Local Offer – Adderley Primary School

At Adderley Primary School we are committed to ensuring that all children become independent learners and reach their full potential. We aim to identify children’s individual and specific areas of need early and make provision to support them and remove any barrier to learning.

Who is the lead person for SEND?

Mrs Julia Smith is the SENDCo at Adderley and is supported by a qualified School Nurse and the Pastoral Team who are trained to deliver a range of interventions, such as: Learning Mentoring, Solution Focused Behaviour Therapy and Counselling.

Mrs Smith can be contacted by visiting the school office or calling 0121 464 1500.

The SENDCo is responsible for:

Co-ordinating all the support for children with special educational needs or disabilities.
Ensuring that parents and carers are involved in supporting their child’s learning.
Keeping parents and carers informed of their child’s learning.
Reviewing the progress of children with SEND.
Liaising with teaching staff, wellbeing team and external agencies that may support individual children.
Updating the school’s SEND provision.

The kinds of SEND that we support are:

Cognition and Learning

How your child thinks, learns and understands their world.

Communication and Interaction

How your child talks to, listens, responds, plays and learns with other children and adults.

Social, Emotional and Mental Health difficulties

How your child shows their feelings, negotiates and solves problems in different situations and handles changes of routine.

Sensory and/or Physical needs

How your child responds to their environment and learning using their senses and any diagnosed medical issues.

How does the school identify pupils with SEND?

At Adderley Primary School children are identified as having special educational needs through a variety of ways. Class teachers will make regular assessment of progress for all pupils and identify those whose progress:

If significantly slower that of their peers starting from the same baseline.
Fails to match or better the child’s previous rate of progress.
Fails to close the attainment gap between the child and their peers
Widens the attainment gap

This may include progress in areas other than attainment, for example, social needs.

Slow progress and low attainment will not automatically mean a pupil is recorded as having SEND.

When deciding whether special educational provision is required, we will start with the desired outcomes, including the expected progress and attainment, and the views and the wishes of the pupil and their parents. We will use this to determine the support that is needed and whether we can provide it by adapting our core offer, or whether something different or additional is needed.

What should I do if I think my child has Special Educational Needs?

Talk to us:

Firstly, contact your child’s class teacher and if they can’t answer your question, make an appointment to see Mrs Smith. We pride ourselves on listening to and building positive relationships with our parents/carers.

How will you help me to support my child’s learning?

Teachers suggest ways of supporting all children’s learning through parent afternoons that take place each term.
The class teacher may arrange a meeting to speak to parent’s afterschool.
The SENDCo Mrs Smith may meet with you to discuss how to support your child. This may be following an initial concern raised by the class teacher.
Miss Asghar (Senior Pastoral Care Leader) or one of the pastoral team may meet with you discuss strategies to use if there are problems with a child’s emotional or behaviour needs.
External agencies such as the Educational Psychologist may suggest advice or strategies to support at home.
Parent/carer workshops are arranged throughout the year, sometimes with invited guests, to encourage an open and relaxed forum where advice and ideas can be exchanged.

How will school support my child?

Quality First Teaching
Small group targeted intervention
Individual targeted interventions
Listening to the children’s and parent’s needs
Working alongside external agencies where needed

We support children through Quality First Teaching

This means that:

The teacher has the highest possible expectations for all children in their class, regardless of their ability.
All teaching is based on building on what your child already knows, can do and understands.
Different ways of teaching are used so that your child is fully motivated to be involved in their learning.
Learning is personalised to suit each individual child.
Your child’s progress is monitored to ensure that the teaching and any additional resources meets their needs.

We support children through targeted group work.
This is where your child works with a smaller group of children, who are at a similar place in their learning, often called an intervention or booster group.

For your child this would mean:

Working in small group sessions on specific targets or objectives to support their progress.
These sessions may be led by the class teacher or a different member of the teaching staff, under the direction of the class teacher, with possible support from the SENDCo or a Learning Mentor.
Progress is monitored to ensure that the intervention is meeting the needs of the group and individuals.

We support children through targeted individual work
For your child this would mean:

Working 1 to 1 on specific targets to support their progress.
These sessions may be led by the class teacher, an intervention teacher or a trained teaching assistant under the direction of the class teacher and SENDCo, with advice from any other agencies involved.
Progress is monitored to ensure that 1 to 1 interventions are meeting the child’s needs.

Who will explain this to me?

Class Teachers will meet with parents/carers on a termly basis at Parent’s afternoon to discuss and review your child’s needs, support and progress. You can also request a meeting with the class teacher at another time if you need to discuss further concerns or questions
Mrs Smith, the SENDCo is available for further information and discussion.
Children with an Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan will have an annual review each year.

How will the school support pupils with transitions?

During transition times we ensure plans are in place to make your child feel safe and secure. We always involve the parents or carers and their child. We ensure there are opportunities to answer any questions they may have.

When starting at our school we may:

Arrange visits to our school for the child to meet the class teacher.
Contact staff at the child’s previous setting.
Provide a suitable transition programme depending on their needs
Involve external agencies when necessary.
Provide information to the adults working with the child.
Assess each child’s current skills and levels on entry, which build on previous settings.

When moving to a new year group:

Plan sessions during the summer term, where the child will work with their new class teacher.
Hold transition meetings where staff meet with previous teaching staff to share information and appropriate strategies.
Where necessary, provide a transition booklet for the child to take home over the summer break.

When moving to a new school we may:

Hold a person-centred review and invite key staff from the new school.
Liaise with key staff at the new school about the support and provision in place.
Arrange extra visits to the new school and support pupils and parents and carers, where necessary.
Transfer files and documents securely.

How will I know how Adderley Primary School supports my child?

Each child will have targets set by the class teacher. The targets will be adapted to reflect the pupil’s individual needs and will form an Individual Pupil Profile (IPP). A copy of these targets will be shared with parents.
If a child has needs related to a more specific area of the curriculum or social skills, they may be placed in a small intervention group. Your child’s teacher will let you know that they are taking part in this group. Intervention groups are reviewed regularly and usually run for approximately six to eight weeks. Interventions are all recorded on a provision map which is reviewed every half term.
Individual pupils may need expert support from external agencies such as Educational Psychology, Communication and Autism Team, Speech and Language Therapy. Referrals for such support are discussed with parents and forwarded to the most appropriate agency. The external agency may suggest strategies and interventions to support pupils at school and at home.

How will the curriculum and learning environment be adapted to my child’s needs?

We make the following adaptations to ensure the needs of all pupils are met:

Differentiating our curriculum to ensure all pupils are able to access it.
Allowing longer processing time for instructions and tasks.
Using recommended aids such as laptops, visual timetables, task boards.
Adapting resources and staffing.
Adaptations to the school environment where possible and specialist equipment used.
Providing a safe space for sensory breaks for pupils who need it.
Additional support from teaching assistants or support assistants for pupils with more complex needs.
Support pupils who have personal care needs.

How is my child fully included in activities outside the classroom?

All pupils have access to extra-curricular activities such as clubs, educational visits and a range of Ambassador Roles across school. Where appropriate, reasonable adjustments will be made to ensure children with special educational needs are included in these activities. For educational visits where necessary we may:

Provide additional support to meet their needs.
Create a social story to support them with changes to their routine.

How does the school know how well my child is doing?

We evaluate the effectiveness of provision for pupils with SEND by:

Reviewing pupils’ individual progress towards their targets each term
Reviewing the impact of interventions after six to eight weeks.
Through pupil voice.
Monitoring by the SENDCo.
Holding annual reviews for pupils with EHC Plans.

How will I know how my child is doing?

Our school has an open door policy to parents ensuring we are always approachable, so parents feel involved in the education of their child.

In addition, our school aims to regularly involve parents through a variety of different ways:

Termly parent’s afternoons.
Review meetings with the SENDCo and class teacher.
Annual Reviews for children with EHC Plans.
Class teachers are regularly available at the end of the day if you have any questions.
Appointments can be made to speak in more detail to the class teacher or Mrs Smith by visiting the school office.

What support will there be for by child’s overall wellbeing?

Pastoral Support

The school offers a wide variety of pastoral support for pupils who are encountering emotional, social and behavioural difficulties. We have a pastoral team dedicated to mentoring and supporting those children that are in need of additional support.

The Pastoral Team are available at break times and lunchtimes for children who wish to discuss any issues and concerns that they may have.
The Learning Mentors run a variety of wellbeing groups targeting social skills, self-esteem, emotional wellbeing and anger management.

External Agencies

We also work very closely with the following external agencies to ensure that we best meet the wellbeing needs of our pupils:

Educational Psychologist Services (EPS)

Aruna Pintilei – EPS provides tailored support for children with more significant and complex needs.

Communication and Autism Team (CAT)

Cari-Anne Burden – Pupils with a diagnosis of Autism.

Pupil and School Support (PSS)

Deborah Smart – Pupils with difficulties in speaking, reading, writing or maths; by providing personalised learning pathways.

Hearing Support Team and Sensory Support

Carolyn Hasler (Teacher of the Deaf) – Pupils with a hearing impairment.

Speech and Language Team

Reemah Suleman – Pupils with difficulties with Speech and Language.

How is the governing body involved in supporting families of children with Special Educational Needs?

We have a designated governor with responsibility for SEND who liaises with the SENDCo to ensure that the Governors are informed about provision, progress and well-being of our children with SEND.
The Governors agree priorities for spending within the SEND budget with the overall aim that all children receive the support they need in order to make progress.
If you want to discuss any issues with our SEND Governor, contact the school office to arrange an appointment.

Who are the best people to talk to about SEND?

We always encourage you to speak to your child’s class teacher about any concerns you may have about your child. However, if you have a specific concern about your child’s learning, special educational or additional need then the SENDCo, Mrs Smith, will be available to speak to you.
The SENDCo is a teacher who is responsible for supporting members of staff, parents/carers/carers and pupils in meeting the additional needs of all children. They have specialised training in co-ordinating SEND across the school.
Complaints about the SEND provision in our school should be made to Mrs Smith – SENDCo in the first instance. You will then be referred to the school’s complaints policy. We do everything we can to resolve any issues. Our school and Governing Body take complaints seriously and will act upon these on an individual basis.

Parents and carers can find out more about Birmingham Local Authority’s local offer here.

Further information on our school’s policies relating to SEND can be found here.