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PERSONALISATION/SEND

"For a school to be a great school there needs to be a move from standardised provision… to personalised provision based on consistent high quality, actively tailored to individual students’ needs and aspirations."

Education Development Trust Report 2012

At Fulham Cross Academy, we pride ourselves on getting to know each of our students individually and on personalising the learning journey for every one of them. This is why our ‘Special Educational Needs’ provision is called “The Personalisation Department.’

The Personalisation department supports students in four key areas:

Communication and interaction (SLCN)
Cognition and learning
Social, emotional and mental health difficulties (SEMH)
Sensory and/or physical needs

Please read our SEND information report for details about:

Who to contact if you have concerns
How we identify and support SEND
Different types of SEND and the range of support we offer
Frequently asked questions and links to other places you can find information and support.

If you have concerns or questions about any of the four areas above, please contact our SENCO, Ms Shashie Harry, via the School Office.

You can also check the local offers for Hammersmith and Fulham or Westminster, Kensington and Chelsea for information on local services and support for children and young people (aged 0-15) with special educational needs and disabilities and their families.

How does FCA provide Personalisation for our students?

At Fulham Cross Academy, we have a mixed ability student population, with a varied intake; able, vulnerable, SEND, EAL. Everyone is different and requires different types of support in order to make the best progress possible. We have a high number of students who do need extra support and we need to ensure that this support is as effective as possible. Personalisation is for all; not just those who have been identified as having SEND.

Support for students is organised with three levels of support; ‘Universal’ (ALL), ‘Targeted’ (SOME) and ‘Specialist’ (INDIVIDUAL).

As a school our priority is to develop our Universal support. This is key to improving the progress of our vulnerable groups (particularly students with Special Educational Needs or Disabilities).

Support at all stages is led by the Deputy Headteacher in charge of Personalisation, and the Head of Personalisation (Special Educational Needs Coordinator- SENCo) and the Pastoral Support Team (Heads of Year).

These teams work together to identify students who need additional support in any area and firstly ensure Universal Support, available to all, is the best it can be through training and supporting all teachers to develop effective teaching strategies to ensure all students make progress. If we review and students are not making progress with solid Universal Support, we move to offer targeted and then specialist support. We will involve you and inform you and your child/ward at each stage of this process. This is called the ‘Graduated Approach’

SEND POLICY

SEND Policy FCAT

MEDICAL NEEDS POLICY

FCA - Medical Needs Policy - Copy.docx

MENTAL WELLBEING POLICY

Student Mental Health and Well-Being Policy FCAT

Learning Differences

We have a comprehensive support package in place for students identified as having Learning differences - including things like Autism Spectrum Conditions, Speech and Language Needs, Learning Difficulties and Dyslexia, and for those who may have unidentified learning differences. Please read the SEND Information report for more detail on how we identify and support students with Learning Differences. Our support is in line with equalities law and the government guidance in the SEND Code of Practice 0-25 years.

Medical Needs

We work with first aiders, the school nursing team, parents, students and the pastoral team to support all students with medical needs in line with government guidance. If your daughter/son/ward has a medical condition and needs medication or adjustments in school, please read our Medical Needs Policy and contact the SENCO, Ms Shashie Harry, via the School Office.

Social, Emotional and/or Mental Health Needs

Many of our students experience difficulties with Mental Health and Wellbeing at some point during their school career. There are a number of causes for a young person to have difficulty in regulating their emotions, socialising, or experiencing more severe mental ill-health. At Fulham Cross Academy, we aim to promote positive mental health for every student, as well as every member of staff. We also aim to support anyone who is struggling with their Mental Health. We use the three levels of support to determine the support a young person can access:

Universal

All students access information and guidance through high-quality PSHEE, specific tutor-time activities, and a celebration of days with national and/or cultural significance. We are working with Hammersmith and Fulham Mind to develop our Whole School Approach to Mental Health.

Targeted

We have staff in school, who can run support sessions on things like exam stress and low mood. We also have an outstanding Pastoral Team who can meet with a student regularly to work on resilience and well being.

Specialist

If a student is experiencing more severe Mental Health difficulties or trauma, we have a highly trained and experienced School counsellor and we work closely with the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) and West London Action for Children (WLAC) to ensure students receive a timely specialist intervention.

Please see our Mental Health and well-being policy for more information.

If you have any concerns about your daughter/ward’s mental health or wellbeing, contact our SENCO, Ms Shashie Harry via the School Office.

English as an Additional Language

If English is not your daughter/son/ward’s first language then we will support her to learn English quickly, so that she can access the learning in lessons.

We have a specialist teacher, who can assess your daughter/son/ward’s English level. If they need extra help, they will teach English through extra lessons. They will support class teachers to make sure that they can understand in mainstream lessons. We can offer a laptop, so that students can translate and we will give targeted home-learning and practice tasks to develop English quickly.