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Great Barford Church of England Primary Academy

‘Growing together through learning, friendship and worship’

Who to contact

Contact Name
Sarah Evans
Contact Position
Headteacher
Telephone
E-mail
admin@gbpa.org.uk
Website
greatbarford.eschools.co.uk

Where to go

Name
Great Barford Primary School
Address
Silver Street
Great Barford
Bedford
Postcode
MK44 3HZ
Get directions

Other Details

Costs

Details
Yes Breakfast Club -7.45-8.45 After School Club - 3.20-6.00 Holiday club – 8.45 -6 £4 per hour
Age Bands
0-4 years old
5-10 years old

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?

Decisions about the support that your child receives are made in line with statutory guidance and through consultations with parents/carers, pupils, class teachers, the SENCo and Head teacher.

Together we will identify the support that is needed to help your child achieve their targets. With parents/carers and pupils, we regularly review the impact of the support and adapt the support as required.

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

The SENCo works closely with the class teachers to plan and review provision for children with SEND. Children with SEND receive additional support from teachers, teaching assistants and where appropriate external specialists. The nature and amount of support will differ depending on the individual need; this will be explained by the SENCo and class teacher and outlined in the child’s individual plan.

There is a designated Governor who meets with the SENCo to ensure that the SEND policy is fully implemented and that appropriate support for children with SEND is being provided.

 

We can administer prescribed medication to children who have a care plan or a long term medical condition diagnosed by a health professional. We can also make arrangements for parents/carers to administer medication to your child during the school day; please discuss this with a member of the office staff.

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

We provide a differentiated and personalised curriculum, which means that lessons are adapted to ensure that all children can access the learning. Depending on individual need this is done through additional resources, additional explanations/instructions, additional adult support and/or by adapting tasks and expected outcomes.

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?

We pride ourselves on our friendly school environment in which all staff have an in depth knowledge of all of the pupils in our care. We have parent consultations in autumn and spring term and you will receive a school report in the summer term. Class teachers are always available to speak to at the end of the day. Curriculum letters are sent home at the start of each half term to inform parents of the focus for the new topic and of the planned activities. Each child has a home/school link book, which enables teachers and parent/carers to share information with one another.

In addition to the above parent/carers of children with SEND have termly review meetings with the class teacher, and where appropriate the child, to discuss the child’s progress towards their targets, the effectiveness of the strategies currently in place and to discuss the next steps. Parent/carers will be given a copy of the agreed targets and interventions. Additional progress review meetings can also be arranged with the class teacher and SENCo.

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

We are committed to meeting children’s personal, social and emotional needs in order for them to be able to fully access the learning.

As a Church of England Primary Academy we promote our values and celebrate those children who demonstrate them through our weekly celebration assemblies and newsletters. Our celebration assembly also provides an opportunity for children to share their achievements both in and outside of school.

The School implements a clear behaviour policy, which is available on the School’s website. Each classroom uses their own reward system that is appropriate for the age of the children and the needs of the class. The reward systems focus on celebrating positive work and behaviour and encourages pupils to work together to achieve individual and class rewards. We provide additional provision for individuals who need support to manage their behaviour and with the child and parents set targets and outline strategies to help the child to meet these targets.

We hold regular wellbeing workshops for our children and monitor wellbeing through questionnaires and teacher observation.
We also work closely with our Family Support Advisor Donna Gower who works with families to support attendance, sleeping, diet, behaviour, emotional wellbeing and routines.

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

We also work closely with the Educational Psychology Team as well as Early Help and can apply for additional support from support services and health
care professionals.

 

Our Family Support Advisor, Donna Gower, works with families to support attendance, sleeping, diet, behaviour, emotional wellbeing and routines.

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

We are committed to the continuing professional development of all staff and match training opportunities to the needs of the staff and the needs of the pupils.

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

All children are welcome at the School’s Breakfast, After School and Holiday Club as well as extra-curricular clubs offered during lunchtime and after school.

The Breakfast, After School and Holiday Club staff are employed by the school and who also work as teaching assistants within classes; this helps to develop excellent relationships between staff, pupils and parents/carers. It also enables information to be easily passed between teachers and parents/carers and helps to ensure a smooth transition between the extended care provision and the main school day.

If needed we will make adjustments to ensure that all children can access and enjoy the clubs that we offer and if required the class teacher and SENCo will liaise with the club leaders to ensure that appropriate strategies are implemented.
Risk assessments are completed prior to school trips to ensure that all children will be safe and that individual needs can be met using reasonable adjustment. We always ensure that individual needs are catered for; this may involve using a visual schedule, pre-teaching of what will happen on the trip, allocating additional adult support and/or pairing individuals up with the class teacher. We welcome parental advice regarding how your child is likely to cope on a trip and your ideas for extra support that they may benefit from.

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?

If you are considering your child starting at our school we would invite you and your child to look round the school and to meet with Mrs Evans who is our Head teacher. If your child is starting at the beginning of a school year we would invite them to attend our roll up morning in July before they start; this provides them with the opportunity to meet with their new class, their new teacher and to see their new classroom.

In our nursery we run open mornings and visits. We also run termly sessions for parents of children starting in our Nursery class. In July of each year we host a new parents evening for parents of children starting in the Reception class.

In the autumn term we invite the local Secondary schools to visit and hold assemblies for our Year 6 children in order to help with the initial steps towards transition.

During the summer term a transition meeting is held between the year 6 teacher and the receiving Secondary Schools. Year 6 pupils attend a roll up day in the July before they start at the Secondary school; additional visits are also arranged for those children who would benefit from them. We share appropriate information with the children’s next school, including passing on copies of individual targets and support strategies.

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

Decisions about the support that your child receives are made in line with statutory guidance and through consultations with parents/carers, pupils, class teachers, the SENCo, Head teacher and outside agencies when required. Together we will identify the support that is needed to help your child achieve their targets. Our SEND budget is allocated to make sure that all children are supported efficiently. With parents/carers and pupils, we regularly review the impact of the support and adapt the support as required.

The school building is two storeys and fully wheel chair accessible, with disabled toilets, changing facilities and lift to the upper floor.


The school’s disability policy is available on the school’s website:
www.gbpa.org

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

All teachers complete ongoing assessment which quickly identifies children who need additional support. Termly pupil progress meetings are held between class teachers, the SENCo and the Head teacher; this also helps to identify children who are not making sufficient progress and/or require additional support. We will always discuss initial concerns with parents/carers and equally encourage parents/carers to discuss any concerns that they may have with us. We work with parents/carers of children with SEND to set individual targets and plan additional support to enable the child to achieve these targets. We can request support from outside professionals when we feel that external help is needed.

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

We value the in depth knowledge that parents/carers have about their children and encourage parents/carers to communicate with us regularly. We have termly reviews for parents/carers of children with SEND and have autumn and spring consultations between all parents/carers and their child’s class teacher. The views of parents/carers are also sought through questionnaires carried out during the academic year.
We encourage parents to become involved in the life of the school by volunteering in school and by becoming part of our ‘Friends’ committee; information about the Friends committee can be found on the school website:

If you would like to volunteer within school please speak to your child’s class teacher.