SEND

SEND - Special Educational Needs and Disability

Special Educational Needs Information Report
At Crawford Village School, a mainstream setting, we strive to support all children to enable 
them to achieve their potential.

In order to do this many steps are taken to help all pupils through their learning journey.
High quality teaching is vital; however, for some children there are occasions when additional support may be needed.

The Special Needs Co-ordinator (SENDCo) is:  Mr R Brearley

The Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Governor is: Mrs Wilson 

Roles & Responsibilities of the special Needs Co-ordinator (SENDCO).
Our SENDCo is responsible for the operation of the Special Educational Needs Policy and co-ordination of specific provision made to support individual children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND). The SEND policy can be found on our policies page. Please follow the link here.  Pupil progress is monitored on a regular basis and further interventions are planned for children where progress is slower than expected. We regularly have contact with a wide range of external agencies that are able to give more specialised advice.  If you have any concerns regarding SEND matters, do not hesitate to contact us.

Children and Families Act 2014
The new Code of Practice for SEND children and young people aged 0-25 is outlined in this Act and came into force in September 2014. The Government has listened to what parents say their experience of services is like and have put in place a number of things to bring about improvements. One of these is the ‘Local Offer’.

What is the SEND Local Offer?

• Local Authorities must publish a ‘Local Offer’ setting out the provision they expect to be available across education, health and social care for children and young people who have SEN and D. (https://www.lancashire.gov.uk/children-education-families/special-educational-needs-and-disabilities/) All schools must publish information on their websites about their policies for pupils with SEND.

• There are 16 questions, devised in consultation with parents/carers and other agencies, which reflect their concerns and interests. These will be answered by agencies, schools and colleges to provide information to parents and carers to enable them to make decisions about how to best support their child’s needs.

• The following are our responses to those questions:

1. How does Crawford Village Primary School know if children need extra help?

We know that pupils need extra help when:

• concerns are raised by parents/carers, teachers or the child
• less than expected progress is identified or key developmental milestones not achieved
• there is a change in the pupil’s behaviour or progress

2. What should I do if I think my child may have special educational needs?

• The class teacher is the initial point of contact for responding to parental concerns.
• If you are still concerned please make an appointment to see Mr Brearley who is the SENDCo.
• See the document ‘What happens at Crawford Village School if your child needs extra help?’ (Located on the school website)

3. How will I know how Crawford Village School supports my child?

• All pupils at Crawford Village School are taught within small groups and consequently receive more personalised education.
• Each pupil’s education programme will be planned by the class teacher. It will be differentiated accordingly to suit the pupil’s individual needs. This may include additional support by the teacher or teaching assistant in class.
• If a pupil has needs related to more specific areas of their education, such as an area of maths, then the pupil will be placed in a small focus group. This will be run by the teacher or teaching assistant (TA). These will occur as and when required. The interventions will be reviewed regularly by all involved to ascertain the effectiveness of the provision and to inform future planning.
• If you have any queries related to the interventions please do not hesitate to contact the class teacher or SENDCo.
• Pupil Progress Meetings take place once a term. This is a meeting where the class teacher and SENDCo discuss the progress of all pupils with the headteacher. This shared discussion will inform future planning to support all pupils appropriately.
  
  Occasionally a pupil may need additional support from an outside agency such as the Special Educational Needs and Disability Service (SENDS) or Speech and Language Therapy (SALT) etc. A referral will be made, with your consent, and forwarded to the most appropriate agency. After a series of assessments appropriate recommendations are made and these will be discussed with parents or carers.

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

• When a pupil has been identified with special needs their work will be differentiated by the class teacher to enable them to access the curriculum more easily.
• The class teacher together with the SENDCo will develop an IEP which will include the focus targets for that pupil. These will be shared with both the parents/carers and the pupil.
• TAs may be allocated to work with the pupil in a 1-1 or small focus group to target more specific need.
• If it is appropriate specialist equipment may be used to support individual pupils e.g. writing slopes, concentration cushions, pen/pencils grips or easy to use scissors.

5. How will I know how my child is doing?

          Good quality communication with parents is a priority at Crawford Village Primary School. Consequently regular contact with parents and carers will take place as 
          and when appropriate.

• You will be able to discuss your child’s progress at parents’ evenings.
• If you wish to speak in more detail to the class teacher or SENDCo, please contact the school office to make an appointment.
• The parents/carers of pupils who are identified as having additional needs will be invited to a meeting to discuss progress at least once a term. These meetings will be in addition to parents’ evenings.

6. How will you help me to support my child’s learning?

• The class teacher may suggest ways that you can support your child.
• The SENDCo or head teacher may meet with you to discuss how to support your child with strategies to use if there are difficulties with a child’s behaviour/emotional needs.
• If outside agencies have been involved suggestions and programmes of study are normally provided that can be used at home.

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

• The small size of the school enables staff to genuinely know and understand the individual needs of the all the pupils.
• Small, mixed-age classes support the PSED of children in the Early Years.
• All children and families are well known to the staff.
• Clear and open lines of communication enable any concerns about individual well-being to be addressed quickly and collaboratively.
• The school provides nurture activities as and when required.
• Counselling opportunities may be available to children when these are needed.
• A shared set of school values are an important part of our school ethos at all times.
• A nurturing approach to behaviour management ensures a caring and restorative approach to any issues that arise, placing the needs of the pupil at the centre of all decisions.
• Please visit the following website for further information: ‘Mental Health and Behaviour in Schools – Gov.UK

8. Pupils with medical needs 

• If a pupil has a medical need then a detailed Health Care Plan is compiled with support from the school nurse in consultation with parents/carers. These will be updated annually unless there is a change in the health condition. Care plans are shared with all staff at school.
• Staff receive appropriate training to support pupils who have specific medical needs.
• When a child has a Health Care Plan medicines may be administered in school but only when a signed ‘Medicine Consent Form’ is in place to ensure the safety of both child and staff member.
• All staff have received paediatric first aid training. This is updated regularly.

9. Arrangements for the Admission of Pupils with Disabilities 
The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 defines a disabled person as one who has a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on a persons’ ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.  The arrangements for the admission of pupils with disabilities are the same as those that are applied to pupils without disabilities. The Admissions Policy can be found on the school website.

At Crawford Village Primary School we aim to:

• Promote good inclusive practice and ensure that disabled persons are not put at a disadvantage.
• Make reasonable adjustments to ensure that disabled persons are not put at a disadvantage.
• Ensure that there are plans in place to enable full access to the site and the curriculum for all pupils. Please see the school Accessibility Plan which can be found on the school website.

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

At times it may be necessary to consult with outside agencies to receive their more specialised expertise.

The agencies used by the school include the following examples:

• Child Protection Advisors
• Educational Psychologist
• Special Educational Needs and Disability Service (SENDS) Previously IDSS
• Child & Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS)
• Sensory Team
• Social Services
• SALT (Speech & Language Therapy)
• School medical services including school nurse and doctor
• Wellbeing Prevention & Early Help Service
• OT (Occupational Therapy)
• Children’s centre
• Outreach workers
• Compass Bloom SEMH speacialists. 
  
  For more information, please visit Lancashire Local Offer for a wider variety of services to support parents, carers and young people:  Lancashire Local Offer

11. What training are the staff supporting children and young people with SEND had or are having?

At Crawford Village we believe that it is vital that staff receive the appropriate training to support children who have special educational needs.

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

• Supporting pupils with autism
• Social and communication issues
• Supporting pupils with down’s syndrome
• PECS
• Attachment issues
• Dyslexia
• Dyscalculia
• Responding to challenging behaviour
• Teaching both visually impaired and hearing impaired children
• Supporting children with ADHD
• Visits to special schools.
• Epilepsy training.
• Lego Therapy
• Sunflower Sensory Training
• Mr Brearley has completed the National Award for SEN Coordination (NASENCO) through Edge Hill University. 

Planned training for this year includes:

• Termly cluster meetings attended by the SENDCo covering a range of SEND issues.
• Termly meetings with the school Educational Psychologist.
• IDL and Dynamo Maths updates. 
• Supporting pupils with Dyslexia.
• EHCP application refresher training. 
• Supporting pupils with ADHD.
  
  Additional training will be accessed as and when deemed to be necessary.

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

Activities and school trips are available to all.

• Risk assessments are carried out and procedures are put in place to enable all children to participate.
• However, if it is deemed that an intensive level of 1:1 support is required a parent or carer may be asked to accompany their child during the activity.
• We encourage and support pupils with special needs to attend specialist festivals. They will be accompanied by a member of staff.

13. How accessible is the school environment?

As a school we are happy to discuss individual access requirements.   Adaptations will be completed as and when they are necessary.

• Our building has level access and we have taken reasonable steps to ensure that the site is as accessible anyone with physical needs including wheelchair access.
• A ramp provides access to the school from the playground into the dining hall. 
• Our school complies with the Equalities Act 2010, which stipulates that schools have in place an Accessibility Plan, which is updated annually. You can find this in the policies section of the website. 

14. How will the school prepare and support my child when joining Crawford Village Primary School or transferring to a new school?

• Many strategies are in place to support transition between different settings.  These include:
• Discussions between the previous or receiving schools prior to the pupil joining or leaving our school are always arranged. Meetings with the local nurseries take place between the current reception teacher and the SENDCo (when appropriate). Close liaison occurs with the SENDCos at high schools. Sometimes additional visits and/or meetings will be arranged, if appropriate.
• All pupils are invited to attend transition sessions where they spend some time with their new class teacher.
• New intake meetings take place.
• Parents are invited to input into baseline assessment through the sharing of ‘magic moments’.
• Transition days are organised with the local high schools for all pupils.
• Open days are arranged at Crawford for prospective pupils and their parents and carers.

15. How are the school’s resources allocated and matched to children’s special educational needs?

• The SEND budget is allocated each financial year. The money is used to provide additional support or resources dependent upon the needs of each pupil with additional needs.
• Additional provision may be allocated after discussion with the class teacher at pupil progress meetings or if a concern has been raised by them at another time during the year.
• Resources may include deployment of staff depending upon individual circumstances.
• An Education, Health and Care Plan (EHC Plan) will replace a Statement of Special Education Needs; this is support for those pupils with the most complex needs. Specific funding will be allocated to these pupils and parents/carers will be involved in any decision making.

16. How is the decision made about how much support my child will receive?

• These decisions are made in consultation with the class teacher, SENDCo and head teacher together with any outside agencies. They are based upon regular tracking of pupil progress and the results of any external assessments. Parents/carers and pupils will also be involved in this process.
• Promoting independence for all our pupils is key to effective learning.

17. How will I be involved in discussions about and planning for my child’s education?

All parents are encouraged to contribute to their child’s education and will be invited to school to do so at appropriate times throughout the school year. Parents and carers are always welcome to bring an additional adult to accompany them when attending such meetings.

18. What arrangements do you make in relation to the treatment of complaints from children/young people and their parents/carers with special educational needs concerning your provision made?

For more information, our complaints policy can be found on our school website. If any parent/ carer has any concerns regarding the education of their child with SEND, they should contact the school immediately and make an appointment to see the child’s class teacher. If the matter is not resolved, a meeting will be made with the SENDCO, Mr R Brearley.

Our school ‘Complaints policy’ is available on our website. All complaints will be dealt with sensitively and with the child’s needs and care at the heart of our work.

19. Who can I contact for further information?

If you wish to discuss your child’s educational needs or are unhappy about something regarding your child’s schooling please contact the school office to arrange a meeting with the class teacher, SENDCo or head teacher.

SENDCo: [email protected]

Additional contacts are:

Mrs Wilson: SEND Governor

Dr Lomas: Chair of Governors

Special Educational Needs and Disability Support Service (SENDIASS)

Tel: 0300 1236706 (Mon – Fri 9am – 5pm)

Email: [email protected]


Educational Psychologist (EP) helpline: 01772 530 444 weekdays 1.30pm to 4.45pm

School Nurses and Health Visitors (Virgin Care): 0300 247 0040

DCO (Designated Clinical Officer to support families seeking health information) Anne Hardman: 01254612723.

Read the latest news from the Lancashire SEND Partnership here.

I hope these have answered any queries you may have but please do not hesitate to contact the school if you have further questions.

Reviewed:

January 2018: All staff

September 2019: SENDCo & Headteacher

September 2020: SENDCo & Headteacher

September 2021: SENDCo & Headteacher

September 2022: SENDCo & Headteacher

November 2023: SENDCo & Headteacher

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