Inclusion

Every class teacher meets termly with the Inclusion Manager and Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) team to discuss any children in their class that they are concerned about.

This ensures that concerns are identified at an early stage and appropriate interventions can be put in to provide individual or groups of children with additional support. Many of these support strategies will take place within the classroom and will enable individuals or groups of children to access the curriculum alongside the other children.

The Inclusion Manager will often advise class teachers and/or observe children within their classroom. If the child’s needs are considered to be at an appropriate level, the child may, in conjunction with the parents, be added to the school’s SEND register. Children will be placed on the register as needing ‘Additional School Support’. Interventions to support children are detailed on Individual Provision Maps, where targets are also set and progress monitored. If significant concerns regarding progress remain despite the additional school support, the school will ask for further professional involvement from Educational Psychologists, Speech and Language Therapists or the Behavioural Support Team. The external specialist may visit the school and conduct assessments or observations of the child and provide the school and parents with a report of their findings and recommendations.

If a child is still not progressing and the assessments provide evidence that they are below identified thresholds, the school may make a request for a Statutory Assessment to obtain an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP)

An independent panel will then take this request and the evidence provided and decide whether the process of Statutory Assessment should go ahead. At this stage, every agency that has been involved with the child, including the child’s family, will be asked to provide a report and evidence for the need for an Education, Health and Care Plan. If an EHCP is issued for a child, the parents then have the right to name a school placement which they feel would best meet their child’s needs. The plan provides statutory guidance as to the level of support and particular provision a child is entitled to. Children may be placed in mainstream schools, specialist units attached to mainstream schools or special schools. The EHCP is then reviewed annually to ensure it is still relevant, appropriate and that the child is making progress towards the objectives.

The Inclusion Manager monitors the progress of the children on the SEND register throughout the year in conjunction with the class teachers. This is then reported to the Principal and Local Board. There is an allocated SEND Local Board Member, who meets termly with the school's Inclusion Manager.

The Senior Leadership Team monitor the progress and appropriateness of provision for these children. Once again, our Gifted and Talented approach is one of inclusion and we believe that more able children should be broadly and appropriately challenged within their own classroom. As a school we enjoy sharing and celebrating the success of children and staff within the school. Children with sporting or musical, etc. successes outside school are invited to bring certificates, trophies, shields or photographs into school to be celebrated in our weekly Celebration Assembly. Achievements are also celebrated in the fortnightly newsletters to parents and Local Board Members. Where children have sporting and artistic talents, they are often invited to be the ‘expert’ within school when working with their class or other year groups.

The school takes part in local sporting events, such as the district sports event and other tournaments, where talented children have the opportunity to showcase their talents in a strong field of competition. We are often invited to attend workshops and competitions held by other schools and this provides great opportunities for the children to further develop their strengths. 

These children often learn English very quickly when they arrive in school and are immersed in the new language. However, grammatical structures and technical vocabulary can prove difficult for these children to pick up and, therefore, additional provision and support are necessary.

It is important to emphasise that these difficulties may also be experienced by any child who has one or both parents for whom English is an Additional Language, even if the child does not speak another language. Parents are the most influential role-models for children and if they are exposed to one or both parents with limited English, this will impact upon their understanding of grammar and vocabulary.

Strategies to support these pupils within school include a valuing of their own language and celebrating this and their culture within school. Pupils are also ‘pre-tutored’ in technical topic-related vocabulary, ensuring that they already know and understand individual terms when they are encountered within the context of their learning.

Pupils may be identified as vulnerable for a wide range of reasons. For example, the child may be experiencing a family separation or bereavement, there may be financial pressures within the family or there may be current or previous involvement from Social Services. There is an ongoing dialogue between the school and the parents regarding these children.

There are a group of children within the school entitled to Free School Meals and the school receives an amount of money to support these pupils, as research shows that this group of children across the country have not historically achieved as well as those children not entitled to Free School Meals. This is called the Pupil Premium and it enables the school to put in additional support for these pupils, as well as contributing towards the cost of school trips and visits and providing additional opportunities for extra-curricular provision. It is important that parents understand that the actual free school meals do not have to be taken up for the child to attract the Pupil Premium payment.

Teaching staff are informed of these children and the individual concerns we may have and the children are monitored by the whole staff. Mrs Fowler, our Learning Mentor, often works closely with these children to increase their confidence and ensure they have the tools they need within class to make progress.