Special Educational Needs at Barrow Hill Primary is overseen by Mr David Smith, who is the Director of Primary SEND for our school. He can be contacted via the school on 01246 472494.  Our SEN Associate Member is Dawn Walton. 

At Barrow Hill Primary Academy our guiding principle is one of inclusion. We seek to identify, break down and remove barriers to learning to ensure that every child takes an active role in our school community.

The Government's SEND Code of Practice requires a graduated approach to special educational needs. The early stages are school based, and may involve your child receiving extra help from the school. If your child does not make the expected progress with extra help from within the school, it might be recommended that a detailed assessment of your child is considered. This will only happen after discussion with you.

 Our Aims

• To identify at the earliest opportunity all children who need special provision to support their learning and educational development.
• To ensure that these children are given appropriate support to access the Early Years and National Curriculum.
• To ensure that these children are fully included in all aspects of the school.
• To involve parents and pupils in developing a partnership of support. 

 

The Role of the SENDCO

The Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator for Barrow Hill Primary Academy is Mr David Smith as the Director of SEND. He is responsible for:

• Daily implementation of the SEND Policy
• Advising staff on SEND issues
• Updating the SEND register on a regular basis
• Monitoring records of SEND pupils
• Organising and chairing Annual Reviews for statemented children/ children with EHCPs
• Liaising with parents and external agencies
• Ordering and updating resources
• Managing Teaching Assistants who have a specific SEND role.

 

The Role of the Class Teacher

The Code of Practice 2014 clearly acknowledges the importance allocated to the class teacher, whose responsibilities include:

• Being aware of the school’s procedures for the identification, assessment of, and subsequent provision for SEND students
• Making themselves aware of the SEND students and their needs
• Collaborating with the SENDCO in order to identify the action required to assist the child to make academic progress
• Differentiating learning within lessons to ensure that individual learning needs are met
• Being accountable for the progress and attainment of their classes, including where these students access support from SEND TAs or specialist staff.
• Working with SEND students on a daily basis and closely monitoring their progress.
• Developing constructive relationships with parents.

 

The Role of the Child

All young people should be involved in making, decisions where practicable, right from the start of their education. The ways in which young people are encouraged to participate should reflect the young person’s evolving maturity. Participation in education is a process that will necessitate all young people being given the opportunity to make choices and to understand that their views matter. Confident young people, who know that their opinions will be valued and can practise making choices, will become more secure and effective students during their school years.

Where appropriate, children are encouraged to help set and evaluate their own targets within review meetings.

 

The Role of the Parent/Carer

The school recognises that parents have a unique overview of their child’s needs and will have their own views on how best to support their child. This gives them a key role in partnership with the school in delivering an appropriate education. Parents will take on an active role and help co-produce new targets at their child’s review meetings.

 

Categories of Special Educational Need

The SEND Code of Practice 2014 does not assume that there are hard and fast categories of special educational need, but recognises that these young people’s needs and requirements fall into four broad areas. These are the areas referred to in the Code of Practice 2014

• Communication and interaction difficulties
• Cognition and learning difficulties
• Social, emotional and mental health difficulties
• Sensory and/or physical needs

Children are referred to the SENDCO by the class teacher, the pre-school advisor or the child’s parents. If a child is making little or no progress the school will take steps to remove barriers to learning through a graduated response. The class teacher will discuss these concerns with the parents. The SENDCO will arrange for an assessment of the child’s needs to take place.

Only a few pupils will require interventions which are additional to and different from the differentiated curriculum provided for all pupils. This forms part of the Graduated Response.

 The school follows the Derbyshire model of Provision Mapping for Intervention Programmes. The waves of Intervention are as follows:-

• Wave I – Inclusive quality first teaching for all.
• Wave II – additional interventions which offer short-term extra help to accelerate key points of learning. This is provided in small groups, targeted and time limited. Entry and exit data are integral to the interventions.
• Wave III – offers intensive targeted support when small group intervention fails to work. Pupils requiring this level of support will sometimes have Individual Education Programmes.

Review Meetings

A child that receives Wave 3 intervention will have regular review meetings. The SENDCO and class teacher, parents/carers and the child meet to decide on agreed outcomes, the next steps and a date for the next review. They meet at least three times a year.

Review meetings are person centred, placing the child at the centre of the review. Consideration will be given to the following key questions:

What is important to the child now?

What will be important to the child in the future?

What is working well?

What is not working?

What are the agreed outcomes/actions?

A one-page profile will be formed using the input from the review meetings. Provision and SMART targets will also be implemented to enable the child to meet the agreed outcomes.

 

Requests for Education, Health Care Assessment (EHC)

The school can request an EHC assessment if the child has not made progress with the above support in agreement with parents/carers.

The LA must determine whether an EHC plan is needed by reviewing information about the child’s progress over time. This information may include:

• Records of meetings and steps taken 
• Educational and other assessments by the school and / or other external agencies 
• Views of the parents and of the child
• Involvement of other professionals - reports / letters 

 

Allocation of resources

The base school budget covers teaching and curriculum expenses for ALL students.  

The school’s more targeted SEND budget covers the cost of additional support required by students identified as SEND pupils.

Targeted funding (known as GRIP funding- Graduated Response for Individual Pupil) can be obtained from the LA if a student is felt to be a ‘high needs’ student due to an underlying ‘learning need’ but is not subject to a Statement of Special Educational Needs (Statement) or an Education & Health Care Plan (EHC)

Targeted funding (known as TAPS funding – Temporary Additional Pupil Support) that can be obtained from the LA if a student is felt to be a ‘high needs’ student due to an underlying social, emotional or mental health need but is not subject to a Statement of Special Educational Needs(Statement) or an Education & Health Care Plan (EHC). Students eligible for this support have no underlying learning difficulties.

Targeted funding (known as ETAEYS funding- Enhanced Temporary Additional Early Needs Support) is available from the LA for Early Years children after their second birthday until they start Reception. It is available for those children that are experiencing specific barriers to learning.

Specific funds are allocated to high-needs students with Statements or EHCs (this sum covers the educational additional cost for these individual students above the Government’s notional figure) who will have life-long needs.

 

Links with other schools

Our school will ensure that all transfers between schools are planned, monitored and supported to ensure the successful outcomes for children. We will collaborate with all other support services and agencies involved with the child and with parents and where appropriate make joint planning arrangements.

 

Working with External Agencies

The school has arrangements for securing access to external support services for pupils with special educational needs. This may include liaison with other schools and other specialist provision.

 

Complaints

Any complaints regarding the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Policy or the provision made for children with special educational needs should be addressed in the first instance to the class teacher.

If parents need further advice, they are welcome to arrange a meeting with the Director of SEND. If they feel their child’s needs are still not being met they should make an appointment to see the Head of Academy.  

As an Academy, Barrow Hill Primary has a complaints' procedure which is detailed on the Cavendish Learning Trust's website . 

If, however, parents are still concerned they may contact the Special Educational Needs Governor and/or the Derbyshire Information, Advice and Support Service for SEND who may allocate an individual parent supporter or refer to the mediation service. The school will inform parents of these services.

 

Please click on the link below for further information regarding the Derbyshire Local Offer. 

Derbyshire Local Offer

 

SEND Policies at Barrow Hill 

Please see below for our SEND Policy and SEND Report.