Policy: SEND and Inclusion

Policy details

• Date approved - September 2024 N Lowry (Regional Director)
• Next review date - July 2025
• Policy Owner: Amy Clarke

Rationale

Co-op Academy Belle Vue recognises that students have individual educational needs that should be recognised. The academy seeks to remove barriers to learning, raise attainment, and to increase curricular access for all.

All pupils with special educational needs and a disability (SEND) are valued and respected as equal members of Belle Vue. As such, provision for students with SEND is a matter for the academy as a whole. Every teacher is a teacher of every student including those with SEND. Our quality first teaching is driven by Doug Lemov’s ‘Teach Like a Champion’ techniques, which was created with SEND learners in mind. We recognise that some SEND learners may require additional support through scaffolding to compliment this outstanding teaching.

Responsibility for SEND

The Special Needs Co-ordinator is Amy Clarke.

The Special Needs Co-ordinator (SENCO), is responsible for

• the strategic direction of SEND provision to ensure all SEND students receive their full educational entitlement and have access to the whole curriculum.
• the overall monitoring of the delivery of SEND provision to ensure its quality and impact.
• Coordinating the team of Learning Coaches who support SEND students;
• Supporting whole school professional development
• Management of the SEND budget.
• Liaising with parents of pupils with SEN
• Liaising with other schools, educational psychologists, health and social care professionals, and independent or voluntary bodies
• Being a key point of contact with external agencies, especially the local authority and its support services
• Liaising with potential next providers of education to ensure a pupil and their parents are informed about options and a smooth transition is planned
• Working with the headteacher and school governors to ensure that the school meets its responsibilities under the Equality Act (2010) with regard to reasonable adjustments and access arrangements
• Ensuring that the school keeps the records of all pupils with SEN up to date

Definition of SEND

A student has special educational needs if they have a learning difficulty that calls for special educational provision to be made for them.

A student has a learning difficulty if they:

• have significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of students  of the same age; or
• have a disability that prevents or hinders them from making use of the  educational facilities of a kind generally provided for children of the same age  in the academy

Disability

A person is disabled if they have a physical or mental difficulty that has a substantial or long term effect on their ability to carry out ordinary day-to-day activities (Equality and Disability Act 2001)

When appropriate, the SENCO completes a risk assessment and evacuation plan in collaboration with the student, parent/carer, and other relevant professionals to ensure a student with physical needs can access all areas of the academy and evacuate safely.

Broad areas of SEND

Students at the academy may have SEND as a result of one or more of the following  needs:

• Speech, Language, Communication and Interaction
• Cognition and learning
• Social, emotional and mental health
• Sensory and or physical

Behaviour difficulties do not necessarily mean that a student has special educational needs. However, where consistent disruptive or withdrawn behaviour, or a noticeable change in behaviour is observed, this could be an indication of unmet SEN and assessments will be carried out to determine whether there are any causal factors. If it is thought that these may be due to housing or family circumstances then an Early  Help Assessment may be deemed appropriate.

English as an Additional language and SEN

Where there is cause for concern over the progress of a student with EAL, there is careful consideration by subject teachers and specialist EAL staff to determine whether the lack of progress is due to limitations in the student’s command of  English or if it arises from a special educational need or both. An assessment in the student’s first language may be requested.

Aims of the SEND Policy

The aim of the SEND policy is to help create an inclusive and caring community  providing opportunities for all its students, including those with SEN, to:

• Develop the academy values of responsibility, ambition and respect
• Follow a broad, balanced relevant curriculum with quality first teaching and scaffolding to take into account the needs of students with SEN
• Demonstrate their full potential, recognising their strengths and weaknesses
• Fully participate in all academy activities including Enrichment.
• Meet their physical, emotional, and intellectual needs
• Offer equal opportunities
• Become independent learners
• Be involved in decision making

Objectives of the Academy’s Provision for Students with SEND

• To identify and provide for students who have a special educational need or  disability
• To work within the guidance in the revised Code of Practice
• To provide support and advice for all staff working with SEND students
• To develop and maintain partnership and engagement with parents ∙ to put students at the centre of decision making

Identification of SEN

A student is identified as having a special educational need only if, despite quality first teaching and scaffolding for individual students, the student still does not make adequate progress and so needs support or resources different from or additional to that provided by the subject teachers. Some students may require some short-term ‘catch-up’ in literacy or numeracy which puts them back on track with their peers and in this case, these students would not be recorded as having SEN.

Teaching staff are asked to identify any students they consider to have educational needs to the SENCO through an internal referral form. This is true of any concern raised by parents or families. The SENCO will then investigate these concerns and identify support, provision or services that may be required.

All students identified as having a special educational need or disability are recorded on the SEND register.

Co-Production

Co-op Academy Belle Vue is committed in its quest to ensure that all SEND provision is co-produced with students, parents/carers and other professionals. It is our belief that quality and effective provision is only produced through collaboration and agreement with all stakeholders.

The Graduated Approach

The academy uses a graduated approach to address the needs of its SEN students  which takes the form of a four-part cycle ‘assess – plan - do – review’

Assess

Students are assessed on entry to the academy using GL baseline assessments in English and Maths and a Sparx Maths baseline assessment. A variety of assessments are used to screen all students and further assessments may be used if deemed necessary. The academy also takes account of transfer information from primary schools and parental/carer comments.

To assess why a student is not making adequate progress during the academic year, and to identify the barriers to learning, the following are taken into consideration: teacher assessments;  attainment data; attendance; student and parent views; advice and assessments from external support services if necessary such as the Educational Psychologist.

Plan

Evidence-based intervention is planned for the student after consultation with parents, a member of the SEND Team (SENCO and/or an Assistant SENCO), and the student. This evidence may come from internal assessments or from specialist external assessments commissioned by the SENDO in order to try to identify unmet needs.

The teacher remains responsible and accountable for the student’s progress. Parents are informed if their child is to receive any additional support for their SEND needs.

Do

Provisions and interventions are carefully timetabled to ensure that students still access a broad and balanced curriculum. This may mean that interventions are scheduled within Enrichment, Community Ambition or alongside a curriculum area that the intervention will eventually support.

Review

Provisions will be reviewed at least termly for impact. Parents will be informed of any changes to the interventions as a result of any reviews. Teaching staff may form part of this review process however that decision will be made on a case-by-case basis.

Pupil Passports - Student Support

The SENCO or Assistant SENCOs will write passports for students with an additional need. These state the student’s strengths, triggers, targets and specific strategies to support students as per our Teach Like a Belle Vue Champion techniques. They are informed through a conversation with the student, staff observations, and any external agencies involved with the student. The SEN team ensures these techniques are being utilised and followed via regular drop-ins to lessons. This information about the student is shared with the student’s teachers and at review meetings with parents/carers. The passports are reviewed three times a year.

The purpose of any document produced by the SENCO is to reduce barriers to learning by providing strategies to be used by teaching staff to allow the learner to access Quality First Teaching. Adaptations will be bespoke to the learner and may include recommendations from external professionals such as Educational Psychology and/or Speech and Language.

EHCP Plans

For a student with an Education Health Care Plan, the SENCO together with the student and parent/carer will agree on the strategies and expected outcomes through an Annual Review with the Local Authority. The student’s wishes and feelings will be central to this process.

Teachers and academy staff will monitor the student’s progress toward meeting the agreed outcomes.  

Access to the curriculum

All students have an entitlement to a broad, balanced and relevant curriculum. All  students with SEND are taught with their peers in mainstream classes by subject teachers and study the appropriate curriculum, from Key Stage 3 through to GCSE.

Staff strive to ensure equal access to all extracurricular activities and Enrichment for all students, including making reasonable adjustments for those with physical disabilities.

Access Arrangements for Examinations

Teachers notify the SENCO or Assistant SENCOs if they think a student may be entitled to special access  arrangements in lessons and exams e.g. a student with reading difficulties may qualify to have a reader, with poor handwriting – a scribe or use of a laptop. Other  access arrangements include having extra time, supervised rest breaks and a prompter.

The SENCO and Assistant SENCO is responsible for assessing whether the Access Arrangement is applicable and then making the applications. All staff must ensure these arrangements become the student’s normal way of working in lessons

Accessibility around the academy

The Co-operative Academy Belle Vue is an accessible multi-level building which has one lift. No part of the building is inaccessible. Our SSF system ensures that transitions at Belle Vue are inclusive for all students, including those with a physical disability or sensory needs. They ensure all students feel safe and regulated as they transition between lessons.

The business hours of the Academy are Monday – Friday 07-30 to 17-00 in term time.

The holiday opening times of the Academy are Monday – Friday 08-00 to 15-00. The academy grounds are enclosed within a perimeter fence, and all access to the site is controlled by a secure electronic access system that is only accessible with an access code or with the reception desk's permission.

There is access to emergency service vehicles at the front of the building and a  member of staff will always meet any requested emergency service at this point.  

In case of emergency, we have a practised evacuation procedure that enables all its occupants to leave the building and make their way to a designated assembly area away from the academy buildings, so that checks can be made to account for everyone on site. At the Co-operative Academy, all staff are responsible for directing all occupants out of the building and checking that the area that they hold responsibility for is clear in the case of an emergency.

We have fire drills on a regular basis and test the fire alarm weekly.

There are clear evacuation instructions available for all to read which is also easily visually understood on all floors throughout both buildings for anyone with any reading difficulty, all fire exits are clearly marked on these instructions and the evacuation routes are clearly marked. We have EVAC chairs on each floor and staff are fully trained meaning that all students can evacuate safely.

All doors throughout the Academy are wheelchair accessible and a disabled toilet is available. We also have a hoist and changing table.

Admissions Arrangements

The member of staff leading on the admission will liaise with the SENCO if relevant information is shared regarding the SEND needs of a learner.

Transition arrangements

The SENCO and Assistant SENCOs will endeavour to meet any student identified as having SEN during Y6 to ensure a smooth transition process. The students with SEND and their parents/carers are invited in to get to know the Academy prior to starting Y7. Where possible, SEND team staff make additional visits to primary schools with high need SEND students and attend Pre-Transfer Annual Review Meetings of the Year 6  students with EHCP Plans.

The SENCO sends information to colleges regarding the SEND students, as requested.

CPD

Our regular, whole school CPD offer has been created using Doug Lemov’s ‘Teach Like a Champion’, this was created with SEN in mind. This ensures teaching is to a high standard for all learners. Additional need specific training is shared with staff throughout the year in person from the SENCO or external agencies, and asynchronously online.

Liaison with External Agencies

Referrals are made to the School Nurse, CAMHS, Educational Psychology Service,  Specific Learning Difficulties consultant, Speech and Language Therapist etc when further assessments are required. To trigger support for families a referral for an Early Help Assessment is made if appropriate.

Monitoring, Evaluation, and Review

The Governing Body will review this policy annually and assess its implementation and effectiveness. The policy will be promoted and implemented throughout the Academy.