St. Peter's (East Bridgford) C of E Academy

Our school is a mainstream school that aims to provide an inclusive education where all children make the best possible progress, irrespective of their specific needs. Most members of the teaching team have completed a number of courses such as; autism training, MAPA, First Aid, Precision teaching, separation disorder, dyslexia screening, signs and symbols. Any concerns about the child will usually fall into the following categories:

Cognition and Learning, Communication and Interaction, Social, Emotional and Mental Health and Sensory, Medical and/or Physical.

Firstly, contact your child’s class teacher. If, after consultation with the teacher, you require more information contact our SENCO or Head Teacher. We pride ourselves on building positive relationships with parents.

Children may be identified as having SEND through a variety of ways including the following:-

- Information about SEND passed on from previous schools.

- Child performing significantly below age expected levels (pupil progress is monitored on a termly basis including progress meetings with the head teacher)

- Concerns raised by parent/carer

- Concerns raised by teacher using ongoing teacher assessment

- Liaison with external agencies

- Health diagnosis through paediatrician/doctor

In order to make consistent continuous progress in relation to SEND provision the school encourages feedback from staff, parents and pupils throughout the year in the following ways:

• Staff are able to comment on the effectiveness of provision for children with SEND.
• Parents/carers are informed of their child’s progress and effectiveness of provision through IPP (Individual Provision Plan) meetings. Provision is evaluated on pupil’s individual provision map.
• Pupils are consulted about their views at each IPP review.
• There is a Pupil Parliament which gives pupils the opportunity to comment on any school issues. The outcomes of these processes form the evaluation and are reported to governors. Pupil progress will be monitored on a termly basis in line with the SEND Code of Practice. SEND provision is mapped and evaluated to enable pupils to achieve academic and wider outcomes. 

We have an ‘open door’ policy that encourages parents to make an appointment with their class teacher to discuss any concerns they might have. We pride ourselves in clear communication between staff and parents. We hold termly parents evenings as well as and a written report at the end of the school year. At meetings we can offer advice and practical ways that you can help your child at home.

If your child has complex SEND they may have an EHC Plan (Education Health Care Plan) which means that a formal Annual Review will take place to discuss your child’s progress and a report will be written.

All teachers provide systematic and tailored teaching for children with SEND. When planning and delivering lessons, teachers adapt their style and questioning to accommodate all children’s needs.

Every effort will be made to educate pupils with SEND alongside their peers in a mainstream classroom setting. Where this is not possible, the SENCO will consult with the child’s parents/cares for other flexible arrangements to be made.

Strategies to ensure all children can access the curriculum include:

• Clear communication between staff, pupils and parents with regards to children with SEND.
• Providing regular training and learning opportunities for staff.
• Making use of all class facilities and space.
• Using in-class provisions and support effectively to ensure that the curriculum is differentiated where necessary. The school has an inclusive school planning policy that ensures all children can access the curriculum.
• Making sure that individual or group tuition is available where it is felt that pupils would benefit from this provision.
• We have a ‘beyond expectation’ approach to all areas of the curriculum and praise all achievements at all levels.

Where it is determined that a pupil does have a SEND, parents/carers will be formally advised of this and the decision will be added to the pupil’s school record. The aim of formally identifying a pupil with SEND is to help school ensure that effective provision is put in place and so remove barriers to learning. The support provided consists of a four – part process:

• Assess
• Plan
• Do
• Review

This is an ongoing cycle to enable the provision to be refined and revised as the understanding of the needs of the pupil grows. This cycle enables the identification of those interventions which are the most effective in supporting the pupil to achieve good progress and outcomes. Interventions are monitored half termly with a view to continuing, moving to a different strategy or deciding that sufficient progress has been made and interventions are no longer required to support learning.

Assess

This involves clearly analysing the pupil’s needs using the class teacher’s assessment and experience of working with the pupil, details of previous progress and attainment, comparisons with peers and national data, as well as the views and experience of parents/carers. The pupil’s views and, where relevant, advice from external support services will also be considered. Any parental concerns will be noted and compared with the school’s information and assessment data on how the pupil is progressing.

This analysis will require regular review to ensure that support and intervention is matched to need, that barriers to learning are clearly identified and being overcome and that the interventions being used are developing and evolving as required. Where external support staff are already involved 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. Referrals to external support staff are made by the SENCO at termly Springboard meetings once permission is given by parents.

Plan

Planning will involve consultation between the teacher, the SENCO and parents/carers 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 those working with the pupil, including support staff, will be informed of their individual needs, the support that is being provided, any particular teaching strategies/approaches that are being employed and the outcomes that are being sought.

Do

The class teacher remains responsible for working with the child on a day-to-day basis. They will retain responsibility even where the interventions may involve group or one-to-one teaching away from the main class teacher. They will work closely with teaching assistants and /or relevant specialist staff to plan and assess the impact of support and interventions and links with classroom teaching. Support with further assessment of the pupil’s strengths and weaknesses, problem solving and advising of the implementation of effective support will be provided by the SENCO.

Review

Reviews will be undertaken in line with agreed dates. The review process will evaluate the impact and quality of the support and interventions. It will also take account of the views of the pupil and their parents. The class teacher, in conjunction with the SENCOs will revise the support and outcomes based on the pupil’s progress and development making any necessary amendments going forward, in consultation with parents and the pupil.

Parents will be provided with clear information about the impact of support to enable them to be involved in planning the next steps.

Referral for an Education, Health and Care Plan

If a child has lifelong or significant difficulties, they may undergo a Statutory Assessment Process which is usually requested by the school but can be requested by a parent. This will occur where the complexity of need or a lack of clarity around the needs of the child are such that a multi-agency approach to assessing that need, to planning provision and identifying resources, is required.

The decision to make a referral for a statement will be taken at a progress review.

The application for an Education, Health and Care Plans will combine information from a variety of sources including:

• Parents/carers
• Teachers
• SENCO
• Social Care
• Health professionals

Information will be gathered relating to the current provision provided, action points that have been taken, and the preliminary outcomes of targets set. A decision will be made by a group of people from education, health and social care about whether or the child is eligible for an EHC Plan. Parents have the right to appeal against a decision not to initiate a statutory assessment leading to an EHC Plan.

In order to ensure inclusion of all pupils with SEND in school activities, including educational visits and extra-curricular activities, prior to the event the following may happen:

• A visit to the centre to make full risk assessments and talk to centre staff about individual child’s needs. This may include parents.
• A discussion with parents about their concerns and discuss solutions
• A discussion with the child about his/her concerns including issues of personal care, medication
• Additional staffing to support inclusion e.g. to be able to manage tools safely; to keep a child safe in an open space
• Consideration about transport to and from the venue

Links with the local Special School, Ash Lea, means that visits to the school and vice versa may be arranged in special circumstances with the agreement of all parties.

All staff appreciates the importance of children having high self-esteem in order to achieve positive well-being. We commit to our own values and ensure pupils are able to develop in a caring, fair and understanding environment.

The class teacher has overall responsibility for the pastoral, medical and social care of children in their class; therefore, this would be the parents’ first point of contact. If further support is required, the class teacher can liaise with the SENCO or Mental Health and Wellbeing lead for further advice and support. This may involve working alongside outside agencies such as Health and Social Services.

The class teacher delivers 1decision (PSHE scheme of work) to promote personal, social, health and emotional well-being.

The person responsible for overseeing the provision for children with SEND is Lisa Lewis (until February 2023) and then Lucy Smith (from February 2023)

Contact: office@st-peters.notts.sch.uk

01949 20226

Our school accesses the following training programmes:

• Autism Awareness Training
• Downs Syndrome Training
• Epilepsy training
• Diabetes training
• Signs and Symbols
• Precision Teaching training
• Anxiety Training
• Numicon Training
• TA’s Working with SEND children Training
• Understanding Demand Avoidance and Strategies to support pupils with Demand Avoidance
• Manual Handling
• Lego Therapy
• Supporting pupils with dyslexia
• Autism in Early Years
• Attachment Awareness Training
• Emotion Coaching Training
• Skills based training using Therapeutic tools
• AET Making Sense of Autism

The school continues to build strong working relationships and links with external support services in order to fully support our SEND pupils and aid school inclusion.

Sharing knowledge and information with our support services is key to the effective and successful SEND provision within our school. Any one of the support services may raise concerns about a pupil. This will then be brought to the attention of the SENCO who will then inform the child’s parents.

The following services will be involved as and when is necessary:

• School Health – School Nurse
• Community Paediatricians
• Schools, Families and Specialist Services (for Early-years support, Cognition and Learning, Communication and Interaction (ASD), Sensory, Medical and Physical, Behavioural and Emotional (including anxiety-related).
• Speech and Language therapist
• Independent Counsellor

All pupils with SEND will have access to Element 1 and 2 of a school’s budget (up to £6000). Some pupils with SEND may access additional funding. This additional funding might be from a budget which is devolved to and moderated by the Family of Schools. (The Family of Schools comprises of a secondary school and its feeder primary schools). For those with the most complex needs, additional funding is retained by the local authority. This is accessed through the Family of Schools. The Family SENCO will refer individual applications to a multi-agency panel, which is administered by the Local Authority, who will determine whether the level and complexity of need meets the threshold for this funding.

The Head teacher of the school, in discussion with Governors and SENCOs, determines the support staffing allocation and budgetary implications with reference to supporting pupils with SENs. The support may be delivered in a variety of ways including:

• Some 1:1 support where this is identified as necessary delivered by a Teaching Partner or Care Assistant;
• Small group support with a Teaching Partner in class or at break times;
• ‘From a distance’ supervision at break times with intervention where necessary;
• Purchase of specialist SEN resources to meet individual needs.

Pupil Premium resources may sometimes overlap with children with identified SEND

We believe that a close working relationship with parents is vital in order to ensure:

1. a) early and accurate identification and assessment of SEN leading to the correct intervention and provision
2. b) continuing social and academic progress of children with SEN
3. c) personal and academic targets are set and met effectively

The class teachers will talk to parents termly and also more informally at the end of the day or by appointment. There is an end of year written report and open afternoon for parents on each child’s progress.

Parents can contact the school in the following ways:

Telephone – 01949 20226 (school office)

Via the office in person and ask for a call back.

If more frequent contact with parents is necessary e.g. in times of crisis or approaching transition, this will be arranged by the SENCO and/or class teacher according to the individual pupil’s needs.

The SENCO may also signpost parents of pupils with SEN to the local authority Parent Partnership service, www.ppsnotts.org.uk where specific advice, guidance and support may be required.

If an assessment or referral indicates that a pupil has additional learning needs the parents and the pupil will always be consulted with regards to future provision. Parents are invited to attend meetings with external agencies regarding their child, and are kept up to date and consulted on any points of action drawn up in regards to the provision for their child. The school’s SEN Governor, Safeena Higgins, can also be contacted in relation to SEN matters.

We value and celebrate children being able to express their views on all aspects of school life. This is usually carried out through the Pupil Parliament, which has an open forum for any issues or viewpoints to be raised. If your child has an EHC Plan then their views will be obtained before any meetings.

If a parent or carer has any concerns or complaints regarding the care or welfare of their child, an appointment can be made by them to speak to the Head teacher, who will be able to advise on formal procedures for complaints. A copy of the school complaints procedure is available from the school office. We aim to resolve any complaints as soon as possible.

The school’s SEND governor is Safeena Higgins. We invite and seek advice and support from external agencies in the identification and assessment of, and provision for, SEN. The SENCO is the designated persons responsible for liaising with the following:

• Education Psychology Service
• Rushcliffe Primary Behaviour Support Service
• Speech and Language Service
• Specialist Outreach Services
• SFSS (including EYFS)

Should your child require any form of involvement with an outside agency then the school would inform you and obtain permission from parents to pursue any kind of professional intervention.

At First Admission, every effort is made to ensure support is in place for any child with identified SEND. If external professionals have been involved with the child then detailed information will be sought from them and the child’s parents. School has strong links with the pre–school and the SENCO attends the first transition meeting prior to admission.

When children transfer to the school in-year, every effort is made to get timely information from the previous school on the child’s needs and provision necessary to meet those needs. If additional support is required, an emergency bid for funding is made to the Family SENCO.

Primary/Secondary Transition:

The SENCO ensures the secondary SENCO/s at receiving schools have timely information regarding the needs of potential Year 7 pupils for September entry. If necessary, additional visits to the school are made supported by a teaching partner. This support will also extend beyond September entry where necessary. If the pupil is not transferring to Toot Hill School then the SENCO will contact the receiving school during the summer term if contact has not been previously made.

In-School transition:

Meetings are held between the existing teacher/teaching partner and receiving teacher/teaching partner to discuss the needs of children with SENs and any issues around transition prior to transition. Notes and up-to-date IPPs are passed on to the next teacher.

As part of the curriculum, we make every effort to provide children with real life context to learning to prepare them for adulthood and independent learning whether this is in or out of school.

If your child has a special educational need of any sort and you are thinking about joining our school, please phone to arrange a meeting with the head teacher and SENCO as early as possible. More information about the school can be found on the school website: www.eastbridgfordstpeters.co.uk

You can find information about what Nottinghamshire County Council offers to support children with SEND and their parents/carers on the website:

www.nottinghamshiresendlocaloffer.org.uk