Question 1 – What are the different types of support available for children with SEND in our school?
Answer:-
a) Class teacher input via excellent targeted classroom teaching (Quality First Teaching).
• That the teacher has the highest possible expectations for your child and all pupils in their class.
• That all teaching is built on what your child already knows, can do and can understand.
• Different ways of teaching are in place so that your child is fully involved in learning in class. This may involve things like using more practical learning.
• Specific strategies (which may be suggested by the SENDCo) are in place to support your child to learn.
• Your child’s teacher will have carefully checked on your child’s progress and will have decided that your child has a gap or gaps in their understanding/learning and needs some extra support to help them make the best possible progress.
Specific group work Intervention which may:
• Take place in or outside the classroom environment.
• Be run by a teacher or a Learning Support Assistant (LSA).
b) Specialist groups run by outside agencies e.g. Speech and Language Therapy, Autism Outreach Team (AOT)
SEN Code of Practice 2015: School Support (SS):
This means they have been identified by the SENDCo and/or class teacher as needing some extra specialist support in school from a professional outside the school. This may be from:
• Local Authority central services such as the Autism Outreach Team or Sensory Services (for students with a hearing or visual need).
• Outside agencies such as the Educational Psychology Service (EPS).
What could happen?
You may be asked to give your permission for the school to refer your child to a specialist professional e.g. a Speech and Language Therapist or Educational Psychologist. This will help the school and yourself understand your child’s particular needs better and be able to support them better in school. The specialist professional will work with your child to understand their needs and make recommendations as to the ways your child is given support.
c) Specified Individual support
This type of support is available for children whose learning needs are severe, complex and lifelong.
This is usually provided via an Education Health and Care Plan EHCP (previously a Statement of Special Educational Needs). This means your child will have been identified by professionals as needing a particularly high level of individual or small group teaching.
This type of support is available for children with specific barriers to learning that cannot be overcome through Quality First Teaching and intervention groups (“Including All Children” documentation from LA).
Your child will also need specialist support in school from a professional outside the school. This may be from:
• Local Authority central services such as the ASD Outreach Team or Sensory Service (for students with a hearing or visual need).
• Outside agencies such as the Speech and Language Therapy (SALT) Service.
For your child this would mean:
• The school (or you) can request that Local Authority Services carry out a statutory assessment of your child’s needs. This is a legal process which sets out the amount of support that will be provided for your child.
• After the request has been made to the ‘Panel of Professionals’ (with a lot of information about your child, including some from you), they will decide whether they think your child’s needs (as described in the paperwork provided), seem complex enough to need a statutory assessment. If this is the case they will ask you and all professionals involved with your child to write a report outlining your child’s needs. If they do not think your child needs this, they will ask the school to continue with the current support.
• After the reports have all been sent in, the ‘Panel of Professionals’ will decide if your child’s needs are severe, complex and lifelong. If this is the case they will write an Education Health Care Plan EHCP. If this is not the case, they will ask the school to continue with the current level of support and also set up a meeting in school to ensure a plan is in place to ensure your child makes as much progress as possible.
• The EHC Plan will outline the number of hours of individual/small group support your child will receive from the LA and how the support should be used and what strategies must be put in place. It will also have long and short term goals for your child.
• The additional adult may be used to support your child with whole class learning, individual programs or small group sessions.
Question 2 – How can I let the school know I am concerned about my child’s progress in school?
Answer:-
• If you have concerns about your child’s progress you should speak to your child’s class teacher initially. We will discuss with you and your child any challenges you feel exist and work together to find solutions to overcome the concerns.
• If you continue to be concerned that your child is not making progress, you may speak to the Special Education Needs/ Disabilities Coordinator (SENDCo).
• The school SEND Governor can also be contacted for support.
• School contact telephone number: 0191 553 7600
Question 3 – How will the school let me know if they have any concerns about my child’s learning in school?
Answer:-
If your child is identified as not making progress, the school will set up a meeting to discuss this with you in more detail and to:
• Listen to any concerns you may have
• Plan any additional support your child may need
• Discuss with you any referrals to outside professionals to support your child’s learning.
Question 4 – How is extra support allocated to children and how do they progress in their learning?
Answer:-
The school budget, received from Sunderland LA, includes money for supporting children with SEND. The Headteacher decides on the deployment of resources for Special Educational Needs and Disabilities in consultation with the school governors, on the basis of needs in the school.
The Headteacher and the SENDCo discuss all the information they have about SEND in the school, including:
• The children getting extra support already
• The children needing extra support
• The children who have been identified as not making as much progress as would be expected and decide what resources/training and support is needed.
From this information they decide what resources, training and support is needed. Schools identify the needs of their pupils on a school provision map which for SEND pupils identifies all resources/training and support which are reviewed regularly and changes made as needed.
Question 5 – Who are the other people providing services to children with SEND in this school?
Answer:-
School provision:
• Learning Supporters, mainly supporting learning in the classroom with either individual children or small groups.
• Learning Supporters; leading learning outside of the classroom in an alternative room.
• Early Morning Reading.
• After school clubs.
• Lunchtime activities assisted by Hendon Young People’s Project (HYPP).
• Pupil Support Centre offering support both during lessons and unstructured times.
• Learning Mentors offering 1:1 or group support
• Counselling from outside agencies.
• Attendance officer.
Local Authority Provision delivered in school:
• Autism Outreach Service.
• Educational Psychology Service.
• Sensory Service for children with visual or hearing needs.
• Behaviour Intervention Team support.
• Parent Partnership Service.
Health Provision delivered in school:
• Additional Speech and Language Therapy input to provide a higher level of service to the school.
• Occupational Therapy.
• Physiotherapy.
• CAMHS.
• School Nurse.
• Specialist medical support and training.
Question 6 – How are the teachers in school helped to work with children with SEND and what training do they have?
Answer:-
• The SENDCo’s job is to support the class teacher in planning for children with SEND. This may include advice, learning strategies, specific teaching programs or methods identified by specialists from other agencies who work with your child in or out of school.
• The school provides training and support to enable all staff to improve the teaching and learning of children, including those with SEND. This includes whole school training on SEND issues such as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), sensory difficulties, medical issues, and behavioural conditions.
• Individual teachers and support staff attend training courses run by outside agencies that are relevant to the needs of specific children in their class e.g. from the Autism Outreach Team (AOT) service.
Question 7 – How will the teaching be adapted for my child with SEND?
Answer:-
Class Teachers plan lessons according to the specific needs of all groups of children in their class, and will ensure that your child’s needs are met.
• Support staff, under the direction of the class teacher, can adapt planning to support the needs of your child where necessary.
• Specific resources and strategies will be used to support your child individually and in groups.
• Planning and teaching will be adapted on a daily basis if needed to meet your child’s learning needs.
Question 8 – How will we measure the progress of your child in school?
Answer:-
Your child’s progress is continually monitored by his/her class teacher.
• His/her progress is reviewed formally every term in reading, writing and numeracy.
• If required, a more sensitive assessment tool can be used, which shows their attainment in more detail.
• At the end of Key Stage 2 children are formally assessed using Standard Assessment Tests (SATS). This is something the government requires all schools to do and the results that are published nationally. Half termly assessments in all subject areas monitor individual pupil’s progress against their KS2 SATs results and target grades.
• Parents are invited into school twice yearly on Pupil Performance Review day. This will give them the opportunity to meet their child’s mentor, discuss their child’s progress and set appropriate new targets. As far as possible, we involve children in deciding their own targets. Parents/carers are involved in the process by making their own suggestions and ideas on how to support their child.
• The progress of a pupil with an EHC Plan is formally reviewed at an Annual Review with all adults involved with the child’s education.
• The SENDCo will also check that your child is making good progress within any individual work and in any group that they take part in.
Question 9 – What support do we have for you as a parent of a child with a SEND?
Answer:-
• The class teacher is regularly available to discuss your child’s progress or any concerns you may have and to share information about what is working well at home and school so similar strategies can be used.
• The SENDCo is available to meet with you to discuss your child’s progress or any concerns/worries you may have.
• Personal learning targets can be reviewed with your involvement.
• A school planner may be used to support communication with you.
• All information from outside professionals will be discussed with you with the person involved directly, or where this is not possible, in a report.
Question 10 – How is Southmoor Academy accessible to children with SEND?
Answer:-
• There are ramps allowing disabled access to the ground floor area of the main building.
• The edges of hazardous steps around the school are painted with high visibility paint.
• We ensure, where ever possible, that equipment used is accessible to all children regardless of their needs.
• Extended school provision is accessible to all children, including those with SEND, in discussion with the SENDCo and headteacher.
• Extra curricular activities are accessible to all children, including those with SEND, in discussion with the SENDCo and headteacher.
• Access to medical interventions will be supported on an individual basis, with an appropriate Care Plan.
• Access to private toilet facilities is available to those pupils who require it.
Question 11 – How will we support your child when they are transferring to or leaving this school? OR moving on to another class?
Answer:-
We recognise that transitions can be difficult for a child with SEND and take steps to ensure that any transition is as smooth as possible.
Year 6/7 transition:
• The SENDCo will discuss the specific needs of your child with the SENDCo of their primary school and attend reviews held in Year 6 in order to plan effectively for the transition.
• Your child will do focused learning about aspects of transition to support their understanding of the changes ahead.
• Where possible your child will visit Southmoor Academy on several occasions prior to transfer and in some cases staff from the primary school will escort your child during the transition programme. Individualised transfer plans are arranged for those pupils who have extreme anxieties regarding the transfer.
If your child is moving to another school:
• We will contact the school SENDCo and ensure he/she knows about any special arrangements or support that need to be made for your child.
• We will make sure that all records about your child are passed on as soon as possible.
When moving classes in school:
• Information will be passed on to the new class teacher in advance, additional advice will be shared with the new teacher.
• If your child would be helped by a passport to support them understand moving on then it will be made for them.
