The policy follows the guidelines in the SEN Code of Practice (1.23-1.28) and the Education (SEN)(Information)(England) Regulations 1999. It highlights links to other policies and documentation in the school: Mission Statement, School Prospectus, Equal Opportunities Policy, Curriculum Policy, Gifted and Talented Policy and our links with the school's PASS Centre. The policy provides a brief outline of working practices, which are covered in greater detail in the SEN Handbook.

Basis:

The Special Educational Needs School Policy is based on:
· The fact that we recognise that each child is unique and has one chance in life - therefore quality of provision and services is of paramount importance.
· The need for all the children to be valued equally, in accordance with the school's Equal Opportunities Policy.
· The provision of maximum opportunities for children, increasing teacher expectations, raising motivation, aspiration and achievements.
· The incorporation of the whole staff in:
a) Identifying needs.
b) Providing equal opportunities of access to all curriculum areas by a differentiated means.
· Close liaison between the Special Educational Needs Department and all other subject departments.
· The whole school staff having a responsibility to work with pupils with special educational needs and to offer them a broad balanced and differentiated curriculum.

Principles:

Priesthorpe School believes that:
· All children with Special Educational Needs should have their needs met.
· The Special Educational Needs of children will normally be met in mainstream classes alongside their peers.
· The views of the child should be sought and taken into account.
· We view parents as partners with the school. That the work of professionals can be more effective when parents are involved and account is taken of their wishes, feelings and perspectives on their children's development.
Partnership with parents plays a key role in promoting a culture of co-operation between parents, schools, LEAs and others.
· Children with Special Educational Needs should be offered full access to a broad, balanced and relevant education, including the National Curriculum.

Definition of Special Educational Needs.

Children have Special Educational Needs if they have a learning difficulty, which calls for special educational provision to be made for them.

Children have a learning difficulty if they:
a) have a significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of children of the same age; or
b) have a disability, which prevents or hinders them from making use of educational facilities of a kind generally provided for children of the same age.

Children must not be regarded as having a learning difficulty solely because of the language or form of language of their home is different from the language in which they will be taught.

Special educational provision means:
Educational provision which is additional to or otherwise different from the educational provision made generally for children of their age in school.

So special educational needs could mean that a child has difficulties with:
· All of the work in school.
· Reading, writing, number work or understanding information.
· Expressing themselves or understanding what others are saying.
· Making friends or relating to adults.
· Behaving properly in school.
· Organising themselves.
· Some kind of sensory or physical needs which may affect them in school.

Responsibilty for Co-ordination of SEN Provision.

Mr. D. Coyne is our Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCO) who, in collaboration with the head teacher and governing body, plays a key role in helping determine the strategic development of the SEN Policy and provision in the school to raise the achievement of pupils with SEN.
The SENCO takes day-to-day responsibility for the operation of the SEN Policy and co-ordination of the provision made for individual pupils with SEN, working closely with staff, parents, the Connexions PA and other agencies. The SENCO also provides related professional guidance to colleagues with the same aim of securing high quality teaching for pupils with SEN.

The SENCO, with the support of the head teacher and colleagues, seeks to develop effective ways of overcoming barriers to learning and sustaining effective teaching through analysis and assessment of pupil's needs, by monitoring the quality of teaching and standards of pupil's achievements and by setting targets for improvement.

Arrangements for Co-ordinating SEN Provision:

Provision for pupils with special educational needs is a matter for the school as a whole. In addition to the governing body, the school's head teacher SENCO, Teaching Assistants team and all other members of staff have important operational responsibilities. All teachers are teachers of pupils with special educational needs. Teaching such pupils is therefore a whole-school responsibility, requiring a whole school response.

Children learn at different speeds and not all children learn in the same way. Teachers at Priesthorpe are expected to try to give every pupil a chance 'to achieve as high a standard as possible' (National Curriculum Inclusion Statement). The National Curriculum allows for different teaching methods and for children to be taught at different levels. This is called differentiation. For pupils who are working significantly below the expected levels of the National Curriculum either generally or in a particular subject or aspect of a subject, a much greater degree of differentiation will be necessary. These pupils may have learning difficulties and require further help. Children making adequate progress through differentiated teaching alone may not have learning difficulties.

Differentiation:

When a teacher differentiates, s/he may:
· Give work at a more basic and simple level.
· Use teaching methods that suit a child's learning style.
· Use books and worksheets that fit the child's own experiences.
· Move the child into a different set or into a small group.
· Target learning support assistants more specifically.

Teachers are expected to organise their lessons as part of a continuous cycle of planning, teaching, assessment and evaluation in the context of the abilities, aptitudes and interests of their pupils. Lesson planning should recognise the needs of all children as individuals.

We aim to help every individual to get the most from school, from all areas of experience in the curriculum and from the social, spiritual and moral life of the school.

Many pupils have special educational needs at some time in their schooling and Priesthorpe is committed to the LEA inclusion programme, which was recognised by the granting of the Leeds Schools Chartermark for Social Inclusion. The school offers learning opportunities for vulnerable groups in society.

Priesthorpe will admit pupils who have already been identified as having special educational needs. Some of the pupils will have been identified by their Primary School and helped through School Action or School Action Plus. Some pupils have significant learning difficulties across the curriculum or social and behavioural problems, which inhibit learning across the curriculum. These pupils will have Statements of Special Educational Need, which give in detail the programme and support we will provide.

Some pupils will have difficulties in specific areas (for example: spelling and handwriting), which affect their general progress. We aim to provide targeted support for as long as is required to remedy the specific problem. This will be delivered either through in-class support or through sessions in our Workshop. Some pupils may be referred to work on our Successmaker program. Some pupils may, therefore, require additional help or smaller teaching groups for varying lengths of time.

We at Priesthorpe are aware that some pupils admitted to Year 7 may have identified special educational needs. We also recognise that children's special educational needs are on a continuum and may also change over time and that the period of transfer and adjustment to a new school, which is crucial to all pupils, may hold a particular challenge for a pupil with special educational needs.

Roles and Responsibilities.

THE GOVERNING BODY: Will, in co-operation with the Head Teacher, determine the school's general policy and approach to provision for children with SEN. They will establish the appropriate staffing and funding arrangements and will maintain a general oversight of the school's work. The Governing Body will appoint a named Governor (Linda Evers) who has a responsibility for SEN to take a particular interest in and closely monitor the school's work on behalf of children with SEN. The Governing Body will report to parents annually on the school's policy on SEN. The Governing Body will also ensure that the school does not unlawfully discriminate against a disabled pupil in the pupil's education and ensure that a pupil with SEN joins in school activities with pupils who do not have such needs.

THE HEAD TEACHER: has the responsibility for the day-to-day management of all aspects of the school's work, including provision for children with SEN. The Head Teacher will keep the Governing Body fully informed and will also work closely with the school's SENCO.
The Head Teacher will provide an annual report to the Governor's Curriculum Committee. This will identify the number of pupil's on the SEN Register, give information on progress made and make recommendations for developments to be included in the school's Development Plan.

ALL TEACHING AND NON TEACHING STAFF: should be involved in the development of the school's SEN policy and be fully aware of the school's procedures for identifying, assessing and making provision for pupils with SEN.
Department Links: every department in the school has a named member of staff who link with the Support Department. Their responsibility is to ensure there is effective communication about teaching materials, strategies, individual's needs and appropriate guidance about conditions and liabilities.
THE SENCO: working closely with the Head Teacher, senior management and fellow teachers, will be closely involved in the strategic development of the SEN Policy and provision. The SENCO has responsibility for day-to-day operation of the school's SEN Policy and for co-ordinating provision for pupils with SEN, particularly through School Action and School Action Plus. In addition, the SENCO will:
· Liaise with the school's PASS Centre.
· Liase with and advise fellow teachers.
· Managing the SEN team of teachers and Teaching Assistants.
· Co-ordinating provision for pupils with Special Educational Needs.
· Oversee the records on all pupils with Special Educational Needs.
· Liase with parents of pupils with Special Educational Needs.
· Contributing to the in-service training of staff, support and Educational Psychology Services, the Connexions PA, Health and Social Services and voluntary bodies.
· Ensure that a pupil's SEN are made known to all who are likely to teach him/her.
· Liaise with the PASS Centre.
· Liaise with Gifted and Talented Co-ordinators.

Admission Arrangements:

Priesthorpe School will admit pupils with already identified special educational needs. In addition, we will identify and provide for pupils not previously identified as having SEN. We will not refuse to admit a child because we feel unable to cater for their special educational needs, but will make every effort to secure resources to be able to meet the child's needs.

We will treat pupils with special educational needs, but without a statement, as fairly as all other applicants for admission (in line with the school's published admissions criteria). Such children will be considered as part of the normal admissions procedure.

Whilst parents have a right to say which state school they would like their child to attend, the LEA must agree with parental preference as long as:
· The school chosen is suitable for the child's age, ability, skills and SEN.
· The child's presence will not damage the education of other children already at the school; and
· Placing the child in the school will be an efficient use of the LEA's resources.

Specialist SEN Provision:

In every class, the teacher is responsible for providing material and work suitable for all the pupils in the class. In some subjects, particularly when pupils are grouped by achievement in that subject, the groups for lower achieving pupils will be smaller.

In English and Maths in KS3, Years 7 and 8, we provide smaller groups running along side the mainstream English and Maths classes. These groups allow for pupils to improve their basic literacy and numeracy skills and receive a greater proportion of teacher attention.

Workshops providing individual help in spelling, handwriting and reading are run every day, before school, during lunchtime and during some lessons. Pupils attend either on a voluntary basis before school or by negotiated withdrawal from lessons. The workshops are staffed by teachers and Teaching Assistants all of whom have been trained in the use of the programmes.

Pupils with Statements of Special Educational Needs will benefit from all or some of the above strategies. In addition, a team of Teaching Assistants work with the pupils and teacher in classes so that the pupils are able to participate in the whole curriculum along side their peers.

Many of our pupils are bilingual and English may be their second language. We are assisted in our work in this area through the appointment of a CPSA (Curriculum and Parental Support Assistant).

Teaching Assistant Keyworker Scheme: Each member of the team has a special interest and concern for the progress of individual statemented pupils. Key workers will share expertise and communicate with each other about best practice within their role.

Resources and Rooms:

The school aims at clear communication between all interested parties and a consistent and committed approach to ensuring our SEN pupils achieve of their best.
The SEN department has a large workshop area, a resource/interview room, a small IT room and an office.

We have seven A300 computers. The department endeavours to reinforce pupil's IT skills and experience. A most important resource is our Success Maker program. Some pupils have been invited to attend sessions in reading, spelling or numeracy on the computer program.

When a Teaching Assistant is working with a pupil in class, it is the responsibility of the teacher to provide facilities and appropriate material. Though the Teaching Assistant will help to differentiate materials, to help pupils access the curriculum.

We currently have thirteen Teaching Assistants at Priesthorpe (see Support Guidelines document).

Identification of Pupils Requiring Additional Help:

The SEN Co-ordinator, the Key Stage Co-ordinator and the Head of Year all liase with primary colleagues and will identify pupils who have Statements or whose progress in primary school is of concern. The SEN Co-ordinator will maintain a register of all pupils in the school who have been referred to the SEN department.

Open Evening: Priesthorpe holds an Open Evening in the October of the preceding year for prospective new parents and pupils. Our SENCO is on hand and liaises/meets with prospective new parents to discuss their child's special needs.

In the first term of Year 7, all pupils are given standard tests: CATS (Cognitive Attainment Test), NFER 9-14 Reading Test and Maths assessment. The results of these tests are used to identify pupils whose progress does not match their scores in the tests. Where necessary, these pupils will be put on the SEN register.

Assessment against the National Curriculum level descriptions for each subject will enable the school to consider the individual pupil's attainment and progress against the expected levels for the majority of their peers. Pupils whose overall attainments in specific subjects fall significantly outside the expected range may have special educational needs.

It is also the responsibility of the class teacher to identify pupils who require additional help. The class teacher refers the pupil to the SEN Co-ordinator and the pupil is put on the SEN register. All staff working in the sensitive area of support and SEN are aware of the importance of working with discretion and confidentiality.

If a parent or guardian raises a concern about their child's progress, the pupil will initially be referred to the SEN Co-ordinator for assessment.

When a pupil is on the SEN register, their progress will be recorded and the assessment procedures used by the LEA will be followed, leading, if necessary, to a statement of Special Educational Need. The school will keep the parents informed at all relevant stages and will try to work with the family. A member of the Support department will be available at all Parents' Evenings. The SENCO will also endeavour, when invited, to attend all Year 6 pupil's Annual Review Meetings.

Reviews:
Pupils who have a statement of Special Educational Needs have their statements reviewed annually. In Year 9, this review is the Transitional

Review, which involves the Careers Service together with other professionals, the pupil and their parents.

Individual Education Plans are written for pupils, which state strategies employed to enable the pupil to progress. IEPs only record that which is additional to or different from the differentiated curriculum provision. The IEP is reviewed at least twice a year.
Pupils are also reviewed through the school's Record of Achievement and annually through the school's reporting to parent's procedure. In addition, the school holds Parent's Evenings throughout the year for all pupils, these also constitute towards any reviewing procedure.
The SENCO together with the Heads of the Pastoral Teams meet weekly to review and discuss pupils causing concern, to determine how their needs can be met.

Teaching Assistants:

It is school policy to maintain the team of Teaching Assistants throughout a school year. If a pupil with a Statement leaves within a school year and therefore the funding associated with that Statement ceases, we will make it a priority to maintain the contract for the Teaching Assistant from the school budget for that school year. There are always plenty of pupils who can benefit from any Teaching Assistant time that becomes available in this way. All the Teaching Assistant contracts are partially permanent. We see this as a professional approach to their difficult and demanding role and recognition of their considerable commitment and skill.

Each September, at the beginning of the academic year, the SENCO together with the Learning Support team, examine the pupil's individual needs as stated on their Statements or Individual Education Plans, together with pupil's individual timetables and map out a complete in-class support programme, prioritising Maths, English and Science together with any other areas of need. Where possible, the support is allocated to facilitate any sharing of support time for other pupils not statemented, yet with SEN.
Consideration at this stage is also made to staff our workshop sessions, Successmaker program and to help staff the school's PASS Centre.

Access to the Curriculum:

Priesthorpe School has regard to the National Curriculum 2000, which incorporates a statement on Inclusion: providing effective opportunities for all children. This states that in our planning and teaching the National Curriculum, teachers have responsibility for:
· Setting suitable learning challenges.
· Responding to a pupil's diverse learning need; and
· Overcoming potential barriers to learning and assessment for individuals and groups of pupils

The National Curriculum is intended to be accessible to all children including those with special educational needs, although some children may have some modification of the curriculum.

All our pupils have a right to receive a broad, well-balanced and relevant education. Differentiation of learning activities in subjects within our school's curriculum framework will help us to meet the learning needs of all our pupils.

Teachers at Priesthorpe use the National Curriculum programmes of study to teach knowledge, understanding and skills using a variety of methods that are appropriate to the abilities of individual pupils.

For some pupils it might be necessary to choose work from earlier Key Stages so they are able to progress and demonstrate attainment.

All of our subject teachers' planning should be flexible so as to recognise the needs of all pupils as individuals and to ensure progression, relevance and differentiation.

At Priesthorpe each student is assigned to a Tutor and a Head of Year with whom they remain for 5 years.

Pupils are put into different teaching groups for different subjects. In Key Stage 3 (Years 7 - 9) the tutor group is occasionally a teaching group as well. In Technology, the Arts and Physical Education the groups are reorganised to give more, and therefore smaller, mixed ability-teaching groups. In Maths and English a few students who need extra help are taught in very small groups. In some subjects, students are put into sets according to their ability in that subject, for example Maths from Year 7, Science from Year 8 and Modern Languages from Year 9.

In Key Stage 4 (Years 10 - 11) most subjects are organised in sets and students can also choose some subjects and courses to meet their needs and abilities.

Our team of Teaching Assistants help students who have statements and other children with special needs, who are fully integrated in mainstream classes. With their support students can take part in the whole curriculum and make progress.

Priesthorpe school supports lifelong learning and we encourage all our students to use their time at school as a foundation for continuing learning.

Inclusion of Pupils with SEN: Priesthorpe School believes that the teaching and learning achievements, attitudes and well-being of every young person matters. That to be an effective school means being an educationally inclusive school. We feel strongly that this shows not only in our performance, but also in our ethos and our willingness to offer new opportunities to pupils who may have experienced previous difficulties. This does not mean treating all pupils in the same way. Rather it involves taking account of pupil's varied life experiences and needs.

Educational inclusion is about equal opportunities for all pupils, whatever their age, gender, attainment and background. We pay particular attention to the provision made for and the achievement of different groups of pupils within our school. By this we mean:
· Girls and boys.
· Minority ethnic and faith groups, travellers, asylum seekers, refugees.
· Pupils who need support to learn English as an additional language.
· Pupils with special educational needs.
· Gifted and Talented pupils.
· Children 'looked after' by the local authority.
· Other children, such as sick children, young carers, those from families under stress, pregnant schoolgirls and teenage mothers.
· Any pupil who are at risk of disaffection and exclusion.

We believe that every human being has an entitlement to personal, social and intellectual development and must be given the opportunity to achieve his/her potential in learning. That those with exceptional needs and/or disabilities should have access to high quality and appropriate education.

· We believe that all our children should have an equal opportunity to attend our school.
· We value every individual and celebrate their achievements.
· We have structures and policies in place to promote inclusion.
· We identify and overcome potential barriers to learning for individuals and groups.
· We set suitable learning challenges for every pupil.
· We base our inclusion policy and practice on:
The National and Local Framework of Inclusive Policy and Guidance.
Inclusion Statement in Curriculum 2000.
Disability Discrimination Act 1999.
SEN and Disability Rights Act 2001
SEN Code of Practice 2001.
Leeds Inclusive Policy Statement 2000.
Leeds Inclusion Chartermark.

Evaluating the Success of Provision for Pupils with SEN.

We will evaluate the success of our education, which we provide at the school to pupils with SEN by:
· Examining pupil's progress in specific areas.
· Assessing the extent to which curriculum/teaching strategies have been influenced.
· How far individual targets have been met.

· Measured progress in the annual Reading Test and Review week.
· Improvement in the SATS results from KS2 to KS3 for pupils with special educational needs.
· The number of pupils with special needs who manage to stay the course and achieve their potential grades in GCSE exams.
· The number of pupils with special needs who continue into Further Education.
· Examining the progress made at Annual/Transitional Reviews for those formally assessed.
· Measuring the progress of those made on the Successmaker program.
· Noting the number of children who make use of the pre-school workshop and lunchtime workshops.
· The number of pupils with special needs who have a final destination after compulsory school age.
· The reduction of frustration and off task behaviour to allow lessons to progress smoothly.
· The number of referrals for unacceptable behaviour in pupils with special educational needs.
· The number of pupils with special educational needs who take part fully in extra curricular activities including schools residentials.
· The number of pupils who have made sufficient progress to come off the school's SEN register.
· The action taken by school to promote racial harmony, to prepare pupils for living in a diverse and increasingly inter-dependent society and specifically to prevent and address racism, sexism and other forms of discrimination.
· Examining the diversity of pupil's special needs, whose needs are met.

Complaints Procedure:

If parents are not happy with anything the school is doing for their children with special educational needs, their complaint is dealt with as follows:
1. Parents should first discuss the matter with our SENCO or their child's Form Tutor or subject teacher.
2. The Head Teacher who will make every effort to resolve the matter informally before referring it to the Governing Body.
3. If necessary, the Governing Body will investigate and consider the complaint and ensure the LEA has a copy of their report.
4. If the complaint is still not satisfied, the complaint will be referred to the LEA. The LEA will investigate and bring the matter to the Complaint Panel.
The complainant will be advised on further recourse if appropriate.

If parents disagree after having discussed the matter with the school, they might like to approach the Leeds Parent Partnership Service. This service

offer impartial advice and support to parents/carers whose children have SEN. They can also offer help with mediation or offer neutral attendance at meetings.

Please contact:

Parent Partnership Helpline
0113 395 1200

Monday - Friday 10:00am - 3:00pm

In Service Training.

There are 6 in-service training days allocated during the academic year. In addition, all staff are encouraged to identify and attend appropriate training courses.
All members of the Teaching Assistant team attend the LEA training course and are part of an on-going INSET course organised with help from the Special Services Department. The Teaching Assistant team provide aid as a positive communication system between subject teachers and the SEN department.

Links to Support Services:

We work closely with the Support Services, liaising with Educational Psychologists, the Special Services Department and any other voluntary organisation, which work on behalf of children with SEN, as appropriate. In addition, all these professionals receive invites to attend Annual Review meetings if they are involved with the child.

Working in Partnership with Parents:

We believe that Partnership with parents plays a key role in promoting a culture of co-operation between parents and schools. This is important in enabling children and young people with SEN to achieve their potential.

Parents hold key information and have a crucial role to play in their child's education. They have unique strengths, knowledge and experience to contribute to the shared view of a child's needs and the best way of supporting them. We, at Priesthorpe, therefore, actively seek to work with parents and value the contribution they make.

In all the work done with children with learning difficulties parents are kept fully informed and involved where appropriate. The Special Needs Department operates an 'open door' policy in which parents have a vital and important role to play in helping us to provide the right kind of support for their child.

Links with Other Schools:

We maintain regular contact with our feeder schools. The SENCO will attend Year 6 Annual Reviews when invited. The Head of Year 7 and the SENCO will visit the feeder schools during the summer term and gather information on pupils with special needs. In July, those Year 6 pupils who are coming to Priesthorpe will receive an Induction day in order to help them with their transition in September.

Written: June 2002
Review Date: June 2004.
Person Responsible: Head Teacher