SEND

Approximately 1 in 5 children nationally are identified as having SEND and a similar number will have a special educational need of some kind during their time at St Mary’s Fields.

Every child’s progress is measured continuously throughout each academic year in English (reading, writing and speaking and listening) and Maths. Whilst there are times when all children’s learning slows or accelerates, we use this information to identify any children who may have difficulties.

The progress of all our children is discussed at pupil progress meetings which are held twice a year. Any child who seems to be struggling, whether academically or emotionally, will be discussed and a plan will be put into place and the child’s name is added to our Early Monitoring List. This may be to provide them with some extra support in a particular area (e.g. a reading intervention). If concerns persist, the child’s class teacher will talk to parents about these concerns. Following this discussion, a decision will be agreed as to how we can support the child more effectively. At this stage following any interventions a decision may be made to list the child on the school’s Special Needs register.

As a parent, if you have concerns about your child, you are always welcome to make an appointment to talk to your child’s class teacher or alternatively you can arrange to speak to our teachers responsible for special educational needs, (SEND’Co) Miss Laura Haycock or Mrs. Nicola Morris (EYFS & Year 1).

You can always raise any concerns you may have with your child’s class teacher at the two parents evenings that are held each academic year, but please don’t wait for these meetings.

If, after discussion and further support, it is felt that your child does have a special educational need then he or she will be placed on the special needs register and will have a Personalised Learning Plan (PLP). Wherever possible, your child will be involved in this decision. The PLP will outline what school and home will do together to help your child to make small steps progress and help them to gain in confidence and self esteem.

The PLP also outlines any interventions and additional support which will be targeted at supporting your child.

In line with the 2014 Code of Practice, at St Mary’s Fields Academy we have two levels of SEND:

a) SEND Support

Any child who is not making the expected progress over time is placed on the SEND register at SEND Support. You will have already had a meeting with the SENDCo and class teacher to discuss this and we will agree on some targets to support your child. We will review these targets together with you and your child twice each year and agree new ones.

Your child will continue to receive adapted teaching from their class teacher, and may also be part of targeted intervention session that may run outside of the classroom, often in small groups or on a 1:1 basis supported by a teaching assistant.

If difficulties persist, we will discuss asking a specialist teacher for advice that could help your child. For a child with a disability e.g. hearing loss, this will involve a specialist observing your child in class and providing the school with clear strategies to help them.

For children who are making slower progress than we would wish, this may include a specialist teacher from the Learning, Communication and Interaction Team (LCI) or the Educational Psychology Service, who will often carry out further assessments with your child. They are trained to make sure your child is comfortable and often the assessment is presented in the form of games. This helps to identify any specific gaps in your child’s learning or helps to identify the best teaching methods to best suit your child’s learning style. Using this advice, targets are modified and agreed and will identify the area which your child needs to work on and how we intend to help them to do this. You will always be asked for consent for the school to involve an external agency.

b) Education and Health Care Plan (Statement)

A child with an Education, Health and Care Plan (previously called a ‘Statement of Special Educational Needs’) will have more significant difficulties, and will often need a daily timetable that is different from other children for some of the time. Children with very complex needs often have an EHC Plan.

An EHC Plan can only be given by Leicester City Council, and is based on your child’s individual circumstances. Sometimes these children will have an adult assigned to them for some or all of the school day. This adult is trained to help your child achieve their targets. Children with an EHC Plan must have an annual review meeting. Together we will look at progress against last year’s targets and any changes to the child’s needs are discussed. All professionals working with the child will be invited to the annual review. If they cannot attend, it is expected that they will send a report that can be shared at the meeting.

All children at St Mary’s Fields Academy including those with SEND receive teacher input via Quality First Teaching. Like all children in school, your child will be set targets and progress will be monitored.

Class teachers are responsible for planning and delivering the curriculum for all of the children they teach. At St Mary’s Fields we monitor the development and attainment of all children so that their needs can be met and additional support given where necessary.

The teacher’s planning will be adapted for your child to support them in their learning.

Your child might need to work in a smaller group and they may need to use additional resources to help them learn. The use of  physical or visual resources may be used and we understand that your child may need the learning repeated, delivered at a slower pace or the work to be adapted to suit their needs or ability.

Your child’s class teacher will assess their learning through all the work they do and check that they are making progress.  The teacher and often the SENDCo will then meet with you twice a year to look at their progress and to see whether they are meeting their PLP targets.  Together we will decide on new targets.  Sometimes we might need to work on certain targets for a little while longer.  This will be discussed at these meetings.

If your child has additional needs, this would mean:

• That the class teacher continues to have the high expectations for your child.
• That all teaching is based on building on what your child already knows, can do and understand.
• Different ways of teaching are in place so that your child is fully involved in learning in class.  This may involve things like using more practical learning.
• Specific strategies (which may be suggested by the SENDCo or outside agencies) 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 gaps in their understanding/learning and needs some extra support and intervention to help them to make the best possible progress. This may mean that they are taken out of their class for a short while during the week, as an individual or small group to work on carefully planned targets.
• Your child’s targets are recorded and reviewed termly.

Your child’s class teacher and the SENDCo will offer you lots of advice and strategies that are appropriate to the needs of your child. Your child’s targets will help you to know what they are currently working on, you can also work on these targets at home. The SENDCOs often liaise with parents, through phone calls and meetings. They have a good understanding of individual children’s needs and requirements. The SENCOs are available via appointment via the school office for face to face meetings.

Your child may also receive homework that can be done at their own level with a little support from parents. If you are unsure about how much to help your child you are most welcome to come and ask the teacher.

St Mary’s Fields Academy’s most important resource is its staffing. The children are taught in whole class settings by qualified teachers. Children may be taught in smaller groups which means that staff can focus more closely on children who have a learning difficulty. Their learning is pitched at the right level and hands-on resources are available for them.

Our teaching assistants are well trained in a range of interventions covering a range of needs. They work with children either individually or in small groups to encourage progress. These interventions can be long term, be delivered throughout the whole day or can be for a fixed period of time.

Children who have more complex or medical needs may have individual support throughout the day to meet their range of needs and work on their individual targets, often set by external agencies e.g. a speech and language therapist.

Whilst children identified as having SEND are fully supported where required, it is also important to ensure that we provide your child with basic independent personal, social and learning skills. If your child does have a learning difficulty, they will be monitored continually so that we are familiar with their needs and also the aspects of learning, concentration or managing their emotions that they may have difficulties with during the school day.

Through either whole class, small group or 1-1 provision, these children are provided with strategies to assist them in their area of difficulty. They are also given the opportunity to apply these skills in relevant situations.

We celebrate success by focusing on what the child does well. All targets set for the children are individual and are achievable, giving the SEND children every chance to be successful.

At St Mary’s Fields, we also offer many of our SEND pupils the opportunity to spend time taking part in a variety of enrichment activities such as Forest school, sensory cooking and gardening.

We also have a trained ELSA (Emotional Literacy Support Assistant) who is available to work with identified pupils.

Our Year 6 pupils also have access to anxiety clinic counselling sessions and pupils can also be referred to the mental health support team from the NHS or the local SEMH team.

St Mary’s Fields can call on excellent advice from a range of external agencies. They give verbal feedback as well as written reports and often arrange to meet parents during the school day. If your child continues to make slower than expected progress we may ask if we can refer your child to an external specialist teacher or the educational psychologist. We will fill in special referral forms and you can also describe your feelings about your child’s needs on the form.

Our external agencies are –

Early Years Support Team: 0-5 years old

Complex Learning, Communication and Interaction Support Team (CLCI Support Team) 5-16 years

Social Emotional and Mental Health Team (SEMH)

Educational Psychologist (EP)

Speech and Language therapy (SALT)

Hearing Support Team

Visual Support Team

Health Visitor/ School nurse/ Single point of contact (Children’s health services)

Physiotherapists

Occupational therapist

Dietician

Diana Service/Macmillan Nurses/ Laura Centre

Family Support workers / Family Hub

Social Workers (Early Help)

CEIPS Team (City Early Intervention Psychology Service)

Mental Health Support Team (NHS)

All school staff have had training on how to support children with more common SEND issues. The St Mary’s Fields Academy team also includes some highly trained staff in particular areas. A child’s class teacher is responsible for the progress and development of the pupils in their class, despite any special need they may have. However, advice and support will be given by the SENDCo and specialists from outside agencies.

The SENDCo (Special Needs Co-ordinator) provides professional guidance to colleagues and works closely with staff, parents and other agencies. At St Mary’s Fields this role is carried out by two teachers who are experienced in recognising different types of special needs and have knowledge about the possible needs of different SEND children and how they can best be supported with different teaching methods. These teachers are also responsible for meeting with specialists and ensuring a child receives the support they are entitled to. The SENDCo’s at St Mary’s Fields are Miss Laura Haycock and Mrs. Nicola Morris (EYFS & Year 1).

We have a team of well trained staff who have experience of supporting children with a wide range of needs. At St Mary’s Fields Academy, our team strengths include supporting children with:

Emotional/social difficulties

Reading, Writing or Mathematical difficulties

Difficulties with receptive or expressive language

Physical disabilities, multisensory difficulties, mobility

Complex Needs – Autistic Spectrum Disorder

Physical and medical needs

Sometimes children with complex needs may require adults to have additional training. We aim to identify any requirements and ensure that the staff are trained in any additional areas necessary before working with a child.

At St Mary’s Fields we try hard to plan trips and visits which are inclusive for all our children. We are happy to take buggies and wheelchairs to both local and more distant venues on a bus. We always check that the venue has a disabled toilet and take the necessary resources with us.

If in any doubt we will ask for your opinion about the suitability of the journey and take our lead from you as your child’s parent.

We have always taken children with physical disabilities to the swimming pool and ensured that a member of staff is in the water to support them alongside the other children.

If your child struggles to follow instructions when in the street or in an open environment, we will make sure that there is a responsible adult to keep them safe.

We often ask parents to attend the trips with their child so that you too get to enjoy the experiences with your child alongside the support of school staff and to help reassure you that their needs are met whilst out of school.

St Mary’s Fields Academy aims to be inclusive to all pupils.

Buildings and rooms are accessible to children with a physical difficulty via ramps/lift.

We provide an inclusive learning environment for children with a hearing or visual impairment.

Equipment and resources used are accessible to all children regardless of their needs.

Trips and visits are accessible for children with SEND

After school provision is accessible to all children including those with SEND.

St Mary’s Fields admits many children during the school year, children of all ages. If your child has a special need we will discuss this at the admission meeting and the new teacher will be fully informed of their needs. It really helps when parents are open about their child’s needs, especially older children who have been to school before. We really value advice that parents give us to support their child in school.

We also talk to your child’s previous school wherever possible so that needs can be discussed to ensure that transitions are smooth.

Your child will be informally assessed quite quickly by the group or class teacher. If there are any concerns we will contact you for a chat to share our thoughts. We will also arrange for any support or intervention that seems appropriate.

Whether children transfer between classes within the school or move to another school we ensure:

A face to face meeting between the SENDCo and the new teacher to communicate the child’s strengths, progress, targets and effective support strategies.

Transfer of all written records.

Where necessary, pre transition arrangements are put into place to support a seamless transition.

At St Mary’s Fields Academy, arrangements are made for pupils when moving to their next phase of education. The school has strong links with feeder secondary schools. During the Summer Term, the SENDCos meet with secondary SENDCos to discuss the needs of the pupils transferring. Where necessary, extra visits are planned and secondary staff begin making links with transferring pupils.

We welcome parents into the school in a variety of different contexts.

We have:

• Weekly Friday assemblies where parents are invited to join our celebration assembly.
• A range of parent workshops
• A range of events throughout the year with different focus’s.
• ‘School Nurse Drop Ins’ where local professionals visit to advise parents on health issues

We have an open door policy – you are welcome to speak to your child’s class teacher at the start and end of each day and you are always welcome to make an appointment to speak to a member of school staff to discuss things in more detail.

For further information please contact the SENCo’ -Miss Haycock who will be happy to answer your questions. Telephone Number 0116 2824623

St Mary’s Fields Academy is a Maintained school, which is in partnership with Leicester City Local Authority.  You can find further information about the Leicester City offer https://www.leicester.gov.uk/schools-and-learning/special-educational-needs-sen/