SEND School Offer

All schools in Leeds have a similar approach to supporting children with SEND (Specialist Educational Needs and Disability) and are supported by the Local Authority to ensure that all pupils, regardless of their specific needs make the best possible progress in school. All schools are supported to be as inclusive as possible.

Whingate Primary School Support for Children with SEND

We are an inclusive school and welcome and celebrate diversity. All staff believe that every child can reach their potential and we have a caring, understanding, well trained and hardworking team who look after all our children.

What should I do if I think my child may have Special Educational Needs?

The first point of call would be to talk to your child’s class teacher or support staff who will pass on a referral to the SENCO if necessary. Your concerns will always be taken seriously, as your views are very important to us.

Who are the best people to talk to in school about my child’s difficulties with learning /Special Educational Needs or Disability?

• SENCO Mrs Rachel Walker
• A member of the Senior Leadership team
• Your child’s class teacher

How does the school know if my child needs extra help?

We have a number of monitoring systems and assessments in place to help us identify if a child needs extra help. These include:

• Information from your child’s pre-school or previous school.
• Transition visits made by the teacher, Family Support Worker and/ or SENCO.
• Observations made by staff throughout the day.
• Half-termly pupil progress meetings conducted with the Senior Management Team.
• Information from other services who have worked with your child, for example a Speech and Language Therapist or Occupational Therapist.

How will the school staff support my child?

• Your child’s needs will be met within the class, supported by a differentiated curriculum and high-quality teaching, including lesson planning that takes account of every child’s needs.
• The progress and specific needs of all children are reviewed regularly.
• The school offers a graduated response to your child’s needs. We have a number of highly specialised and trained staff as well as a range of resources and support to meet specific needs.
• Your child’s needs may require small group targeted specialised teaching support and additional interventions for core curriculum subjects such as English and Mathematics. These interventions will be carefully planned and evaluated half-termly to ensure your child makes progress.
• The class teacher may develop a support plan setting appropriate targets. This will be reviewed three times a year to ensure that the support remains appropriate.
• Where necessary an individual programme of support may be used and progress monitored regularly.
• The school reviews all children’s needs six times a year through pupil progress meetings where the Senior Leadership Team and class teachers meet to review your child’s support and progress.
• Where necessary the school may seek support from outside agencies and services. This will be discussed with you if a referral needs to be made.
• The governing body is responsible for ensuring that funding is used appropriately, and for monitoring teaching and accessibility. There is a designated SEND Governor who works with the Senior Leadership Team and SENCO to ensure the provision for pupils with SEND meets their needs.

How will the curriculum be matched to my child’s needs?

• Lessons are planned appropriately so that all children can make progress.
• Teachers take account of the needs of the individual child and plan different tasks and resources whilst also considering the end of year expectations for their year group.
• Tracking and assessment tools enable each class teacher to analyse the progress of each child.
• Targets are set to support a child’s needs by the class teacher and individual needs are regularly updated.
• Children work in a variety of groupings, such as small groups and 1:1, mixed ability and similar ability groupings.
• Pupil progress meetings are held six times a year with the Senior Leadership Team; SENCO and class teacher to discuss suitable teaching programmes and interventions for each child.

How will you and I know how my child is doing?

• Class teachers are required to report to parents three times a year-two parent evenings and a written report at the end of the school year
• For a child in receipt of High Needs Top Up Funding, reviews of their learning targets and programmes will be reviewed twice a year and views taken from the pupil, parents, SENCO, Senior Leadership Team, class teacher, support staff and any outside agencies supporting your child.
• The SENCO will request assessments and reports and if specialist services are involved will send a copy of this report to you, which offers ideas of support. You can make an appointment with the SENCO to discuss your child’s needs.
• For children with an Education, Health and Care Plan, an annual review will take place.

What support will there be for my child’s overall well-being?

Support we can provide in school may include:

• Nurture groups
• Self-confidence building
• Social skills and friendship groups
• Behaviour programmes including rewards and sanctions
• Medicines can be administered in school with signed parental permission. There are nominated first aiders in school and several members of the staff have first aid qualifications. If your child has significant medical needs you will need to speak to Mrs Woods-Child and Family Support Manager, to discuss how we can best support you and your child. This may include drawing up an Individual Health Care Plan.
• The class teacher has responsibility for the overall well-being of every child in their class.  If you have any worries speak to the class teacher first. If further support is required the class teacher will refer this to a member of the Senior Leadership Team.

What specialist services and expertise are available at or accessed by the school?

Staff work closely alongside professionals from the following services:

• STARS (Autism Outreach Team)
• Educational Psychology Service
• Visual Impairment Team
• Deaf and Hearing Impairment Team
• SENIT-Special Educational Needs Inclusion Team
• SENSAP-Special Educational Needs Statutory Assessment and Provision team
• NHS Speech and Language Therapy
• BARCA Counsellors
• Parent Support Workers
• Occupational Therapy
• Physiotherapy
• Mindmate Support Team
• On-site Speech and Language Therapists

What Training have staff had, or are undertaking to support children with special needs?

Currently we have staff who have had training in the following areas:

• Autism
• Relational approaches to behaviour
• PECS-Picture Exchange Communication System
• Intensive Interaction
• B Squared assessment system
• Mindfulness in the classroom
• Epilepsy
• Intimate Care
• The Communication Trust screening tool
• Talking and Drawing
• Mental Health Awareness

Miss Beswick-Co Headteacher is the Continuing Professional Development Coordinator (CPD) for the school. The SENCO is responsible for updating staff and TA training needs around SEND.

How will my child be included in activities outside the classroom, including school trips?

We would aim for every child to access visits out of school. A risk assessment and care plan would be discussed with the parent/carer before the trip would take place if necessary.

How accessible is the school environment?

The school is built on a one level and all areas are accessible. If necessary, a Personal Evacuation Plan can be written to support pupils who may need alternative arrangements in an emergency situation.

The Accessibility Plan can be viewed here

How will the school prepare and support my child to join the school or transfer to a new school?

We can support parents with decision making regarding transitions to other setting, as well as robust systems to pass on supporting information such as pupil profiles. We can also arrange for children to join in with additional transition activities that are provided at the next setting.

How is the decision made about what type and how much support my child will receive?

• Each child is assessed individually according to the SEN Code of Practice and LEA guidance. Personalised or group learning support programmes will be developed depending on need
• Additional assessments from outside agencies and services, such as Educational Psychologist and Speech and Language Support Services will inform the types of support and /or resources required. The SENCO will be responsible for coordinating SEND provision.
• Regular review meetings with staff are carried out to discuss your child’s progress and any additional needs that require support
• School based learning support plans will be reviewed twice per year with pupils, parents, key staff and the SENCO

Who can I contact for further information about SEND?

• SENCO-Mrs Walker
• Your child’s class teacher
• SENDIASS-Impartial support service

Other policies which support SEND are linked below:

Complaints

Admissions

Behaviour

(The offer is accurate, however, services are regularly reviewed and any information will be updated as soon as possible to reflect any new service offer)