Model Departmental Special Educational Needs and Disability Policy

Model Departmental Special Educational Needs and Disability Policy

Aims and objectives

This policy explains how the ______department makes provision for students with SEND, in line with the school SEND policy and with the current legislative requirements in the SEND Code of Practice 2015.

Should you require further information about provision for students with SEND, please visit the school SEND Information Report on our website or contact the special educational needs coordinator (SENCO).

Our aim as a ______department is for all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, to receive high-quality teaching and to make at least good progressin all lessons. We want our pupils to achieve in ______so that they can reach their aspirations and desired outcomes.

Our key objectives are to:

ensure that all our pupils, whatever their strengths and needs, receive high-quality educational provision as part of a broad and balanced curriculum;
enable pupils to experience success and make at least ‘good’ progress;
work collaboratively with pupils, parents/carers and other professionals;
give pupils with SEND equal opportunities to take part in all aspects of school life;
ensure that children with SEND have opportunities to express their opinions and to have those opinions taken into account.

All teachers are teachers of pupils with special educational needs and are responsible and accountable for the progress and development of all students in their classes. Our staff in the ______department/faculty understand that high-quality teaching, differentiated to meet the individual needs of our students, is essential in meeting diverse learning needs.

Definition of SEND

A pupil has special educational needs if he or she:

has a significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of others of the same age; or
has a disability which prevents or hinders him or her from making use of facilities of a kind generally provided for others of the same age in mainstream schools or mainstream Post-16 institutions. (SEND Code of Practice 2015, p. 15)

The SEND Code of Practice 2015 identifies four broad areas of SEND as outlined below. However, pupils’ needs often cover more than one of these broad areas.

The four broad areas of SEN

Communication and interaction / Cognition and learning / Social, emotional and mental health difficulties / Sensory and/or physical needs
Speech, language and communication needs (SLCN)
Asperger’s Syndrome and autism (ASD) / Specific learning difficulties (SpLD)
Moderate learning difficulties (MLD)
Severe learning difficulties (SLD)
Profound and multiple learning difficulties (PMLD) / Mental health difficulties such as anxiety or depression, self-harming, substance abuse or eating disorders
Attention deficit disorders, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder or attachment disorder / Vision impairment (VI)
Hearing impairment (HI)
Multi-sensory impairment (MSI)
Physical disability (PD)

Provision for staff within the department

The SEND Champion in the ______department is ______.

This role involves:

overseeing the provision for pupils with SEND within the department;
attending regular liaison meetings and giving feedback to the other members of the department;
maintaining the department’s SEND file;
attending/disseminating and/or organising appropriate training on SEND matters;
meeting with parents/carers to talk about teaching and learning strategies that can be used in school and at home. (All information about individual pupils is be treated with confidentiality and only shared with the direct consent of parents/carers and the pupil involved.)

All members of the department liaise with the school SENCO to ensure continual improvements in our provision for pupils with SEND. This year we have focused on______. This has involved a departmental audit, additional training, and a range of new resources to support learning and engagement.

Identification and assessment of SEND

The school uses appropriate screening and assessment tools, and monitors pupil progress through:

information obtained from primary schools, including tests at the end of Key Stage 2;
standardised screening or assessment tools – all pupils are assessed for reading and spelling on entry to Year 7 to inform teaching and additional provision;
information from parents/carers;
evidence obtained by teacher observation/assessment.

When one of our teachers identifies that a pupil is not making expected progress in ______, our department SEND Champion will observe a lesson to see if the learning activities and resources are appropriate for all pupils in the class. If the less than expected progress continues, advice will be sought from the SENCO on other teaching and learning approaches that the teacher could try. The SEND Champion will also let the pupil’s parents/carers know of the concerns and offer advice on how they can help their child’s learning at home.

Provision for pupils with SEND

A continuous cycle of assessment, planning, teaching and evaluation is central to our work and takes account of the wide range of abilities, aptitudes and interests of the pupils. The majority of pupils will learn and progress within these arrangements. However, for pupils with special educational needs, there may be a need to provide an enhanced level of provision that supports and enhances their learning abilities. This is known as SEND Support.

Pupils with SEND will receive additional adult support, possibly identified in an Education, Health and Care plan (EHC plan). The staff in the ______department aim for pupils with SEND to achieve the best possible outcomes by supporting them to achieve their individual targets as specified in their provision maps or individual learning plans. Staff will provide feedback for termly progress meetings and annual reviews of EHC plans. Pupils with SEND are included in the departmental monitoring system used for all pupils.

In the ______department, pupils are usually grouped according to ability using information from test results, reading scores and any other relevant progress, social or medical information. We undertake assessments throughout the school year to check on progress and regularly gather feedback from pupils about their experiences of the teaching they receive. This information is then used to adapt groups and teaching strategies so that all pupils can make good progress.

Support staff are provided with curriculum information in advance of lessons and are involved in lesson planning. In addition, we use one-page profiles for all pupils and these outline any individual learning preferences and requirements that need to be addressed in preparation for lessons. Where pupils have small group or, more rarely, one-to-one support, the teaching assistant’s principal role is to foster pupils’ independence as learners. Wherever possible, pupils are encouraged to work together and support each other.

Resources and learning materials

The department provides suitably differentiated and personalised learning materials and, where appropriate, specialist resources to meet the needs of pupils with SEND. In addition, teachers regularly request advice from the SENCO and other SEND specialists, such as educational psychologists or speech and language therapists, about other resources and teaching and learning approaches that would benefit a particular pupil or group of pupils. A full list of specialist resources is kept in the department handbook.

Alternative courses and examinations are made available as appropriate for individuals or groups of pupils. Special examination arrangements are organised by the Learning Support department in conjunction with the requirements of the various examination boards and department SEND Champions.

Staff qualifications and CPD

Complete as appropriate, e.g.

All staff in the ______department have attended awareness training on disability equality within the past twelve months and this has informed developments in both the physical environment of classes and teaching and learning strategies.

The department SEND Champion completed a specialist course in ASD and one of our teaching assistants is researching interventions for pupils social, emotional and mental health difficulties as part of a master’s degree.

Training on the SEND Code of Practice and other aspects of SEND is factored into the annual cycle of continuing professional development for all staff.

A complete record of the training undertaken by our staff is available in the department handbook. Requests for additional training are considered in line with the department and school improvement plan in which provision for SEND is a key priority.

Monitoring and reviewing the policy

The department SEND policy will be monitored by the Head of Department on a planned annual basis, with advice being sought from the SENCO as part of the three-yearly review process.

Signed______Head of Department

______SEND Champion

Date ______