Policy Statement & Procedures. Special Educational Needs & Disability

Transcription

1 Policy Statement & Procedures Special Educational Needs & Disability

2 Special Educational Needs & Disability Policy Statement & Procedures Date First Issued: Spring 2015 Approved by: Teaching & Learning Trustee Committee Committee Chair Signed/Date: Date Last Reviewed: Review Frequency: January 2015 Annually Key Contact/s: Mrs Sue Crosson, Miss Rachel Maxwell, Mrs Cath Morgan, Mr James Higham Scope This document is applicable to the following: Parent/s & Carer/s Staff Community Children Trustees Volunteers/Visitors Contractors Our school defines Special Educational Needs and Disability as: A person has SEN if they have a learning difficulty or disability, which calls for special educational provision to be made for him or her. At compulsory school age this means he or she has a significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of others 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. (SEND Code of Practice: 0 to 25 years, 2014) Policy Statement The school will: Manage Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) in accordance with guidance from Children and Families Act 2014; Equality Act 2010; Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice: 0 to 25 years (DfE, 2014); Implementing a new 0 to 25 Special Needs System: LAs and Partners (DfE, 2014); and any subsequent act/s and/or guidance; Have regard to the views, wishes and feelings of the child, and the child s parents; Have regard to the importance of the child and the child s parents, participating as fully as possible in decisions and being provided with the information and support necessary to enable participation in those decisions; Have regard to the need to support the child and the child s parents in order to facilitate the development of the child and to help them achieve the best possible educational and other outcomes preparing them effectively for adulthood; Ensure the early identification of children s needs and early intervention to support them; Ensure greater choice and control for children and parents over support; Collaborate with health and social care services to provide support; Ensure high quality provision to meet the needs of all children including those children with SEND; Ensure a focus on inclusive practice and removing barriers to learning; Supporting children with Special Educational Needs and Disability Spring

3 Ensure successful preparation for the child s next stage of education, including age- appropriate independence; Ensure that children and parents are actively supported in contributing to needs assessments and developing and reviewing Education, Health and Care (EHC) plans; Ensure that children s views are given due weight according to their age, maturity and capability; Enable parents to share their knowledge about their child and give them confidence that their views and contributions are valued and will be acted upon; Use its best endeavours to ensure that high quality provision is available for all children and that additional or different provision is made for those who need it; Ensure decisions are informed by the insights of parents and those of children themselves; Have high ambitions, set stretching targets for children with SEND and track their progress towards these goals; Ensure that all additional or different provision is kept under review; Promote positive outcomes in the wider areas of personal and social development; Ensure that approaches used are based on the best possible evidence and are having the required impact on progress; Adhere to the Warwickshire Local Authority Admissions Code in relation to equitable allocation of pupil places; Ensure that children with SEND engage in the activities of the school alongside children who do not have SEND; Ensure that we have a designated teacher and Trustee to be responsible for co- ordinating SEND provision; Inform parents when making special educational provision for a child; Raise the aspirations of and expectations for all pupils with SEND as a result of the application of this policy and procedures. Related Documents This policy and procedures should be considered in relation to the guidance listed above and: Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice: 0 to 25 Years Supporting Pupils with Medical Conditions Policy Statement and Procedures Equality Policy Statement and Procedures (inc. Accessibility) SEN Information Report Behaviour Policy Statement and Procedures (inc. Anti- Bullying) Designated lead staff member for children with SEND: Senior Leadership Team Advocate: Designated lead Trustee for children with SEND: Miss Rachel Maxwell (SENCo) National Award for SEN: Pending Contact: Mr James Higham (Head Teacher) Mrs Cath Morgan Supporting children with Special Educational Needs and Disability Spring

4 Policy Procedures Identifying need at the earliest point and then making effective provision improves long- term outcomes for the child. For some children, SEND can be identified at an early age. However, for other children difficulties become evident only as they develop. We will look for emerging difficulties and respond early. Teachers are responsible and accountable for the progress and development of the children in their class, including where pupils access support from teaching assistants or specialist staff (in accordance with DfE Teacher s Standards (updated June 2013 Part One: Teaching). Identifying Special Educational Needs and/or Disability At our school we identify the needs of children by considering the needs of the whole child, which will include not just the SEND needs of the child. A child has SEND where their learning difficulty or disability calls for special educational provision, namely provision different from or additional to that normally available to pupils of the same age. There are four main categories of SEND: 1. Communication and Interaction; 2. Cognition and Learning; 3. Social, Emotional and Mental Health Difficulties; 4. Sensory and/or Physical Needs. There are other factors which may impact on a child s progress and attainment but that does not mean that they will be considered to have SEN. These include: attendance and punctuality; health and welfare; English as an additional language; being in receipt of Pupil Premium Grant; being a Looked After Child; being a child of Serviceman/ woman The school maintains separate policies and procedures for the effective support of these factors. The Graduated Approach High quality teaching 1. The class teacher, along with the SENCO and Senior Leadership Team (SLT), assess the progress of all children at least once per term and will seek to identify pupils making less than expected progress given their age and individual circumstances. By this we mean progress that: is significantly slower than that of their peers starting from the same baseline; fails to match or better the child s previous rate of progress; fails to close the attainment gap between the child and their peers; widens the attainment gap. 2. The first response to progress as outlined above is high quality teaching, differentiated for individual children and targeted at their areas of weakness. 3. The child s class teacher will take steps to provide differentiated learning opportunities that will aid the pupil s academic progression and enable the teacher to better understand the provision and teaching style that needs to be applied (Additional provision map Appendix 1). Supporting children with Special Educational Needs and Disability Spring

5 4. While informally gathering evidence (including the views of the child and their parents) class teachers will put in place extra interventions or teaching designed to secure better progress. These interventions may be carried out by the Class Teacher, Teaching Assistants or our Learning Mentor either within or outside the classroom (Intervention Plan Appendix 2, Intervention Register Appendix 3, Example letter to parents Appendix 4). 5. We ensure that we monitor the impact that these interventions have on all the children taking part in them at least termly by the SLT, SENCO and Learning Mentor. SEN Monitoring Where a child is continuing to make slow progress, despite extra interventions and high quality, differentiated teaching, they may be placed in the monitoring section of the SEND register. This means that we will track their progress in more detail and more frequently to ensure that the children are closing the gap to their peers. If a child is not making the progress we would expect following the aforementioned interventions, it may be at this stage that we decide that they require an Individualised Education Plan (IEP) to help support them with an identified area of need, and would have their name added to the SEND register (SEND register template Appendix 5). SEN Support (SENS) Where it is determined that a pupil does have SEND, parents will be formally advised of this through a meeting with the class teacher (Record of Discussion form Appendix 6) and a letter to outline the reasons for this and what we are doing as a school to support the child within the classroom, the child s name will be placed on the SEND register. The aim of formally identifying a pupil with SEND is to help school ensure that effective provision is put in place and remove barriers to learning. Parents will be invited to a meeting at least each term to review the progress made, set targets and agree provision for the next term. The support consists of a four- part cycle through which earlier decisions and actions are revisited, refined and revised with a growing understanding of the child s needs and of what supports the child in making good progress and securing good outcomes. This is known as the graduated approach and the four stages are: Assess Plan Do Review This cycle enables the identification of those interventions which are the most effective in supporting the child to achieve good progress and outcomes. Assess In identifying a child as needing SEN support the class teacher, working with the SENCO, will assess the child s needs. This is based on the teacher s assessment and experience of the child and their previous attainment and progress. We will take seriously any concerns raised by a parent. These will be recorded and compared to the assessment and information gathered within school. The assessment will be reviewed regularly to ensure that support and intervention are matched to need, barriers to learning are identified and overcome, and that a clear picture is developed, of the interventions put in place and their effect. Where external support staff are already involved (e.g. Educational Psychologist, School Health Team, Speech and Language Therapy, Early Intervention Service or Integrated Disability Service), their work will help inform the assessment of need. Where they are not involved they may be contacted, if this is felt to be appropriate, following discussion and agreement from parents (Parental consent form Appendix 7). Supporting children with Special Educational Needs and Disability Spring

6 Plan The main focus within the planning stage is to determine the support or differentiation required to support each individual child with accessing the curriculum to the best of their ability. Planning will involve consultation between the teacher, SENCO and parents to agree the adjustments, interventions and support that are required; the impact on progress, development and/ or behaviour that is expected and a clear date for review. Parental involvement may be sought, where appropriate, to reinforce or contribute to progress at home. All teachers and support staff who work with the child will be informed of their individual needs, the support that is being provided, any particular teaching strategies or approaches that are expected to be used and the outcomes that are being sought. Do The class teacher remains responsible for working with the child on a daily basis even when interventions are taking place away from the main class teacher. Where interventions are carried out by Teaching Assistants the Teachers will plan and assess the impact of support and interventions and how they can be linked to classroom teaching. The SENCO and external professionals will share appropriate knowledge to support the class teacher in the further assessment of the child s particular strengths and weaknesses, in problem solving and advising on the effective implementation of support and differentiation of learning. Review The review process will evaluate the impact of support and interventions on the child s progress and will be reviewed at least three times a year. It will take account of the views of the child and their parents. The class teacher, in conjunction with the SENCO will revise the support and outcomes based on the child s progress and development making any necessary amendments going forward, in consultation with parents and the child. Referral for an Education, Health and Care Plan The purpose of an EHC plan is to secure special educational provision to meet the special educational needs of the child, to outline specific objectives for them to work on across the education, health and social care (Example of EHC plan Appendix 8). The application for an EHC plan will combine information from a variety of sources including parents, teachers, SENCO, social care and health professionals. Having a diagnosis (e.g. of ASD, ADHD or dyslexia etc.) does not mean that a child needs an EHC plan. To produce an EHC plan, local authorities use the information from the assessment to: establish and record the views, interests and aspirations of the parents and child; provide a full description of the child s special educational needs and any health and social care needs; establish outcomes across education, health and social care based on the child s needs and aspirations; specify the provision required and how education, health and care services will work together to meet the child s needs and support the achievement of the agreed outcomes. If the application for an EHC plan is successful, a member of the Local Authority (LA) will call a meeting for parents, the child and the school together with any health or social care professionals who are involved with the family. The meeting will record the child s strengths, their dreams and aspirations as well as the barriers they face. Following the meeting, the LA will produce the EHC plan which will record the decisions made at the meeting. Supporting children with Special Educational Needs and Disability Spring

7 Once the EHC plan has been completed and agreed, it will be kept as part of the child s formal record and reviewed at least annually by staff, health and social care professionals (if appropriate), parents and the child. The annual review enables provision for the child to be evaluated and, where appropriate, for changes to be put in place for example, reducing or increasing levels of support. Managing children s needs on the SEN register Every child who is on the SEND register will have an IEP (Example IEP Appendix 9, Example of child s IEP Appendix 10) created with them that outlines what their target is, how it will be achieved, by whom and a time frame within which to complete this target. These IEPs will be shared with parents and will be reviewed at least three times a year during a SEN review meeting. All children s progress will be monitored during termly Pupil Progress Meetings with the class teachers, SENCO, Learning Mentor and SLT. In addition to these meetings, the SENCO, Learning Mentor and members of the SLT will meet at least half termly to discuss the progress and attainment of the children on the SEND register and to evaluate the impact and effectiveness of the interventions that have taken place. On an individual provision map the details of the interventions each child has completed are recorded along with the intended outcomes, the frequency and actual attainment against the objectives. These are updated at least termly depending on the length of the intervention. Class teachers are responsible for creating and updating both the IEPs and individual provision maps (Example provision map Appendix 11). The SENCO is responsible for monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of interventions and tracking the impact these interventions or targets have had on progress and attainment. Criteria for exiting the SEN register When a child s progress has accelerated and is beginning to close the attainment gap to their peers, they will be closely monitored to ensure that the provision available to them matches their level of need by moving the child to SEND monitoring. Providing that progress continues to close the gap between a child and their peers they will be removed from the SEND register following a discussion with their parents. Supporting children and families Some useful documents/ organisations are detailed below: The Local Authority Offer and any further details relating to the Local Authority s contribution to SEND can be found at The Local Authority Parent Partnership service where specific advice, guidance and support may be obtained. Supporting children with medical conditions We recognise that pupils at school with medical conditions should be properly supported so that they have full access to education, including school trips and physical education. Some children with medical conditions may be disabled and where this is the case we will comply with our duties under the Equality Act Further details can be obtained from the following: Supporting Pupils with Medical Conditions Policy Statement and Procedures Equality Policy Statement and Procedures Supporting children with Special Educational Needs and Disability Spring

8 Monitoring and evaluation of SEND In order to make consistent and continuous progress in relation to SEND provision the school encourages feedback from staff, parents and children throughout the year. This is done in the form of an annual parent and pupil questionnaire, termly progress meeting with parents and discussion with parents about their child s provision and next steps in their learning. Pupil progress will be monitored on at least a termly basis in line with the SEND Code of Practice (2014). Training and Resources We aim to keep all staff up to date with relevant training and developments in teaching practice in relation to the needs of pupils with SEND. The SENCO attends relevant SEND courses, SEN meetings and facilitates/ signposts relevant SEND focused external training opportunities for all staff. We recognise the need to train all staff on SEND issues and we have ring fenced funding to support this professional development. The SENCO, with the SLT, ensures that training opportunities are matched to school development priorities, those identified through the use of provision management, to individual and group needs and that all staff delivering the interventions are appropriately trained. Storing and managing information Any information relating to a child s specific learning needs will be passed onto their receiving junior school at the end of their final academic year (year 2). Specific details regarding a child s learning will be passed onto their receiving Teacher by their current Teacher at the end of the academic years Reception and Year One. We will actively seek out any transfer information and any involvement from external professionals from previous schools should a child join us mid- year or in Year 1 or Year 2. Complaints Please refer to the school s Complaints Policy Statement and Procedures. Appendices 1. Class Additional Provision Plan 2. Interventions Plan 3. Intervention Register 4. Example Intervention Letter to Parents 5. SEND Register Template 6. Record of Discussion Form 7. Parental Consent Form 8. Education Health and Care Plan Template 9. IEP Template 10. Child s IEP Template 11. Provision Map Supporting children with Special Educational Needs and Disability Spring

9 Appendix 1: Class Additional Provision Plan Supporting children with Special Educational Needs and Disability Spring