Who to contact?

The school welcomes conversations with parents and carers about students individual needs and will strive to meet the needs of any student.

• Cognition and Learning Difficulties
• Sensory and/or Physical Needs
• Communication and Interaction Needs
• Social and Emotional Health

The name and contact details of the SENCO (mainstream schools) and further contacts where parents/ carers may have concerns:

Mrs B Donkin - SENCO

Mrs N Rush - Assistant SENCO

CAMHS Crisis No. 03000 218 996. This number is for anyone, any age (child, parent, professional) to call 24/7.

Our Approach to SEND

As part of the trust’s wider response (led by the Headteacher) to the Green Paper, we implement a graduated approach to SEND.  Effective classroom teaching is our most important strategy.  SEND is one of our key whole school priorities.  We are working hard to upskill staff to to move away from the use of the term ‘SEN’ as an umbrella term.  This is to ensure staff have a better understanding of generic characteristics linked to areas of need to make more effective use of student passports by having a greater understanding of individual need.  We are proud of our inclusive ethos and work in partnership with learners, parents and other agencies to provide the best possible educational outcomes for our students. We are an inclusive school and believe that all young people should be valued and treated with respect.  As a school community, we endeavour to ensure that the provision for all our learners is of the highest possible standard, whilst acknowledging that we will always need to continue to improve our practice.     

At Armthorpe we believe that:  

•     All students are entitled to be valued equally, be respected as individuals and be included regardless of abilities, needs and behaviours  

•     All students are entitled to a broad, balanced and enriching curriculum which is adapted as appropriate to meet the individual needs of students  

•     All of our teachers are teachers of children with special educational needs.   

•     All of our students are able to make progress and learn  

•     Effective assessment and provision for children with SEN/D will be secured in partnership with parents/carers, students, Local Authority and other partners  

•    Maintaining young people’s safety and wellbeing is central to their development  

Each teacher has the responsibility to meet the needs of all the students in their class, with the Head of Department having overall accountabilities for all the performance of all learners in their respective subject area.   All staff have seating plans for all classes/students, where strategies are identified as appropriate to support students learning. These seating plans are checked as part of our quality assurance process.  Learners on the SEND register also have student profiles. These contain contributions of the students and help to inform staff what is important ‘to’ and ‘for’ the learner as well as specific targets students may be working towards. The aim of these plans is to ensure any barriers to learning are diminished because of strategies put in place.  Plans for each learner are reviewed after each data collection. Plans are then adjusted as appropriate to best support each individual.   As part of our drive to improve the quality of education, in September, we launched the first phase of our whole school approach to SEND.  We are currently working with staff to ensure these strategies are implemented across the academy on a daily basis. In essence, our wave one strategy is about knowing the learners and teaching well knowing using the strategies we know are proven to be effective.

For some students ‘differentiating the curriculum’ through effective lesson planning may not be enough to enable them to make adequate progress. They may require interventions which are ‘additional to and different from’ that, which are normally provided for all students.  If a student requires this kind of support the academy will monitor them according to the SEND Code of Practice.  Parents are kept informed of any additional support their child is receiving.  Where strategies used by teachers and subject leaders are not having an impact on student progress, via the ‘plan do review’ proves further small group interventions are initiated alongside other students with similar needs – this is called ‘wave two intervention’ and is generally delivered by a member of the SEND Team.  Any interventions will be carefully targeted to address the student’s needs/gaps in learning and progress will be closely monitored and evaluated. If no progress is made, sometimes it may then be necessary to provide even more bespoke personalised intervention with specific 1:1 support – this is known as ‘wave 3 intervention’ and once again this will be planned, delivered and evaluated on a short-term cycle. 

Regardless of the wave of provision, our aim is to provide a calm, safe, caring and purposeful environment where everyone is valued and respected equally. We work hard to provide an inclusive education, encouraging the development of academic skills, social skills, life skills, respect for self and others and the ability to be an independent learner. 

School SEND policies are available to view below: