SEND

This document should be read alongside the general policy for Equal Opportunities (with specific reference to the Disability Equality Policy), the More Able and Talented Policy and the policy for Behaviour Management, as they are directly linked.

Definition

Children have special educational needs if they have a learning difficulty, medical condition or are more able and talented, all of which call for special educational provision to be made for them.

Children have a learning difficulty if they:

• have a significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of children of the same age
• have a disability which either prevents or hinders them from making use of educational facilities of a kind generally provided for children of the same age
• are under compulsory school age and fall within the definitions above, or would do so if special educational provision was not made for them.

Principles and Objectives

• We welcome all children into our school and endeavour to ensure that appropriate provision is made to cater for their needs.
• We endeavour to monitor all children who are progressing significantly more slowly than their peers than might be expected in the four broad areas specified in the SEN Code of Practice:

à Communication and interaction

à Cognition and learning

à Behaviour

à Emotional & Social Development and Sensory and/or Physical Development

• We recognise children who are more able and/or talented who work at a level significantly above that of their peers.
• We endeavour to identify, support and encourage all children with SEND.
• We work closely with parents, listening to their views, so as to build on children’s previous experiences, knowledge, understanding and skills. Parents are encouraged to discuss any issues or concerns with the Class Teacher, the Head Teacher and the SENCO.
• We believe in equal opportunities and try to meet the physical, emotional and intellectual needs of all our children.
• All children with SEND play a full part in the daily life of the school and are encouraged to join in all activities.

Management of SEND within school

• Early identification, assessment and intervention are recognised as the key to meeting the needs of individual children.
• Children who are making slower progress will be given carefully differentiated learning opportunities, both within the regular classroom environment and during weekly SEN sessions. There will be frequent monitoring of the child’s progress, which will involve parents/carers, teachers, the Head Teacher and SENCO.
• Parents/carers will be kept informed of any additional provision being given and invited to contribute to, and attend, any review meetings about their child.
• We aim to recognise strengths as well as weaknesses and try to involve all children in the activities of the school.
• We endeavour to provide an enriched programme of studies to extend the more able and talented children.

The role of the SENCO

Our SENCO and  other members of staff support the children in their learning.

All staff members are responsible for ensuring that there is liaison among parents, teachers and other professionals in respect of children with special educational needs. They will ensure that Individual Education Plans (IEPs) are in place and that relevant background information about children with SEND is collected, recorded and updated.

Identification, Assessment and Review

Resources include identified materials for use in supporting children who need additional or differentiated activities. These include multi-sensory items.

Identification

We are committed to the early identification of children who may have SEN and to early intervention.

Each term the SENCO speaks to class teachers and records the names of children who require an IEP and also notes down any children whose progress is being closely watched because they may be showing a need but do not require an IEP at that time. An IEP may follow if required at a later stage.

We can administer a low-level screening test which flags up general concerns. Targets are set and strategies are chosen.

Observation/Assessment

Early Years

If a teacher identifies a child with SEN an intervention plan is devised. The IEP is additional to, but informed by, the normal curriculum. The teacher liaises with the SENCO and parents/carers and involves them in setting targets and strategies. These are shared with the child and reviewed each term or when appropriate.

If adequate progress is not made after a substantial period of intervention and review, the teacher, in consultation with the parent/carer, may conclude that further support and advice is needed for the child. This may include further diagnostic testing and taking the advice of the qualified professionals in that field.

The SENCO attends relevant training and disseminates the information to staff where appropriate. Advice and support from the area SENCO is available. There are various support services available and these are accessed if and when there is a need to do so.

More Able & Talented

This document should be read alongside the general policy for Equal Opportunities (with specific reference to the Disability Equality Policy), the Special Needs Policy and the policy for Behaviour Management as they are directly linked.

Introduction

At The White House School we believe in providing the best possible provision for pupils of all abilities. We plan our teaching and learning so that each child can aspire to the highest level of personal achievement. The purpose of this policy is to help to ensure that we recognise and support the needs of those children in our school who have been identified as ‘more able’ and/or ‘talented’ according to national guidelines.

In national guidelines, the terms are distinguished as follows:

• ‘more able’ refers to a child who has a broad range of achievement at a level well above average, typically in the more academic subjects
• ‘talented’ refers to a child who excels in one or more specific fields, typically those that call for performance skills, such as sport or music but who does not necessarily perform at a high level across all areas of learning.

Approximately 10 per cent of the children in our school might be considered as more able and/or talented. Provision will be made for these children within normal class teaching; they will have Individual Education Plans (IEPs) which will enable small group time or individual time with the SENCO and we also try to provide enrichment or extension activities to promote their skills and talents further.

Principles and Objectives

• We welcome all children into our school and endeavour to ensure that appropriate provision is made to cater for their needs.
• We aim to enable all children to develop their full potential
• We offer children opportunities to develop their own learning
• We aim to challenge and extend the children through the work that we set them
• We encourage children to think and work independently
• We endeavour to identify, support and encourage all such children.
• We work closely with parents, listening to their views, so as to build on children’s previous experiences, knowledge, understanding and skills. Parents are encouraged to discuss any issues or concerns with the Class teacher, the Head teacher and the SENCO.
• We believe in equal opportunities and try to meet the physical, emotional and intellectual needs of all our children.

Identification of more able and talented children

We use a range of strategies to identify more able and talented children. The identification process is ongoing, and begins when the child joins our school. Each child’s pre-school record (or information provided by a previous school) gives details of achievements and interests in particular areas. Discussions with parents/carers enable us to add further details to these records.

Children undergo informal assessments which allow members of staff to track children’s developing skills and aptitudes across all areas of the curriculum.

Regular assessments are used. Children take assessment tests twice a year from Year 1 onwards. Teachers make regular assessments of each child’s progress in subjects of the national curriculum. We compare the information in these tests with national data, where available, to ensure that each child is making appropriate progress.

Children who have been identified as being ‘more able’ and/or ‘talented’ are given an IEP. We work closely with parents, listening to their views, so as to build on children’s previous experiences, knowledge, understanding and skills. Parents are encouraged to discuss any issues or concerns with the Class Teacher, the Head Teacher and the SENCO. IEPs are reviewed as required.

Management of More able and/or Talented Children within school

• Early identification, assessment and intervention are recognised as the key to meeting the needs of individual children.
• Children who are making faster progress will be given carefully differentiated learning opportunities, both within the regular classroom environment and during weekly SEN sessions. There will be frequent monitoring of each child’s progress, which will involve parents/carers, teachers, the Head Teacher and SENCO.
• Parents/carers will be kept informed of any additional provision being given and invited to contribute to, and attend, any review meetings about their child.
• We aim to recognise strengths as well as weaknesses and try to involve all children in the activities of the school.
• We endeavour to provide an enriched programme of studies to extend the more able and more able children.

Each term the SENCO speaks to class teachers and records the names of children who require a More able and/or Talented IEP and also notes down any children who are being closely observed because they are showing good potential but are not yet quite ready to join the More able and/or Talented Register.

The role of the SENCO

Our SENCO and other members of staff support the children in their learning.

All staff members are responsible for ensuring that there is liaison among parents, teachers and other professionals in respect of children with special educational needs, including those who are more able and/or talented. They will ensure that Individual Education Plans (IEPs) are in place and that relevant background information about these children is collected, recorded and updated.

The SENCO attends relevant training and disseminates the information to staff where appropriate. Advice and support from the Local Authority area SENCO is available. There are various support services available and these are accessed if and when there is a need to do so.

Resources

Resources include identified materials for use in supporting children who need additional or differentiated activities.

Aptitudes in English and Mathematics

More able children in English are identified when they:

• Demonstrate relatively high levels of fluency and originality in their conversation
• Use research skills more effectively to synthesise information
• Enjoy reading and respond to a range of texts at a more advanced level
• Use a wider vocabulary, enjoying working with words
• See issues from a broader range of perspectives
• Use more advanced skills when engaged in discussion.

More able children in Mathematics are identified when they:

• Explore a broader range of strategies for solving a problem
• Are more curious when working with numbers and investigating problems
• See solutions more quickly, without needing to try all the options
• Look beyond the question in order to hypothesise and explain
• Work more flexibly, and establish their own strategies
• Enjoy manipulating numbers.

Teaching and Learning

Our teachers plan carefully to meet the learning needs of all our children. We aim to give all children the opportunities to show what they know, understand and can do, and we achieve this in a variety of ways when planning for children’s learning, such as providing:

• A common activity that allows the children to respond at their own levels;
• An enrichment activity that broadens a child’s learning in a particular skill or knowledge area;
• An individual activity within a common theme that reflects a greater depth of understanding and higher level of attainment;
• The opportunity for children to progress through their own work at their own rate of learning.

Learning is also enriched through regular homework activities linked to the work being undertaken in class. This offers teachers a further opportunity to set work at the level of individual children.

The children will also have the opportunity to experience a range of educational visits (and visitors) that further enrich and develop learning.

We offer a wide range of extra-curricular activities for our children. The activities offer all pupils, including the higher achievers, opportunities to further extend their learning. Lunch time and after- school activities at The White House School include a range of sporting and musical clubs, Art, Drama, Latin, Maths and Chess. Swimming sessions take place before school during the summer term for children selected to swim and represent the school in the North Shropshire Schools Gala.  School sports teams, musical ensembles and Drama Club offer extended opportunities to talented children and confidence-building opportunities to others. Graded awards schemes, competitions, school performances and music examinations allow all children to aim high and to showcase their talents.

We take great pride in the gifts and talents of all children at The White House School and regularly praise achievements [achieved both in and out of school] in Assemblies, the School Newsletter, the School Magazine and on the School website.