SEND

SEND Information Report 2023-2024

All schools are required to publish details of their provision for children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND). They are also required, along with the local authority, to keep these under review. This is called the ‘Local Offer’. For further information about the Suffolk Local Offer, please click here.

The FAQs below are designed to help answer your questions about SEND

1) What kinds of SEND are catered for at Earl Soham School?

At Earl Soham School we aim to be fully inclusive and we follow the SEND Code of Practice (legal guidance). We cater for pupils with mild to moderate special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). 
The four areas of need are defined as:

• Cognition and Learning
• Communication and Interaction
• Physical and Sensory
• Social, emotional and mental health

We support children with a range of diagnosed conditions which may include amongst others:

• ADHD
• Autism
• Dyslexia
• Dyspraxia
• Speech and Language
• Global delay
• Visual impairment
• Hearing impairment

2) How will SEND be identified by the school?

A child has SEND if they have a learning difficulty or disability which calls for special educational provision to be made for him or her. A child of compulsory school age has a learning difficulty or disability if he or she:

• has a significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of others of the same age, or
• has a disability which prevents or hinders him or her from making use of facilities of a kind generally provided for others of the same age in mainstream schools

If it is noted that a child meets the criteria defined above, the school will arrange to meet with the child’s parents and place the child on the school’s SEND register.

In addition to the schools tracking data a variety of specific assessments may be used to provide a more detailed picture of the child’s needs:

• Young Spelling Test
• Salford Sentence Reading Test
• Gillham and Hesse Basic Number Screening Test
• BPVS

3) Who is responsible for overseeing SEND at Earl Soham School?

Mrs Lynn Orchard holds the responsibility of SENDco. 
email: ad.earlsoham.p@talk21.com 
Tel: 01728 685359

4) How can I let the school know I am concerned about my child’s progress in school?

If you have concerns about your child’s progress, you should initially speak to your child’s class teacher. This may result in a referral to the SENDco.

5) How will the school let me know if they have any concerns about my child’s learning?

If concerns are raised about your child’s learning, you will usually be contacted by your child’s class teacher in the first instance and asked to attend a meeting to discuss the concerns. The SENCo may also be present at the meeting.

Concerns may also be raised at parents' evenings. Progress is reported at each meeting and a written summary is provided.

At the end of each year you will receive a full report outlining your child’s progress and attainment in Reading, Writing, Maths and Science.

6) How will I, as a parent of a child with SEND, be involved in my child’s education?

There are many ways in which you will be involved in your child’s education.

• Joint target setting for the Support Plan
• Annual Review meetings
• Parent/Teacher meetings with class teacher
• SEND transfer meetings
• Email/Telephone conversations
• Reviewing the SEND Policy

7) How will my child be involved in their own education?

If your child is identified as having SEND, they will:

• be involved in setting their own targets
• be consulted about the support they receive
• be supported in creating a one-page profile
• be consulted on developing their Support Plan
• have regular meetings to review their progress
• receive regular mentoring
• be invited to Annual Review meetings

8) How will my child’s progress be monitored?

At Earl Soham, we monitor children’s progress using a variety of measures, including:

• Teacher assessments throughout lessons to check progress and to plan for the next steps
• End of unit assessments
• Half termly progress is recorded and tracked in each of the core subjects against National Curriculum objectives
• Pre- and post-intervention assessments carried out to determine effectiveness and progress
• Review of targets at the end of each term
• Pupil progress meetings held with class teachers and the head teacher each term
• Termly review of Support Plans (involving child and parent)
• Spelling, Reading and Vocabulary tests as necessary
• Annual Review meetings (involving child and parent)
• Formal assessments at end of the Key Stages

9) How will my child be supported when they are joining or leaving this school or moving to another class?

When children join Earl Soham School, we invite them and their parents to visit the school prior to their first day whenever possible. This will usually involve a meeting with the Head teacher where additional needs can be discussed. If timescales allow, we also encourage children to make another visit prior to joining the school.

In reception, there are usually two induction sessions in the summer term where pupils join us for a morning, including lunch. Teachers and other adults will be made aware of the needs of children with an identified SEND so that they can support their transition to the school.

Moving on to another school or class can be difficult for any child, but difficulties may be compounded for a child with SEND. To support transition from Earl Soham to other schools and between classes within the school, we offer the following support:

• Transition Annual Reviews
• Transfer Days
• Support from outside agencies to support pupil transition e.g. Behaviour Support Service; County Inclusive Resources; Looked After Children Educational Support Service
• Close links with local secondary schools
• Extra-curricular activities hosted by the secondary school
• Additional visits to secondary schools
• Visits to the school by the secondary school staff prior to transfer
• One page profiles
• Links between Key Stages within the school with liaison between class teachers

10) How is extra support allocated to children and how do they move between different levels of SEND?

Depending on their level of need, children will be allocated different levels of support. In most cases, a child’s needs will be addressed through quality first teaching and small group support by teaching assistants within the classroom. All teachers are teachers of SEND and will identify pupils with SEND in their planning and plan differentiated lessons to accommodate their needs. Staff receive regular inset training on different SEND support strategies.

In some cases, children may receive 1:1 support and specific interventions carried out by specialised staff to help resolve any learning gaps.

For more complex needs, some children may require an Education, Health and Care plan (EHC) needs assessment in order for the local authority to decide whether it is necessary for it to make provision in accordance with an EHC plan.

Children who currently have a statement of SEND are being transferred onto an EHC plan in a gradual process.

In considering whether an EHC needs assessment is necessary, the local authority should consider whether there is evidence that despite the school having taken relevant and purposeful action to identify, assess and meet the special educational needs of the child or young person, the child or young person has not made expected progress. To inform their decision the local authority will need to take into account a wide range of evidence, and should pay particular attention to:

• evidence of the child’s academic attainment (or developmental milestones in younger children) and rate of progress 
• information about the nature, extent and context of the child or young person’s SEND 
• evidence of the action already being taken by the school to meet the child or young person’s SEND 
• evidence that where progress has been made, it has only been as the result of much additional intervention and support over and above that which is usually provided 
• evidence of the child’s physical, emotional and social development and health needs, drawing on relevant evidence from clinicians and other health professionals and what has been done to meet these by other agencies

11) What is the school’s approach to teaching children with SEND?

The school will follow a number of procedures to support children with SEND. These include:

• Teaching assistants to support learning in each classroom
• Differentiated classroom teaching
• One to one support given when appropriate
• Regular meetings with parents to share success and concerns
• Pupil progress meetings each term to monitor the progress of all pupils
• SEN pupils identified on the school’s tracking system and their progress monitored each half term
• Specific interventions carried out by specialised staff to help reduce any learning gaps
• Lesson observations and learning walks by the SENDco to monitor the SEND provision within the school
• Reports by outside agencies shared with all staff who support the child
• Elklan trained staff
• Makaton trained staff

12) How will the teaching be adapted for SEND pupils? How will they be included in trips?

As well as differentiated planning and interventions programmes, teachers will also follow these practices:

• Other professionals consulted as soon as a difficulty has been identified and investigated within the school
• SENDco makes sure all staff are aware of the needs of those pupils with SEND so that information can inform their planning
• Class teachers made aware of the needs of the pupils in their class prior to transfer
• Subject leaders ensure appropriate resources for the teaching of their subject area
• Following advice in the reports from other professionals

Provision will be made for children with SEND to take part in school trips and residential courses. The accessibility of venues and the ability for all pupils to take part in trips is carefully considered during the planning stages. The class teacher or SENDco will make contact with the venue being visited and the child’s needs will be identified and passed on to the venue where appropriate. An additional adult may accompany the child on the visit, to ensure they have the necessary support.

For residential courses, the child and parents may be invited to visit the site prior to the visit to make the child familiar with procedures and to allay concerns.

13) How are the adults in school helped to work with children with SEND? What training do they have?

All teachers at Earl Soham school have responsibility for children with SEND in their class and are trained to support children with a wide range of needs. They will take advice from outside agencies to provide child-specific support for individual conditions. When necessary, SEND consultations are requested with the SEND Advisor to offer advice and support strategies.

The SENDco is a qualified teacher and attends network meetings to share good practice and find out about the latest developments within SEND. The SENDco refers to outside agencies for additional expertise when required.

Teaching Assistants receive regular training opportunities within school and also through courses. They are highly experienced and trained to support children with medical, physical, behavioural and learning needs.

14) How will the effectiveness of provision for children with SEND be evaluated?

Earl Soham uses the following practices to evaluate the effectiveness of provision for children with SEND:

• SEND information report reviewed annually with parents, staff and governors
• SEND policy reviewed annually with parents, staff and governors
• SEND pupils identified on the school’s tracking system and progress data analysed each half term
• Annual SEND report to governors which analyses SEND progress
• Pupil progress meetings each half term with class teachers to analyse the progress of pupils and identify next steps or training needs
• Use of data to compare school performance with that of the Cluster, locality and nationally
• Pupil perception interviews carried out to collect soft data on provision and progress
• Regular meetings with parents to discuss progress and provision
• Provision map created for analysing the cost effectiveness of all interventions and support strategies

15) How are children with SEND enabled to engage in activities with children in the school who do not have SEND?

In supporting children with SEND, we adhere to the guidance detailed in the Equality Act 2010. We have a number of lunch time and after school activities that all pupils are included in. Details of these are sent home each half term. Staff are trained in various aspects of SEND so that they understand the difficulties the child may face and can plan how best to support them in partaking in activities. We provide additional support so all pupils can be as fully involved as possible. Where appropriate, additional funding may be used to support families with the cost of trips and residential courses.

16) How will children with SEND be supported to improve their emotional and social development?

• Each child’s teacher is responsible for their wellbeing. Staff model treating everyone fairly and with respect to pupils.
• Children have supervised access to a variety of lunchtime and after school clubs.
• Relevant staff are trained to support medical needs.
• The school has a Behaviour policy, which includes guidance on expectations, rewards and sanctions is fully understood and implemented by all staff.
• Social Skills and self esteem programmes are provided when needed for small groups or individuals.
• Assemblies and Citizenship lessons are used to discuss the issues around bullying.
• Cyber-bullying is covered within the ICT curriculum for all year groups.
• The SENDco co-ordinates any specialist support that child and families may benefit from.
• The office manager and head teacher regularly monitor attendance, taking the necessary actions to prevent prolonged unauthorised absence.

17) How are other agencies involved in supporting children with SEND?

In many cases of SEND, outside agencies may be consulted or involved with a child in providing support. Support from local authority services is sought when required for training and advice. 
The following agencies provide support to the class teacher or SENDco:

• Support may be provided from specialist teachers/support staff for accessing the curriculum and extra work on SEND related needs.
• Speech and Language Therapy to train our staff; advise on strategies and programmes and referring pupils for assessment if it is believed they would benefit from additional support.
• County Inclusion Support Services (CISS) work within the school to support those pupils who have received a diagnosis of an Autistic Spectrum Disorder.
• Occupational therapists provide advice for pupils who need additional support with seating and hand positioning for writing.
• Training and advice may be sought from CISS (County Inclusion Support Service).
• CAF referrals are made when appropriate.

18) How can I make a complaint about provision made at Earl Soham School?

The first point of contact for complaints is always the person responsible – in most cases this will be the class teacher. Explain your concerns to them first. If you are not satisfied that your concern has been addressed, speak to the Head Teacher. If the problem is still not resolved then contact the Chair of Governors.

If you do not feel the issues have been resolved, and your child has SEND, then you can contact the Senior Special Needs Officer. Please contact the school for the details.

If your concern is with the local authority, contact the Senior Special Needs Officer for advice.

For further information, or to provide feedback on these questions, please contact the school and ask to speak to the SENDco. This information report will be reviewed annually in March.

How We Support Children with Special Educational Needs AND/OR DISABILITIES (SEND)

Our school aims to be as inclusive as possible, with the needs of pupils with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities being met wherever possible.

Our school follows the Code of Practice (legal guidance) for children who have SEND.

All classes in school are of mixed ability and teachers provide work that is specially designed to match the ability of each group. They do this using a variety of materials and classroom support.

If a child has SEND, parents will be informed that their child is being registered on the Special Educational Needs register. These children will have a Support Plan, which is reviewed with parents and children each term.

For a small proportion of children, the school may need to involve and use the advice of outside agencies e.g. Educational Psychologists. Parents will always be informed of this in advance so that they have the opportunity to ask questions and raise any concerns.

What is Special Educational Needs?

Children have special educational needs if they have a learning difficulty which calls for special educational provision to be made for them, which is additional to and different from the provision our well-differentiated curriculum offers all pupils in school (as defined by the SEND Code of Practice 2015).

Children have a learning difficulty if they:

(a) have a significantly greater difficulty learning than the majority of children of the same age: or

(b) 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 schools within the area of the local authority.

What is a Disability?

A disability is described in law (Equality Act 2010) as ‘a physical or mental impairment which has a long-term (a year or more) and substantial adverse effect on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.’ This includes, for example, sensory impairments such as those that affect sight and hearing, and long-term health conditions such as asthma, diabetes or epilepsy.

The Local Authority Local Offer

• Local Authorities and schools are required to publish and keep under review information about services they expect to be available for the children and young people with Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities aged 0-25. This is the ‘Local Offer’.
• The intention of the Local Offer is to improve choice and transparency for families. It is an important resource for parents in understanding the range of services and provision in the local area.

Click on the link at the top of this page to find details of Suffolk's Local Offer.