SEND

Special Educational Needs

Inclusion & Special Educational Needs

A child or young 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 Phoenix Community Primary School, we make provision for every kind of frequently occurring special educational need and we are able to meet the needs of the majority of our children. This can include pupils with speech, language and communication needs (SLCN), cognition and learning needs including moderate learning difficulties (MLD) and specific learning difficulties (including ASD, dyslexia and dyspraxia), and those with social, emotional and mental health difficulties, those with sensory and/or physical needs and those with a physical disability (PD). On occasion, it may be necessary to request additional support/funding where the needs of the child are more complex/severe and this may be formalised through an Education and Health Care Plan (EHCP). This process is carried out in partnership with parents and carers. Before parents request an EHCP needs assessment for their child, it is strongly recommended to speak to the school about any concerns around their progress or support they are receiving. School is required to provide evidence to support the request and prior discussion and planning together with parents makes this process more effective.

Details of how we support disabled pupils access our facilities are given here: Accessibility Plan.

Adaptations to the Curriculum and Learning Environment

We have made access for SEND and disabled pupils to the curriculum easier over the last few years:

The use of coloured backgrounds on interactive whiteboards to support greater visual clarity
Providing bespoke resources for individual pupils with identified needs to enable them to access the curriculum, e.g. individual coloured overlays, angled desktops, writing supports, wobble seat, weighted cushions etc.
Providing staff with training on dyslexia, ASD, emotion coaching, Downs Syndrome, Makaton, Cued Articulation, Video Interaction Guidance and ongoing training from speech and language therapists to improve communication and interaction for those with speech and language needs.
Specific ICT-based programmes are purchased on a yearly basis to develop speech and language e.g. Speech Link and Language Link.
Providing staff training on the use of different ICT programmes including SeeSaw
Acting on specialist advice and recommendations from a range of specialists, including educational psychologists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, specialist teachers etc. to support teaching and learning and access to wider opportunities.
The use of visual supports – symbols and pictures to support learning, transition and social communication and interaction.
The use of verbal social stories.
Access to Social, Mental and Emotional Health Interventions such as Talking and Drawing and Lego Therapy

The Six Principles of Nurture

As a school, we have been working hard alongside Nurture UK to obtain the National Nurturing Schools Award.

We have embedded the six principles of Nurture throughout all we do at Phoenix.

We share these with the children and have held parent coffee mornings to unpick these further.

Please feel free to speak to Mrs White (SENCO) or any member of staff to find out more.

Consulting Parents of Children with SEND about their Education

All parents of pupils at Phoenix Community Primary School are invited to discuss the progress of their children on three occasions a year and receive a written report once per year. In addition, we are happy to arrange meetings outside these times. As part of our normal teaching arrangements, all pupils will access some additional teaching to help them catch-up if the progress monitoring indicates that this is necessary; this will not imply that the pupil has a special educational need. All such provisions will be recorded, tracked and evaluated on a Class Provision Map. This is shared with parents on parents’ meetings.

If, following this targeted provision, improvements in progress are not seen, we will contact parents to discuss the use of internal or external assessments which will help us to address these needs better. From this point onwards, the pupil will be identified as having special educational needs because special educational provision is being made, and the parents will be invited to plan and review of this provision. Parents will be actively supported to contribute to assessment, planning and review.

In addition to this, parents of pupils with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) will be invited to contribute to and attend an annual review, which, wherever possible, will also include other agencies involved with the pupil. Information will be made accessible for parents.

At the end of this section there is a visual representation of how we identify SEN at Phoenix and the support we put in place. If you, as a parent, want to apply for an EHCP, the latest Kent County Council guidance (Click here) asks that you please liaise with the school before you apply.

Admissions criteria for children with SEND, especially an EHCP, can be found here: Admissions Policy

Useful Links

The British Dyslexia Association: www.bdadyslexia.org.uk

The vision of the British Dyslexia Association is a dyslexia friendly society enabling all dyslexic people to reach their potential

The Autism Charity: www.autism.org.uk

We are the leading UK charity for people with autism (including Asperger syndrome) and their families. We provide information, support and pioneering services, and campaign for a better world for people with autism.

Kent NHS Trust: www.kentcht.nhs.uk/speech-and-language-therapy

We assess and treat children and young people with speech, language, communication and feeding difficulties. We also train and support parents, carers and staff in early years' settings and schools.

Kent Education Learning and Skills Information: www.kelsi.org.uk/special-education-needs

We aim to empower parents and families of disabled children and children with SEND to be confident to take an active and informed role in their child’s education and development. We provide a comprehensive, accessible and flexible range of services that includes free confidential, impartial advice and support. For further information view our leaflet on Parent Support.