SEN Information Report 2022-2023
Welcome to our ‘School Offer’ information. On these pages you will find answers too many frequently asked questions (FAQ) s relating to what we offer children in our school who have a special educational need (SEN). This information has been put together by a wide range of people including the Head, Inclusion Manager, Governors, Teachers and Parents. It will be reviewed annually. If you do not find what you are looking for then please ask us.
- How does the school know if children/young people need extra help and what should I do if I think my child may have special educational needs?
At St Ippolyts School we work in partnership with families. If you have any concerns about your child’s progress or feel that they may have a special educational need, please contact your child’s teacher in the first instance. The class teacher, supported by the Inclusion Manager, will discuss your concerns with you and together we will plan a way forward.
We believe that all children with special educational needs should be identified and assessed as early as possible so that we can work together to provide the very best outcome for your child. We look at a range of information to assess whether a child may have special educational needs. This includes:
Views of the parents/ carers
Views of the pupils
Evidence received upon entry to the school, from feeder nurseries
Data from termly Assessment Weeks.
End of Key Stage results (SATs) and annual reports.
Continuous assessment of a child’s learning
Class teacher and other adults’ observations about how children learn and behave in different situations.
If a child needs additional support and different resources or teaching in order to make good progress, then the child may be recorded on the SEN Register. If this is recommended, then parents will be fully involved in this decision and what it might mean for their child, before this happens.
- How will school staff support my child?
At the centre of your child’s development is the learning they do in the classroom. We work hard to ensure that all teachers provide quality first teaching to both support and stretch children. Teachers follow a specific ‘inclusion checklist’ to ensure their classrooms have the right resources in and are used appropriately by the pupils. There are always a range of practical resources freely available to all children, and lessons are structured in a way that allows children to learn in a variety of different ways, building their learning powers. Support in class – as much as possible we aim to keep children in their classrooms and support them within the whole class in a variety of ways.
From time to time, some children may require additional support to help them access the curriculum and to make as much progress as they are able. We may then be able to offer a more personalised approach which may include providing more specialised resources or adaptations, or teaching in a small group or on an individual basis. Some children will require the support of specially planned interventions which might take place in the class or outside the class in a group or individually.
A few children require more specific provision and it may be appropriate to seek advice from external professionals in order to best support these children to make good progress in school.
There is a school governor for SEN – Mrs H MacInness, who is informed about SEN issues and who oversees the school’s work for children with SEN. They also ensure that the quality of SEN provision is regularly monitored.
- How will I know how my child is doing?
If we feel your child requires additional support (which is over and above the inclusive and adaptive classroom teaching and learning provision), then you as parents or carers will be informed of this.
Additional support and targeted intervention details will be written down in a Personal Support Plan (PSP). These will be reviewed and updated termly following Assessment week with new targets to reflect the updated learning needs of the child. The PSP will detail the type, duration and frequency of support and who is responsible for delivering the support. We ask parents to support these learning objectives at home as much as they are able to, as regular repetition and overlearning has been proven to be especially valuable to children with SEN.
All parents/ carers can discuss their child’s progress at parent consultation meetings in the Autumn and Spring term, and will receive a detailed written school report in the Summer term. In addition, for some children who have a PSP, parents can choose to arrange a formal appointment with the Inclusion Manager termly (this is usually the same date as the parent consultations). The Inclusion Manager is also available for informal conversations at the Open Sessions.
In addition, you are always welcome to come and have a chat, formal or informal at a mutually convenient time. We encourage you to ask for informal updates whenever you feel you need more information, and we particularly encourage you to share new information about your child if their needs change.
On some occasions it may be necessary to have daily contact with parents. In these situations it is effective to have a home/school book in place so that things that have happened at home or at school can be shared with both staff and parents.
All attainment and progress data is tracked closely and discussed during termly Pupil progress meetings which are attended by the Class Teacher and Inclusion Manager and either the Head Teacher or relevant Assistant Head Teacher for the Key Stage.
The effectiveness of the school’s provision for children with SEND is evaluated, reported to governors and monitored by OFSTED.
- How will the learning and development provision be matched to my child’s needs?
A cyclical approach, of assessing, planning, implementing and reviewing is integral to the process of meeting the needs of children with SEN (This is sometimes called the ‘graduated response’).
Each intervention is carefully weighed up to ensure it is the most effective for each individual child with their own particular needs before it is implemented. Children are involved in the process and their interests, likes and feedback will be used to tailor interventions to maximise impact.
A detailed assessment which draws on the teacher’s assessment and experience of the child, their previous progress and attainment, their development in comparison to their peers, the views and experiences of parents and the pupils’ own views takes place. This ensures that any barriers to learning are identified and effective provision suited to a child’s specific needs is implemented.
- What support will there be for my child’s overall wellbeing?
St Ippolyts CE Primary School is fully inclusive and we take a caring and supportive attitude towards all pupils regardless of ability, background, ethnicity or other individual circumstances. Your child’s wellbeing is of utmost importance and we pride ourselves on the inclusive environment in our school.
The school has clear policies and guidelines around such things as attendance, medical needs, personal care, equality and anti-bullying. You are welcome to read or discuss any of these further as and when the need arises.
Day to day, all children’s emotional health is well supported through our caring Christian ethos, PSHE sessions in class, regular initiatives such as Wellbeing Week and Building Learning Powers. The school has a consistent behaviour policy and code of conduct. Displaying a good learning attitude is rewarded in our weekly Friday Fellowship for effort, achievement and values, alongside other relevant extra-curricular or outside school achievements such as: sporting events, music grades, reading challenges.
This school has been successfully working with the Building Learning Powers framework for a number of years. This is a well-respected framework to help children to understand how best to learn, and to become more skilled as learners. It links around the 4 Rs – Resilience, Resourcefulness, Reflectiveness and Relationships (reciprocity). We believe that this will help produce better learners, but will also support your child’s emotional health and development. Please refer to the resources on the website so support your child at home.
Resources called ‘Zones of Regulation’ are used extensively in school. These are a series of tools which help children to reflect and improve their ability to articulate their own emotional energy, and include strategies for aiding children in regulating their emotions when needed.
The school has access to further services provided via the ‘Hitchin Partnership’ such as family support workers, who help support families in our community. Do talk to the Inclusion Manager if you think they can help your family. More information about this service can be found here: http://www.hitchinpartnership.org.
Year 6 pupils periodically access workshops from PHASE. A wide range of resources are available online for parents, https://phase-hitchin.org
- What specialist services and expertise are available at or accessed by the school?
All teaching and support staff receive training on a variety of needs including: mental health, Autism, Specific Learning Difficulties e.g. dyslexia, dyscalculia, literacy ,maths and reading interventions, visual impairment ,gross and fine motor skills difficulties e.g. dyspraxia.
The school has access to Educational Psychologist consultations, a Speech Therapist, and school nurse to whom they can directly refer to. We are able to support parents with information for GPs who can refer to different health services such as Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS), Occupational Therapy (OT), Physiotherapy, Child Development Centre (CDC) or Communication Disorder Assessment Clinic (CDAC), The school may also access outreach services such as behaviour Support (HPBSS), Moderate learning difficulties (Woolgrove), Specific learning difficulties (ISL) Communication and Autism Team (ISL) and Autism Support for Families (PALMS).
- What training have the staff, supporting children and young people with SEND, had or are having?
Staff have been trained in Autism, dyslexia, visual impairment, dyscalculia, literacy and maths interventions, reading intervention, STEPS positive behaviour management strategies, gross and fine motor skills difficulties e.g. dyspraxia. The Inclusion Manager is currently undertaking the National SEN Coordination Award.
A Training Needs Analysis is completed for all staff by the Inclusion Manager and Senior Leadership Team and training is planned based on the specific needs identified on both an individual and school wide basis. We ensure that staff have an up to date working knowledge of SEND issues and current legislation. This may be identified at Pupil Progress Meetings or may be directly linked to a new or existing interventions.
- How will you help me to support my child’s learning?
Parent Consultations are held in the autumn and spring terms to keep parents fully informed of their child’s progress and an annual report is written for each child in the summer. Parents are involved in reviews of the Personal Support Plans (PSPs) and their views are sought at each opportunity to help support their child’s learning.
Our school believes that home learning is part of the partnership between school and families in our continuing endeavour to promote children’s learning. We aim to provide parents with opportunities to find out more about helping children at home. Policies can be found on our website. Information evenings take place at the school (eg: Class One Curriculum Information Evening and SATs Evening, for KS2 and informal drop in for KS1). Maths calculations strategies are provided and available to download from the school website.
Home Learning is facilitated primarily through Google Classroom alongside Bug Club, Times Tables Rockstars and for some children, Nessy. Y6 also use SAM Learning.
Frequent daily bursts of reading and spelling practice is shown to have a positive impact on your child’s progress. Please ask your child’s class teacher if you would like more information about reading or spelling strategies to use with your child. There are resources on our website about how to support your child, including the maths calculation policy, and recommended reading books by year group.
Curriculum overviews are available on the school website at the beginning of each term so that you will know which topics will be covered. Parents are welcomed in to meet their child’s new teacher informally during Open Sessions and are invited to a class/year group assembly each year. We post relevant curriculum information on our website, and we use the weekly newsletters to cascade useful ideas eg. Recommended web links, parents training courses. The Family Support Worker has access to a wide range of support from local agencies and services and is able to signpost parents effectively. Support has ranged from behaviour support to helping your child to sleep.
- How will I be involved in discussions about and planning for my child’s education?
There are formal occasions during the school year such as Parent Consultations where parents are involved in discussions about their child’s education. However we have an ‘open door’ policy where parents are able to speak to their class teacher by email or phone to pass on quick messages or pieces of information.
Working parents are able to telephone to arrange for a teacher to call them back or email if there is a particular issue they wish to discuss. Parents are represented on the school governing body and there is also a very active PTA in school.
- How will my child be included in activities outside the classroom including school trips?
For all school trips a risk assessment is undertaken to ensure that each child is kept safe from harm. All children with SEND are included on all school trips (including residential trips), and, when appropriate, reasonable adjustments are deployed. Parents are consulted to ensure the full participation and active engagement of all children. Where the outings are run by outside agencies they are made aware of each child’s needs so that they are able to meet them in a sensitive and appropriate manner.
We appreciate that changes to routine may be difficult for some children with SEND, so, where appropriate, we will also prepare the child for the trip by explaining what will happen, how they will be helped and remind them how to ask for help on the day.
- How accessible is the school environment?
The school is fully compliant with the Equality Act and reasonable adjustments are made for all children with SEND where necessary. The building is wheelchair accessible and has disabled changing and toilet facilities. Specialised equipment is provided where appropriate for children with SEND needs and advice is sought from the appropriate medical/health professionals where appropriate.
The school can access an interpreter and arrange for school documents to be translated if necessary.
All classrooms are reviewed regularly to ensure that they are as inclusive as possible to all children – this might include things like easily accessible equipment to support learning, and useful information available on displays/working walls for children to access.
- Who can I contact for further information?
The school has a non – class based part time Inclusion Manager, Mrs G Stewart, who can be contacted by telephone (via the school office number) or email (senco@stipps.herts.sch.uk) and is available to meet with parents if you have any concerns about your child. You may feel it is more appropriate to speak to your child’s teacher in the first instance who will then, with your consent, pass information on to the Inclusion Manager who will then contact you to discuss concerns further or arrange a meeting if necessary. Please do communicate with us. We feel that an open, honest conversation is the best way to resolve any problem you may have. Other points of contact may include Key Stage Leaders, Assistant Head, or the Headteacher, all contactable via the school office:
EYFS/Key Stage 1 Lead: Miss K Ingle
Key Stage 2 Lead: Miss L Walker
Assistant Head: Mrs G Stewart
Headteacher: Mrs R Peddie
If you wish to make a complaint the school has a complaints procedure which is available from the school office or on the website.
- How will the school prepare and support my child to join the school, transfer to a new school or the next stage of education and life?
There is a detailed transition programme in place for children new to the school, moving to new classes or leaving the school. The level of support offered is dependent on each child’s needs, age and development. In the Foundation Stage there are visits to the child’s current setting, meetings with their current teacher and a visit to our school for a morning. In KS1 and KS2 the children have a move up day in July where they meet their new teacher and see their new classroom.
The Year 6 children also have a move up day and transitional workshops. Some secondary schools offer additional support for transition with children with SEN such as additional visits, summer school and activities planned to minimise any anxieties the child may have. The Inclusion Manager will liaise with all Secondary Schools to ensure relevant information is passed on.
Other support during transition offered may include a pupil passport to take to the next teacher, photographs of the staff and classroom to take home with them and additional opportunities to visit their new classroom.
- How are the school’s resources allocated and matched to children’s special educational needs?
The school has an amount identified within its overall budget called the notional SEN budget which is used for resources to support the progress of children with SEN. This is predominantly used to employ some teaching assistants to meet the needs of children with SEN. A smaller percentage is used to buy specialist equipment, books or stationery or to provide specialised training for staff. The allocation of the school budget is prioritised according to need.
Where a child requires provision which exceeds the nationally prescribed threshold additional top-up finding can be applied for through the local authority. (Top Up High Needs Funding). Parents will always be consulted if the school is to try and apply for additional funding for their child.
- How is the decision made about how much support my child will receive?
The amount and type of support offered to a child is determined by a detailed analysis of a child’s needs, barriers to learning, stage of development, parental views, their own views and consultation with their class teacher.
This support is reviewed regularly via the Personal Support Plan process with amendments being made to the programme of support. Targets are set and progress towards targets is reported back to parents at regular intervals. Interventions typically last between 6 and 12 weeks, with the emphasis being on early identification and targeted effective support to minimise any long term need for additional support.
- How can I find information on the local authority’s Local Offer of services and provision for children and young people with special educational needs and disability?
The authority’s local offer of services and provision for children and young people with SEN can be accessed at www.hertsdirect.org/localoffer
If you have any questions or concerns about your child’s particular needs, please speak to your child’s class teacher or the Inclusion Manager.
Last Updated: October 2022
Next review date: October 2023
