SEN

School SEN Information Report

Alderman’s Green is a fully inclusive mainstream school with a Resource Base for children with Autism Spectrum Conditions.

We strive to ensure that all children achieve their potential personally, socially, emotionally and academically in all areas of the curriculum.

This report gives you information regarding the ways in which we ensure we support all of our children with Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND), in order that they can realise their full potential. It may not list every skill, technique and resource that we employ in order to achieve this, as these are continually developed and used to modify our provision to meet the changing needs and requirements of individual children.

The SEN information report is reviewed annually; parents, children, staff and Governors contribute to this process.

Please click  HERE  for our school’s SEN Policy.

What types of educational needs do we provide support for? 

At Alderman’s Green we provide support for children who have difficulties with:

  • Communication and Interaction including Autistic Spectrum Conditions and speech, language and communication needs,
  • Cognition and Learning including moderate, severe and specific learning difficulties,
  • Social, Emotional and Mental Health difficulties including emotional health and well-being and social needs,
  • Sensory and/or Physical Needs including hearing impairments, vision impairment, multi-sensory impairment or a physical disability.

Support is also provided for:

  • Children with English as an Additional Language,
  • Children who are Looked After (LAC),
  • Traveller children,
  • Refugee and asylum seekers,
  • Minority ethnic and faith groups,
  • Children with medical needs,
  • Young carers,
  • Children at risk of exclusion,
  • Children from families under stress.

Who is our special needs coordinator? (SENCo)

Our Special Educational Needs Coordinators are Mrs. Unitt, Mrs Cornell and Mrs Arrowsmith

Mrs. Cornell is responsible for children in Years 1 – Year 6.

Mrs. Arrowsmith is our Assistant SENCo and SENCo of EYFS and supports children across school

Mrs. Unitt is responsible for the Enhanced Resource Base.

The governor responsible for Special Educational Needs is Miss Nicola Shea.

How do we identify and assess children with SEN?

Children are identified as having SEND when they have a significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of children the same age or have a disability or diagnosis which prevents or hinders them from making progress academically, socially or emotionally.

Our class teachers closely monitor the progress made by all the children and ask advice from the Special Needs Co-ordinator (SENCo) as soon as they have concerns about any pupil. Activities are then planned to enable the child to make progress such adapting teaching, small group work, additional adult support or interventions.

If the child does not make good progress then the SENCo and class teacher will meet with parents/carers and together agree what additional SEND support will be put in place. This may involve advice and/or assessment from an external specialist service and is documented in a My Support Plan.

How do we consult children with SEND?

Children are regularly involved in their own education, including those with SEND. Children reflect on their own progress and identify next steps and personal targets. Children with SEND will have a My Support Plan which identifies specific targets linked to their needs. Children will be consulted by their class teacher regarding the targets set and how these will be met. Children may also attend My Support Plan meetings. School regularly considers pupil views and uses this to support the children in their learning.

How do we adapt the curriculum and learning environment?

Class Teachers carefully plan lessons which are suited to the needs and interests of the children within their class and year group. Resources are carefully made in order to support children where needed, this may include scaffolds, word banks or practical resources/activities. The environment is also adapted in a variety of ways such as consideration of the classroom layout, use of additional resources used such as work stations and adaptations to the building/fixtures and fittings are made such as grab rails.

Careful considerations have been made to ensure that Alderman’s Green is accessible for all children and adults. See our Accessibility Policy for further information.

Is there any extra support available to help children with SEND and their learning?

We are very privileged to be able to support our SEND children in a variety of different ways. These include:

  • Highly skilled and creative teaching staff and support staff who always try to ensure that they find a way to engage SEND children and meet their needs,
  • A team of SEN teaching assistants and Pastoral Team who support children across school,
  • Use of small group work,
  • Academic interventions e.g. phonics, maths, reading, spelling and writing,
  • Pastoral interventions e.g. Thrive and Protective Behaviours,
  • All children having access to supportive technology through the use of IPADs,
  • Use of skilled staff from our Enhanced Resource Base in mainstream to support those children with Autism,
  • Support and advice from various outside agencies and specialist teachers.

How do we enable children with SEND to engage in activities with other children who do not have SEND?

Alderman’s Green is a fully inclusive school and we ensure that all of our children and staff work in harmony with each other regardless of their ability. This is modelled to our children by all members of staff who work at Alderman’s Green. Throughout our Personal, Social and Health education lessons (PSHE) we promote acceptance of others and celebrate difference and diversity. Our assembly themes also promote inclusivity, difference, diversity, acceptance, tolerance and respect. We also have many awareness days and weeks e.g. Autism Awareness week.

All children attend enrichment activities such as visitors to school, school trips, residential trips and 11b411 experiences. All children are encouraged to attend after school clubs ran by school staff and sports coaches and our holiday HAF club.

How do we assess and review pupil’s progress towards their outcomes?

Children with SEND are assessed in a variety of ways to ensure that progress is made. This is done by the class teacher, SENCo and by outside agencies who support our children.  SEND children are assessed by:

  • Informally on a daily basis by the class teacher as part of the planning, teaching and assessment cycle.
  • Assessment of SEND children against their My Support Plan targets and provision on a ongoing basis.
  • Assessments carried out by outside agencies including Speech and Language Therapists, Educational Psychologists and Specialist Teachers in SEND.
  • Formal assessment through Education, Health and Care Plan statutory assessment.

These assessments inform the next steps for the child and the provision that they require.

How do we consult parents of children with SEND and involve them in their education?

We work very closely with parents as we know that when there is a positive partnership between home and school the greater the outcomes for children.

We meet regularly with parents to share progress, celebrate achievements, discuss any concerns and share reports from external agencies.

Parent evenings will take place once a term with the class teacher. During these meetings, teachers, the SENCo and parents will meet to discuss their child’s My Support Plan. At these meetings progress and targets will be shared and reviewed.

For children who have an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP), we meet at least annually as part of the annual review process.

How do we support children with SEND to improve their emotional and social development?

We follow the Personal, Social, and Health education (PSHE) curriculum with all of our children. This is adapted by class teachers and with support of the SENCo and PSHE leaders to ensure that the content and delivery is suitable for each cohort of pupils. Children’s special educational needs are taken into account when teachers are planning and delivering their PSHE lessons.

For children with specific social, mental or emotional health difficulties we have access to our Learning Mentor team, Thrive practitioners and we work with the Social and Emotional Health team (SEMH), Educational Psychology Service (EPS), Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS), Speech and Language Therapy, Occupational Therapy and other agencies.

In school, we also offer many pastoral interventions, Thrive nurture groups.  All children including those with SEND can access these.

How do we support children moving between different phases of their education?

At Alderman’s Green, there may be several different phases of their education including joining in Nursery or Reception, moving up a year group each year and then moving on to Secondary school. We support children by:

  • Inviting families in to school to visit Nursery/Reception/Resource Base before starting,
  • Admissions meeting to share relevant information and reassure families,
  • Requesting information from previous schools/settings. School liaises closely with receiving and feeder schools to ensure a smooth and successful transition,
  • Support from outside agencies including Complex Communication Team, Educational Psychology Team or the SEND Early Years Team
  • Transition work e.g. ‘All about me’ booklets, social stories, photograph cues,
  • Support from specialist teachers for specialist enhanced work with children,
  • Additional visits to a new school/setting.

What expertise and training do our staff have to support children with SEND?

All of our teaching staff and teaching assistants have completed all relevant training to be in their post.  The courses that they study will often include modules in SEND.  The school has a school improvement plan that includes identified training needs for all staff to improve the teaching and learning of children, including those with SEND.

In addition to this, we provide additional SEND training through our INSET days, staff meetings and by attending courses ran by external agencies/providers.  The SENCo and teacher work closely with specialists from external support services who may provide advice or direct support as appropriate. Many members of staff also work closely with other schools and settings to share good practice to learn from one another.

All staff are encouraged to attend courses ran by Coventry SEND services.

How do we involve other organisations in meeting the needs of children with SEND, and their families?

The range of agencies and support services school works with include, but are not limited to:

  • Social, Emotional, Mental Health and Learning Team (SEMH+L)
  • Educational Psychology Service (EPS)
  • NHS Speech and Language Therapy
  • Complex Communication Team
  • NHS Occupational Therapy/Physiotherapy
  • RISE- Child and Adolescent Mental Health (CAMHs) and Neurodevelopmental Team Primary Mental Health
  • School Nurse
  • Sensory Support Service
  • Family Hubs and Early Help
  • Voluntary Organisations

How will we secure equipment and facilities to support children with SEND?

We may provide SEND equipment where appropriate in consultation with specialist agency advice.
The Local Authority provides specialist equipment such as wheelchairs /standing frames etc. when prescribed by a relevant health specialist.

How do we evaluate the effectiveness of our SEND provision?

SEND provision is evaluated by looking at the progress that children have made against their My Support Plan targets; by analysing class and year group data; through pupil, staff and parent views and through activities linked to our self-evaluation cycle e.g. learning walks, planning scrutiny, book monitoring. We also work closely with those from across Triumph Learning Trust and a range of external providers to evaluate the effectiveness of our SEND provision. Our SEND Governor also provides support and challenge over leaders decisions regarding SEND provision.

How do we handle complaints from parents and children with SEND about the provision made at the school?

If a parent has concerns regarding their child then they should contact their child’s class teacher or the SENCo ( Mrs Unitt or Mrs Cornell).

In addition to this, the Head Teacher or Governing body may also be contacted.
Please click HERE to see our Complaints Policy

What support services are available to parents?

Coventry SEND Information Advice Support Service (SENDIASS) can signpost and offer parents impartial support and advice. Their contact details are:

Email: IASS@coventry.gov.uk
Tel: 024 7669 4307
Visit: https://www.coventry.gov.uk/sendiass

Where can Coventry Local Authority’s local offer be found?

Coventry Local Authority’s Local Offer can be found here: