers should continually reflect during their lessons, and when marking and planning afterwards, on where all students are in their learning, where they are going and how best to enable them to get there.
The SEND Code of Practice is challenging us to ensure that the child or young person is participating as fully as possible in decisions and being provided with the information and support necessary to enable participation in those decisions. An essential element of moving through the graduated approach is to ensure that we are regularly reflecting on how we enable pupils to develop their skills and confidence, to share their aspirations and goals and understand the best ways that those who teach and support them can help to remove any barriers to their learning and participation. So, the challenge for us as teachers is to consider how, in the day-to-day classroom experience, we support pupils to gain a better awareness of the way they best learn and enable them over time to participate fully in decisions about their own life, particularly in review of their progress, assessments of their support needs and in decisions about their transition to adult life.
REVIEW
As mentioned above this will be regular, but will also be tracked and reviewed termly and this will be reported to parents.
There will be discussions around progress but also evidence of progress and attainment can be taken from a variety of sources, including: observation, work scrutiny, assessed work, use of the regular termly assessment and tests ( where appropriate).
Pupil progress meetings will focus on these children and see what progress they have made and whether the interventions have been successful, if not a plan of action will be discussed, which will involve the SENDCo.
If progress has not been made, then the SENDCo may further advise and work with the class teacher. It may be necessary to seek the support of external agencies such as the Advisor for Learning Support, Educational Psychologist, Speech and Language, Behaviour Support Service etc (please see full list of interventions and outside agencies we use as a school).
How do we ensure parents of children with SEN are involved in their education?
Parents play a key role in the assess, plan, do, review process. Parents are welcome to make appointments with class teachers and or the SENDCO to discuss their child’s progress throughout the term and are also invited on a termly basis to discuss their child’s progress in a termly review meeting. This will be additional to parents evenings and over parent involvement events throughout the year. Parents will be updated about any changes to targets and interventions or any concerns or achievements their child is making.
How do we ensure children with SEN are involved in their education?
The code clearly states that children must play an active role in their education. All children with identified SEND will have an individualised plan which they will work on with their class teacher. This states their likes, dislikes, what helps them in school and what doesn’t and their targets. They will be given the opportunity to discuss the interventions they are receiving and discuss how they feel they are progressing. Pupils are invited to termly review meetings or if they do not wish to attend they will be given the opportunity to share their views prior to the meeting, which will then be discussed in the meeting.
How do we support children during times of transition?
Children with SEND can find times of transition particularly challenging. This could be a change between teacher, a change of year group, a change of Key Stage or the transition to secondary school. The key to supporting children with transition is to ensure that they understand the change that is going to taking place and have time to process this change. If there is to be a change in the daily routine then the class teacher should ensure that children are aware of this change and are ready to manage this change. When moving from year group to year group or key stage to key stage children with SEND will be given extra opportunities to visit their new teachers and will be given opportunities to discuss any concerns they may have. Some children may need a book made showing their new teacher and new classroom. This will be assessed on an individual basis. Extra support will be given to SEND children when moving to Secondary School. We are developing close links with the secondary schools the children are likely to attend and contact them to discuss support needed for SEND children. SEND children will, whenever possible, be given extra opportunities to visit their secondary school. Transition can be a difficult time for children and parents alike and we welcome parents to come and discuss any concerns they may have with our head teacher, inclusion officer the class teacher or SENDCO. We are fully aware that transition can also happen outside of school, this could take the form of a bereavement, moving home or relationship breakdown. Please feel free to come and discuss any of these things so that we can support your child through these times.
What is our approach to the teaching of children with SEN?
At St Helen’s we strive to ensure that each child achieves their full potential. Therefore we aim to teach SEN though the use of quality first teaching within the classroom and make this as inclusive as possible. Interventions outside of the classroom will only be used if we feel that this is the best way to help a child progress and will be closely matched to the child’s needs and linked to learning within the classroom.
How is the curriculum and learning environment adapted for children with SEN?
Teachers take the lead in planning for pupils with SEN and therefore have a clear knowledge of what helps each pupil to learn. Within the academy we have non-negotiable expectations for learning environments which include:
Practical resources available for pupils to access as required e.g dienes blocks in maths, phoneme frames for writing etc.
Visual timetables
"Take 5" space in the classroom
Differentiated, age appropriate tasks to support pupils in accessing the learning
In addition to whole class expectations, individual pupils with SEN are catered for within the classroom. This may include:
Wobble cushions
Chewellery
Weighted items e.g. blanket/wheat pillow
Now and next boards
Task chunking boards
Access to choose box
Timers
Calm down resources e.g. glitter jars
How do we ensure that children with SEN can engage with activities available for children who do not have SEN?
In all lessons children are planned for and appropriately differentiated to ensure that they are sufficiently challenged, taking note of individual targets. The Senior Leadership Team (SLT), including the SENDCo, help to support this process. SLT observe lessons and feedback to the staff so that this is monitored and actions put into place.
Interventions and support are tailored to the individual child. Teaching assistants are able to run intervention groups tailored to children’s individual needs and targets or may support children within the classroom to access the curriculum.
At St Helen’s we have a lead SEN TA, Mr Lofthouse, and a number of SEN TAs across school; Mrs Day, Mrs Heppenstall, Miss Clarke, Miss Thorpe. They have all completed training to support SEN pupils. The training includes supporting pupils with; dyslexia, ASD, Speech and Language, Social and Emotional and Mental Health difficulties and many other aspects of SEN. We have two members of the team trained in the Thrive approach; Mr Lofthouse and Miss Clarke and two more members of the team are about to commence training in this approach. In addition, we have our family support worker and learning support mentor, Mr Rookledge who also provides support for pupils with SEND needs.
What specialist expertise (inside and outside of school) is available to support children?
Within school all staff receive regular training to help them support the needs of SEND children. The SENDCO is an experienced teacher and from September 2014 will be completing the SENDCO award, a nationally recognised qualification. We also use the following specialist services in the schools:
Educational Psychologist
Advisor for Learning Support
Behaviour Support Service
Speech and Language Therapy Service
CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service)
Social care
Physio Therapy
Occupational Therapy
School Nursing Team
And any other service provider we need to work with for the benefit of the child/children
The above are based on individual pupil need and most have to be applied for.
The staff also receive training as needs are identified. Some of our training is whole school and other training is directed at those who need it. Some training is delivered by staff within the school, and some is sought by outside providers – either Local Authority, NHS, Third sector or privately.
If children are arriving from other schools or settings with SEND, then our staff make contact with the previous setting. If possible we try to arrange a face-to-face meeting.
How do we evaluate the effectiveness of the provision made for children with SEN?
Through the use of the assess, review, plan, do process we are able to effectively monitor the provision we are making for SEND children. Where children are not making the progress we feel they are capable of we look closely at the provision being provided and assess its impact. Members of Senior Management complete lesson observations and a focus of this will be SEND children. The SENDCO is monitored by the head teacher and the governors are kept regularly informed through the publication of an SEND report linked to the school improvement plan objectives.
How do we provide pastoral support for children, ensure children are listened to and what measures are taking to ensure children aren’t bullied?
We have a Thrive trained member of the team, Mr Lofthouse, who is available to support pupils who are concerned about behaviour or who are having difficulty during playtime and lunchtimes. In addition, we are training our own St Helen's Friendship Ambassadors, to provide peer support for pupils who are worried or concerned. These pupils will be taking part in the Diana Trust "Anti Bullying Ambassador" Training as well as engaging in within school training.
St Helen’s is nurturing by nature and there is a strong ethos of caring for each individual child and putting support in as necessary. We place great importance on PSHE and this is taught on a regular basis. Assemblies are also often based around theme of friendship and anti-bullying. We have a zero tolerance policy to bullying (please refer to our anti bullying policy)
We strive to support all children in our school. We can cater for children with significant behavioural issues and work hard to ensure they do not become excluded.
To ensure attendance is increased school celebrates attendance through certificates (both class and individual). Attendance is closely monitored and the school works with the Education Welfare Officer.
The children are able to represent their class in school council meetings. This includes SEN pupils.
How does the school handle complaints from parents with children of SEN?
Please feel free to come and discuss and concerns you have regarding the provision in school for your child with the class teacher or SENDCO. If you do not feel that your concern has been dealt with please arrange a meeting with the Headteacher. Concerns and complaints will be taken seriously and passed on the Governors.
Who can I contact for further information?
You can contact the following people in school:
Class Teacher
SENDCo (Mrs Leanne Jones)
Head of School (Miss Vicki Gorton)
Please speak to the office who will arrange for the appropriate person to contact you.
For more information, please click on one of the links below
SEND Code of Practice