SEND Inclusion Award
At Parkside Primary Academy we recognise the importance of providing an inclusive environment in order to support your child’s needs to enable them to make progress. In order to continue to do so we are currently working towards The SEND Inclusion Award which will enable us to gain accreditation for high-quality provision and outcomes for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). The award will help us to develop high-quality SEND provision by promoting awareness of SEND issues and inclusion for all staff, parents, pupils and governors. We will be evaluating classroom practice and interventions in order to further improve the support we can offer for you and your child. In order to do this, we are required to reflect on and improve provision in line with a series of objectives that fulfil both Ofsted criteria and the SEND Code of Practice. Specifically, the award focuses on ‘outcomes’ for pupils and how schools can demonstrate the impact of their SEND provision. The award leads schools through a process of self-evaluation, action planning and evidence collection before final verification and accreditation, which typically takes 12- 15 months.
Could you please fill in the attached form as we begin this journey. You will be kept fully informed throughout and there will be opportunities to discuss how we are working towards the award as we progress throughout the year.
If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact Miss Haverty.
SEND vision statement
A child or young person has SEND if they have a learning difficulty or disability which calls for special educational provision to be made for him or her (Code of Practice, 2015). We aim to ensure that the special educational provision which is made for children removes barriers to learning to enable them to reach their full potential. With the correct tools and support children with additional needs can achieve great things. Many leaders in the world of science and business have additional needs which do not act as a hindrance but rather act as an asset to achieve huge success. By channelling children’s interests, providing them with the physical tools to access learning and strategies to support emotional needs children with special educational needs can reach their full potential. It is our responsibility to find what works for each individual child as, ‘The shoe that fits one person, pinches another; there is no recipe for living that suits all cases’ (Carl Jung). We believe differences should be celebrated and nurtured to allow children to achieve all they are capable of.
Welcome to our special educational needs and disability (SEND) information pages. We hope you will enjoy reading about the variety of ways in which we are able to support your child to reach his/her full potential in order to ensure a successful transition into adult life.
Parkside Primary Academy is an inclusive school. We value the contribution that every child and young person makes and welcome the diversity of culture, religion and intellectual style. The school uses its best endeavours to raise the achievement, remove barriers to learning and increase physical and curricular access for all. We are committed to narrowing the gap between children with SEND and their non-SEND peers. All children and young people with SEND are valued, respected and equal members of the school.
Provision for children with SEND is a matter for the school as a whole. The staff work together as a team to ensure that provision for all children is of the highest standard and continually strive to develop and improve practice.
Our Special Education Needs Coordinator is Miss Haverty
Our Special Education Needs Governor is Mrs England
The School works with due regard to the SEN Code of Practice (2014) and the Equality Act (2010).
Barnsley council Local Offer can be found by clicking on the link below
Please read the questions below for more information about the school offer from Parkside Primary Academy.
'A child or young person has SEN if they have a learning difficulty or disability which calls for special educational provision to be made for them. A child of compulsory school age or a young person has a learning difficulty or disability if they:
(a) have a significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of others 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 others of the same age in mainstream schools or mainstream post -16 institutions.
A child under compulsory school age has special educational needs if they fall within the definition at (a) or (b) above or would do so if special educational provision was not made for them (Clause 20 Children and Families Act)' (Draft SEN Code of Practice 2013, 1.8)
The Equality Act 2010 states that a person has a disability if they have a physical or mental impairment and the impairment has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.
A physical or mental impairment includes: learning difficulties including specific learning difficulties; medical conditions including epilepsy, diabetes, more severe forms of asthma and eczema; autism; speech, language and communication impairments.
If the impairment has a substantial and long-term effect on a person's ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities it may amount to a disability.
The school is built on a split level site but is accessible to wheel chair users through designated access routes. Recent building work has improved access to the main reception and provided a modern accessible toilet.
There are secure and refrigerated facilities to store prescribed medication.
Provision in school is accessible to all children including those with SEND.
Breakfast club and after school clubs welcome children with SEND.
There are laundry facilities.
Parkside is a mainstream school. We cater for children with a wide range of special educational needs including Communication and Interaction, Cognition and Learning, Sensory and Physical, and Behaviour, Emotional and Social difficulties.
The School has a robust policy for special educational needs. The policy is implemented by all members of staff and its effectiveness is monitored and evaluated by the Governing Body on an annual basis.
The progress of children with SEND is discussed at pupil progress meetings and support targeted as necessary.
If you have any concerns about your child these should initially be raised with your child's class teacher who will be able to arrange a time to meet with you to review your child's attainment and progress and discuss your concerns. Your child's teacher may invite the SENCO to attend the meeting. As a result of discussion at the meeting some strategies or interventions may be put in place to try to remove barriers to your child's learning. These will be explained to you and it may be that you will be asked to support your child's learning by carrying out some simple tasks at home to provide opportunities for them to practice skills they have been taught in school.
If you feel that your child's class teacher has not been able to resolve your concerns or you would just like more information about the provision made for your child please contact school to speak to the SENCO (Miss Haverty) or the Principal (Ms Ward).
The progress of all children is assessed each term and reviewed at pupil progress meetings. Progress of children in the Foundation Stage is tracked through the Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum and children from Years 1 to Year 6 are assessed against the National Curriculum. Assessment takes many forms and may include observations, assessment of specific individual pieces of work or on-going assessments of class work. In some instances additional assessments may be appropriate for children with SEND to provide specific information to determine strengths and areas for development. These include WELLCOMM to assess early language skills and the Salford reading test. The SENCO or your child's class teacher will be happy to discuss these with you.
If your child has a Statement of Educational Need or an Education, Health and Care Plan(EHCP) you will be invited to attend an annual review meeting. These give staff from all the agencies working with your child the opportunity to meet with you (the parent/carer) to review your child's progress, attainment and changing needs.
The school sets aspiration targets for all children including those with special educational needs. Parents are invited to be part of this process through attendance at review meetings and their contribution to setting new targets is welcomed.
The progress of all children is regularly monitored and reviewed by staff and shared with parents at parent's evenings. Occasionally the attainment and progress or behaviour of a child raises additional concerns and in these circumstances parents are contacted in person or by telephone and invited to meet with the class teacher and SENCO. Parents are given opportunities to express their views and included in planning any additional support their child is to receive. This may, with parental consent, include a referral to another agency.
Parents receive a written report once a year.
Parkside staff work closely with a number of other agencies who provide support and advice for children with SEND. These include:
Parents are always consulted before any referrals are made to other agencies and they are kept fully informed of the advice and support received. Parents are given copies of reports received and have opportunities to discuss them with the relevant professionals.
School tries to facilitate opportunities for parents to meet the therapists supporting their children and discuss their concerns with them.
Many children with SEND have a CAF (Common Assessment Framework) and regular TAC (Team Around the Child) meetings are organised regularly to allow staff from all the agencies to get together with parents/carers to discuss concerns and plan support for the child. These meeting usually take place in school or the family home.
In accordance with the SEN Code of Practice, school uses a graduated approach when meeting the needs of children with SEN. For many children, simple changes to the way that the curriculum is delivered can have a significant impact on removing the barriers to their learning and with these changes in place they are soon able to catch up with their peers and make expected levels of progress. For some children this may not be enough to help them make adequate progress and they may need something which is 'additional to and different from' that which is normally provided for all children. If your child requires this type of support school staff will monitor them according to the SEN Code of Practice. You will be invited to meet with your child's class teacher and/or the school SENCO regularly to keep you informed of the additional support that your child is receiving and the progress they are making.
For some children the additional support available within school is not enough and school, with your agreement, will make a decision to increase the level of support and involve some external professionals or agencies to provide them with more specialist advice and guidance. This external support might be from an Educational Psychologist; Speech and Language Therapist; Occupational / Physiotherapist; Specialist Advisory Teacher; or a medical professional. If your child's needs are wide ranging or more complex, then it may involve several of these people who will need to work in a coordinated way.
The school adheres to the principle that 'Quality First Teaching' is essential and that all children and young people have an entitlement to a broad, balanced, challenging and relevant curriculum that takes of account of diverse learning needs. Barriers to learning through SEND are addressed by differentiation through support, task and outcome in order to make the curriculum accessible to all children.
The school maximises the amount of time that children with SEND spend in class taught with their peers as part of Quality First Teaching. Class teachers and teaching assistants work in partnership to promote and support the learning of all children through individual learning targets and differentiation.
Withdrawal from class for small group work is kept to a minimum. Intervention work in small groups is accessed through assessment of individual barriers to learning and against clear entry and exit criteria. These interventions are time limited and clearly targeted at improving access to the learning and Quality First Teaching.
Interventions for individual children with specific needs are structured programs delivered with the advice and support of external services, targeted at particular barriers to learning and are time limited. Examples include Speech Therapy programs. Interventions are clearly targeted at improving access to the learning and Quality First Teaching.
In addition to the statutory curriculum the school provides a wide range of additional activities. These include musical tuition (African drums and brass instruments) from Local Authority peripatetic teachers and after school clubs. Children with SEN are actively encouraged and supported to join in and benefit from these activities.
Children who have a Statement of Special Educational Need or an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) will have access to the support, interventions and strategies identified on their Statement or EHCP
The majority of children with SEND are supported by funding from the school budget. The head teacher, in consultation with the SENCO, class teacher and other relevant professionals, allocates resources according to the needs of individual children identified at progress and review meetings and takes account of staffing, training, equipment and support from outside agencies.
In a few cases the special education provision required by a child may exceed that which can reasonably be provided by resources available to a mainstream school. In these cases the Local Authority is approached to carry out an assessment of the child's education, health and care needs.
All staff regularly engage in training to improve teaching and learning for all children, including those with SEND. Individual teachers and associate staff attend training run by outside agencies that are relevant to the specific needs of children in their class. Staff work together to share their expertise and ensure that all children's needs are met.
Staff from other agencies regularly visit school to provide support and training for specific needs.
The SENCO provides planning, assessment and review support for class teachers.
The SENCO regularly attends SENCO meetings organised by the Local Authority.
We recognise the fact that the best outcomes for children occur when school and parents work together and welcome parental involvement. Parents are encouraged to contact school at any time to seek advice or share concerns. It may not always be possible to speak to a class teacher or the SENCO at the beginning of the day but arrangements can be made to meet as soon as possible. We strive to build close working relationships with parents.
As a parent you will be invited to meet with classroom staff regularly to review your child's progress and plan for the future. The SENCO may be present at these meetings.
A home/school contact book may be used to support communication between home and school.
In addition to the teaching staff school have a Parent Support Adviser (PSA) who is available to offer practical support on a wide range of issues. She regularly runs parenting courses and liaises with other agencies.
Our Family and Safeguarding Manager (Mrs Kilgariff) can be contacted through the school office
We recognise that transitions can be difficult for children with SEND and make additional arrangements to alleviate this. Parental views and concerns are considered as part of the transition process and parents are kept fully informed at all times. Each child is unique and the support they receive reflects their individual needs.
Starting school
Most children are admitted to Parkside Primary in the Foundation Stage. All our youngest children are offered home visits and a series of school visits with their parents prior to admission. Children with additional needs are offered extra visits to meet their individual needs and ensure that they have a successful start to their education.
Prior to admission children transferring from other primary schools are invited to visit their new class and parents are given opportunities to meet staff and discuss their child's needs. Information from your child's previous school will be used to ensure provision is in place to meet their needs.
Moving to a new class
If your child is moving to a new class his/her class teacher will arrange a meeting with the new class teacher a few weeks before to pass on information, plan for transition and agree IEP targets for the beginning of the new school year. The transition planned for a child may include a series of short visits to help them become familiar with their new classroom and staff and an information book to take home and look at with parents. As a parent you will be offered the opportunity to meet with your child's new class teacher and visit their new classroom.
Moving to a new school
If your child is moving to a new school, the school will be contacted to invite staff to attend any meetings organised for your child prior to the transition. All information and records are passed on as soon as possible. Whenever possible visits to the new school are arranged and supported if necessary by one of our Teaching Assistants or Learning Mentor. In many cases staff from the new school will visit your child while they are still at Parkside Primary.
Children transferring to secondary education usually have individual transition arrangements made for them. Transition is supported by our Learning Mentor who works closely with the Year 6 teacher, SENCO and the secondary SENCO to ensure the arrangements provide the best possible start to secondary education. Parents are consulted and kept informed of all details.