Special Educational Needs and Disability
At St Andrew’s Church of England Primary School we strive to support all children to enable them to achieve at school. In order to do this many steps are taken to support the children through their learning journey. Quality teaching is vital; however for some children there are occasions when further additional support is required to help them achieve their targets.
Roles and Responsibilities of the Special Needs Co-ordinator (SENCO)
The SENCO is responsible for the operation of the Special educational Needs Policy and co-ordination of specific provision made to support individual children with SEN. The SENCO liaises with staff to monitor pupils’ progress and plan further interventions where progress is slower than expected. The SENCO has regular contact with a wide range of external agencies that’ll be able to give more specialised advice if required. If you have any concerns regarding SEN matters do not hesitate to contact us.
There are many SEN terms that are abbreviated which can lead to some confusion (for us all!). Below is a glossary of the most frequently used SEN terms.
| AAP | Attendance Advisory Practitioner |
| ADD | Attention Deficit Disorder |
| ADHD | Attention Deficit & Hyperactivity Disorder |
| ASD | Autism Spectrum Disorder |
| BESD | Behavioural Emotional & Social Difficulties |
| CAF | Common Assessment Framework |
| CAHMS | Child & Adolescent Mental Health Service |
| COP | Code of Practice |
| CP | Child Protection |
| DCD | Development Co-ordination Disorder |
| EAL | English as an Additional Language |
| EP | Educational Psychologist |
| FSM | Free School Meals |
| HI | Hearing Impairment |
| LP | Learning plan (old IEP) |
| ISR | In School Review |
| KS | Key stage |
| LAC | Looked After Child |
| LEA | Local Education Authority |
| MLD | Moderate Learning Difficulty |
| NC | National Curriculum |
| OT | Occupational Therapist |
| PSP | Pastoral Support Programme |
| SaLT | Speech & Language Therapy |
| SEN | Special Educational Needs |
| SEND | Special Educational Needs & Disability |
| SENCO | Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator |
| SpLD | Specific Learning Difficulty |
| VI | Visual Impairment |
The new Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice states that there are four main areas which cover Special Educational Needs. These areas and their meanings are as follows:
| Area of SpecialEducational Need | Relating to difficulties with: |
| Communication and Interaction | Children may have a delay or disorder in one or more of the following areas: Attention / Interaction skills: May have difficulties ignoring distractions. Need reminders to keep attention. May need regular prompts to stay on task. May need individualised motivation in order to complete tasks. Difficulty attending in whole class. Interaction will not always be appropriate. May have peer relationship difficulties. May not be able to initiate or maintain a conversation. Understanding / Receptive Language: May need visual support to understand or process spoken language. May need augmented communication systems Frequent misunderstandings. Repetition of language and some basic language needs to be used to aid their understanding. Speech / Expressive Language: May use simplified language and limited vocabulary. Ideas / conversations may be difficult to follow, with the need to request frequent clarification. Some immaturities in the speech sound system. Grammar /phonological awareness still fairly poor and therefore their literacy can be affected. |
| Cognition and Learning | May have difficulties with the skills needed for effective learning such as use of: • Language, memory and reasoning skills • Sequencing and organisational skills • An understanding of number • Problem-solving and concept development skills • Fine and gross motor skills • Independent learning skills • Exercising choice • Decision making • Information processing Children may have a specific learning disability such as dyslexia, dyscalculia, dyspraxia or dysgraphia. |
| Social, Mental and Emotional Health |
May have difficulties with social and emotional development which may lead to or stem from: • Social isolation • Behaviour difficulties • Attention difficulties (ADHD) • Anxiety and depression • Attachment disorders • Low self esteem • Issues with self-image |
| Sensory and / or Physical |
May have difficulties with social and emotional development which may lead to or stem from: • Social isolation • Behaviour difficulties • Attention difficulties (ADHD) • Anxiety and depression • Attachment disorders • Low self esteem • Issues with self-image |
What is Pupil Premium?
The Pupil Premium was introduced in April 2011 and is allocated to schools that have pupils who have been registered for free school meals or have been registered at any point in the last six years (known as ‘Ever 6 FSM’). Schools also receive funding for children who have been “looked after” continuously for more than six months.
Why has it been introduced?
The Government believes that the Pupil Premium, which is additional to main school funding, is the best way to address the current underlying inequalities between children eligible for free school meals (FSM) and their peers by ensuring that funding to tackle disadvantage reaches the pupils who need it most.
Who decides how the money is spent?
In most cases the Pupil Premium is paid direct to schools, allocated to them for every pupil who receives free school meals. Schools decide how to use the funding, as they are best placed to assess what their pupils need.
How are schools accountable for the spending of Pupil Premium?
Schools are held accountable for the decisions they make through performance tables which are published, comparing the performance of disadvantaged pupils with their peers and the Ofsted inspection framework, under which inspectors focus on the attainment of all pupil groups, including those who attract the Pupil Premium.
Service Pupil Premium SPP
Schools which have children of service personnel in Reception to Year 11, receive funding, which is designed to assist the school to provide mainly non-educational support (known as pastoral care) to these children. The SPP is currently £335 per child of service personnel, paid directly to the school. The SPP helps schools to support the unique challenges children with parents in the armed forces can often face.
Children and Families Bill 2013
The Children and Families Bill takes forward the Coalition Government’s commitments to improve services for vulnerable children and support families. It underpins wider reforms to ensure that all children and young people can succeed, no matter what their background. The Bill will reform the systems for adoption, looked after children, family justice and special educational needs.
The Government is transforming the system for children and young people with special educational needs (SEN), including those who are disabled, so that services consistently support the best outcomes for them. The Bill will extend the SEN system from birth to 25, giving children, young people and their parents/carers greater control and choice in decisions and ensuring needs are properly met.
It takes forward the reform programme set out in Support and aspiration: A new approach to special educational needs and disability: Progress and next steps by:
• replacing statements and learning difficulty assessments with a new birth- to-25 Education, Health and Care Plan, extending rights and protections to young people in further education and training and offering families personal budgets so that they have more control over the support they need;
• improving cooperation between all the services that support children and their families and particularly requiring local authorities and health authorities to work together;
• requiring local authorities to involve children, young people and parents in reviewing and developing provision for those with special educational needs and to publish a ‘local offer’ of support.
What is the Local Offer?
• The Local Offer was first introduced in the Green Paper (March 2011) as a local offer of all services available to support disabled children and children with SEN and their families. This easy to understand information will set out what is normally available in schools to help children with lower-level SEN as well as the options available to support families who need additional help to care for their child.
What will it do?
• The Stafford Local Offer aims to provide parents/carers with information about how to access services in their area, and what they can expect from those services. With regard to Education, it will let parents/ carers and young people know how school and colleges will support them, and what they can expect across the local settings. During the last year, the Local Offer Steering Group has developed questions for schools, and trialled them with a small number of settings.
• There are 14 questions, devised in consultation with parents/carers and other agencies, which reflect their concerns and interests. These will be answered by agencies, schools and colleges to provide information to parents and carers to enable them to make decisions about how to best support their child’s needs.
Below are St Andrew’s Church of England Primary School’s
responses to these questions.
1. How does St Andrew’s Church of England Primary School know if children need extra help?
We know when pupils need help if:
• concerns are raised by parents/carers, teachers or the child
• limited progress is being made
• there is a change in the pupil’s behaviour or progress
What should I do if I think my child may have special educational needs?
The class teacher is the initial point of contact for responding to parental concerns. If you still have concerns then contact the SENCO.
2. How will I know how St Andrew’s Church of England Primary School supports my child?
• Each pupil’s education programme will be planned by the class teacher. It will be differentiated accordingly to suit the pupil’s individual needs. This may include additional general support by the teacher or teaching assistant in class.
• If a pupil has needs related to more specific areas of their education, such as spelling, handwriting, numeracy & literacy skills etc. then the pupil will be placed in a small focus group. This will be organised by the teacher or teaching assistant. The length of time of the intervention will vary according to need but will generally be for a term. The interventions will be regularly reviewed by all involved to ascertain the effectiveness of the provision and to inform future planning.
3. How will the curriculum be matched to my child’s needs?
• When a pupil has been identified with special needs their work will be differentiated further by the class teacher to enable them to access the curriculum more easily.
• Teaching Assistants (TAs) may be allocated to work with the pupil in a 1-1 or small focus group to target their more specific needs.
• If a child has been identified as having a special need, they will be given a Learning Plan (LP). Targets will be set according to their area of need. These will be monitored by the class teacher weekly and by the SENCO three times per year. LPs will be discussed with parents at Parents’ Evenings and a copy given to them.
• If appropriate, specialist equipment may be given to the pupil e.g. writing slopes, concentration cushions,pen/pencils grips or easy to use scissors.
4. How will I know how my child is doing?
• You will be able to discuss your child’s progress at Parents’ Evenings.
• Your child’s class teacher will be available at the end of each day if you wish to raise a concern. Appointments can be made to speak in more detail to the class teacher or SENCO by contacting the school office (Telephone 01889 228769).
5. What support will there be for my child’s overall well-being?
The school offers a wide variety of pastoral support for pupils who are encountering emotional difficulties.
These include:
• Members of staff such as the class teacher, TA’s, lunchtime supervisors and SENCO are readily available for pupils who wish to discuss issues and concerns.
• The reflective area has been created as a safe space for children who need a quiet place to sit quietly and think.
Pupils with medical needs
• If a pupil has a medical need then a detailed Care Plan is compiled with support from the school nurse in consultation with parents/carers. These are discussed with all staff who are involved with the pupil.
• Staff receive epipen training delivered by the school nurse.
• Where necessary and in agreement with parents/carers medicines are administered in school but only when a signed Medicine Consent form is in place to ensure the safety of both child and staff member.
• Most staff have basic first aid training.
6. What specialist services and expertise are available at or accessed by the school?
At times it may be necessary to consult with outside agencies to receive their more specialised expertise.
The agencies used by the school include:
• Autism Inclusion Team
• Child Protection Advisors (Staffordshire Safeguarding Children Board)
• Educational Psychologist (EP)
• CAMHS (Child & Adolescent Mental Health Service)
• Attendance Advisory Practitioner usually known as Educational Welfare Officers (EWO)
• Physical & Sensory Services to support pupils with hearing/visual Impairment
• Local Support Team (LST)
• Inclusion Team
• Social Services
• Children’s Therapy Team (Speech & Language/Occupational Therapy)
• Paediatricians
• School Nurse
An Educational Psychologist (EP) is allocated to each school. He/she would normally only work directly with pupils whose needs are felt to be quite considerable and have not responded well to the interventions previously put in place for them. This involvement is generally planned at the ISR (In School Review). These are meetings held between school staff and where appropriate, other professionals. In order to help understand the pupil’s educational needs better, the psychologist will generally meet with the parent and give feedback after the child’s assessment has been completed. The Educational Psychologist will offer advice to the school and parent/carers on how to best support the pupil in order to take their learning forward.
7. What training has the staff supporting children and young people with SEND had or are having?
Different members of staff have received training related to SEND.
These have included sessions on:
• How to support pupils on the autistic spectrum.
• How to support pupils with social and emotional needs.
• How to support pupils with speech and language difficulties.
• How to support pupils with physical and co-ordination needs.
Mr Hayward is the Level 2 and Level 3 trained safeguarding lead.
8. How will my child be included in activities outside the classroom including school trips?
Activities and school trips are available to all. Risk assessments are carried out and procedures are put in place to enable all children to participate. However, if it is deemed that an intensive level of 1:1 support is required a parent or carer may be asked to accompany their child during certain activities.
9. How accessible is the school environment?
As a school we are happy to discuss individual access requirements.
Facilities we have at present include:
• ramps into the mobiles to make the building accessible to all.
• a toilet adapted for disabled users.
• wide doors in some parts of the building.
10. How will the school prepare and support my child when joining St Andrew’s Church of England Primary School or transferring to a new school?
Many strategies are in place to enable the pupil’s transition to be as smooth as possible. These include:
• Discussions between the previous or receiving schools prior to the pupil joining/leaving.
• All pupils are invited to attend a transition session where they spend some time with their new class teacher.
• Additional visits are also arranged for pupils who need extra time in their new school. Mr Hayward (Head teacher) and class teachers are available to meet parents/carers prior to their child joining the school.
• Secondary school staff visit pupils prior to them joining their new school.
• The SENCO liaises with SENCOs from the secondary schools to pass on information regarding SEN pupils.
Where a pupil may have more specialised needs, a separate meeting may be arranged with the SENCO, the secondary school SENCO, the parents/carers and where appropriate the pupil.
11. How are the school’s resources allocated and matched to children’s special educational needs?
An SEN budget is allocated each financial year. The money is used to provide additional support or resources dependent on an individual’s needs.
12. How is the decision made about how much support my child will receive?
• These decisions are made in consultation with the class teacher and the Senior Leadership Team.
• Decisions are based on termly tracking of pupils and as a result of assessments by outside agencies.
13. How will I be involved in discussions and planning for my child’s education?
• discussions with the class teacher
• during Parent’s evening
• during discussions with the SENCO or other professionals
• parents are encouraged to comment on their child’s LP with possible suggestions that could be incorporated.
14. Who can I contact for further information about my child’s SEND needs?
If you wish to discuss your child’s educational needs further contact Samantha Langston, the SENCO, via email.
Her email address is senco@mid-trentmat.staffs.sch.uk
Other useful information can be found by visiting the SENDIASS website.
15. Who should I contact if I am considering whether my child should join St Andrew’s Church of England Primary School?
In this instance you should contact the school office to arrange a meeting with Mr Hayward (Head teacher) to discuss how the school could meet your child’s needs.
16. How is the local offer reviewed?
This local offer will be reviewed annually to reflect the changing needs of the children who join St Andrew’s and are developing in our school. Part of this review will involve contributions from parents. All parents of children with SEND will be asked to complete annual reviews, so we can better match our local offer to the needs of the children.
To find Staffordshire’s Local Offer CLICK HERE
To view St Andrew’s Church of England Special Education Needs and Disability Policy click the link.
SEND Policy