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Hello, everyone!
What a vibrant and celebratory summer term it has been for our SEND provision! As the school year reaches its peak, the hard work and dedication of our children have truly come into full bloom.
Summer is traditionally a season of reflection, celebration, and looking toward the future, where the growth nurtured throughout the year becomes fully visible. Our focus this term has shifted from "stepping up" to "shining bright and moving forward." We have remained steadfast in our commitment to celebrating individual journeys, cementing independence, and ensuring that every child looks to the future with confidence. By working hand-in-hand with our incredible staff, external specialists, and families, we have created a summer of memorable milestones, proving once again that an inclusive environment is one where every child can thrive.
What We Have Been Working on This Term
Smooth Transitions & Next Steps: Summer is all about looking ahead. We have been heavily focused on transition pathways for children moving up a year group or graduating to new settings. Through familiarisation days, personalised transition booklets, and close collaboration with next-stage teachers, we are ensuring every child feels safe, secure, and excited for September.
Celebrating Personal Victories: This term, we have put a spotlight on achievement. From sports days adapted to ensure total inclusion to creative arts showcases, our children have demonstrated that success looks different for everyone—and every single triumph deserves to be shouted from the rooftops.
Embedding the 2026 White Paper: Following our spring analysis of the "Every Child Achieving and Thriving" White Paper, this term we have begun actively trialling our updated "graduated response" frameworks. This keeps Aston Hall at the cutting edge of the new National Inclusion Standards.
Outdoor Regulation & Sensory Play: We have fully embraced the warmer weather by taking our sensory and regulation strategies outside. From adapted outdoor learning trails to utilising shaded "Quiet Zones" on the field, we’ve ensured that the physical environment supports emotional regulation even during the excitement of the summer months.
Year-End Impact Reviews: Our teaching teams and SENDCo have been finalising end-of-year data and reviewing Individual Education Plans (IEPs). We are incredibly proud to see the quantifiable impact of our cognitive load reduction strategies and targeted interventions.
Co-Production with Families: As the academic year draws to a close, we have loved hosting our summer coffee mornings and feedback forums. Partnering with parents and carers remains our greatest strength, ensuring that the support we wrap around our children is holistic and continuous.
We are committed to ensuring that all children feel supported, included, and empowered to succeed. If you have any questions or would like to discuss your child’s support plan, please contact the SEND team.
Ms K Woodcock
Aston Hall SENDCo
kwoodcock@astonhallschool.org
The Aston Hall Way
The Aston Hall Way
We are proud of our achievements!
We are proud of our achievements!
Community, Culture & Collaboration: Summer Highlights
This term has been a beautiful testament to the power of our school community, bringing families, staff, and children together through events that celebrated inclusion and connection. We kicked off our seasonal festivities with our Stay and Play sessions and the Fun with Phonics family event, where parents and carers joined us in the classrooms to explore accessible, multi-sensory learning strategies that can easily be mirrored at home.
The excitement continued outdoors with our fully adapted Sports Day, ensuring every child - regardless of their sensory or physical needs -could participate, compete, and hear the roar of the crowd. Our annual Summer Fayre brought a wonderful buzz of shared joy to the school grounds, which was matched only by the incredible energy at our summer Beach Discos, where low-glare lighting and designated quiet zones allowed everyone to let their hair down and dance comfortably. Through every single one of these events, we have strengthened the supportive culture that makes Aston Hall so unique, proving that we achieve the greatest things when we collaborate as a community.
Innovation in the Classroom
Behind the scenes this term, our teaching teams have been working tirelessly to ensure our classrooms remain hubs of accessible, forward-thinking learning. A major focus has been our comprehensive subject leader reports to governors. These detailed evaluations allowed our curriculum coordinators to demonstrate exactly how every single subject area - from STEM to the creative arts - is being dynamically adapted to meet the diverse needs of our SEND learners. By presenting this robust evidence to our governing body, we ensure that inclusive practice remains at the very heart of Aston Hall's strategic planning and budget allocation.
Simultaneously, our teachers have been engaging in rigorous preparation for the upcoming academic year. This has involved auditing classroom layouts, creating bespoke visual timetables, and pre-loading curriculum materials to reduce cognitive load from day one in September. By blending high-level governance with meticulous, proactive classroom design, we are ensuring that everything is firmly in place to give our learners the predictable, supportive, and innovative environment they need to thrive next year.
Let's Snoop Around...
Let's Snoop Around...
What an incredible term of growth, connection, and transformation it has been across our specialised provisions! If you take a peek behind the scenes, you’ll see inclusivity woven into everything we do. Our messy play sessions have been a joyful highlight, proving that "messy play is the best play" for sensory exploration, communication, and hands-on discovery. We have also been taking deep dives into sensory exploration with our immersive "Visits to the Deep" projects, sparking curiosity and calming engagement. At the heart of our community, our older learners have been put into action, fostering brilliant cross-school connections by creating beautiful, interactive pop-up books to share with our EYFS children. To wrap up the term, the high-energy excitement of Prom Rocks! brought everyone together in a brilliant celebration of our diverse, vibrant school community. Every child, every milestone, and every moment of joy this term has truly showcased our inclusive spirit in action!
EYFS: A Summer of Discovery and Adventure
In EYFS, the children have been exploring the fascinating world under the sea! Using their creativity and imagination, they designed and created their own underwater dioramas.
The children carefully selected materials, painted ocean backgrounds, and added a variety of sea creatures to bring their scenes to life. This activity supported their fine motor skills, creative development, and understanding of the natural world as they discussed different marine animals and their habitats.
We are so proud of their fantastic creations and the enthusiasm they showed throughout the project. Well done, everyone!
The Cove / Rainbows
Exciting structural transformations have been underway at Aston Hall this term as we prepare two brand-new, dedicated support spaces ready for the Autumn term: The Cove and Rainbows. These building works represent a massive leap forward in our commitment to inclusive design, providing our children with custom-built environments tailored specifically to their learning and regulation needs.
The Cove will serve as a specialized hub for targeted interventions and adaptive learning, while the Rainbows space is being meticulously crafted to offer a nurturing, predictable environment for sensory processing and emotional regulation. By investing in these physical spaces over the summer, we are ensuring that when our learners return in September, they will have access to top-tier, low-arousal zones that reduce cognitive load and provide the high-quality, specialized support they need to feel safe, secure, and ready to learn.
Nurturing SEMH: The Impact of Hamish & Milo
A vital pillar of our provision this summer term has been our targeted Social, Emotional, and Mental Health (SEMH) support, driven by the wonderful Hamish & Milo wellbeing framework. We have been running focused small-group interventions designed to give children the explicit emotional vocabulary and coping mechanisms they need to navigate big feelings.
Specifically, our children have benefited from three core modules this term:
"Calm Me" has been instrumental in addressing anxiety and worries, teaching children practical self-regulation strategies to find their inner anchor when things feel overwhelming.
"Exploding Me" has safely guided children through the mechanics of anger and frustration, showing them how to channel strong impulses and de-escalate safely.
"Amazing Me" has focused heavily on self-esteem, prompting our learners to celebrate their unique strengths, build resilience, and appreciate exactly what makes them special.
By wrapping this intentional, empathetic support around our children during the busy summer months, we are ensuring they feel emotionally secure, deeply heard, and fully prepared for the transitions ahead.
KS1 - Y1
We've been learning to tell the time! So far, we have looked at o'clock and half past on the analogue clock.
You can practise this at home by asking your child to tell the time at o'clock or half past the hour!
Sports Day
What a fabulous sports day! The children were absolutely amazing and they were all very good sports! They cheered and clapped and had a wonderful time. Well done Y1/2!
KS1 - Y2
In Year 2, we've created a colour palette for our final piece of art work inspired by Keith Haring.
LKS2
Our students in Y3/4 also had a fabulous time at their Sports Day! Well done to all of our pupils for taking part, supporting one another, and making the day such a success.
We've also been working hard to keep cool in the recent heatwaves - take a look at the photos to see how!
UKS2 - Y5
We were so proud of how amazing everyone was when making pop-up books for our EYFS children. They did a fantastic job of making nursery rhymes interactive. It was so lovely to see the Year 5 children sharing their stories with the EYFS children – everyone was having such a great time!
Y6
Our Y6s got to celebrate the end of their time with us in style at their Y6 Prom! It brought everyone together and the children had a fantastic time celebrating with their friends before they move on to their secondary schools.
Mrs Lindley's Recommended Read
Mrs Lindley's Recommended Read
'Put Your Worries Away' by Gill Hasson
This book is a thoughtful and reassuring children's book that helps young readers understand and manage feelings of worry and anxiety. Through a simple, engaging story, the book introduces practical strategies that encourage children to cope with their worries in a healthy and positive way.
The story follows a young girl who learns that it is normal to feel worried sometimes. She is introduced to a special "worries box," where she can write down or draw her worries.
This helps her express her feelings, gain perspective, and feel more in control. The book also encourages children to talk about their concerns with trusted adults, reminding them that they do not have to face their worries alone.
Overall, Put Your Worries Away is a comforting and supportive book that promotes emotional wellbeing. It reassures children that everyone experiences worries and teaches them simple, effective ways to manage their emotions.
What children learn from this book:
It is normal to feel worried sometimes.
Talking about worries with trusted adults can help.
Writing or drawing worries can make them feel more manageable.
They are not alone, and there are positive ways to cope with anxiety.
Asking for help is a sign of strength, not weakness.
Enjoy this book from our school library - can't wait for you all to let me know what you think.
a note of gratitude and pride
a note of gratitude and pride
As your SENDCo, I am incredibly proud to reflect on a season of true blossoming and achievement, where the foundations we have nurtured all year have culminated in standout successes. This summer term has been a period of deepening our understanding of every learner, refining our interventions, and ensuring that our inclusive practices are not just present, but purposeful, high-impact, and deeply embedded in everything we do.
Our focus this term successfully shifted from "stepping up" to "shining bright and moving forward." We have remained steadfast in our commitment to removing barriers to learning, fostering independence, and ensuring that every child feels a profound sense of belonging. By working closely with our talented staff, external specialists, and you, our wonderful families, we have continued to cultivate an environment where neurodiversity is celebrated and every milestone, no matter how small, is recognised as a significant victory.
I want to take a moment to say how immensely proud I am of the staff team at Aston Hall. Their dedication to "Inclusion by Design" and their unwavering willingness to adapt every lesson, transition plan, and summer event to meet the unique needs of our children is what makes our school community so special.
Most importantly, I am bursting with pride for our children. Their resilience throughout this busy final term—from our youngest learners mastering new routines to our older pupils confidently preparing for their next big chapters—is a testament to their incredible character. Watching them celebrate personal victories, support one another during inclusive sports days, and approach major transitions with confidence reminds me daily why we do what we do.
Looking Ahead to a September and Beyond
As we wrap up this fantastic school year, we are excited to carry this incredible momentum into the holidays and the new academic year ahead. To ensure a smooth start in September, we have put the finishing touches on:
Seamless Transition Pathways: With site visits, familiarisation booklets, and staff handovers complete, our learners can rest easy knowing their new classrooms are ready for them.
Strengthened Parent Partnerships: We look forward to welcoming you back in the autumn for more collaborative sessions, coffee mornings, and shared workshops.
Continued Innovative Practice: Our classrooms will be fully primed with our updated graduated response frameworks, keeping Aston Hall at the forefront of inclusive education.
At Aston Hall, we remain wholeheartedly committed to ensuring that every child feels supported, included, and empowered to succeed. Thank you for your continued partnership, trust, and support throughout this year.
Wishing you all a safe, restful, and sensational summer holiday!
With pride and best wishes,
Ms. Woodcock SENDCo
Ways to Support
Ways to Support
Here are some links and resources to help support children with SEND/SEMH.
Useful Links
The Worry Tree App- Worry Tree helps you to take control of your worries, transform your thoughts and feel better using CBT techniques and sensory practices.
Chill Panda - Something new I have found to support anxiety, worries, and calming strategies. May be a good one to support some of the children to develop strategies. Available on GooglePlay and AppStore.
Worry Monsters - these are recommended by psychologists and teachers to act as a 'waste bin' for fears, troubles and woes that children don't always talk about
who's who and what's what?
who's who and what's what?
Alex Matheison - EHCP Coordinator
Local area school nurse
Nasrat Haider Specialist Community Public Health Nurse (School Nurse) 0-19 Service South Area SPA - 01709423333 Work Days Mon - Thu 9am- 5pm
Rhian Especito - School Inclusion Team, The Specialist Inclusion Team (SI Team) is part of Rotherham's Inclusion Support Services and works within a range of educational settings in Rotherham, South Yorkshire
Tamara Leon - (Locum) Educational Psychologist
A friendly team of psychologists. Who work in partnership with children and young people between the ages of 0 – 25, their families, educational settings and services. We listen to children and young people and may use practical activities with them to find out how best to help improve their experience, wellbeing and outcomes.
With Me in Mind Rotherham - one of the national Mental Health Support Teams based in Doncaster & Rotherham
Speech & Language Therapist
Traded School Service - Family Health Division - Therapy Admin office: 01709 423229/30
Rotherham SENDIASS stands for Special Educational Needs and Disability Information, Advice and Support Service
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