Pangbourne Primary School

Every school is required to identify and address the SEND of the pupils that they support.

Pangbourne Primary School

will: 

• use their best endeavours to make sure that a child with SEND gets the support they need – this means doing everything they can to meet children and young people’s SEND

• ensure that children and young people with SEND engage in the activities of the school alongside pupils who do not have SEND   

          • inform parents when they are making special educational provision for a child

We have a designated SENCo who supports class teachers and parents to ensure that we provide the best possible support to ensure that children with SEND have the provision they need. If your child is then identified as not making expected progress, the school will set up a meeting to discuss this with you in more detail and to:

•  listen to any concerns you may have too
•  plan any additional support your child may receive
•  discuss with you any referrals to outside professionals to support your child’s learning

• If you have concerns about your child you should speak to your child’s class teacher initially.
• If you would like further information regarding your child’s progress or support regarding their SEND, or if you feel that your child requires a more in-depth assessment of their SEND, you should speak to the SENCo.
• If you continue to have concerns about your child, you can speak to the Headteacher.

The SENCo who is responsible for:

• Coordinating all the support for children with special educational needs or disabilities (SEND) and developing the school’s SEND Policy/ Information report, to make sure all children get a consistent, high quality response to meeting their needs in school.
• Ensuring that you are:
  • involved in supporting your child’s learning
  • kept informed about the support your child is getting
  • involved in reviewing how they are progressing
  • Liaising with all the other people who may be coming into school to help to support your child’s learning e.g. Speech and Language Therapy, Educational Psychology, School nurse etc.
  • Updating the school’s SEND register (a system for ensuring all the SEND needs of pupils in this school are known) and making sure that there are records of your child’s progress and needs.
  • Providing specialist support for teachers and support staff in the school so they can help children with SEND in the school achieve the best progress possible.

            Class teacher who is responsible for:

• Checking on the progress of your child and identifying, planning and delivering any additional help your child may need (this could be things like targeted work or  additional support) and letting the SENCo know as necessary.
• Tracking progress of additional support provided and measuring the impact of additional support.
• Writing Support and Achievement plans (SAP), with the support of the SENCo and sharing and reviewing these with parents once each term and planning for the next term.
• Ensuring that all staff working with your child in school are helped to deliver the planned work/programme for your child, so they can achieve the best possible progress. This may involve the use of additional adults, outside specialist help and specially planned work and resources.
• Ensuring that the school’s SEND Policy is followed in their classroom and for all the pupils they teach with any SEND.

            Headteacher who is responsible for:

• The day to day management of all aspects of the school, this includes the support for children with SEND.
• She will give responsibility to the SENCo and class teachers but is still responsible for ensuring that your child’s needs are met.
• She must make sure that the Governing Body is kept up to date about any issues in the school relating to SEND.

            Governing Body who is responsible for:

Making sure that the necessary support is made for any child who attends the school who has SEND.

SEN Governor who is responsible for:

Meeting with the SENCo and feeding back information to the full governing body regarding the provision for children with SEND in the school.

There will be three planned opportunities during the year to meet with the class teacher.  Children with SEND will have a Support and Achievement Plan which will be reviewed at the termly meetings. You will also receive an annual report about your child’s progress. Additional meetings can be set up at the request of the class teacher, SENCO or you as parents to ensure effective communication regarding the support for your child.

The role of teachers and teaching assistants supporting individual children or groups of children is carried out very carefully to ensure that children do not rely too heavily on having adult support. Opportunities are built into the school day to develop independence and confidence.

Through the assessment of individuals, setting targets and monitoring progress, teachers identify where each child is within their learning and plan lessons accordingly. Teachers take part in termly Pupil Progress Meetings to discuss the progress of all children in detail and plan the next steps accordingly. The teaching and learning within classes is differentiated at a variety of levels to support but challenge all pupils, further individual differentiation can be used in particular cases.

We develop individualised programmes of intervention through support and advice from external agencies and knowledge held within the school. In class, differentiated teaching and learning is planned for, allowing pupils to access at a level that is appropriate for them, also focusing on preferred learning styles.

Learning Support Assistants are employed strategically to provide the best support for as many children as possible - where appropriate a Learning Support Assistant will support specific SEND pupils. Resources, training and support are reviewed regularly and changes made accordingly.

We respond to individual needs, following advice from external professionals where appropriate e.g. writing slope, wobble cushion, work station, practical resources like numicon.

Depending on individual needs, special consideration will be applied to children when doing SATs tests. E.g.  Larger print for children with visual impairment or additional time or breaks will be considered for children who have specific learning difficulties. We also provide readers and scribes where required.

Class teacher input via excellent targeted classroom teaching also known as Quality First Teaching.
For your child this would mean:

• That the teacher has the highest possible expectations for your child and all pupils in their class.
• The teacher uses  a cycle of ‘assess, plan, do, review’ for all pupils to enable early identification of pupils with SEND and to monitor the progress of those already identified as having SEND
• That all teaching is based on building on what your child already knows, can do and can understand.
• Different ways of teaching are in place so that your child is fully involved in learning in class. This may involve using practical resources to facilitate their learning.
• Specific strategies (which may be suggested by the SENCO or outside staff)  are in place to support your child to learn.
• Your child’s teacher will have carefully checked on your child’s progress and will have decided that your child has gap in their understanding/learning and needs some extra support to help them make the best possible progress.

Specific group work with a smaller group of children.
This group, often called ‘Intervention group’ by schools, may be for children who are not making expected progress due to a personal need or SEND.

They are run in the classroom or in another quieter area, better suited to your child by a teacher or most often, a Teaching assistant who has had training to run these groups.

If a child has been identified by the class teacher as needing some extra support in school:

• He/ She will engage in group sessions with specific targets to help him/her to make more progress.
• A teaching assistant/teacher or outside professional (like a Speech and Language Therapist) will run these small group sessions using the teacher’s plan or a plan from a specific programme.

This type of support is available for any child who has specific gaps in their understanding of a subject/area of learning.

Specialist groups run by outside agencies e.g. Speech and Language therapy, Physiotherapy or Occupational therapy groups or individual support

Sometimes children require specialist support from an outside professional on an individual basis. This could be from a/an

• Local Authority central services such as the ASD Outreach Team or Sensory Service  (for students with a hearing or visual need)
• Outside agencies such as the Speech and Language therapy (SALT) Service

For your child this would mean:

• Your child will have been identified by the class teacher/SENCo (or you will have raised your concerns) as needing more specialist input instead of or in addition to quality first teaching and intervention groups.
• You will be asked to come to a meeting to discuss your child’s progress and help plan possible ways forward.
• You may be asked to give your permission for the school to refer your child to a specialist professional e.g. a Speech and Language Therapist or Educational Psychologist. This will help the school and yourself understand your child’s particular needs better and may provide us with ideas to help your child in areas they are finding difficult.
• The specialist professional might meet with you as well as the class teacher or they might work with your  child to understand their needs and make recommendations, which may include:
• The school may suggest that your child needs some individual support in school. They will tell you how the support will be used and what strategies will be put in place.

• Making changes to the way your child is supported in class e.g. some individual support or changing some aspects of teaching to support them better
• Support to set better targets which will include their specific expertise
• A group run by school staff under the guidance of the outside professional e.g. a social skills group
• A group or individual work with outside professional

This type of support is available for children with specific barriers to learning that cannot be overcome through Quality First Teaching and intervention groups.

Specified Individual support

This is usually provided via an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP).This means your child will have been identified by the class teacher/SENCo and outside professionsals, as needing a particularly high level of individual teaching and support, which cannot be provided from the budget available to the school.

This usually means that the child is working approximately 2 years or more behind his/her peers. Their needs are often complex, they will have had difficulties for a long time and they may have a diagnosis of one or more difficulties such as Autism, ADHD or a range of physical difficulties.

Usually your child will also need specialist support in school from a professional outside the school. This may be from:

• Local Authority central services such as the ASD Outreach Team or Sensory Service (for students with a hearing or visual need)
• Outside agencies such as the Speech and Language therapy (SALT) Service, Physiotherapist or Occupational therapist. 

For your child this would mean:

• The school (or you) can request that the Local Authority carry out an EHC (Education and Health Care) assessment of your child’s needs. This is a legal process which, if deemed necessary, sets out the amount of support that would be provided for your child.
• After the school have sent in the request to the Local Authority (with a lot of information about your child, including some from you), they will decide whether they think your child’s needs (as described in the paperwork provided), seem complex enough to require an EHC assessment. If this is the case they will ask you and all professionals involved with your child, to write a report outlining your child’s needs. If they do not think your child needs this, they will ask the school to continue to support the child from their own budget, using advice from outside professionals. In this instance the Local authority will come to the school to hold a meeting to explain why they decided not to carry out the EHC assessment and to offer other suggestions of how the school could use their budget to support your child.
• If the EHC assessment is agreed: After the reports have all been sent in the Local Authority will decide if your child’s needs are severe, complex and lifelong and that they need more than £6000 support in school to make good progress. If this is the case they will write an EHC Plan.
• The EHC Plan written by the local authority, through input from the school,the child and parents, will outline the amount of money the Local authority will provide to top up the school’s budget to support your child and how the support should be used and what strategies must be put in place. It will also have long and short term outcomes for your child.
• An additional adult may be used to support your child with whole class learning, run individual programmes or run small groups including your child.

• Children are assessed termly, or more frequently if deemed necessary.
• Their progress is tracked by the class teacher and the Senior Leadership Team.
• Progress will be discussed at termly parent meetings and via the annual report.
• At the termly meetings the Support and Achievement Plan will be discussed and you will be fully involved in discussing the outcomes of the plan.
• Additional meetings may be set up with the SENCo who will support you and the class teacher when reviewing the SAP and setting new targets.

There will be three planned opportunities during the year to meet with the class teacher.  Children with SEND will have a Support and Achievement Plan which will be reviewed at the termly meetings. You will also receive an annual report about your child’s progress. Additional meetings can be set up at the request of the class teacher, SENCO or you as parents to ensure effective communication regarding the support for your child.

• Notes are written between the parents and teacher in the Reading record/homework book.
• Appointments to meet with the teacher or SENCo can be made via the school office.
• Where appropriate home/school communication books are set up.
• Class newsletters are sent out three times a year.
• Class information is on the website.

The class teacher will provide information regarding how you can support your child at home.

The school holds Information Evenings and this information will also be communicated in monthly newsletters from the headteacher, termly class newsletters and on the website. Class teachers will share information at parent evenings or at additional meetings where appropriate. Opportunities for parents, who are interested in attending training to further their knowledge of SEND, will be placed in the notice board near the entrance to the school and copies will be emailed to parents of children with SEND.

Children are involved in setting of targets and reviewing their progress. Children are involved in the reviewing of their SAP (Support and Achievement plan), where appropriate. Information gathered is used to inform planning for the SENCo and class teachers.

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• Your child’s progress is continually monitored by his/her class teacher.
• His/her progress is reviewed formally every term in reading, writing, maths and science.
• The school uses standardised tests for reading and spelling which provide a reading and spelling age for each child. These tests are carried out termly to measure progress and to inform planning.
• If your child is in Year 1 and above, but is working significanly below the expectation for their year group, a more sensitive assessment tool is used which shows their level in more detail and will also show smaller but significant steps of progress. 
• At the end of each key stage (i.e. at the end of year 2 and year 6) all children are required to be formally assessed using Standard Assessment Tests (SATS). This is something the government requires all schools to do and are the results that are published nationally. The SATs are used to support the teacher’s assessment of your child.
• Children who have SEND will have a SAP which will be reviewed with your involvement, every term and the plan for the next term made.
• The progress of children with a statement of SEND/ EHC Plan is formally reviewed at an Annual Review with all adults involved with the child’s education.
• The SENCo will also check that your child is making good progress within any individual work and in any group that they take part in. The staff who provide interventions for children with SEND work under close supervision of the SENCo. Interventions are reviewed regularly to ensure that the child is making progress. If not, the intervention will be adapted or support from outside professionals will be sought.

Class teachers are responsible for the children’s over all wellbeing. This will be supported by teaching assistants who work with the class. Where necessary children may be involved in intervention programmes such as Managing Feelings or have support or advice from outside agencies such as the support teacher for Autism or the Behaviour Support. Some children might attend Mindfulness and Art therapy sessions with qualified professionals during the school day where appropriate. The school has two ELSA (Emotional Literacy Support Assistant), who works with children across the school. If required, a  referral to the Emotional Health Academy can be made.

• School behaviour systems are in place and procedures are consistently adhered to across the school (for more details please see our school’s behaviour policy, available on the school website).
• The Therapeutic Thinking model has been used to re- focus and reinforce school behaviour systems and policies.
• An Individual Behaviour Plan may be put into place.
• Time out.
• Social skills/behaviour support groups.
• Home/school contact book.
• Visual timetable.
• Referral to external support e.g. Therapeutic Thinking Support Team, Educational Psychologist, CAMHs or ICollege.

The school welcomes the support of professionals such as physiotherapists, nurses and other therapists to come into school to meet the medical needs of children. If a child needs specialist medical care regularly during the week, a private room will be provided. Staff will receive additional training as required for specific medical needs of children. Staff are always very willing and able to undergo additional training if necessary.

Parents are required to fill in a form at the school office to give permission for staff to administer medicines. Staff are trained to administer Epi-pens and other medications and the necessary documents are filled in with the support of the school nurse to ensure that policies are adhered to. Where needed, personal medical wallets are kept for children who have allergies or medical conditions such as epilepsy.

The school is mindful of individual needs of children and will make arrangements with parents and outside professionals to ensure children’s needs are met.

The SENCo is responsible for contacting outside professionals to support children with SEND.

The SENCo will also write letters of support to the GP or paediatrician or other health services when required.

Other professionals who are involved with the school where necessary are:

• Specialist teacher from Brookfields Special School ( SISS)
• Therapeutic Thinking Support Team (TTST)
• Special needs support teacher from the Cognition and Learning Team ( CALT)
• Speech and Language Therapists
• Educational Psychologist
• CAMHS
• Emotional Health Academy
• Teacher for the Visually Impaired or Hearing Impaired from the Sensory Consortium
• Physiotherapist
• Occupational Therapist

Referrals to these services need to adhere to specific criteria. The criteria differ from service to service. The SENCo will be able to provide you with advice and support.

These services can be accessed via your GP or the school. You are also able to self- refer if your child fits the criteria, through CYPIT. The SENCo is able to offer support and advice in this area.

Talk to your child’s class teacher or the SENCo or to your GP/ Health Visitor. You can also visit the CYPIT (Children & Young People Integrated Services) website to seek advice

The Headteacher is the designated person for safeguarding. In the Headteachers absence, the Deputy Headteacher is also trained to liase with Children’s Social care services.

Each term opportunities are advertised to all staff in school. Areas of need are identified within each class and teachers are signposted towards suitable courses that may be of benefit. If a teacher has a specific area of interest which would be of benefit to the school, the teacher would be informed of appropriate training courses.

Staff are appropriately trained to develop knowledge of SEN issues and in how to deliver interventions. Training is delivered in a variety of ways, whether this is internal or external training.

Interventions and needs of pupils are constantly monitored by the SENCo who identifies gaps in training and is responsive to this information. Each term opportunities are advertised to all staff in school.

The SENCo holds the Post Graduate National Award for Special Educational Needs Coordination.

We have 2 qualified ELSAs. The other teaching assistants have all had training to work with children with SEND. They have also had many years of experience of working with children with a range of SEND such as ASD, ADHD,  Down Syndrome, Dyslexia, Dyscalculia as well as behavioural and emotional difficulties. The teaching assistants have all had training for a range of specific learning and physical and emotional difficulties to ensure that we meet the needs of all of our pupils.

The school will carry out risk assessments before the trip and arrangements will be put in place for the inclusion of children with SEND. Careful consideration will be made as to whether additional staff or parents go with the child. All of these decisions are made in consultation with the parents.

The class teacher or SENCo will always talk to parents/carers about requirements depending on the nature of the trip.

• The building is accessible to children with physical disability via ramps and widened doors.
• We ensure that equipment used is accessible to all children regardless of their needs.
• After school provision is accessible to all children including those with SEND.
• Extra- curricular activities are accessible for children with SEND.

We try to place workstations in quieter areas of the school. Teachers are trained to use equipment such as a Radio Aid or Pen friend to support children with hearing impairments. The school will follow advice from the Sensory Consortium to make provision for children with these impairments to access the curriculum.

There is a toilet which can be accessed by wheelchair users.

The school has been adapted for wheelchair users.

A disabled parking bay is situated close to the school’s main entrance. We communicate by email or telephone.

If necessary, the school will enlist the support of the MTAS team who would support children with EAL.

BSL would provide interpreters if we needed to communicate with parents who have EAL.

Home visits are made before children enter Foundation Stage 1, at 3 years of age.

Visits to the school are welcomed and children coming into the school are encouraged to have transition days before they start, to get to know staff and children.

The head teacher meets with new parents to provide information about the school.  The school will also contact previous settings to find out information to ensure a smooth transition for the child.

Staff in all Key Stages hold meetings in July for parents to attend, to discuss the next phase of education at the school.

When moving to the next class, a changeover morning takes place in early July. If children find change difficult, a transition booklet will be made for the child. This will include photographs of new staff and the setting so the child becomes familiar with the changes before they move. These booklets are sent home to be shared throughout the holidays. Further transition activities can be arranged if required.

We invite staff from the new school to come in to talk to your child. We will visit the new setting with your child if appropriate.

We set up meetings with the new school, parents and the current teacher as well as the SENCo to ensure a smooth transition. If a child is has an EHCP, the SENCo will invite the SENCo of the new school to attend the Annual review.

The school passes on all academic and personal information to the next school to ensure a smooth transition and to provide continuity for the child.

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The class teacher is the first point of call. After that, you may talk to the Key Stage Team Leader or the SENCo.

The SENCo is Mrs Tania Sutton. If you wish to contact her please telephone the school office or by email: office@pangbourne.w-berks.sch.uk

 The school can contact different organisations to offer support to parents including the ' Family advisor for pupils diagnosed with ASD' or 'Parenting Special Children'.

The SENCo is able to provide information for parents. Information may also be emailed out where appropriate.

We welcome feedback which can be sent by email through the school office or directly to staff where appropriate.  There is a Parent Focus group who meet once a term with the Deputy Headteacher. This group is made up of a representative parent from each class.  At this meeting, the reps are given the opportunity to ask questions, share what is going well and to give feedback on areas they feel may need development. We also send out Parent Surveys to gain valuable feedback. There is also a complaints procedure which can be followed if a parent wishes.