What should I do if I think my child has special needs?

First discuss your concerns with your child’s class teacher.  They may then direct you to the Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCO) which is Mrs Holt.

How will the school respond to my concerns?

Firstly your child’s teacher will discuss those concerns with you and how they are being addressed. Together it might be decided that the best way to support your child is to put them on the SEN register. This is a list of children in school that need some extra support. We keep a list to ensure that all staff know the needs of your child and how to support them. If you still have concerns after speaking to your child’s class teacher then you can make an appointment to speak to Mrs Holt the SENCO.

How will the school decide if my child needs extra support?

The progress of all children is monitored regularly. If it is noticed that a child is having difficulty in some way then support will be put in place for that difficulty. Not all support means that a child has special educational needs, as we all need help sometimes. If your child needs this help for an extended period of time or has additional support and are still struggling we will have a discussion as to the reasons for these difficulties.  They then may be placed on the SEN register. While we do have a significant amount of intervention groups and adult support it is not possible to target all children for everything in addition to their usual high quality teaching. Each term the teaching staff, in liaison with the senior leadership team (SLT) will assign priorities and which interventions and support we will run that term.

What will the school do to support my child?

Children who are finding something challenging will be supported in a range of ways. These will include a range of in class strategies as well as some targeted intervention groups if necessary. For a full list of interventions we run in school please see our intervention pages. Please understand that this is a list of the interventions we are able to deliver across the whole school and not a list of provision that you can choose from. Children are selected for targeted intervention based on need and set criteria due to this not all interventions will be running at any one given time.

Who will support my child in school?

The main support for all children is their class teacher. There may also be additional adults that work in the classroom supporting groups of children. In some year groups children work in sets with other members of staff on a daily basis. The provision for children with SEND in school is coordinated by Mrs Holt. This does not mean that she will work directly with every child on the SEN register but ensures that they are getting appropriate provision both from within school and, where appropriate, from outside agencies.

What training and experience do staff for the additional support my child needs?

As a school we believe in outstanding learning for all and this means that all of our staff are committed to continually learning and developing as well. We have ongoing professional development for all staff to increase their knowledge and awareness of different additional needs. For a list of training staff have undertaken please see the relevant section under Lincolnshire’s Local Offer (A link is provided at the bottom of the page) or some to school to discuss this. If however, your child has additional needs that our staff do not have experience of we would endeavour to provide training for the relevant members of staff, as appropriate.

Who else might be involved in supporting my child?

At times we ask for additional support from outside agencies to support us in ensuring the best education for your child. These include the speech and language therapist (SALT) to support all areas of language need, the educational psychologist (EP) to primarily support learning needs, physiotherapy (PT) to support gross motor skills, occupational therapy (OT) to support fine motor skills, the Working Together Team (WTT) to support children with social communication differences and Autistic spectrum disorders, Sensory Education and Support Team (SEST) to support children with hearing or sight issues and Specialist Nurse Trainers for Children with Disabilities to support with medical issues.   We would always seek your permission first before accessing personal advice about your child and sharing your child’s details with any outside agency.

What support will be there for my child’s emotional and social well-being?

In school we have 2 members of staff that work primarily with supporting the emotional and social needs of children. They run a range of 1:1 sessions as well as group sessions in our nurture room. These include a range of needs from play skills to our young carers group. We have a member of staff trained in Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) which can support anxiety. In the first instance, if you have concerns please discuss them with your child’s class teacher but all of these groups are overseen by our behaviour lead, and so if you need any further information on supporting these needs please make an appointment to see her via the school office.