HEVERSHAM ST PETERS CE PRIMARY SCHOOL

SPECIAL EDUCATIONAL NEEDS POLICY

Approved Spring 2013 Review in Spring 2014

SEN Co-Ordinator : Marie Breeze SEN Governor: Linda Cooper 1. Introduction The school provides a broad and balanced curriculum for all children which is differentiated to meet individual needs and abilities. When planning, teachers set suitable learning challenges and respond to childrens diverse learning needs. Some children have barriers to learning that mean they have Special Educational Needs and require particular action by the school. Teachers take account of these needs and make provision, where necessary, to support individuals or groups of children and thus enable them to participate effectively in curriculum and assessment activities. Such children may need additional or different help from that given to other children of the same age. Children may have special educational needs either throughout or at any time during their school lives. This policy ensures that curriculum planning and assessment for children with special educational needs takes account of the type and extent of the difficulty experienced by the child. 2. Aims and Objectives The aims and objectives of this policy are : to identify pupils with special educational needs as soon as possible to create an environment that meets the special needs of each pupil to enable all children to have full access to a broad, balanced and differentiated curriculum to identify the roles and responsibilities of staff in providing for childrens Special Educational Needs to encourage children to be fully involved in their learning to make clear the expectations of all partners in the process and provision of special needs to ensure that parents are kept fully informed, and are engaged in effective communication about their childs specific needs

3. Educational Inclusion In our school we aim to offer excellence and choice to all our children, whatever their ability or needs. We have high expectations of all our children. We aim to achieve this through the removal of barriers to learning and participation. We want all our children to feel that they are a valued part of our school community. Through appropriate curricular provision, we respect the fact that children have different educational and behavioural needs and aspirations require different strategies for learning

acquire, assimilate and communicate information at different rates require a range of different teaching strategies and experiences

Teachers respond to childrens needs by providing support in all curriculum areas planning to develop pupils understanding through the use of all senses and experiences planning for pupils full participation in learning and in physical and practical activities planning for pupils to manage their behaviour, enabling them to participate effectively and safely in learning.

This policy ensures that teaching arrangements are fully inclusive. The majority of pupils will have their needs met through normal classroom arrangements and appropriate differentiation, which may include short-term support such as Early or Additional Literacy and Numeracy support programmes. 4. Roles and Responsibilities In this school, provision for pupils with special educational needs is the responsibility of all members of staff. Miss Breeze is the Special Educational Needs Co-Ordinator (SENCo) and is responsible for the day to day operation of the Special Educational Needs Policy. Her main duties are overseeing the day to day operation of the schools Special Educational Needs Policy co-ordinating provision for children with Special Educational Needs liaising with and advising fellow teachers managing teaching assistants in consultation with the headteacher overseeing the records of all children with Special Educational Needs liaising with parents of children with Special Educational Needs contributing to the in-service training of staff liaising with external agencies including the LEAs support and educational psychology services, health and social services and voluntary bodies

The Governing Body has due regard to the current Code of Practice (2011) when carrying out its duties to all pupils with Special Educational Needs. The Governors ensure all teachers are fully aware of their responsibilities towards children with Special Educational Needs. They consult the LA when appropriate, and report annually to parents on the success of the schools policy for provision for pupils with Special Educational Needs. The SEN Governor ensures that all governors are aware of the schools SEN provision, including the deployment of funding, equipment and personnel.

5. Special Educational Needs The progress made by all pupils at this school is regularly monitored and reviewed. The school does not identify pupils as having special educational needs unless we are taking action that is additional to, or different from, that which normally goes on in the classroom as part of our differentiated approach. Children are seen as having a learning difficulty if they have significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of children of the same age they are not making adequate progress they have a disability which prevents or hinders them from making use of the educational facilities that are provided for children of the same age they present persistent emotional and/or behavioural difficulties which are not ameliorated by the behaviour management techniques usually employed in the school.

If our assessments show that a child may have a learning difficulty, we use a range of strategies that make full use of all available classroom and school resources. This additional level of support is called Early Years Action or School Action Plus. Action by Class Teacher (prior to involvement of the SENCo, class teachers will be expected to have undertaken the following actions) o o o o o o o o o o o Use existing information as a starting point Highlight areas of skills to support in class Use baseline assessment to identify what the child knows, understands and can do Ensure ongoing observation / assessment provides feedback, so assessment forms basis of next steps Involve parents Involve child Dont assume difficulties are within child Use of national Curriculum programmes of study, effective management, ethos, learning environment and curriculum arrangements Differentiation Records should be kept, discussed and handed to next teacher in the summer term Arrangements should be monitored to identify those not making sufficient progress, at which point the SENCo will be consulted.

School Action o The trigger is concern, underpinned by evidence, that despite differentiation and other arrangements, the child makes very little progress due to underachievement, behaviour, sensory, physical or communication / interaction difficulties o Class teacher and SENCo discuss, look at existing and collect additional information, SENCo takes the lead in further assessment and planning future support o Interventions may include different materials or groupings, adults developing interventions (may not mean extra time) o Should be speedy access to LA service for one-off discussions

o If an IEP is needed it should be crisp with three or four targets, discussed with parents, record targets, teaching strategies, provision, review date, and outcome. o If an IEP is needed, it should only record what is additional and should be reviewed at least termly, in a process that should not be unduly formal. Monitoring will be undertaken continuously. School Action Plus o Should be considered when pupils are unable to make appropriate progress and involves experts advising on new IEP targets, specialist assessment, advice on new strategies, additional support o Triggers: little progress over time. National Curriculum levels below age expected level, or serious behaviour / physical / sensory / interaction difficulties o External agency contacted and will need to see existing records o SENCo / teacher / external agency representatives to consider range of approaches / materials, including ICT. o IEP reviewed and links made to pupils difficulties Individual Education Plans As indicated above, arrangements which are additional to or different from that which is normally available will be recorded on IEPs, which will achieve the following o Raise achievement of pupils with SEN o Be seen as a working document o Use a simple format o Detail provision additional to or different from that generally available for all pupils o Detail targets which are extra or different from those for most pupils o Be jargon free o By comprehensible to all staff and parents o Be distributed to all staff as necessary o Promote effective planning o Help pupils monitor their own progress 6. Allocation of Resources The SENCo is responsible for the operational management of the specified and agreed resourcing for special needs provision within the school, including the provision for children with statements of special educational needs, in consultation with the headteacher. The headteacher informs the governing body of how the funding allocated to support special educational needs has been employed. The headteacher and the SENCo meet at least annually to agree on how to use funds directly related to statements. 7. Access to the Curriculum All children have an entitlement to a broad and balanced curriculum, which is differentiated to enable children to understand the relevance and purpose of learning activities

experience levels of understanding and rates of progress that bring feelings of success and achievement

Teachers use a range of strategies to meet childrens special educational needs. Lessons have clear learning objectives; work is differentiated appropriately, and formative and summative assessments are used to inform the next stage of learning. Individual Education Plans (IEPs), which employ a small-steps approach, feature significantly in the provision that is made in the school. By breaking down the existing levels of attainment into finely graded steps and targets, it is ensured that children experience success. All children at School Action and School Action Plus have an IEP. Children are supported in a manner that acknowledges their entitlement to share the same learning experiences that their peers enjoy. Wherever possible, children are not withdrawn from the classroom situation. There are times, though, when to maximise learning, children work in small groups, or in a one-to-one situation outside the classroom. The SENCo, headteacher and other teaching staff meet at least termly to review the special needs provision. 8. Partnership with Parents The school works closely with parents in the support of those children with special educational needs. We encourage an active partnership through an ongoing dialogue with parents. The homeschool agreement is central to this. Parents have much to contribute to the schools support for children with special educational needs. Parents should in the first instance contact the class teacher in case of any concern or difficulty. The school website contains details of the schools policy for special educational needs and arrangements made for these children in our school. Amendments made to the policy at the time of its annual review are communicated to parents in the school prospectus. There is a nominated governor. Linda Cooper, with responsibility for monitoring special needs provision within the school. The school has regular meetings each term to share the progress of special needs children with their parents. Parents are informed of any outside intervention, and the process of decision-making is shared by providing clear information relating to the education of children with special educational needs. The school will provide information about the parent partnership service to all pupils with special educational needs on request. Our local Parent Partnership Co-ordinator is Karen Hull - 01229 407559, who can provide independent support and advice. 9. Links with Other Agencies The school works closely with all of the LAs support services when identifying, assessing and making provision for special needs students. 10. Complaints Procedure The schools Complaints procedure is set out on the school website and in the school prospectus.

11. Reviewing the Policy The governing body reviews this policy annually and considers any amendments in the light of the annual review findings. The effectiveness of this policy will be monitored continuously. Use of resources, identification, IEP effectiveness and quality, pupil progress, the views of parents and carers, and the use of support services will contribute to the evaluation. This policy was approved by governors in Spring 2013.