Special Education Needs
At Ansford we strive to meet the needs of pupils who require additional support to reach their potential and access the curriculum.
We provide support for pupils with learning, communication, physical, medical, sensory and social needs. Our Learning Support Team support pupils in a varity of ways including in the classroom, in small groups and individually.
Close liaison between the school and the Local Authority's Support Services ensures that the best advice acn be taken to meet the needs of all pupils.
Children have special educational needs if they have a learning difficulty which calls for special educational provision to be made for them. Children have a learning difficulty if they have a significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of children of the same age.
OR
If they have a disability, which prevents or hinders them from making use of educational facilities of a kind generally provided for children of the same age.
Special educational provision means educational provision which is additional to, or different from, the educational provision made generally for children of their age.
Provision
All teachers are teachers of pupils with special educational needs. Teachers deliver the National Curriculum programmes of study in ways that meet the particular requirements of their pupils. The National Curriculum Inclusion Statement emphasises the importance of providing effective learning opportunities for all pupils and offers three key principles for inclusion:
- Setting suitable learning challenges
- Responding to pupils’ diverse needs
- Overcoming potential barriers to learning
The Special Educational Needs Code of Practice recognises four dimensions of need.
1. Cognitive and Learning
Moderate Learning Difficulties, Specific Learning Difficulties, Severe Learning Difficulties and Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulties.
2. Behaviour, Emotional and Social Difficulties
Behavioural difficulties which may substantially and regularly interfere with the child’s own learning or that of the class group.
3. Communication and Interaction
Speech and Language difficulties and Autistic Spectrum Disorders.
4. Physical / Sensory
Hearing Impairment, Visual Impairment, Physical and/or Medical Difficulties or Disabilities.
We adopt a graduated response when helping children who have special educational needs.
School Action
School Action is the additional and different provision the school makes to help the child make progress. This could be an individual programme such as Phonographix, SAIL, CLICKER 5 or Anger Management. It could also be extra time spent on counselling, time with the Family Liaison Officer, the Mentor or extra help and explanations from a teaching Assistant or SENCO. Small group work would also be provision through School Action.
School Action Plus
If a child is not making sufficient progress in spite of provision at School Action, it may be necessary to seek help from external services. They may offer advice, give training to staff or work with the child.
The external agencies currently involved with our children include:
- The Educational Psychologist (EPS)
- The Learning Support Service (LSS)
- The Visual Impairment Service
- The Hearing Impairment Service
- Children In Care Team
- The Autism Service
- The Physical Disability Team
- Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS),
We also have input from local Special Schools.
A Statement of Special Educational Needs
A very small number of children may need the support provided through a Statement of Special Educational Needs. This is a legal document and states the types of support a child should receive. The Statement is reviewed each year to see if the provision is still appropriate.
