The Ridge Primary School

Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Policy

Key people relating to this policy:

Head Teacher: Mrs Deb Hudson

SENCo: Mrs Natasha Norgate (Louisa McGivney providing temporary cover for her maternity cover)

Contact details: 01384 818800

School Governor with SEND responsibility: Mrs L Mason

Mission Statement

At The Ridge Primary School we recognise that every child is an individual with particular educational needs and abilities. We are committed to offering an inclusive curriculum to ensure the best possible outcomes for all our children, whatever their needs or abilities. Our educational aims for children with special educational needs and/ or disabilities (SEND) are the same as those for all children in school. Special educational needs may be experienced throughout, or at any time during their school career. We believe at The Ridge that every teacher is a teacher of every child, including those with SEND.

Information about the school

The Ridge Primary School has approximately 210 pupils and is situated in an area of mixed private and social residential housing. The school incorporates a Kindergarten for children from the age of 2 years. 12.2% of the pupils in the school have registered an entitlement to free school meals and 14.6% of our pupils are recorded as having SEND.

Aims

We aim to provide every child with access to a broad and balanced education. This includes the delivery of the National Curriculum (2014), in line with the Special Educational Need Code of Practice 0-25 Guidance (2014). Our aims are:

  • To ensure that the needs of all pupils are met
  • To raise the aspirations and expectations of all pupils with SEND
  • To provide equal opportunities for all

Objectives of this policy

  • To support staff members to seek to identify the needs of pupils with SEND as early as possible. This is most effectively done by gathering information from parents, education, health and care services and early years settings prior to the child's entry into the school.
  • To ensure the monitoring of the progress of all pupils in order to aid the identification of SEND. Continuous monitoring of those pupils with SEND by their teachers will help to ensure that they are able to reach their full potential
  • To ensure that we make appropriate provision to overcome all barriers to learning and ensure pupils with SEND have full access to the National Curriculum. This will be coordinated by the SENCO and Headteacher and will be carefully monitored and regularly reviewed in order to ensure that individual targets are being met and all pupils' needs are catered for.
  • To ensure that school works with parents to gain a better understanding of their child, and involve them in all stages of their child's education. This includes supporting them in terms of understanding SEND procedures and practices and providing regular feedback on their child's progress.
  • Work with and in support of outside agencies when the pupils' needs cannot be met by the school alone.
  • Create a school environment where all pupils can contribute to their own learning, including those pupils who are 'Looked After' by a local authority. This means encouraging relationships with adults in school where pupils feel safe to voice their opinions of their own needs and carefully monitoring the progress of all pupils at regular intervals. Pupil participation is encouraged through school by wider opportunities such as school council, residential visits, school plays, sports teams and play leaders in the playground. Such opportunities are open to all pupils, including those with SEND.

Identification of Pupil Needs

At The Ridge we adopt the definition of SEND as stated in the Special Educational Need Code of Practice 0-25 (2014).

A child or young person has SEND if they have a learning difficulty or disability which calls for special educational provision to be made for him or her.

A child of compulsory school age or a young person has a learning difficulty or disability if he or she:

  • has a significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of others of 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 or mainstream post-16 institutions.

For children aged two or more with SEND, special educational provision is that that is additional to or different from that made generally for other children or young people of the same age by mainstream schools, maintained nursery schools or by relevant early years providers.

A child under compulsory school age has special educational needs if he or she is likely to fall within the definition above when they reach compulsory school age or would do so if special educational provision was not made for them (Section 20Children and Families Act 2014).

Pupils with SEND may have needs in one or more of the following areas:

  • communication and interaction
  • cognition and learning
  • social, emotional and mental health
  • sensory and/or physical needs

Many children and young people who have SEND may have a disability under the Equality Act 2010 - that is '...a physical or mental impairment which has a long-term and substantial adverse effect on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities'. This definition provides a relatively low threshold and includes more children than many realise: 'long-term' is defined as 'a year or more' and 'substantial' is defined as 'more than minor or trivial'. This definition includes sensory impairments such as those affecting sight or hearing, and long-term health conditions such as asthma, diabetes, epilepsy, and cancer. Children and young people with such conditions do not necessarily have SEND, but there is a significant overlap between disabled children and young people and those with SEND. Where a disabled child or young person requires special educational provision they will also be covered by the SEND definition.

There are other factors which impact upon progress and attainment. These include:

  • Disability (the Code of Practice outlines the 'reasonable adjustment' duty for all schools provided under current Disability Equality legislation - these alone do not constitute SEND).
  • Attendance and punctuality
  • Health and welfare
  • EAL (English as an Additional Language)
  • Being in receipt of pupil premium grant
  • Being a 'Looked After' child
  • Being a child of servicemen/women

A Graduated Approach to SEN Support

Quality First Teaching

At The Ridge Primary School we believe that all teachers are expected to deliver high quality teaching that is differentiated and personalised to meet the individual needs of children.

a) Any pupils who are falling significantly outside the range of expected academic achievement in line with predicted performance indicators will be monitored.

b) Once a pupil has been identified as possibly having SEND they will be closely monitored by staff in order to gauge their level of learning and possible difficulties.

c) 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.

d) The SENCO will be consulted as needed for support and advice and may wish to observe the pupil in class.

e) Through (b) and (d) it can be determined which level of provision the child will need going forward.

f) If a pupil has recently been removed from the SEND register they may also fall into this category as continued monitoring will be necessary.

g) Parents will be informed fully of every stage of their child's development and the circumstances under which they are being monitored. They are encouraged to share information and knowledge with the school.

h) Any concerns will be discussed with parents informally or during parents' evenings.

i) Parent's evenings are used to monitor and assess the progress being made by children.

SEN Support

Some children need educational provision that is additional to or different from that made generally for other children. This is an ongoing cycle to enable the provision to be refined and revised as the understanding of the needs of the pupil develops. This cycle enables the identification of those interventions which are the most effective in supporting the pupil to achieve good progress and outcomes. The support provided consists of a four -part process:

• Assess • Plan • Do • Review

When we have exhausted all avenues of support in school, if a child is still not making appropriate progress, it may be that a pupil has SEND and we need to seek advice from an outside specialist. If this is the case, parents will be part of the decision making process and their permission to consult the outside specialist will be sought. This will then mean that the child is listed as SENS (SEN Support) on our School Register. This is to help school ensure that effective provision is put in place and so remove barriers to 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. 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.

Plan

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 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 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

Regular reviews of a child's progress will take place. 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 where appropriate, their parents. The class teacher, in conjunction with the SENCO, will revise the support and desired outcomes based on the pupil's progress and development making any necessary amendments going forward, in consultation with parents and the pupil. At this point if children are identified as having made progress they may be taken off the SEND register when their needs no longer require special educational provision.

Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP)

If a child has 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, for planning provision and identifying resources, is required. The decision to make a referral for an EHCP will be taken at a progress review.

The application for an EHCP will combine information from a variety of sources including:

  • Parents
  • 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 the child is eligible for an EHCP. Parents have the right to appeal against a decision not to initiate a statutory assessment leading to an EHCP.

Further information about EHC Plans can found via the SEND Local Offer:

https://fis.dudley.gov.uk/LocalOffer/PublicEnquiry_Live/SynergyHomepage.aspx

or by contacting Dudley Special Educational Needs and Disability Information, Advice and Support Service (SENDIASS) on: 01384 236677.

Following Statutory Assessment, an EHCP will be written by Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council, if it is decided that the child's needs are not being met by the support that is ordinarily available. The school and the child's parents will be involved in developing and producing the EHCP.

Parents have the right to appeal against the content of the EHCP. They may also appeal against the school named in the plan if it differs from their preferred choice.

Once the EHCP has been completed and agreed, it will be kept as part of the pupil's formal record and reviewed at least annually by staff, parents and the pupil. The annual review enables provision for the pupil to be evaluated and, where appropriate, for changes to be put in place, for example, reducing or increasing levels of support.

Arrangements for co-ordinating SEND provision

SEN records linked to the Assess - Plan - Do - Review cycle are maintained for individual pupils.

All staff can access:

  • SEN Policy
  • A copy of the full SEND Register
  • Guidance on identification of SEND in the Code of Practice
  • Information on individual pupils' special educational needs, including pupil profiles, targets set and copies of their provision map.
  • Practical advice, teaching strategies and information about types of special educational needs and disabilities
  • Information available through Dudley's SEND Local Offer.

In this way, every staff member will have complete and up-to-date information about all pupils with special needs and their requirements which will enable them to provide for the individual needs of all pupils.

This policy is made accessible to all staff and parents in order to aid the effective co-ordination of the school's SEND provision.

Admission and Inclusion Arrangements

The school's admissions criteria does not discriminate against pupils with special education needs and/or disabilities and its admissions policy has due regard for the guidance in the Code of Practice which accompanies the SEN and Disability Act.

The school follows the current admissions criteria as laid down in the Dudley LA admissions team, which is available to all parents. Provided there is a place available within the appropriate year group, children will be admitted whatever their learning ability.

Parents or carers seeking the admission of a pupil in receipt of a Statement of Special Educational Need/EHCP must do so through the Dudley LA's SEN Team, who will arrange the appropriate consultation with the school's Governing Body regarding admission.

Liaising with External Agencies

External support services play an important part in helping the school identify, assess and make provision for pupils with SEND. Services which school may draw upon include:

  • The Learning Support Team - The Local Authority's specialist advisory services for children with learning difficulties
  • Speech & Language Therapy Service (SALT ) to support children with language and communication difficulties
  • Pupil Referral Units/Sycamore Partnership - support for children with behavioural, emotional and social difficulties
  • Physical Impairment and Medical Inclusion Service (PIMIS ) - support for children with sensory impairments
  • Autism Outreach - support for children on the Autistic Spectrum
  • Educational Psychology Service
  • Community Paediatrician
  • Specialist Early Years Service (SEYS) - Pre-school Special Needs Service
  • Visual Impairment Service
  • Hearing Impairment Service
  • Cherry Tree - Home and Hospital tutoring
  • Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS)
  • Physiotherapy
  • Occupational Therapy
  • Social Care
  • Dudley Counselling Service

Referrals to these services will be made by the SENCO in discussion with class teachers and will always be discussed and agreed with parents/carers.

Transition

Inter-School/Kindergarten or Nursery to School Transfers

Records are received from previous schools/year group and passed to class teachers and the SENCO. Where appropriate, further meetings between school staff, staff in the child's pre-school or school setting, parents and any other agencies involved may take place and an enhanced transition may be arranged.

Transfer to Secondary School

The SENCO meets with Secondary SENCOs to discuss the Special Educational Needs of children moving to Year 7. All records are passed onto Secondary SENCOs. Additional or enhanced transitional arrangements may be facilitated (e.g. Orientation visits with Teaching Assistants).

Supporting Children with Medical Conditions

The school recognises 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 the school will comply with its duties under the Equality Act 2010. (Refer to 'Supporting Pupils at school with Medical Conditions' Policy).

Some pupils may also have SEN and may have a statement or EHCP which brings together health and social care needs, as well as their special educational provision and the SEND Code of Practice (2014) is followed.

Monitoring and Evaluating SEND

In order to make consistent continuous progress in relation to SEND provision, the school encourages feedback from staff, parents and pupils throughout the year. This is done in the form of an annual parent and pupil questionnaire, discussion and through progress meetings with parents. Pupil progress will be monitored on a half termly basis which actually exceeds the requirements of the SEN Code of Practice.

SEN provision and interventions are recorded on a provision map, which is updated as the needs of the pupil change or the additional intervention is changed. This is updated by the class teacher and is monitored by the SENCO. These interventions are monitored and evaluated regularly and information is fed back to the staff, parents and governors. This helps to identify whether provision is effective.

Training and Resources

We aim to keep all school 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, including Dudley's SENCO network meetings, in order to keep up to date with local and national updates in SEND information and resources.

We recognise the need to train all our staff on SEND issues and we have funding available to support this continuing professional development. The SENCO, with the senior leadership team, ensures that training opportunities are matched to school development priorities.

All teachers and support staff undertake induction on taking up a post and this includes meeting with the SENCO to explain the systems and structures in place around the school's SEND provision and practice and to discuss the needs of individual pupils.

Roles and Responsibilities

The Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator

All mainstream schools must appoint a designated teacher to the post of Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator, who is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the school's SEND policy. Here at The Ridge, this post is held by Ms Louisa McGivney. She co-ordinates provision for pupils with SEND and liaises with parents, staff and external agencies.

SEND Governor

A member of the Governing body also takes a special interest in SEND, although the Governing Body as a whole is responsible for making provision for pupils with special educational needs. At The Ridge the Governor with special responsibility for SEND is Mrs L Mason.

Teaching Assistants (TAs)

Our TAs work mainly within class based Phonics, Guided Reading, Speech and Language, English and maths sessions, supporting identified groups. This enables us to offer small group and individual support to those children with higher levels of need at SEN Support.

Their work is carried out under the direction of the class teacher, SENCO and/or external agencies. Some TAs work on specific targets with children who are on the SEND Register identified in the category 'SEN Support' or above. They support in small groups and individually both inside and outside the classroom.

Regular meetings are arranged to plan for the provision for children with SEND within the school. The TAs work closely with the SENCo and the class teachers to plan for the provision for children with SEND. They help to collate and record information required to support referrals to external agencies. Intervention groups include a wide range of programmes including those for maths, English (reading, writing and phonics specific) and for other areas such as Speech and Language, Motor and Co-ordination etc.

Along with class teachers, our TAs also provide pastoral support for children with social, emotional or behavioural difficulties. They provide a safe and secure environment for children to talk to an adult, particularly for those with low self-esteem or poor social skills.

Accessibility

The school complies with all the relevant accessibility requirements. Please see the school accessibility plan for more details.

Complaints Procedure

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 Headteacher or SENCO, who will work to resolve the concern or if necessary, advise on formal procedures for complaint.

Bullying

The school takes many steps to ensure and mitigate the risk of bullying of vulnerable learners. We have a comprehensive anti- bullying policy available to staff and parents.

Comments

We welcome any comments regarding this policy. Please contact us on info@ridge.dudley.sch.uk

This SEND policy complies with the statutory requirements laid out in the SEND Code of Practice: 0-25 guidance 2014

This policy has been written with reference to the following guidance and documents:

  • Equality Act 2010; Advice for Schools (February 2013)
  • Schools SEN information report regulations (2014)

Signed (Head teacher)....................................................... Date.......................

Signed (SEND Governor)................................................... Date.......................

Signed (SENCO)............................................................... Date........................

School Life app download
A School Life Website
School Life app download