The Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator, at Jesmond Park Academy, is Ms Munro CMunro@jesmondparkacademy.org.uk and the Assistant Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator is Mrs Carroll TCarroll@jesmondparkacademy.org.uk
Planning/Review Team: SLT, Advisory Group
This policy replaces all of our previous SEND policies. It relates to children and young people with special educational needs (SEN) and disabled children and young people. A ‘young person’, in the context of the SEN Code of Practice, is a person over the age of 16 and under the age of 25.
This policy takes into account legislation relating to SEN and Disabilities including:
Jesmond Park Academy fully recognises its responsibilities relating to Special Educational Needs and Disability.
There are three main elements to our policy:
1. ACADEMY ARRANGEMENTS
Including:
2. IDENTIFICATION, ASSESSMENT AND PROVISION
Including:
3. PARTNERSHIP WITHIN AND BEYOND GOSFORTH FEDERATED ACADEMIES
Including:
4. Complaints
1. ACADEMY ARRANGEMENTS
Definition, principles and objectives
Definition
“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:
…Special educational provision is educational or training provision 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, mainstream post-16 institutions or by relevant early years providers.
…Many children and young people who have SEN 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.” (See Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice: 0 to 25 years).
At Jesmond Park Academy, we believe that each child is an individual and, as such, has unique strengths, talents and needs. To achieve their full potential, some children and young people require additional support and we recognise this and plan accordingly. We acknowledge that some children may have special educational needs at some time in their school career. Some children and young people may require continuous help throughout their time in school whereas others may need support for only a short period to help overcome more temporary needs. Jesmond Park Academy aims to provide all children and young people with strategies for dealing with their needs in a supportive environment, and to give them access to a broad, balanced and relevant education. Our fundamental principles recognise that:-
Objectives
Our objectives in this policy are:-
Roles and Responsibilities Principal and Trustees Roles
The Trustees and Principal will:-
In addition, as part of the Special Educational Needs and Disability Regulations (2014), the Trustees will take any necessary action to ensure that it does not discriminate against disabled children.
Deputy Principal’s Role
The Deputy Principals, in conjunction with other Deputy Principal’s, has responsibility for:-
SENCO/Assistant SENCO Roles
The SENCO/Assistant SENCO is responsible for co-ordinating the provision of special educational needs throughout the Academy. This includes:-
Class/subject teachers are responsible for SEND provision within the classroom and for providing an appropriately differentiated and inclusive curriculum. The first step in responding to an individual’s identified need is to ensure that high-quality teaching, differentiated and personalised, is in place. Class and subject teachers retain responsibility for the progress of individuals and are at the centre of planning SEND provision with the SENCO and any specialist staff involved with the child or young person. This includes the provision for looked after children.
The HLTAs and Learning Support Assistants work as part of the team alongside the SENCO, Assistant SENCOs and the teachers. They support the individual needs of children and young people with SEND and help with their inclusion within the classroom, in small intervention groups and through one to one support. They play an important role in implementing personalised provision and in monitoring progress. They contribute to review meetings and help children and young people with SEND to gain access to a broad and balanced curriculum. They are also available to provide educational and emotional support to our looked after children.
Co-ordinating and Managing Provision
Across Jesmond Park Academy:-
Admission arrangements
Advisory Group members will make reasonable adjustments to ensure that these individual needs are fully met.
Any variation to the above will need to be agreed by the full Trustees.
At Jesmond Park Academy:-
2. IDENTIFICATION, ASSESSMENT AND PROVISION Access to Facilities and Provision
Please refer to Jesmond Park Academy’s Accessibility Plan which outlines how we:
Allocation of Resources
Most of the resources, used by children and young people with special educational needs, are available within the classrooms and in Student Support. Learning Support Assistants may be targeted to work with identified children and young people, under the guidance of a teacher, and in consultation with the SENCO. The SEND budget is spent on resources and staffing costs which are allocated to support the SEND children and young people and to meet the objectives of this policy. Jesmond Park Academy will use a range of funding, including the notional SEND budget, to provide high quality support for children and young people with SEND. Occasionally, children and young people may be allocated further funding which enables them to receive increased individualised support. An EHC Plan determines this support.
Access to the Curriculum
The broad and balanced curriculum is differentiated to enable all children and young people to access the learning. Teachers have high expectations for all children and, in their planning and teaching, they provide suitable learning objectives, meet the diverse range of learning needs and remove barriers to learning. For the majority of the week, children and young people with SEND are taught with their peers in mainstream classes. Teachers are responsible and accountable for the progress and development of all children and young people but, in order to maximise learning, some children and young people are withdrawn, individually and/or in small groups, to participate in targeted, time-limited interventions which are planned to meet particular needs. Children and young people with SEND are actively encouraged, and supported, to join in and benefit from additional activities and clubs, in addition to any wider community activities.
Medical Conditions
Jesmond Park Academy will follow the recommendations of the Children and Families Act (2014) with regard to arrangements for children and young people with medical conditions. Where a child or young person also has SEND, their provision will be planned and delivered in a co-ordinated way with their healthcare plan.
Arrangements for students who are looked after by the Local Authority
Jesmond Park Academy will follow the statutory guidance on supporting students who are in local authority care as set out by the Department for Education. The LAC Coordinator and SENCO will work collaboratively to ensure that any SEND provision matches the students’ individual needs. Where a student has an EHC Plan, individual needs, targets and provision will also be discussed with the Care Plan and Personal Education Plan (PEP).
Jesmond Park Academy follows the graduated approach of assess, plan, do and review as outlined in the Code of Practice (2014). This approach is embedded in whole Academy practice, for all children and young people, and every teacher is responsible for ‘adapting teaching to respond to the strengths and needs of all students’ (Teachers’ Standards, 2012). Academy assessment data, teacher judgments and, where appropriate, assessments from outside agencies, are used to identify children and young people who require additional and different provision. A provision map outlines this SEND support and is updated regularly. The following are not SEND but may impact on progress and attainment: disability; attendance and punctuality; health and welfare; English as an Additional Language (EAL); receipt of pupil premium funding; being a Looked After Child; being a child of service personnel.
SEND Support – Four Part cycle (Assess, Plan, Do, Review)
The identification of SEND is built into the overall approach to monitoring the progress and development of all students in the Academy. Regular progress and review meetings support the early identification of children and young people who may have SEND. Where concerns are identified, they are then discussed with the SENCO and appropriate action is then taken.
Assess
The class or subject teacher, working with the SENCO, will carry out a clear analysis of a child’s needs. This assessment will be reviewed regularly and, where appropriate, professionals will help to inform the assessment. Parents and carers may be asked to contribute to this process.
Plan
Parents/carers will be formally notified if their child is to be placed on the SEND Register at ‘SEN Support’. Adjustments to provision, interventions and support will be agreed with staff, the child or young person and parents/carers and a record of this planning will be made. This may be presented in the form of a provision map.
Do
The class or subject teacher will remain responsible for working with the child or young person, on a daily basis, and retain responsibility for their progress and outcomes. The class or subject teacher will plan and assess the impact of support and interventions with any LSAs or specialist staff involved. The SENCO will support this process.
Review
The effectiveness of the support and interventions, and their impact on the child or young person’s progress, will be reviewed on an agreed date. Regular reviews will be held with
parents/carers and the class or subject teacher, working with the SENCO, will revise the support in the light of the child or young person’s progress. If the child or young person does not make the expected progress, over a sustained period of time, the SENCO will consider involving specialists (e.g. Educational Psychology Service, School Health, School Improvement Service (SIS) SEN Support, SEN Teaching and Support Service (SENTASS) and, when appropriate, Social Care and the Looked After Children Team etc).
Education, Health and Care Plans
Where, despite having taken relevant and purposeful action to identify, assess and meet the SEND of a child or young person, the child has not made expected progress, then the SENCO and/or parents/carers will consider requesting an Education, Health and Care assessment. The SENCO will provide the Local Authority with evidence of the action taken as part of SEN support. This may or may not result in the issuing of an Education, Health and Care Plan which entitles the child or young person to additional support, as prescribed in the Plan, to support them in meeting identified outcomes.
Managing and reviewing provision for students with SEND
All teachers across the Academy are accountable for the progress of students with SEND. Provision for students with SEND is managed by the SENCO. At Jesmond Park Academy all teachers are able to teach students with SEND. In addition:
Evaluating the effectiveness of provision
Further details regarding provision for children and young people with SEND can be found in the SEND Information document.
This document can be found on the Jesmond Park Academy website. It outlines the provision made for all children and young people with SEND, at Jesmond Park Academy, within the four broad areas of need: Communication and Interaction; Cognition and Learning; Social, Emotional and Mental Health; Sensory and/or Physical. Some children and young people may have needs which span several areas.
This policy will be evaluated against the objectives previously stated and measured by the following:-
Success criteria:
3. PARTNERSHIP WITHIN AND BEYOND THE ACADEMY Partnership with Parents/Carers
Parents/carers are important partners, in the effective working relationship with Jesmond Park Academy, in raising their child’s achievement. They are fully involved in the identification, assessment and decision-making process and they are encouraged to discuss any concerns with class/subject teachers/SENCO as they arise. Parent/carer contributions, regarding their child’s education, are valued highly by the staff in the Academy. Interpreters are arranged for parents/carers who require translation during meetings; written information is in accessible formats; sufficient notice is given, for meetings, to enable preparation and planning time for parents/carers. The Parent Partnership Service is also used by parents/carers for further support and guidance. Parents/carers will be regularly updated with relevant information and will be consulted before outside agencies become involved. The Common Assessment Framework (CAF) is used to co-ordinate support for children, young people and their families who have a range of needs.
We show sensitivity, honesty and mutual respect in encouraging children and young people to share their views and we value their contributions. Children and young people are involved in the decision-making process, whenever possible, and are supported in order to do so.
Confident children and young people, who know that their opinions will be valued and who can practise making choices, will be more secure and effective students during their school years.
At Jesmond Park Academy, we help children and young people to participate in their learning by encouraging them to discuss targets and steps for improvement. For those with SEND, this includes discussing the strategies for success outlined in Provision Maps and in targets and outcomes set by subject teachers. We encourage children and young people to take part in reviewing their progress and in setting new goals and challenges. Whenever possible, children and young people are encouraged to attend their review meetings.
Links with external agencies and support services
Close links are maintained with the LA support services to ensure that Jesmond Park Academy makes appropriate provision for children and young people with special educational needs.
When it is necessary to contact external agencies, the SENCO/Assistant SENCO will make the arrangements and consult with parents/carers accordingly. These agencies normally include:-
At Jesmond Park Academy, links are maintained to ensure a smooth transfer, on school entry, through liaison and visits to local Primary Schools. Children are invited to Jesmond Park Academy for induction visits in the term before they start school and, if necessary, the Academy liaises with other agencies at this stage. Children transferring, mid year, are offered visits and their SEND information is sought from their previous school to ensure a smooth transition.
At Jesmond Park Academy, links are maintained to ensure a smooth transfer, on Academy entry, through liaison and visits to feeder Schools by the SENCO or Assistant SENCO. Children are invited to visit Jesmond Park Academy, for induction visits, in the term before they start and, if necessary, the Academy liaises with other agencies at this stage. To ease transition, vulnerable children are carefully located in classes and may be paired with a child of a similar level of need. The SENCO or Assistant SENCO attend Year 6 SEND Reviews to become fully informed about individual SEND needs. Some children are allocated an LSA, to assist with transition issues, and all SEND records and information are transferred as part of the transition process.
If a child or young person, with SEND, transfers to another school (e.g. to an alternative post-16 institution), the SENCO liaises with other SENCOs/key staff to ensure a smooth transition and key information, regarding SEND provision, will be shared with the next school/setting through the review process.
Parents/carers are fully involved in transition planning at all stages.
Teachers liaise closely when children and young people transfer to another class within the Academy and/or another Key Stage. Meetings are arranged, wherever possible, between teachers, the SENCO/Assistant SENCO, HLTA, and other key staff, to ensure smooth transition.
Staff development and appraisal
Through the monitoring and evaluation of our provision, the SENCO/Assistant SENCO, Deputy Principals of Main School and Sixth Form and the Deputy Principal for Teaching and Learning will identify any particular professional development needs of the staff. Staff development will, where appropriate, be linked closely to the Academy Improvement Plan and Appraisal Objectives. Staff who attend additional courses will disseminate information at staff meetings. Whole Academy in-service training sessions are arranged, as appropriate, in response to any particular needs identified across Jesmond Park Academy. Outside agencies deliver training as, and when, needed. Staff are informed of local and national developments in relation to SEND and Inclusion.
We strive to offer the best provision for all our children. We recognise the important role Parents and Carers play in raising the achievement of their child and are fully involved in the decision making process regarding their child. Parents are encouraged to raise any concerns they have regarding their child as they arise with the SENCO. However, should a parent/carer have a complaint about the support provided for their child in the Academy, they should refer to our Complaints Policy, which can be found on our website.