Our school recognises there are particular groups of pupils whose circumstances require additional consideration by those who work with them to support their SEND (special educational needs/disabilities).  At Greengate Junior School, the Inclusion Manager (Miss Phillips) ensures all teachers and support staff in school understand the implications for those children who are looked after and have SEND.  We strive to ensure that all pupils, regardless of their specific needs make the best possible progress.

Inclusion Manager (SENCo)
Responsible for:

Coordinating support for children with special educational needs or disabilities (SEND) and developing the school’s SEND Policy to make sure all children get a consistent, high quality response to meeting their needs in school

Liaising with all the other people who may be coming into school to help support your child’s learning e.g. speech and language therapy, educational psychology etc.

Updating the school’s SEND register (a system for ensuring all the SEND needs of pupils in this school are known) and making sure that there are records of your child’s progress and needs

Providing specialist support for teachers and support staff in the school so they can help children with SEND in the school achieve the best progress possible

Ensuring that you are:

– involved in supporting your child’s learning

– kept informed about the support your child is getting

– involved in reviewing how your child is doing

Class/subject teacher
Responsible for:

Checking on the progress of your child and identifying, planning and delivering any additional help your child may need (this could be things like targeted work, differentiated work and/or additional support) and letting the SENCo know as necessary

Writing Individual Education Plans (IEP’s) at least twice per year and sharing and reviewing these with parents and SENCo

Ensuring that all staff working with your child in school are helped to deliver the planned work/programme for your child, so they can achieve the best possible progress. This may involve the use of additional adults, outside specialist help and specially planned work and resources

Ensuring that the school’s SEND Policy is followed in their classroom and for all the pupils they teach with any SEND

Head teacher
Responsible for:

The day to day management of all aspects of the school, this includes the support for children with SEND

Working with SENCo and teachers to ensure high quality inclusion

Ensuring the Governing Body is kept up to date about any issues in school relating to SEND

SEN Governor
Responsible for:

Ensuring that the necessary support is available for any child who attends the school including those with SEND

Planning and Assessment

SENCo oversees SEND support to ensure consistent provision

Co-ordinated planning between class teacher and teaching assistant for pupils with SEND

Advice from external specialists incorporated into planning and provision for pupils with SEND

SEND children will have a minimum of two IEP’S (Individual Education Plan) per school year , some children may have more IEP’S with shorter term goals

Individual targets and differentiated learning activities

Some SEND children will have a child centred passport

Regular assessment of progress against individual targets and national expectations

Quality classroom teaching

Each teacher has the highest possible expectations for all the children in their class

Teaching is based on building on what your child already knows, can do and can understand

Different ways of teaching are in place so that your child is fully involved in learning in class. This may involve using more practical and sensory learning

Specific strategies (which may be suggested by trained staff members or external experts) are in place to support your child to learn

Your child’s teacher will have carefully checked on your child’s progress and will have decided that your child has gap in their understanding/learning and needs some extra support to help them make the best possible progress

 Specific group work within a smaller group of children 

This group, often called Intervention groups by schools, may be

Run in the classroom or outside

Run by a teacher or most often a Senior Teaching assistant who has had training to run these groups

For your child this would mean:

He/ She will engage in group sessions with specific targets to help him/her to make more progress.

A Learning Support Assistant/teacher or outside professional (like a Speech and Language Therapist) will run these small group sessions using the teacher’s plan

This type of support is available for any child who has specific gaps in their understanding of a subject/area of learning

Specialist groups using advice from outside agencies e.g. Specialist HLTA for hearing impaired

The child will have been identified by the class teacher/SENCo as needing some extra specialist support in school from a professional outside the school

For your child this would mean:

Your child will have been identified by the class teacher/SENCo (or you will have raised your worries) as needing more specialist input instead of or in addition to intervention groups

You will be asked to come to a meeting to discuss your child’s progress and help plan possible ways forward

You may be asked to give your permission for the school to refer your child to a specialist professional e.g. a Speech and Language Therapist or Educational Psychologist. This will help the school and yourself understand your child’s particular needs better and be able to support them better in school

The specialist professional will work with your  child to understand their needs and make recommendations, which may include:

Making changes to the way your child is supported in class e.g. some individual support or changing some aspects of teaching to support them better

Support to set better targets which will include their specific expertise

A group run by school staff under the guidance of the outside professional e.g. a social skills group

Group or individual work with outside professional

School may suggest that your child needs some agreed individual support in school. They will tell you how the support will be used and what strategies will be put in place

 Specified Individual support

This is usually provided via an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP).This means your child will have been identified by the class teacher/SENCo as needing a particularly high level of individual or small group teaching, which cannot be provided solely from the budget available to the school.

For your child this would mean:

The school (or you) can request that the Local Authority carry out a statutory assessment of your child’s needs. This is a legal process which sets out the amount of support that will be provided for your child

After the school have sent in the request to the Local Authority (with a lot of information about your child, including some from you), they will decide whether they think your child’s needs (as described in the paperwork provided), seem complex enough to need a statutory assessment. If this is the case they will ask you and all professionals involved with your child to write a report outlining your child’s needs. If they do not think your child needs this, they will ask the school to continue with their support

After the reports have all been sent in the Local Authority will decide if your child’s needs are severe, complex and lifelong and that they need more than 20 hours of support in school to make good progress.( some children may be offered fewer hours) If this is the case they will write an EHC Plan. If this is not the case, they will ask the school to continue with their support and also set up a meeting in school to ensure a plan is in place to ensure your child makes as much progress as possible

The EHC Plan will outline the number of hours of individual/small group support your child will receive from the LA and how the support should be used and what strategies must be put in place. It will also have long and short term goals for your child

The additional adult may be used to support your child with whole class learning, run individual programmes or run small groups including your child

Provision to support access to the curriculum /independent learning

1:1 support in class and withdrawn in small groups

Small group support in class/withdrawn with teacher/STA

Nurture

SMARTMOVES

Planned differentiation of skills, tasks and activities

Provision of individual timetables/ checklists

Pre tutoring and scaffolding

Organisation of physical environment

Use of specific schemes e.g. Tony Attwood  anger management

Use of appropriate resources e.g. auditory equipment, Visio Book, writing slopes , multi sensory resources, suitable IT software

Regular access to computers, laptops and iPads

Numeracy:

Targeted small group support in class (often in ability matched groups)

Withdrawal of small groups or individual pupils for additional Numeracy support (e.g. Maths Recovery)

Support in small groups from support teachers

Literacy including reading:

Small group reading support in class through guided reading and individual reading

Support from additional teaching staff within and outside of the class

1:1 such as reading intervention

Reading support outside of class from volunteers

Additional small group literacy support from teaching assistant (e.g. phonic groups)

Differentiated and multi-sensory activities

High quality displays

Strategies to support/modify behaviour:

Consistent school wide implementation of the school’s behaviour policy

SEND registration of those pupils whose behaviour difficulties are persistent and constitute a barrier to learning. Provision will include close collaboration with parents/carers, home/school book to ensure daily communication between home and school, daily behaviour oversight by school staff

Wide range of pastoral support to support children’s behaviour in and beyond the classroom

Where a pupil’s behaviour deteriorates because of inadequate response to the above provision a referral will be made to one or more of the following agencies: the EP, CAMHS, EBD. PRU

Strategies to enhance self esteem/promote emotional well being:

Circle Time / SEAL programme

School SERIS worker who works 1:1 and with small groups

Regular liaison between staff including Children’s Centre when there are concerns regarding individual families/children

Collaboration and communication with all external professionals involved with children as appropriate e.g. GPs, CAMHS and external agencies

Educational psychologist works closely with referred children and their parents

Open door policy for parents

Family Support Coffee Afternoons

Support/supervision at unstructured times of the day including personal care:

Trained midday supervisors and STA’S in the lunch hall and playgrounds

Midday supervisor/STA’S  initiating and supporting activities during lunchtime

Prefects (Year 6s) helping in the playground and around school

Members of senior management team available throughout lunchtime

Strategies/programmes to support Physical needs:

Referral for assessment  and intervention from an occupational therapist /physiotherapist  (via school nurse)

Implementation of recommendations made by occupational therapist or physiotherapist by an allocated member of staff.

Provision of support resources such as writing wedges and pencil grips.

Small group participation in Smart Moves programme

Your child’s progress is continually monitored by his/her class teacher.

Class teachers meet once a term with the head teacher to discuss all children’s progress If your child is working below age related expectations, then a more sensitive assessment tool is used which shows their level in more detail and will also show smaller but significant steps of progress.

School use PIVATs for this purpose. Children are assessed each term in writing and numeracy to assist with forward planning At the end of the key stage (year 6) all children are required to be formally assessed using Standard Assessment Tests (SATS).

This is something the government requires all schools to do and are the results that are published nationally The Head Teacher, SENCo, Literacy leader and Numeracy leader analyse end of Key Stage results to identify any areas requiring change/support IEP’s will be reviewed each term.

The progress of children with an EHCP is formally reviewed at an Annual Review with all adults involved with the child’s education The SENCo will also check that your child is making progress within any individual work and in any group that they take part in.

The safety and well-being of all our pupils is our primary concern at Greengate Juniors.  The children are supported with their social and emotional development throughout the school day – in the curriculum, outside at play and through extra-curricular opportunities.  Personal Social Health Education (PSHE) and the learning values of collaboration, spirituality and emotional intelligence are integral to our curriculum and they are taught explicitly.

The Pastoral Care Team (comprising the Head teacher, Inclusion Manager (SENCo), Nurture Leader and SERIS worker meet regularly to discuss the children in our school, ensuring appropriate provision is in place to support their well-being.

We are fortunate to have a nurture room, which is run by a very experienced HLTA and STA and overseen by the SENCo. Within this room we run a daily nurture group, social skills groups, drop-in sessions, nurture lunch, all of which support your child’s well-being if this is seen to be necessary.

We also have an Educational Welfare Officer, who works weekly in our school to support attendance; she works closely with families if attendance is proving to be an issue.

Our Nurture Leader is also our Family Support Worker and you can contact her at any time if you have concerns regarding your child’s well-being. You can also discuss any needs with their class teacher or SENCo.  If further support is needed with regards to the well-being of your child, we will seek support from outside agencies.

Our behaviour policy is fully understood and in place by all staff.  Our safeguarding policy is updated in line with current guidance.  Pupils’ views are important and a regular School Council takes place.

Relevant staff are trained to support medical needs and receive appropriate

School aims to identify those pupils requiring referral to external agencies. School liaises closely with the following educational, health and social care services.

Educational Psychology Service

SEND department

Specialist speech and language teachers

Specialist severe learning difficulties teachers

Specialist ASC Teachers

Specialist Advisory Teacher service for hearing/ visually impaired children

CAMHS

MIND

Autism support worker

Equine Therapy

Growth Therapy

Oaklea Trust

Community Paediatrics/CDC/Children’s occupational therapy/children’s physio

Action for Children

Furness Young Carers

Social care

Pupil Referral Unit and Sedburgh Drive specialist provision

Input from local secondary school to support gifted and talented pupils

Local PCSO’s

Specialist consultancy that provides Personal, Social and Health Education (PSHE) advice and support

Specialist support from registered General Nurse of 25 years and 13 years school nursing experience

SOKA

SENCo has completed the Post Grad National Award for SEN Co-ordination

Staff are qualified to cope with the individual needs of children covering a wide variety of need including: Severe learning difficulty , speech, language and communication difficulties,  autistic spectrum conditions, dyslexia, ADHD, behavioural difficulties  and medical conditions such as asthma, diabetes, tracheostomy competency with specific first aid and Epidermolysis bullosa.

2 members of staff have Nurture Group training

4 members of staff have post graduate qualification and further training in working with and supporting children and young people with an ASC

3 members of staff have post graduate qualifications to work with children with dyslexia

1 member of staff have ELKLAN speech and language qualification

1 member of staff is qualified to deliver Reading Intervention programmes

2 members of staff are qualified to provide Maths Recovery

2 members of staff have received Numicon training

All members of teaching staff and support staff are qualified to use Team Teach

1 member of staff has awareness training in children with Physical and Medical Conditions

Members of staff are trained to support Looked After Children

All members of staff have recently attended training on support of diabetic children provided by specialist nurse from Furness General Hospital

Staff are trained in supporting emotional and social resilience

2 members of staff trained to deliver Barnardo’s ‘Real Love Rocks’ CSE training

School Counsellor employed for 20 hours per week

Staff qualified to deliver Kidsafe

All staff have a variety of behaviour management strategies and are able to prevent behavioural issues with suitable planning and differentiation of tasks

Learning outside the classroom is very important to us at Greengate Junior School. We promote involvement of all learners in all aspects of the classroom including activities outside the classroom.

When there are concerns for safety and access, a personalised risk assessment is carried out to consider if reasonable adjustments can be made to meet additional needs.  Parents/carers are involved in planning if appropriate.

School is accessible through ramps and all areas are wheelchair accessible apart from the ICT suite, other provision is made within the classroom for any child unable to access the suite

School has been assessed by Furness General Hospital Occupational Therapy Department and deemed to be safe for children with visual impairment

School carpets are colour differentiated to highlight change of camber

School has a disabled toilet facility and a shower. School also has a washing machine and tumble dryer.

School has a quiet Sensory room for those children requiring this type of support

School purchase aids which support pupils ability to access the environment, curriculum and extra-curricular activities

School offers a British sign language interpreter for our hearing impaired families

If your child is moving child to another school:

Greengate Junior SENCo will contact the school SENCo and ensure he/she knows about any special arrangements or support that needs to be made for your child

We will make sure that all records about your child are passed on as soon as possible

Information will be passed on to the new class teacher and in most cases, a planning meeting or telephone call will take place with the new teacher or SENCo. All IEPs will be shared with the new teacher

In Year 3:

The children take part in a full transition programme ( with our main feeder schools) throughout Year 2

Greengate Junior SENCo will contact the school SENCo and ensure school knows about any special arrangements or support that needs to be made for your child

The school SENCo meets parents of children with an EHCP during the previous term

In Year 6:

Year 6 staff will attend the Primary Transition Day to discuss the specific needs of your child

 Greengate Junior SENCo will contact the school SENCo and ensure he/she knows about any special arrangements or support that needs to be made for your child

Your child will do focused learning about aspects of transition to support their understanding of the changes ahead

Where possible your child will visit their new school on several occasions and staff from the new school will visit your child in this school

Children with identified additional funding are allocated all of their budget allocation. This may take the form of support staff, specialist resources, access to additional activities and specialist services

The head teacher and school governors decide on the SEND budget , support, training and resources are reviewed and changes made as needed

School has designated SEND governor

Resources are allocated to ensure that all children including SEND have access and participation in extracurricular activities

These decisions are made in consultation with the class teacher, Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCo) and Head teacher.  Parents/carers and, where possible, the child are involved in this process. Decisions are based upon the monitoring of pupil progress and as a result of assessments by outside agencies.

When a child has severe, complex and long-standing needs that require an Education Health Care Plan (EHCP) then resource allocation is discussed and planned for in detail at review meetings. This ensures that each child has provision entirely tailored to their specific needs. The Local Authority allocates funding for each child with an EHCP. 

Greengate Junior School has an open door policy, parents are able to speak to the head or senior staff usually without a pre arranged appointment.  The following information supports our commitment to inclusion throughout the school.

The SENCo is regularly available to meet with you to discuss your child’s needs and progress Class teachers are available to discuss progress and share information All information from outside professionals will be shared verbally or in the form of a report Parents will be encouraged to be involved in their child’s education and life in school through discussions with school staff, attending events and parental consultation evenings, contributing to IEP’S and through talking to us when something happens that may affect your child’s welfare A home /school contact book may be used to support communication if parents/carers agree this to be useful School has a designated family support worker  often available without an appointment who can assist with a variety of issues/concerns  

The family support worker runs a weekly meeting open to all parents to discuss concerns and provide useful information. School admin staff are able to make appointments for parents to meet with staff members