Springfield Primary School

Schools Extended Local Offer Response

How does the setting/school/college know if children/young people need extra help and what should I do if I think my child/young person may have special educational needs?

Children are tracked and monitored throughout the school year. If the class teacher believes your child is working significantly below the age expected range in one or more of the four SEND areas; Cognition and Learning, Communication and interaction, Social Emotional and Mental Health and Sensory and physical the school will set up a meeting to discuss this with you in more detail and listen to any concerns you may have. We will plan any additional support your child may need and ensure you know how to support your child at home. We will discuss with you any referrals to outside professionals to support your child. If you have concerns about your child’s progress, you should speak to your child’s class teacher initially. If you continue to be concerned that your child is not making progress, you may wish to speak to the Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENDCo) or the Headteacher.

How will early years setting/school/college staff support my child/young person?

How will early years setting/school/college staff support my child/young person?

Initially your child will be supported through 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.
• That all teaching builds on what your child already knows, can do and can understand.
• That different ways of teaching are in place, so that your child is fully involved in learning in class.

This may involve things like using more practical learning or using IT. Specific strategies, which may be suggested by the SENDCo, 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 a gap or gaps in their understanding/learning and needs some extra support to help them make the best possible progress.

 

 

How will the curriculum be matched to my child's/young person's needs?

We follow a Creative Curriculum using topics to capture children's imagination and interests. These are planned termly with the children in mind. We focus upon high quality first teaching with differentiation to meet the needs of all learners including those with SEN and EAL to enable them to access the curriculum as independently as possible. Developing independence is a key focus for all pupils at Springfield and this is particularly important for pupils who have special educational needs in order for them to reach their full potential. Therefore teaching and support is carefully planned in order to ensure maximum opportunities to develop independence through the right support.

How will both you and I know how my child/young person is doing and how will you help me to support my child's/young person's learning?

At Springfield, we have an open-door policy and encourage parents to talk to us about how their child is progressing. Our SENDCo,, is easily contactable via the school office by telephone, and always responds to parents’ correspondence, within 48 hrs. In addition to this we have a pastoral team to support with Early help. Our team are available to speak to parents on appointment via the school office.

Each term class teachers will either hold a Parents’ Evening or issue a written report on every child’s progress. This will highlight strengths and areas for improvement across the curriculum. Those children recognised by the school as having a Special Education Need or Disability will be recognised on the school SEND register under the category ‘SEND Support’, or the pastoral register. For SEND Support children, parents will be updated once per term via letter or parents’ evenings to report on the support which they are receiving. For children with an Education and Health Care Plan (EHCP), the SENDCo will organise a meeting with parents as required. Where possible, these meetings will also involve any staff working with the child in school. There will also be a formal annual review held in school once per year to review how well the EHCP is meeting the child’s needs. Professionals working with children who have an EHCP, including paediatricians and 4 health care professionals, will also be invited to contribute to this meeting.

What support will there be for my child's/young person's overall well being?

At Springfield all staff aim to nurture the children in their care. The Headteacher, Claire Andrews works in conjunction with the pastoral team, working closely with all staff and children in school to make sure that everyone, including parents, feels happy and safe, in a caring environment. Members of the pastoral team have undertaken training in attachment, bereavement trauma and mental health first aid. The early help team monitor children’s attendance/lateness and can provide support to parents with this. We aim to teach children to become respectful, resilient and mindful of others’ thoughts and feelings through a consistent approach to expectations of behaviour across all year groups to prevent bullying. Our Student Council consists of members from across the school. They meet regularly and work very closely with the pastoral team to ensure that children’s views are listened to and considered through the school year.

In addition to this we also access further help when appropriate to aid children to be mentally healthy. This includes;

The Gap Bedfordshire (Jess van de Hoech) providing therapy and trauma treatment- https://www.thegapbedfordshire.co.uk/

What specialist services and expertise are avaliable at or accessed by the setting/school/college?

All staff have accessed CPD session in relation to Trauma therapy and philosophical techniques used by the team that support school to compliment sessions delivered and have a good understanding. 

Our SENDCo seeks advice from the Local Authority SEND team regularly. She also actively engages with local opportunities to share best practice and keeps up to date with current Local and National policies to support children with SEND.

Through the local authority and Health service we access a range of specialist services such as educational psychology, speech and language therapy, sensory communication support and school nursing support.

What training have the staff supporting children and young people with SEND had? Are any being trained currently?

Our Headteacher, Claire Andrews has achieved the Post Graduate National Award for Special Educational Needs Co-ordination . All teaching staff regularly attend Magpie sessions, which are held weekly for small CPD sessions which regularly relates to SEN.  Additionally, the SENDCo meets with all support staff every two weeks to deliver training and support.

This year staff will be ‘PACE Maths’ trained to support children using a specialised Maths intervention. We will also be taking part in several initiatives run by Bedford Borough council including speech and language training to enable us to support children with speech and language difficulties within school using specially trained school staff.

 

How will my child/young person be included in activities outside this classroom including school trips?

At Springfield Primary School we aim for all pupils to be able to access all trips and visits that take place outside the classroom. Reasonable adjustments will be made to enable any pupil attending Springfield Primary School to fully participate in activities outside of the classroom, including school trips. Risk assessments are carried out and where appropriate are discussed with parents to ensure that where possible all pupils are able to participate in all activities. If it is deemed appropriate that an intensive level of 1:1 support is needed, a parent may be asked to accompany their child during a specific activity, however a child with SEND will not be intentionally excluded from activities as in accordance with the Equality Act 2010.

How will the setting/school/college prepare and support my child/young person to join the setting/school/college or the next stage of education and life?

How will the setting/school/college prepare and support my child/young person to join the setting/school/college or the next stage of education and life?

All children are visited at home prior to starting in the Foundation Year. This is an opportunity for the children to meet the Foundation Staff Team members, and for Parents to discuss any concerns that they may have, and ask questions about starting school. There is a specific Open Evening for Reception Class parents, offering further familiarisation with the staff and setting. Families wishing to attend the school can telephone to book into a scheduled guided visit, where they will be shown around the school. Staff from new settings are welcomed into the school to meet and work with the pupils who will be joining them. Reciprocal visits are also arranged where children are invited to attend introductory orientation sessions at the school they will be moving on to. Transition meetings between the SENDCo at Springfield and the SENDCo at the new setting are scheduled. Parents and Carers are invited to attend these transition meetings. The SENDCo can contact the new setting on behalf of the parents to enquire about arranging a visit for Parents / Carers and the child to familiarise themselves with the new setting. Towards the end of the academic year children take part in 'Transition day' where they spend time in their new classroom, meeting the teaching staff and completing 'all about me' activities. Prior to this day, the new teacher is briefed by the SENDCo regarding specific support needs for individual children. Personalised transition booklets can also be provided to support children transitioning to a new year group within the school.

How are the setting's/school's/college's resources allocated and matched to children's/young people's special educational needs?

The school has a SEND budget allocated each year from the Local Authority. The money is used to provide additional support or resources to support the needs of all children in the school who require it. The SENDCo completes a termly provision map to monitor how the money is being spent. The money can be used for:

• Providing specialist equipment to support a specific need
• Providing additional intervention programmes to help children learn and progress
• Providing specialist maths HLTAs to support smaller maths groups
• Provide additional adult help if required
• Creating an immersive and inclusive environment for all our children

How is the decision made about what type and how much support my child/young person will receive?

The school is committed to using its best endeavours to remove barriers to learning. To this end, the quality of teaching and the progress made by children is closely monitored, using a philosophy of the sharing of best practice, in-house and externally provided training, and teaching observations. The aim is to provide quality first teaching, with personalised and differentiated approaches to the benefit of all children attending Springfield. Should the child continue to experience difficulty in accessing learning, the graduated response (as described in the SEND Policy) will be instituted. The four part cycle of Assess, Plan, Do, Review allows the teacher and SENDCo to revisit strategies and interventions, to critically analyse them for effect and decide if they require further refinement or modifying, or whether they are not impacting sufficiently on the child’s progress to be continued. The school uses as a reference point Bedford Borough SEND Provision Guidance - to determine whether needs might be best met by: Quality First Teaching, Targeted Support, or Personalised support.

How are parents involved in the setting/school/college? How can I be involved?

The school has an active Parent Teacher Association, and Parent members of the Governing body. The school has also started the journey to introduce a Parent Forum. Parents / Carers are regularly provided with the opportunity to voice their opinions in a consultation questionnaire. Responses to these comments are published in the school newsletters. All additional support provided for children in our care is based on consultation and dialogue with parents / carers. All concerns are to be taken to the class teacher in the first instance if possible. All staff have access to Class Dojo, where contact can be made with all staff if any issues arise.

Springfield has an open door policy so always welcomes parents to volunteer in school to embrace learning and develop relationships within the local community.