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Guillemont Junior School |
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This is the Guillemont Junior School Special Educational Needs page. Here, you will find information about the school's policy regarding children with Special Educational Needs.
In September 1997 additional specialist provision for twenty children
with language impairment was opened at the school. The building was
provided by the LEA as an extension to the main school and consists of
two group teaching rooms, a therapy room, an office and cloakroom.
Admission criteria for the twenty places in the specialist resource
are as follows:
Hampshire County Council Admission Criteria for the Language Unit
Children will be considered for admission to the specialist
resource who demonstrate a severity or persistence of speech and or language
disorder. Their needs in speech or language will be clearly identified
arising from:
- a sever receptive disorder which affects the child's ability to understand spoken language.
- a severe expressive disorder which affects the pupil's speech sound system and/or grammar.
- pragmatic difficulties (language use.)
- semantic difficulties (language use.)
- severe language delay with linguistic abilities at a level less than two thirds of chronological age.
- have a language difficulty/disorder as the primary area of need.
There will be evidence of:
- potential non-verbal ability within the broad mainstream range.
- self-help skills to enable them to operate age appropriately in the mainstream environment.
- potential for integration into a supported mainstream setting.
- potential for the use of oral methods of communication.
- potential for social integration.
Exit Criteria
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There must be the potential for all children to integrate successfully
on a full time basis into a mainstream setting. Equally, it is possible
that resolution or remediation of the speech and/or language disorder will
reveal learning or behavioural difficulties that would be more appropriately
met in another setting. In either case, a child should not inappropriately
occupy a place in this provision if it is no longer needed. Recommendations
for suitable provision will be made through the Annual Review Process.
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For many children, once their Language Needs have been addressed, there
will be continuing long term Literacy needs. Where this change has
been properly assessed and new needs identified, a child's Statement of
Special Educational Needs will be amended to reflect this. At this
point a more appropriate placement in a child's designated junior school,
with support, or specialist SpLD provision will be recommended.
Alongside the integration process exists procedures for reverse
integration where children from the mainstream may access for example:
social skills, listening skills, Literacy/Numeracy work in small groups
alongside resourced provision children.
A Policy for Inclusion and Special Educational Needs
Rationale
At Guillemont, we operate a policy of inclusion where all children regardless of their abilities and behaviours have an equal opportunity of full access to the whole curriculum, offered by the school and where we work in partnership with parents. It is very much part of the whole school approach where all children are recognised and valued for themselves, where high expectations are the norm and where each child’s self-reliance and self-esteem is fostered in a warm, caring and supportive atmosphere. We follow the 5 principles in Every Child Matters and this applies to all children.
that children stay safe
that they are healthy
that they enjoy and achieve
that they make a positive contribution
that they achieve economic well being
Whilst the general aim of the school is to assist all children in learning; to identify and meet their own needs, it is recognised that some children may require extra support to achieve this. The importance of learning support is to integrate all children within the school and enable them to function successfully alongside their peers to reach their full potential.
We believe that such children benefit enormously from being integrated into the school, gaining in confidence and feeling a valued member of the school community. Likewise, some children, by their achievements and participation, often against severe disabilities, make their own very special and important contribution in broadening experience and fostering the understanding of peers and staff alike.
Definition of Special Educational Needs
Nationally about 20% of children may have special educational needs at some point in their school life. If a child begins to have difficulty in learning and progressing within normal classroom arrangements, he/she may have a special need as identified by the Code of Practice 2002.
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 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 in school within the area of the local education authority.
are under compulsory school age within the definition at (a) or (b) above or would do so if special educational provision was not made for them.
Children must not be regarded as having a learning difficulty solely because the language of their home is different from the language in which they will be taught.
Special Educational Provision means:
for children of two and over, educational provision which is additional to, or otherwise different from, the educational provision made generally for children of their age in maintained schools, other than special schools, in the area.
for a child under two, educational provision of any kind.
Education Act 1996
The concept of special needs has been widened to include children with:
Visual impairment (blind, partially sighted)
Hearing impairment (deaf, partially deaf)
Moderate learning difficulties (MLD) Severe learning difficulties (SLD)
Emotional/behavioural difficulties
Language impairment (speech defects and language disorders)
Autism (mild)
Physical disabilities
Specific learning difficulties/dyslexia
Aims for Special Education Needs
To enable all children to have access to a well-balanced and broadly based curriculum, including the National Curriculum, that is differentiated to meet individual needs.
To provide a caring and supportive environment, promoting confidence and good self-esteem, and recognising individual achievements.
To encourage all children to reach their full potential.
To identify and assess children with SEN as early as possible and provide additional pupil support programmes, Individual Education Plan (IEPs) where necessary, which will be monitored and reviewed each term.
To work in partnership with parents and children, involving them in the reviewing and setting of targets. Our aim is to keep parents fully informed and encourage them to support the individual needs of their children.
To liaise with outside agencies to seek specialist advice and review and set targets as appropriate.
To fulfil the legal requirements for Statemented children within the school.
To follow the SEN Code of Practice 2002, adopting its graduated response to meeting the needs of identified children.
To follow Hampshire’s Assessment of Special Educational guidelines (revised August 1994) alongside the Code of Practice 2002.
Through INSET, to ensure that staff and governors have adequate guidance and training and are aware of school and County procedures for working with SEN children.
Educational Inclusion
Through appropriate curricular provision, we respect the fact that children:
have different educational and behavioural needs and aspirations;
require different strategies for learning;
acquire, assimilate and communicate information at different rates;
need a range of different teaching approaches and experiences.
Identification of SEN
The responsibility of identification of a child with special educational needs of any kind rests with the class teacher. This recognition may come through a variety of sources outlined below.
Liaison
Before a child enters school much information will be obtained through close liaison between their new class teacher and the class teacher of the ‘feeder’ infant schools through sharing a child’s work, with the child, in their classroom. The Special Needs Co-ordinator will also visit both the infant class teacher and depending on need, the child identified by feeder schools as having special needs. All relevant outside agency input and special needs records of work will be shared to ensure a smooth transition. Other information to be passed on will include SATS results, teacher assessments and parental concerns. In the final Year 6 the same process takes place to ensure smooth transition to the next Key Stage.
Screening
At the beginning of each school year after an agreed ‘settling in’ period, screening processes will be used throughout the school. This gives an overview, year on year of the progress of all children in reading, spelling and mathematics. It also identifies those children who may be experiencing difficulties in reading, spelling or mathematics. The results obtained from these tests will be considered along with other significant indicators; recommendations made in past reports, class work and other needs such as difficulty or outstanding potential in other curriculum activities, behavioural or emotional problems or physical or sensory difficulties.
Should it be considered appropriate to look more closely at a child’s specific needs, assessment may be carried out by the SENCO or trained LSA’s and the Headteacher informed.
Behaviour
Children are sometimes placed on the Special Needs Register for difficulties with their behaviour. They may have an IEP or Individual Behaviour Plan (IBP). Individuals may well be able to perform well academically but are unable to access the curriculum effectively due to being unable to adhere to basic rules of behaviours within the classroom, outside at break and lunchtime or both. The School Behaviour Policy will be applied to all children within our school. In cases where behaviour is proving persistently challenging and where this is limiting the child’s access to the curriculum (or that of his/her peers), the school will seek advise and support from external agencies.
Graduated Approach Towards Meeting SEN
The school has adopted the five-stage model as suggested in the Code of Practice to respond to childrens’ special educational needs. In accordance with the 2002 Code of Practice, we aim to identify and support children with SEN as early as possible.
Initial Concerns Only
This is a pre-SEN register identification, which is completed by the class teacher, and documents any concerns about the child. The child is closely monitored by the class teacher, to ensure that he/she makes progress across each term, and an Individual Education Plan (IEP) is written. Parents are informed about concerns at Parent’s evening or at other arranged meetings.
School Action (SA)
If progress is unsatisfactory, then parents are informed and the child is moved onto the Special Needs Register at SA. The class teacher, with guidance from the SENCO, where necessary, writes an IEP to target the child’s learning and/or emotional, behavioural needs more specifically. This is reviewed each half term and discussed with the child and parents during term time, along with the new targets. Targets can reflect input from parents and the child.
School Action Plus (SAP)
If a child is experiencing more complex difficulties, then it may be necessary for the school to seek advice and support from outside agencies, eg Educational Psychologist, Occupational Therapist, Speech Therapist. Parents/Carers will always be informed beforehand and their permission obtained. The child will then be registered at SAP. The next IEP will reflect the advice from the outside agency. The children may follow a Wave 3 intervention programme in Literacy and Maths.
Statutory Assessment
For a very small number of children who demonstrate long-term significant difficulties with poor attainment and lack of progress in work and/or behaviour, it may be necessary to make a request to the Local Education Authority (LEA) for a Statutory Assessment (Statement). The Parents/Carers will be informed and consulted during the process. The Headteacher and SENCO will co-ordinate the completion of paperwork for the school and then the LEA will request additional written advice from all relevant agencies concerned with the child.
Statement of SEN
The LEA considers all the evidence from the Statutory Assessment and, if appropriate, produces a Statement of SEN that is subject to a formal Annual Review by all parties concerned.
Monitoring and Recording of SEN
All staff plan, monitor and review the progress of their SEN children through an Individual Education Plan (IEP). The SENCO oversees all IEPs and helps class teachers and LSAs to complete them where necessary.
A whole school tracking register of pupils at the various stages of SEN is maintained and updated by the SENCO as and when necessary. All class teachers are given a copy.
The SENCO ensures that all relevant information from Outside Agencies is passed on to colleagues involved with individual children.
The SENCO ensures that all relevant SEN records and IEPs are passed on to the secondary school when a child transfers or leaves during the Key Stage to attend another school.
The SENCO monitors provision for SEN children using a range of strategies; IEPs, sampling children’s work, classroom/LSA observations, interviewing, class teacher’s planning sheets.
All staff keeps an SEN file in their classroom and ensure that it is kept up-to-date with relevant information regarding their SEN children.
Children at Individual Concerns Only are closely monitored, with records of work/attainment in their books or folders kept by the class teacher.
Children with behavioural difficulties are monitored closely through the use of written records, IBPs. Charts and behaviour records.
Refer also to the school’s Assessment Policy and procedures for monitoring and review.
Resourcing for SEN Provision
The Headteacher and Special Needs Co-ordinator, in consultation with the class teacher, decide if remediation is required, whether such remediation should be delivered individually or as part of a group, how much time should be allocated and what form it should take. This will then be timetabled. The timetable will be flexible according to the progress of the individual or as other children are identified. Currently, children at Step 1 and Step 2 have extra support during the Literacy hour. Their work is differentiated and modified as required. Children identified at Step 3 and above, benefit from this inclusive support within class during Literacy and Numeracy hours and have individual and group support to meet their individual needs.
Financial resourcing for special needs children is provided by Hampshire County Council and included in the school’s budget. The school has adopted the staged model of Special Educational Needs as recommended by the Code of Practice from the DfE. The needs of the majority of children will be met and resourced effectively under the first three stages. In a minority of cases the LEA will need to share the responsibility for meeting the needs of the child and a statutory assessment will be undertaken. Low Incidence statements will be fully funded by the LEA, whereas High Incidence statements are partially funded through the School’s budget.
The whole philosophy underpinning the curriculum at Guillemont is to meet the needs of all children in achieving their potential. Should a child be identified as gifted or talented in any curriculum area, the child will be provided with extension work, in class by their teacher. A register is kept of these children. If a child is identified as having a learning difficulty, remediation is normally provided by a Learning Support Assistant (LSA), under the direction of the class teacher and the Special Needs Co-ordinator. All children will have access to extra-curricula activities and ICT to support their learning.
Planned programmes will be followed both in class, through differentiation of the curriculum, and, if appropriate, during additional time for remediation with the child’s LSA or a Senior LSA. Learning styles will be taken into account. The child’s progress will be reviewed regularly and the programme altered accordingly.
The school will ensure that appropriate material resources are provided to allow all children access to the National Curriculum. All SEN resources will be regularly reviewed and upgraded, as necessary. These are located in the special needs corridor, adjacent to the meeting room.
External Agencies
The school will seek advice, as necessary, from external agencies including, Educational Psychologists, Speech and Language Therapy, Sight Impairment, Social Services, Behaviour Support, Hearing Impairment, Occupational Therapy and Medical Services.
The Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) 1995
As part of Equal Opportunities legislation, the Disability Discrimination Act (amended in 2001) means that, in schools, it is unlawful to discriminate against a disabled person for a reason connected with their disability.
A person has a disability if he or she has a physical or mental impairment that has substantial and long-term adverse effect on his or her ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.
Discrimination occurs when any person in or connected with the school is treated less favourably than someone else.
For schools, the parts of the Act that are more relevant are connected with the employment of staff, the provision of services through education to children and their Parents/Carers and the school’s use as a building.
Guillemont Junior School is fully committed to the “inclusive” principle of the Disability Discrimination Act. The school building is adapted to accommodate people in wheelchairs and is also fitted with a toilet for disabled people. The new medical room will enable physiotherapy to take place with increased privacy, if needed.
Admissions Procedure
At Guillemont Junior School, we are fully aware of our responsibility towards children with special educational needs. All applications for admission on behalf of such children will be treated in accordance with the criteria set out in the Admissions Policy.
Provision Available
The school has a resourced unit for children with speech, language and communication difficulties. It is resourced for 20 children and is staffed by two teachers and six LSAs.
Responsibilities
The Governing Body
The Governing Body in co-operation with the Headteacher, is responsible for this policy and has statutory duties under the 1993 Education Act. The Governors have a commitment to provide the best possible provision for all children. The Governing Body will report to parents annually. (See Making a Difference – A Guide for SEN Governors).
The Responsible Person
The Responsible Person as defined in the Act is the Headteacher. The Responsible Person is the representative of the school whom the LEA must inform when they have formally concluded that a child has SEN. It is the duty of the Responsible Person to ensure that all those who will teach the child know about his or her special educational needs. The Responsible Person must also endorse all referrals by the school to the LEA for Statutory Assessment.
The Nominated Governor
The Nominated Governor with special responsibility for SEN is, Mrs Angela Brown, who will meet with the SENCO termly. The Governor responsible for SEN will report to Governors on matters of special educational needs.
The SENCO
The SENCO is the teacher in the school with responsibility for SEN. The named teacher is Mrs Margaret Bennett. Details of the role of the SENCO at Guillemont Junior School are to be found in the SENCO’s job description.
Class Teachers
The class teacher is the first point of contact for parents who have concerns about any aspect of their child’s progress. The class teacher should be confident in the operation of the school’s procedure for the early identification and assessment of a child’s special educational needs and for devising and delivering appropriate support and directing the work of the support staff.
Support Staff
Support staff are employed by the school to give in-class support to the children identified with SEN. Details of the role are to be found in the LSAs’ job description.
Training: Professional Development
Regular training of both teachers and LSAs is considered to be an important part of school policy. All staff has the opportunity to attend courses run by the LEA to ensure that the expertise within school is kept up-to-date. The partnership between teacher and LSA for regular feedback, on the success of the teaching programme, is encouraged at all times for an overview of the child’s progress, and to ensure maximum benefit from the programme is attained.
Workshops are written into the School Development Plan. Subjects for training sessions are organised on a termly basis and are dependant on the needs within the school. The Special Needs Co-ordinator meets with the LSAs on a regular basis throughout the year for both training and discussion. New staff members are introduced to SEN policies and practices by the Special Needs Co-ordinator as they enter the school.
Parental Involvement
The school recognises the value of parental involvement and will liaise closely with parents by informing them of the programme their child is following and advise them on ways to support their child at home and in school. Parents are welcome to see their child’s teacher and SENCO throughout the year, and there is a formal consultation during the Spring Term. If a concern is not resolved at this stage, the parents can make an appointment with the Headteacher to discuss the matter further. If together the problem cannot be solved, then the parents have the right to contact the Chair of Governors and/or discuss the matter with the Local Education Authority. The school will provide parents with the name and contact number of the Partnership with Parents Service who can provide support for parents.
If a child has to be referred to an outside agency the parents are consulted and parental permission for this is sought. If a child holds a statement of Special Educational Need the parents are always invited to the Annual Review and their views sought.
Successful implementation of this policy should be evident by
Progress made by children in all areas of self-esteem and skill levels.
The satisfaction of parents, children, governors and staff.
Effective use of resources.
Progress made through self-evaluation of special educational needs and inclusion practices.
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