Our commitment to you:

We believe that all children should have their needs recognised and identified at the earliest possible opportunity so that they can meet their potential. Children with Special Educational Needs or Disabilities (SEND) are an integral part of our school community.

What are special educational needs?

A child or young person has special educational needs if they have a learning difficulty or disability which calls for special educational provision to be made for him or her. A child of compulsory school age has a learning difficulty or disability if he or she:

• has a significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of others of the same age, or
• has a disability which prevents or hinders him or her from making use of facilities of a kind generally provided for others of the same age in mainstream schools.

For children aged two or more, special educational provision is educational or training provision that is additional to or different from that made generally for other children or young people of the same age by mainstream schools.

Who is involved in providing for the needs of pupils with SEND?

• The Governing Body oversees the provision for all pupils with SEND, together with the support for their families;
• Responsibility for managing the provision for effective inclusion is delegated to the Executive Principal, Head of School and Senior Leadership team (SLT);
• The school has a SEND Co-ordinator that there is a lead practitioner responsible for the day-to-day management of all inclusion matters, including the provision for pupils with SEND. Our SENDCo is Mrs Slonecki;
• All staff share responsibility and accountability for providing for the needs of children with SEND, including teachers, classroom support staff and office staff.

How does the school respond to the needs of pupils with SEND?

• Class teachers are responsible and accountable for the progress and development of pupils with SEND in their classes, including where pupils access support from teaching assistants or specialist staff;
• High quality daily classroom provision takes into account the specific needs of these children and any difficulties in accessing the curriculum: detailed plans are made, outlining strategies designed to help to manage potential barriers to learning;
• Teachers, through their continual assessment of children’s learning, are able to adapt their lesson plans to ensure that specific resources, additional adult assistance or adapted activities are put in place.
• A child with SEND may be identified as requiring additional support, beyond that which can be provided within normal lessons. This can take the form of a catch-up module, often described as an ‘intervention’.
• Children with more significant needs may require more bespoke support. At this level, the class teacher will liaise regularly with parents, the Inclusion Leader and a member of the SLT with the aim of establishing the best course of action and support for the pupil.
• Children with more complex and significant needs may follow an adapted curriculum with links to life-skills. They will require relevant, personalised activities and tasks and may possibly use specialised equipment to support and enhance learning.
• Class teachers, the Inclusion Leader and members of the SLT liaise regularly with regard to early identification, additional support and interventions. Parents are routinely and regularly involved in discussions.
• All pupils identified as having Special Educational Needs will be added to the school SEND Register. This will be done in consultation with the Inclusion Leader, class teachers and parents. Provision Maps document provision that is additional to or different from that made generally for other children or young people of the same age.
• Some pupils with SEND will have a document called a ‘Individual Pupil Plan’ (IPP). This is used to outline the way in which the school sets out to meet the child’s individual needs. The child’s class teacher will ensure that the goals set out in the plan are worked towards during curriculum time and will consult with parents on a termly basis about new goals and strategies. The SENDCo may attend and chair some reviews, inviting relevant professionals if they are involved.
• Pupils with an ‘Education Health Care Plan’ (EHCP) will normally have some additional support and may also have some specific equipment or interventions designed to support access to the curriculum. These additional resources are funded partly by the school and partly by the Local Authority, with precise figures depending upon the child’s needs. EHCPs are reviewed annually in consultation with parents and the Local Authority. Termly meetings are also held. The SENDCo will attend and chair the reviews, inviting relevant professionals if they are involved.
• Transition to secondary school is planned in advance. Discussions around this will usually start with parents up to 1-2 years in advance of the transition date, depending on the circumstances.  Whether a child has an EHCP, or is on the SEN Register, members of staff will work closely with parents to manage transition to Secondary School in an appropriate way. Members of staff from the new school are always invited to key meetings, in order to plan appropriate transition activities. This may include additional visits to the relevant school.
• The SLT, working with governors, will consider any requirement to make reasonable adaptations to the fabric of the school building, or the resources on offer, in order to meet the needs of a specific child with SEND.
• The school is already well-equipped, with a ramp to the front entrance, an accessible toilet on both the ground floor and the first floor; handrails to two staircases and a lift to allow access to both floors.
• The school is extremely inclusive and approaches every child’s learning on an individual basis. Members of staff are highly experienced, skilled and receive regular training and professional development. Over the years our staff have supported pupils with: hearing impairment, visual impairment, physical needs and disabilities, dyslexia, dyspraxia, Down’s Syndrome, Autism, Aspergers, speech and language difficulties, specific learning difficulties, attachment difficulties, global developmental delay, anxiety, social, emotional and mental health difficulties and other learning/medical needs.

What sort of help and provision is provided?

• High quality teaching:  teachers incorporate specific differentiated learning strategies; liaise with parents, the Inclusion Leader and members of the SLT and receive regular support from the school’s Inclusion Leader. As a result, they are well equipped to support additional needs in class.
• ‘Catch Up’ teaching: teachers identify additional learning needs and incorporate specific differentiated learning strategies (e.g. dyslexia friendly strategies, strategies to promote over-learning through the use of a workstation etc.) and in-class interventions.
• Bespoke teaching: the teacher, members of the SLT and Inclusion Leader will identify that further support is required and this will be planned into the daily classroom schedule and recorded on provision maps. This could be a personalised writing intervention, maths or reading intervention, for example. It can take place in class or as a separate intervention outside of the classroom.
• Some pupils may occasionally require support from outside professionals, for example, an Educational Psychologist, Speech Therapist, Behaviour Specialist or Autism Specialist. You will be involved in discussions with school and professionals if your child has been identified as requiring some additional input.  If professionals are involved and recommendations for further learning support are given, the school will endeavour to provide this and will remain in contact with parents with regard to how this is progressing. For example, the provision map currently includes provision and recommendations from the Speech and Language Therapists and Physiotherapists. External professionals who may work with the school include:
  
• The school has dedicated considerable resources to Social, Emotional and Mental Health. Mrs Woodcock and Mrs Sinclair  are Emotional Literacy Support Assistants (ELSA) and Mrs Woodcock and Mrs Landsell are Thrive Practitioners. . Both have completed Nurture UK training and can support pupils with a variety of issues, for example, anxiety, friendships, bereavement and so on. Pupils can self-refer or be referred by staff.  We also have a link Mental Heath Support Worker who works closely with school and families.
  

What are our aims for pupils with SEND?

• To identify and assess the needs of children with SEND and to make provision for these needs accordingly, following the statutory guidance set out in the government’s Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice: 0 to 25 Years, which can be found in the links below. 
• To offer children with SEND equal access to a broad, balanced and relevant education, in line with the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) and KS1/2 Curriculum;
• To identify pupils who may have special educational needs at an early stage and provide educational provision bespoke to their needs;
• To involve parents as partners in the education of their children, providing and encouraging appropriate support and participation;
• To provide resources and teaching methods appropriately matched to the development and needs of all children;
• To provide a graduated response to pupils by assessing needs, planning and implementing provision and frequently reviewing progress and development.

What is the role of the Local Authority?

The Local Authority has a legal duty to set out for parents their own Local Offer for pupils with SEND. The Local Offer can be found in the links below. 

Halton SENDIAS