Special Educational Needs and Disabilities

What are the kinds of special educational needs for which provision is made at Church Aston Infant School?

This is a maintained day school for children aged rising 5-7 years. At Church Aston Infant School, we embrace the fact that every child is different, and, therefore, the educational needs of every child is different; this is certainly the case for children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities. Children will be provided with an appropriately paced and differentiated curriculum. Further information on the admissions process to our school can be found on our website.

More detail on our commitment to high quality educational provision for all our children is detailed in our Teaching and Learning Policy.

What are the school's policies for the identification and assessment of children attending the school?

At Church Aston Infant School, children are identified as having SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) through a variety of ways, usually a combination, which may include some of the following:

Liaison with previous school or pre-school setting
Child performing below age expectation or equivalent (e.g. percentile rankings)
Concerns raised by a parent
Concerns raised by a teacher: for example, if behaviour or self-esteem is affecting performance
Liaison with external agencies e.g. for a physical/ sensory issue, speech and language
Use of tools for standardised assessment
Children with an EHCP (Education Health and Care Plan) already have many of their needs clearly identified. Their placement at our school is a decision that is made by the Local Authority.

The SENCo at Church Aston infant School is Mrs P Bundy who can be contacted through the school Office - 01952 386390.

What is the provision for children at Church Aston Infant School and how is it evaluated?

Our school is a place where everyone is treated with dignity, with respect and is of equal worth.

Our vision is committed to the provision of an outstanding educational experience for each and every pupil. We are positive in the development of partnership between home and school and believe excellent partnership has a direct impact on pupil learning.

We believe the school is central to the community it serves and we are keen to foster good relations and involvement in community projects. At Church Aston Infant School we aim to help children develop responsible attitudes towards their learning, fellow pupils and others in an ordered and caring environment. We consider it vital for each child to explore the world about him or her and to make sense of the world they live in. We recognise the individuality of the child and aim to enable each child to develop their creativity and full potential. Each child should have an opportunity to follow a broad and balanced curriculum that is child centred, specific to the needs of the individual and takes account of previous experience.

The school believes strongly in developing global dimension and enhancing the life experiences for our pupils by developing their understanding of language, cultures and knowledge of places in the world. We are passionate to promote a positive view of the very different world we live in.

Our key purpose is the construction, delivery and constant improvement of quality learning experiences appropriate to the needs of all our pupils/students.

To achieve our vision we aim to:

To provide a stimulating and creative learning environment where pupils are happy, safe and secure
To enable all pupils to enjoy learning and achieve to the best of their ability both academically and through a broad curriculum that includes creative arts and sporting activities
For each child to have the opportunity to learn from a curriculum which provides challenge, is child centred, meets his or her needs and takes account of the child’s previous experience
To ensure all pupils have fairness of opportunity regardless of gender, race or abilities.
To enable pupils to develop responsible attitudes towards their learning, fellow pupils and others in an ordered and caring environment where pupils develop responsibility for their learning, behaviour and engagement in a healthy lifestyle
To provide an outstanding curriculum that is creative and innovative whist ensuring basic skills in reading, writing and mathematics are acquired.
For staff to have the opportunity to engage in Continuous Professional Development to ensure their practice is always up to date and of the highest quality
To engage and communicate with parents and carers in a positive way to ensure effective partnership that supports every child
For governors to take an active role in the life of the school and support the work it does for the benefit of all pupils

Further details of all areas of our school curriculum and assessment processes can be seen in our Teaching and Learning Policy (available on our website). We have liaised with our parents/carers on developing our school offer to ensure it includes useful information and answers their questions.

All staff have a responsibility to meet the needs of all the children at Church Aston Infant School.

School staff details are on the website. The school contact details are also on the website where you will be able to access senior management or your class teacher.

The school receives advice from a range of health professionals in order to meet the needs of the children as assessed by the appropriate professionals. We are working closely with our health and social care colleagues to implement the new SEND Code of Practice.

How will Church Aston Infant School include all children in activities outside the classroom, including school trips?

All children are included in all parts of the school curriculum and we aim for all children to be included on school trips. We will provide the necessary support to ensure that this is successful and may discuss this in advance with parents/carers. It might be appropriate for a parent/carer to accompany a child on a school trip, depending upon the child’s individual needs.

A risk assessment is carried out prior to any off site activity to ensure everyone’s health and safety will not be compromised.

A variety of after school clubs are provided. We aim for these to be as inclusive as possible and may provide additional staff or sessions in order to achieve this. Each child’s needs will be considered on an individual basis.

What training do staff have in relation to the needs of children at Church Aston Infant School?

All staff have clear job descriptions which detail the required qualifications for each post in school. All staff have a core training programme related to their work as a teaching assistant or teacher.

How will equipment and facilities be provided to support children at Church Aston Infant School?

Our school has an Accessibility Policy
All areas of the school are accessible by wheelchair. A ramp is provided to avoid stepped areas
An accessible toilet facility is available

If you have specific access queries or concerns please speak with us.

All parents and families are welcome to visit the school prior to their child or young person attending the school.

What are the arrangements for consulting parents of children at Church Aston Infant School and involving them in the education of their child?

At Church Aston Infant School - parents are fully included in the process of working with their children.

This includes:

Initial visits to school
Introductory meetings
Daily home/school book for information exchanges and key messages
Termly parent/teacher meetings including updates from professionals
A curriculum school report each year - and one linked to annual review of the EHC Plan including a review of an Individual Health Care Plan as appropriate
Parent workshops and training
Parental views are considered at the Governing Body
Parent involvement in changes in school through informal and formal consultations

What are the arrangements for consulting with children at Church Aston Infant School about, and involving them in, their education?

All children in our school are treated with dignity and respect. There is full personalisation for the curriculum for each child in order for them to access and experience success through-out their school life.

The School Council involves pupils to contribute and decide on aspects of school life relating to their needs.

Termly or half termly pupil profiles where next steps in learning are set for SEND children include the choices and views of each child.

The assessment and annual review process of statements of SEND and EHC Plans includes the choices and views of each child.

What are the arrangements for assessing and reviewing children and young people’s progress towards outcomes, including the opportunities available to work with parents and young people as part of this assessment and review?

Your child’s progress is continually monitored by his/her class teacher.
Their progress is reviewed formally every half term in reading, writing and numeracy.
Children in Reception will be assessed through the National Baseline during the first six weeks in Reception and at the end of the year through the EYFS profile. Ongoing assessments will be used to inform next steps/targets.
Teachers will use the engagement model to assess your child if they are working below the standard of the national curriculum assessments and not engaged in subject-specific study at key stage 1
All Year 1 pupils complete a Phonic Skills Check. Some children will complete this check or if this isn’t appropriate at that time they can complete this check in Year 2.
At the end of each Key Stage 1 (i.e. at the end of Year 2) 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.
Assessment guidance for SEND children will be followed to support end of Key Stage assessments.
Children may have an IEP / personal targets which will be reviewed, and a future plan made.
The progress of children with an 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.

What support do we give to children to improve their emotional and social development?

We recognise that pupils with SEND may well have an Emotional and Social Development needs that will require support in school.
The emotional health and well-being of all our pupils is very important to us.
We have a robust Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy in place; we follow National & Local Authority Guidelines.
We have a Family Support Worker who supports children via 1:1 Counselling, nurturing and mental health and wellbeing sessions as are necessary. Additional referrals to other agencies are completed when required.
We have robust Behaviour and Anti Bullying Policies
The Head and all staff continually monitor the Emotional Health and well-being of all our pupils; this may be for example, via , pupil voice ,PSHE sessions
We have Playground Leaders who support their peers during lunchtimes and playtimes.

What are the arrangements made by the governing body for dealing with complaints from parents/carers of children in relation to the provision made at Church Aston Infant School?

The process for all complaints is made available in the Complaints Policy which is updated each year. The Complaints Policy is also available on the school website.

How does the governing body involve others - including health, social services, local authority services and voluntary organisations, in meeting the needs of children at Church Aston Infant School and in supporting their families?

We have a wide range of staff working together within the school to support the children, young people and their families. Some are employed directly by the school, others have different lines of management as can be seen below.

Staff are employed directly by the school. This includes teachers, teaching assistants, lunchtime supervisors and Business Manager.

Other professionals work for a range of agencies – who have office bases elsewhere and work in school on particular days or as necessary.

School Nurses, Speech and Language Therapists, Occupational Therapists, CAMHS LD team and Physiotherapists are employees of Shropshire Community Health Trust.All these professionals visit school to train staff, advise staff and/or work with the children.

The Sensory Inclusion Service staff, advisory teachers - are employed by the Local Authority, not the school, and are within the Children Specialist Services team. They provide staff training and advice on individual children's needs.

There are social workers for children with disabilities who are Local Authority employees and are based within the Children Specialist Services.

All contact numbers for support services, described above, are available from the school office. If you have a query relating to these areas it is best to contact the professionals directly. This will ensure that your message/queries/concerns are dealt with in the most efficient way.

What are the school’s arrangements for supporting children in transferring between phases of education?

All transitions are well planned for through-out school as children transfer from pre-school settings or home, as they move from Class 1 to Class 2 and from phase to phase. Parents/carers always have the opportunity to meet the new teacher and class staff.

Where is the information on the Telford and Wrekin's local offer published?

There is further detail on our website of our own School Offer for SEND, please see the 'SEND Documents' section. Telford and Wrekin's SEND Local Offer website is available here: https://www.telfordsend.org.uk/site/index.php

If you have any queries or requests for policies or information relating to this report please contact the Head Teacher - on 01952 386390 or Email: A2033@taw.org.uk

SEND DOCUMENTS