SEND

1. About this report

The Children and Families Act 2014 says that all maintained schools must publish a Special Educational Needs (SEN) Information Report every year. This report explains how our school meets the needs of children with SEN.  It will be shown on our school website and in the ‘local offer’ on www.eastsussex.gov.uk

In the report, we explain how we meet our duties towards pupils with special educational needs and disabilities. This report is also our SEND policy. For more information on the law and guidance, see www.eastsussex.gov.uk/localoffer

We will review this report every year and will involve pupils and parents by inviting comments and through IEP, Additional Needs Plan and Annual Reviews.  If you want to give us your views about the report, please contact the school office.

Date: September 2020

1. Who do I contact about my child’s special educational needs?

If you are thinking of applying for a place, contact the school office on 01273 473015

If your child is already at the school, your first point of contact at school is your child’s class teacher. The school phone number is 01273 473015

The Inclusion Manager is responsible for managing and co-ordinating the support for children with special educational needs, including those who have a Statement or Education Health and Care (EHC) plans. The Inclusion Manager also provides professional guidance to school staff and works closely with parents and other services that provide for children in the school.

Assistant Head & Inclusion Manager – Mrs Zoe Short

How to Contact: 01273 473015

Best time to contact: Tuesday – Friday during school hours.

Southover School website: www.southoverceprimary.co.uk  

1. Which children does the school provide for?

We are a Primary School. We admit pupils from age 4 to 11 years. We are a voluntary controlled school.

We are an inclusive school. This means we provide for children with all types of special educational needs. If you want a place for a child who has an Education Health and Care plan, contact your Assessment and Planning Officer at East Sussex County Council. If you want a place for any other child with special educational needs, you should apply as normal and your application will be considered in the same way as applications from children without special educational needs.

• Southover School admissions policy – www.southoverceprimary.co.uk
• school admissions - East Sussex.gov.uk
• Contact Information for Families for admissions advice 0345 60 80 192

1. Summary of how the school meets the needs of children with SEN and disabilities

Southover School is committed to ensuring all children make the best progress they possibly can.  As a whole school, we aim to support children’s needs, whether speech/language/communication, cognition, social/emotional, sensory or physical through a diverse curriculum and range of support programmes.  Both teaching and support staff are committed to supporting children and have a wide and varied knowledge of needs, and an in-depth skill set which ensures our children reach their potential. This combined ensures we meet our duties under the Children and Families Act 2014, and the Equalities Act 2010.

Using a continual process of Assess, Plan, Do and Review we are able to ensure the children in our school are continually monitored and reach their potential in all areas of the curriculum, including, social, emotional and mental health wellbeing.

We use the East Sussex Local offer as a basis for delivering our SEND support.  See link below for information.

https://new.eastsussex.gov.uk/childrenandfamilies/specialneeds/sen/special-educational-needs-support/

If the child is looked after by the local authority they will have an Additional Needs Plan, which will include a Personal Education Plan (PEP) and a Health plan. We will involve parents and carers as well as foster carers or social workers in discussions.

1. How does the school identify children’s special educational needs

We aim to identify children’s special educational needs (SEN) as early as possible, so that the child achieves the best possible outcomes

A pupil has SEN where their learning difficulty or disability calls for special educational provision. That is provision which is different from or additional to that normally available to pupils of the same age.

Children may have one or more broad area of special educational need:

• Communication and interaction – including speech and language difficulties and autism
• Cognition and learning – including developmental delay and specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia, dyscalculia and dyspraxia.
• Social, emotional and mental health difficulties – including difficulties with behaviour, attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD), an attachment disorder or anxiety.
• Sensory and/or physical needs- including visual and hearing impairment, dyspraxia, cerebral palsy and other physical disabilities or medical conditions which affect a child’s learning.  

These are some of the ways in which Southover identifies children with SEN:

• Speech and Language assessments are conducted with individual children as appropriate and all new children.
• Assessment of all Reception Year children with the Language Link programme in the autumn term
• Regular assessment of progress throughout the year – a programme of assessment is planned across all year groups
• Class teacher observations
• Computer software – Target Tracker plots children’s progress and highlights concern areas
• Dyslexia identification forms are available for all teachers
• In-class assessment by teachers
• Inclusion Manager observations
• Discussions between class teacher and Inclusion Manager
• Pupil Progress Meetings three times a year – with the Inclusion Manager and individual teachers
• Headteacher observations of children working
• Parent consultations
• Transition notes sent to secondary schools and received from nursery schools.
• Dyslexia screening tests as required.
• Thrive whole school assessments on regular basis.
• Individual Thrive online assessments
• Boxall assessments
• Phonics assessments
• Scrutiny of whole school results by Inclusion Manager
• Scrutiny of children’s work by Headteacher, Deputy Head and Inclusion Manager on a regular basis.

Following a concern being raised by the class teacher, parent or Inclusion Manager, an initial meeting is set up to discuss the concerns. From this, appropriate intervention or further assessment will be carried out, depending on the outcomes of the initial meeting.  Every child is an individual and as such their support plan is individual.

Through the use of Thrive Online assessment tools, we can quickly identify support required for children displaying behaviours which may be detrimental to their learning, including being withdrawn or aggressive or disruptive behaviours.  By looking at the behaviours we can usually identify the child’s underlying needs and difficulties, ensuring we put in place a support plan which targets not just the behaviours but the reasons why.

We assess each pupil’s skills and level of attainment when they start at the school. We continually assess each child’s progress. If a child is making less than the progress we would expect for their age or individual circumstances, we will consider whether they have special educational needs. The Inclusion Manager will work with the class teacher and parents in identifying support which may be appropriate, putting in place this support with immediate effect, even when the information and evidence is still being gathered. 

A range of assessments may be carried out by the class teacher, Inclusion Manager or teaching assistant to quickly identify what support, including dyslexia screening assessments, Thrive assessments, reading, writing, maths, spelling and phonics assessments, speech and language assessments and continuum of need assessments.  In addition to this we ask the child for their views about their learning using pupil voice or pupil views questionnaires.  All teachers and teaching assistants are familiar with these assessments.

1. How does the school teach and support children with SEN?

The following questions may support you in understanding how Southover support children with SEND:

How will school staff support my child?

• By putting in place Individual Education Plans and Additional Needs Plans.  These are reviewed three times a year by staff and parents
• In-class support through experienced TAs
• Discussions between teacher/Inclusion Manager/parents
• A range of interventions are discussed with parents
• Quality first teaching
• Outside services involvement where necessary
• Flexibility within classroom and in teaching
• The TAs have an extensive knowledge and experience in supporting children
• Individual needs assistants (INA)
• Training for teaching assistants in dyslexia and autism spectrum disorder (ASD)
• Differentiation in class, meaning lessons are tailored to the individual needs of each child
• Individual maths tutoring
• Booster groups run by teachers
• Specific interventions and precision teaching

How will both you and I know how my child is doing and how will you help me to support my child’s learning?

• Reviews three times a year of ANP/APDR (IEP) by the class teacher, Inclusion Manager and parents
• Regular reviews of progress on Target Tracker, a computer based tracking tool
• Planning of work at the appropriate level
• Pupil Progress Meetings three times per year between Inclusion Manager and class teacher
• Regular contact with parents, if there are concerns
• Homework/home activities
• Outside services reviews with feedback to parents
• A communication book between parent and teacher
• Parent consultations
• Additional parent meetings by appointment with Inclusion Manager or class teacher
• Parent training events
• Curriculum evenings
• A parent information coordinator at main school office
• An open-door policy.

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

• Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS)
• Play Therapy (Counselling service)
• School nurse
• Children’s services (Social Services)
• Occupational therapy
• Speech and language therapy
• Physiotherapy
• Educational Psychology Service
• CLASS (Communication, Learning and Autism Support Service)
• Gypsy, Romany & Traveller Service
• English as an Additional Language Service (EAL)
• Dyslexia screening tests
• Oncology
• ESBAS
• Early Years’ Service
• Dyslexia trained TA
• Dyslexia approved Inclusion Manager
• Paediatricians (Scott Unit – Eastbourne).

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

• Depending on child’s needs -  APDR (IEP), ANP or EHC plan
• Parental meeting re: support needed and available
• Discussions with class teachers and Inclusion Manager
• Reviews of APDR/ANP – x 3 per year
• Outside services reviews
• Headteacher’s decision
• SEN Code of Practice used for guidance

How are parents involved in the school?  How can I be involved?

• Parent questionnaires/Parent voice
• Parent information coordinator – office staff
• Parent governors
• Friends (PTFA)
• Parent readers
• Parent meetings
• Curriculum evenings
• Use of parent expertise
• Parent forums
• Attend trips out of school
• Volunteer to help in class

1. How will the curriculum and learning environment be matched to my child’s/young person’s needs?

All pupils will have access to a broad and balanced curriculum which is suitable for all. We have high expectations for all pupils.

We adjust the curriculum for each child with SEND to make sure that they can access the subjects at their own level and make progress. This is called ‘differentiation’.

We will look at the child’s level of achievement and see what support they need to make good progress and reach their potential.  We will use our Assessment policy to do this.  We will talk with children and parents as part of the SEN support cycle (assess, plan, do, review) (This is from the SEND Code of Practice 6.12).

In addition:

• Progress is monitored by the Head/Deputy/Inclusion Manager
• Outside agency programmes e.g. Speech and Language (SaLT), Occupational Therapy, are provided to support learning
• Quality First Teaching in all classes
• Small group work, individual intervention and precision teaching run by teaching assistants
• All classrooms are dyslexia friendly
• A calm, inviting classroom environment
• Specifically identified needs
• Support across the curriculum from additional adults
• Provision of additional resources (e.g. software and equipment for children who may be visually impaired or deaf)
• IT provision.

1. How are parents and carers involved in reviewing children’s progress and planning support?  

• Reviews three times a year of ANP/APDR by the Inclusion Manager, class teacher and parents
• Regular reviews of progress on Target Tracker, a computer-based tracking tool
• Planning of work at the appropriate level
• Pupil Progress Meeting three times per year between Inclusion Manager and class teacher
• Regular contact with parents if there are concerns
• Homework/home activities
• Outside services reviews with feedback to parents
• A communication book between parent and teacher
• Parent consultations
• Additional parent meetings by appointment with Inclusion Manager or class teacher
• Parent training events
• Curriculum evenings
• A parent information coordinator at main school office
• An open door policy.
• Yearly Annual Report for all children

Children who do not have an Education, Health and Care plan (EHCp) but are identified as having SEND have an APDR (Assess, Plan, Do, Review) / Individual Education Plan (IEP) written by the Inclusion Manager and class teacher.  These are reviewed three times a year, when parents and children are invited to contribute to the review process.  These plans ensure coverage of all 5 key areas of focus as identified by the code of practice and are outcome driven.

In addition to this, children with an EHC plan or an Additional Needs Plan (ANP) will have three times a year review meetings, one of which is the statutory annual review for those with EHC plans.

Support is planned in order to help children and young people reach the agreed outcomes. Reviews will have a focus on children and young people’s progress towards these outcomes.

Parents may wish to refer to Code of Practice 6.64 – 6.71 when thinking about supporting their child.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/send-code-of-practice-0-to-25

1. How are children involved in reviewing their progress and planning support?

This chart may support you in understanding how your child is involved in reviewing their progress:

1. How will the school prepare and support my child to transfer to a new school/ college or the next stage of education and life?

• Transitional sessions with secondary schools
• Good links with range of secondary schools
• Meetings with all secondary schools for children with SEN Support and EHC plans – extra visits in addition to the day visit as appropriate
• Visits by class teacher and Inclusion Manager to nurseries
• Meetings with parents
• Additional visits to school for nursery children
• Keyworker meetings for nursery aged children
• Photo book created for appropriate children, at nursery or for those going to secondary school, to remind of key staff in school
• Transition sessions within school and between year groups
• Weekly afternoon sessions for children transitioning from Reception to Key Stage 1 (during summer term)
• Pre-start visits to school for new Reception children.
• Transition information sheets sent to all nursery and preschool carers.
• Additional transition sessions throughout the school as needed – these may be for any year group or individual child as necessary.

11. What training do school staff have? 

When we plan support for a child, we think about the knowledge and skills their teachers and support staff will need. If necessary, we plan training for the staff member or arrange an INSET training day.  The whole school development plan ensures coverage of the various training needs across the school.

Teachers and teaching assistants have performance management reviews twice a year.  These meetings support the identification of training needs across the school.

Teaching assistants meet monthly and have training sessions with the Inclusion Manager or outside support agencies as appropriate.  A training programme for the new year is decided upon based on needs identified in the yearly appraisal process and the School Development and Improvement Plan (SDIP).

The Continuing Professional Development profile is available from the school office.

We have a wide range of training available to us:

East Sussex County Council training for schools- https://eastsussexlearning.org.uk

Inclusion Development Programme- idponline.org.uk

Advanced training materials- advanced-training.org.uk

1. How does the school measure how well it teaches and supports children with SEN?

We regularly and carefully review the quality of teaching for all pupils to try and make sure no-one under achieves. We look at whether our teaching and programmes of support have made a difference. We use information systems to monitor the progress and development of all pupils.  This helps us to develop the use of interventions that are effective and to remove those that are less so.

We complete an annual self-evaluation of our SEN provision and use this to develop an action plan to further improve our SEN provision. This is reviewed by the Inclusion Manager and SEND governor on a yearly basis.

We send home a parent questionnaire every year then summarise the results and feedback to parents. This information helps to inform the school improvement plan.

We also invite parents to provide feedback at meetings, through attending parent forums, parent questionnaires, SEND questionnaires and through the Ofsted parent view website. https://parentview.ofsted.gov.uk/

How does the school know that the provision for pupils with SEN is effective? What is the impact on outcomes for pupils with SEN?

• IEP and Additional Needs Plan outcomes are regularly met
• Reviews carried on three times a year basis, or more often as necessary.
• All children’s progress is tracked on a regular basis, including SEND, Pupil Premium etc.

1. How accessible is the school and how does the school arrange equipment or facilities children need?

• All of the ground floor is wheelchair accessible
• Classrooms can be changed round to suit age ranges and needs
• Ground floor disabled toilet
• Gym and ICT suite currently has limited access
• Staffroom not currently accessible
• Buzzer system to gain access to school during school day
• Office open from 8.15am – 4.30pm
• Equalities and Accessibility plan
• Disability Discrimination Act legislation
• We are subject to the Equalities Act
• Visual Impairment equipment available from Sensory Needs Service
• Three times yearly Equalities Group meetings – which are attended by the Inclusion Manager

https://czone.eastsussex.gov.uk/supportingchildren/equality/Pages/theequalityduty.aspx

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/supporting-pupils-at-school-with-medical-conditions--3

1. How will my child/young person be included in activities with other children, including school trips?

Through careful planning and reasonable adjustments, pupils with SEN engage in the activities of the school together with those who do not have SEN and are encouraged to participate fully in the life of the school and in any wider community activity.

We work with parents and pupils to listen to their views, feelings and wishes to ensure pupils with SEN engage fully in the life of the school and in any wider community activity.

• All children attend trips irrelevant of cost/payment
• Additional adults as necessary – parents invited
• Risk assessments
• Discussions with parents well in advance – concerns can be raised from either school or parents.
• Playground friends/buddies/helpers
• Medication catered for
• Pupil Premium funding – see Pupil Premium report.

• See link to Equalities and Accessibility Policies, above

1. What support will there be for my child’s/young person’s overall well-being and their emotional, mental and social development?

• PSHE lessons
• Social skills sessions in small groups
• Class teacher has regular meetings with parents plus open door policy
• Pupil Voice – children’s questionnaire on their learning/feelings
• Risk assessments for all outside school activities
• Counselling services through Play Therapy – (6 children for 8-12 weeks)
• Nurture groups and a Nurture Class (Robin Class)
• Jump Ahead – motor skills programme
• Sensory Circuits
• Medicines kept in the office and administered by appropriately trained staff
• Behaviour plans
• Personal and social plans
• Regular reviews of attendance
• ESBAS (Education Support for Behaviour and Attendance Service)
• Staff trained in personal care
• School nurse available
• Access to a range of outside agencies
• Behaviour policy
• Anti-Bullying Weeks
• E-safety lessons
• Buddies/play leaders
• Staff training in understanding of autistic spectrum disorder (ASD), communication difficulties and dyslexia
• Positive ethos
• Reward schemes – personalised to children.
• Online THRIVE assessments for whole school and individuals
• Boxall assessments
• Self Esteem programmes
• Varied assemblies using a range of outside agencies, e.g. NSPCC
• SCSM – Social, Cultural, Moral and Spiritual development

We will monitor and review progress, with the child and parent. We will do this as part of the SEN support planning cycle of assess, plan, do review.

We use a variety of outside agencies to support children and staff alike:

• Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS)
• Play Therapy - counselling services
• Early Help Keyworker support
• School nurse
• Children’s services (Social Services)
• Occupational Therapy (OT)
• Speech and language therapy (SaLT)
• Physiotherapy
• Continence Service
• Educational Psychology Service
• CLASS – Communication, Language and Autism Support Service
• Sensory Needs Service
• Gypsy, Romany and Traveller Services
• English as an Additional Language Service (EALs)
• Dyslexia screening tests
• Oncology
• ESBAS – Behaviour and attendance service
• Teaching and Learning Provision
• Early Years’ Service
• Dyslexia trained TA
• Dyslexia approved Inclusion Manager
• Paediatricians (Scott Unit – Eastbourne)
• GP services

Link to policies for Behaviour and anti-bullying, Safeguarding and Supporting pupils with medical conditions.

www.southoverceprimaryschool.co.uk

16. What specialist services does the school use to support children and their families?

As part of the cycle of SEN support, (assess, plan, do, review) we will consider whether we need to involve other services to make sure the child’s specific needs are met. Parents are always involved in any decision to involve specialists.

See list of services above.

https://new.eastsussex.gov.uk/childrenandfamilies/specialneeds/search-for-services/

https://new.eastsussex.gov.uk/childrenandfamilies/specialneeds/health-services/

1. Where can I get information, advice and support? 

Key contacts at Southover School are:

• Your child’s class teacher – (via office)
• Assistant Head & Inclusion Manager – Mrs Zoe Short senco@southover.e-sussex.sch.uk
• Headteacher – Mr Noel Fadden (via office)
• Deputy headteacher – Mrs Lisa Walker (via office)
• Chairs of Governors – Mr Andrew Barnard & Mr Edward Smith
• SEND governor – Ms Susanne Pollard
• Services – as listed
• School office (01273 473015)
• Parent Information Coordinator – School office

The ‘local offer’ on the internet

www.eastsussex.gov.uk/localoffer

Amaze amazesussex.org.uk

SEND information, advice and support service

https://new.eastsussex.gov.uk/childrenandfamilies/familysupport/parent-information-contacts/about/)

0345 60 80 192 informationforfamilies@eastsussex.gov.uk

www.eastsussex.gov.uk/sendadvice 

18. What do I do if I am not happy or if I want to complain?

Contact the school office 01273 473015 / office@southover.e-sussex.sch.uk or ccc@southover.e-sussex.sch.uk