Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) School Information Report

General Statement

 All Saints’ is a fully inclusive Church of England Junior School. At All Saints’, we are committed to ensuring equality of education and opportunity for all our pupils. We aim to develop a culture of inclusion and diversity in which all are able to participate fully in the life of the school. We strive to ensure that all pupils achieve their potential personally, socially, emotionally and academically in all areas of the curriculum (regardless of their gender, ethnicity, social background, religion, sexual identity, physical ability or educational needs).

In our school we have a wide range of skills to ensure all pupils have access to quality first teaching which enables us to endeavour to meet the needs of every child. We believe children thrive when all key people in their lives work as a team to secure the very best outcomes. We are committed to working with parents and young people with SEND, following the SEND Code of Practice relating to Part 3 of the Children and Families Act 2014, so we can work together to support your child’s learning regardless of need. 

Do you have children with SEND in your school? What kinds of SEND do those children have?

While we endeavour to provide quality first teaching in all classroom to meet the needs of all our pupils, some children may find it more difficult to access the curriculum and may need a different approach or level of support. The term special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) has a legal definition which refers to children and young people with a learning difficulty or disability which makes it significantly harder for them to learn than most other children of the same age. These children may need extra help to enable them to access the curriculum.

The four broad ‘areas of need’ are:

•          Communication and Interaction
•          Cognition and learning
•          Social, Emotional and Mental Health Difficulties (SEMH)
•          Sensory and Physical or Medical Needs

Children may be identified as having needs in more than one area.

Children are identified as having SEND when their progress has slowed or stopped and the interventions and resources we normally put in place do not enable improvement. The children require different strategies for learning and need a range of different teaching approaches and experiences.

How does the school know if pupils need extra help with learning?

At All Saints’, pupils are identified as having SEND in a variety of ways, including the following:

•          The school follows a graduated approach to identifying and supporting children with SEND. This involves assessing children against nationally set criteria to check their progress and attainment, then planning appropriate actions and interventions with clear outcomes where children have been identified as not making sufficient progress. 
•          Regular pupil progress meetings with the Senior Leadership Team (SLT) and class teachers helps to identify children not making expected progress. Appropriate interventions are then put in place and are carefully monitored
•          Progress in other areas, such as development in social, emotional and mental well-being, engagement with learning attendance are also considered, with interventions implemented as required

• Termly assessment, tracking and monitoring data informs these pupil progress meetings

• Parents are informed as soon as possible; concerns will be shared in detail and involvement of any appropriate external agencies is discussed and agreed

If a concern is raised about a barrier to a pupil’s learning or progress, we use the following approaches to investigate the concern:

• Observations of the pupil
• Informal and formal assessments, results of which will inform a teacher’s planning for the pupil
• Scrutiny and moderation of work samples
• Discussion between staff, including the Special Educational Needs and Disability Co-ordinator (SENDCo), to draw on expertise from within the school
• Discussion over time with parents
• Discussion between the pupil and a familiar adult to gain the child’s perspective including their social, emotional and mental health needs
• Outside agencies will be consulted at the appropriate time
• The SENDCo may also provide the family with signposts to outside agencies who may offer further support to the family.

 If a pupil is identified as having SEND then their name will be added to the SEND register. However, we recognise that a pupil’s needs may change over time and provision must reflect this. If the child continues to demonstrate considerable cause for concern, a referral might be made to the Local Authority, requesting assessment for an ‘Educational Health and Care Plan’. This will require involvement of outside agencies such as the Educational Psychology Service, Speech and Language or other external professionals.

 What should I do if I think my child has special educational needs?

 Your main point of contact at school should be your child’s class teacher. All teachers are available for informal discussions on the playground at the end of each day. If you would like to arrange an appointment to discuss concerns in more detail, please feel free to arrange with the class teacher or through the main office. If you need to speak to other staff members such as the SENDCo, then the class teacher or school office staff will be able to help you to arrange this.

Where can I find information about the SEND Policy?

 Our SEND Policy will give you the information you need to know about how we make provision for all pupils with SEND. This is available on the federation section of the school website. If you would like to discuss our SEND provision or find out more, please contact our SENDCo/Associate Headteacher, Mrs Sandra Sutherland, via the school office.

How are the individual needs of children met once they are identified?

At All Saints’ we believe that all teachers are teachers of pupils with special educational needs. Class teachers are responsible for the progress of pupils in their lessons. They are highly skilled practitioners, trained to teach children with all types of additional learning requirements and are responsible for making the curriculum accessible to all pupils. Sometimes, some children require additional support to make progress across the curriculum or with their social and emotional well-being. This enhanced level of support is called SEN Support. The SENDCo is responsible for coordinating and managing interventions for an individual or small group of pupils, which might include one of the following provisions. For example: 

•          Additional adult support in the classroom – classes within school having a Teaching Assistant depends on the needs of the pupils within the class. The TAs support the teacher in supporting the learning of the whole class; the SENDCO is able to coordinate a limited amount of ‘hours’ of additional adult support in the classroom, in cases where there is evidence that a pupil is significantly below age related expectations or has specific social and emotional difficulties which have become a barrier to their learning.
•          Intervention sessions – when pupils come out of some lessons for pre-arranged sessions with teachers/TAs on, for example, Read, Write Inc phonics tuition, numeracy, fine motor skills, organisational skills, social skills, Speech and Language Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Counselling

 How do you make sure that the SEN support is helping pupils make better progress?

The progress of all children across school is tracked. Children receiving any form of intervention are also tracked carefully as part of this process to ensure that the specific intervention if effective in helping children make progress. Teachers, as part of their professional standards, monitor and review all pupils’ progress throughout the year. The whole school system at All Saints includes: 

• As outlined earlier, data is discussed by the senior leadership team and teachers formally during pupil progress meetings held for each cohort; staff track the progress of children across the school year and intervene if pupils are not making expected progress or if pupils’ experience difficulty. This data is used by teachers to inform planning and next steps for individual learning.

• In the case of intervention programmes, progress is reviewed every half term, which might include formal testing or screening. These programmes are reviewed by the SENDCO, TAs and teachers, who use the information to plan and design the next half term’s intervention programme, if required

• In class support is reviewed at individual class level and across the year group. TAs and class teachers work together on a daily basis, planning and reviewing lessons and interventions.

 Who will explain the provision to me?

•          Information about the provision in class can be discussed with the child’s class teacher. This can be done through parents evening meetings but teachers will meet parents/carers at any time to discuss pupil progress
•          In the case of highly individualised interventions, the SENDCO will liaise with parents/carers where appropriate, explaining the aims of the interventions. Phone calls, meetings, text updates, letters or emails will be used to keep parents/carers updated on their child’s progress and discuss support in more detail if required. If an outside agency is involved, review meetings may be arranged and are attended by the outside professional, parents/carers, class staff and the SENDCO. Occasionally, these may be multiagency meetings to ensure a holistic and joined up approach to a child’s provision

How the school governors are involved and what are their responsibilities? 

The SENDCo reports to the Full Governing Body (FGB) regularly to inform them about the progress of children with SEND; these reports do not refer to individual children and confidentiality is maintained at all times. Two governors are responsible for SEND and meet with the SENDCO to review provision. It is their responsibility to report to the Full Governing Body, to keep all governors informed.

How will the curriculum and learning environment be matched to my child’s needs?

All pupils are entitled to participate in all areas of the curriculum and it is the class teacher’s responsibility to differentiate resources and activities to ensure pupils are engaged and can access the learning. The school makes reasonable adjustments to both the curriculum and learning environment to meet the range of special educational needs of children. This can mean teachers plan:

• Visual, auditory and kinaesthetic activities
• Small group or 1:1 learning with a teaching assistant
• Pre-teaching content or vocabulary
• ‘Over-learning’ (repetition) of content
• Specially targeted texts and resources appropriate for pupils’ reading level
• Additional and/or specialised apparatus or materials (eg wobble cushions, pencil grips)

• To adapt and adjust resources and materials to make them accessible for pupils with specific difficulties

For children on the SEND register, ‘Personalised Learning Plan’ (PLP) documents will be written as a means of sharing areas of strength and interest, whilst also identifying areas of difficulty; individual strategies which support that child’s needs will be recorded.  

When a child undertakes school based internal or public statutory examinations, such as KS2 tests, then access arrangements will be carefully considered.

The school site does have steps in different places but lifts are available, ensuring the site is accessible to all. There is one disabled toilet in school. Extra-curricular clubs and activities are available to all pupils regardless of needs and we are committed to making reasonable adjustments to ensure participation for all.

 What opportunities will there be for me to discuss my child’s progress?

 At All Saints’ we have an open door policy where parents/carers are welcome at any time to make an appointment to meet either the class teacher or the SENDCO and discuss how their child is achieving.  Parents/carers can arrange meetings with class teachers or the SENDCo via the school office: admin3154@welearn365.com or 01926 492991.

Planned arrangements for communicating between school and home include:

• Parents evening meetings held in Autumn and Spring terms

• End of year report in July which includes a progress check (current attainment) and class teacher and headteacher comments.
• Year group meetings at the start of Autumn term where parents are invited into school to find out about what children will be learning and different teaching techniques used, as well as day to day organisation
• Learning afternoons where parents are invited into school and pupils share their learning from that term or half term

• Termly newsletter for each year group outlining the learning for that term

• Regular meetings between parents and school staff to discuss the child’s progress and needs. The partnership will develop over time and mean that families feel enabled to support their child’s learning outside of the school environment.

If your child has an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP), then there is a legal requirement to hold a formal Annual Review meeting organised by the SENDCo and attended by parents/carers, teachers, teaching assistants and sometimes by outside agencies involved in the pupil’s education.

What is the social, pastoral support available in school? 

At All Saints’, all adults within the school community are responsible for the welfare of our pupils. We foster a positive ethos where everyone understands the importance of a positive approach to all behaviour in a nurturing environment. This includes:

• Mutual trust and respect between all adults and children
• Personal, Social and Health Education (PSHE) lessons where discussions explore emotions, feelings and worries
• A whole school approach to using ‘Zones of Regulation’; this enables children to develop a wider emotional vocabulary to support their emotional literacy skills

Pupils identified as having further needs will receive a bespoke approach which may include:

• Class teachers adapting approaches within class to support a child’s needs which may include 1:1 discussion with the child
• We are able to provide a range of 1:1 and small group interventions. The areas of emotional difficulties provided for are: specific social skills; friendships and relationships; anger management; anxiety management; loss and change; self-organisation
• Our Family Link Worker, Ania, is trained in a programme called Drawing and Talking and is able to work with children on a 1:1 basis. For more information on this programme, click here: https://drawingandtalking.com/

• Small group social interventions
• Peer support through buddy system, play leaders, positive play
• Access to a quieter environment
• Extra communication with Parents/carers through times of increased need for the child

• The school employs a counsellor from Snowford Grange who provides weekly counselling sessions for those children with specific emotional difficulties. For more information, follow this link: https://www.snowfordgrange.com/

For those children with specific social, emotional, mental health difficulties, we work closely with the Warwickshire Educational Psychology Service, Rise and CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service), who provide further advice and support. More information can be found in the tab on the left-hand side of this page.

What training is available for staff who work with children with SEND?

As part of our Continuing Professional Development programme (CPD), training needs are identified for staff to improve their teaching and learning of children with SEND. This may include whole school training on SEND issues or to support identified groups of learners in school with: autism, attachment disorder, fine motor skills and more. 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. medical training to support staff implementing care plans. The SENDCO works closely with specialists from external support services who may provide advice or direct support to enable the best provision for your child.

How are my child’s views taken into consideration?

•          Your child will be involved in review meetings about them at an appropriate level agreed with yourselves
•          Personalised Learning Plan (PLP) documents will be written and reviewed in discussion with your child
•          Discussions with children about their perception of needs and feelings – these may take place with teachers or teaching assistants

Who should I contact if I am not happy with my child’s learning/or progress?

Whenever you have a concern about your child, you must contact their class teacher in the first instance. If you wish to discuss the matter further then contact the SENDCO/Associate Headteacher, Executive Headteacher or an SEND Governor. Please see the school website for our complaints procedure.

What specialist services and expertise are available at or accessed by the school for children with SEND?

•          SEND Supported - including expertise in autism and communication and interaction in addition to cognition and learning)
•          NHS Speech and Language
•          Counselling
•          CAMHS (including the Neurodevelopmental team),
•          Occupational Therapy and Physiotherapy service 
•          Educational Psychology Service

The above services can be used to support pupils with SEND.  Pupil assessment and classroom observations provide recommendations for classroom teaching and setting targets. In addition, the school works closely with Children’s Services to provide support for children and families.

We also signpost parents to the Warwickshire SEND Information, Advice and Support Service (SENDIAS)  https://www.kids.org.uk/warwickshire-sendiass-front-page

Details of these services and more can be found on the tab to the left of this page.

How will the school help my child to make successful transitions between year groups and into secondary education?

•          Staff work closely to share information about pupils to ensure that specific needs of individuals are met
•          Additional support, including additional visits, are available for pupils with SEND to help them make successful transitions
•          Pupils may be given Transition Passports which include photographs of their new teacher, TA and learning environment
•          We work very closely with our local secondary schools and transition can be adapted to meet the needs of the individual child as deemed necessary, including extra visits and meetings with parents
•          If your child is moving to another school, we would contact the new provider to ensure the transfer of information and the child’s school files.

• Parents and children are fully involved in the process.
• Additional time with new teachers in the new surroundings may be provided if required.

Where can I find out about other services available to support our family? 

Information about Warwickshire’s Local Offer for Special Educational Needs and Disabilities can be found in the relevant tab to the left of this page.

Here you will find additional information about services, policies and ways in which children and families within our area can be supported to ensure their needs are successfully met.

Who can be contacted and how?

SENDCO Mrs Heidi Cartledge, and our SEND governors can all be contacted via:      

School office -   admin3154@welearn365.com   Tel: 01926 492991