Early Year Settings

PART 1: Guidance Notes for Completing the SENRAP Forms: requesting Statutory Assessment or Additional Funding

General points:

All parts of the form must be completed. Please indicate “N/A” as appropriate.
If the correct parts of the form are not completed it may not be possible for the Panel to consider the request and this will delay any decision being made.
The form must be legible. The forms are available electronically (EY Resources section – and we would recommend they are completed using a computer.
All documents submitted must be dated and signed. Documents will be returned if they are not signed.
Do NOT attach any additional paperwork other than what is requested on the form. For example, school or settings progress summary reports, IPP sheets, risk assessments.
Parents must be aware of the application and the contents. Comments must be factual and based on clear evidence. The forms will be placed on the pupil’s file, which can be examined by parents at any time.
If there is information of a confidential nature, which you wish to draw to the attention of the panel, please put it in a sealed envelope marked “Confidential. For the attention of SENRAP only.”
Please make sure you have checked the pupil’s levels against the Guidance Criteria for Statutory Assessment before completing the form if applicable. These can be found in the EY Resources section –
Please make sure you have banded the student using the Universal Banding Descriptors and have stated which Band the child falls under.
Please do send in the banding descriptors document with the application.
If you are submitting a request for Statutory Assessment and/or additional funding if a statement is already in place, you must show how you have used the first £10K SEN notional funding to meet that child’s needs, you will need to evidence and demonstrate the impact of this support.
Please note that for TA hours any costs should be based up to £12 per hour for all EY settings (low need £4, medium need £8 high need £12)
A timetable of support must be included – this must clearly show how support is being used and must be in detailfor individual support or for group support: e.g. how much is 1:1 or 2:1, or if group support what this involves in terms of number of children and staff and for how long. If this is not clear it will be returned and the setting will be asked to re-submit the request.
If a pupil has a Statement, funding and provision in terms of meeting needs will be reviewed through their Annual / 6 months Review.
Please ensure you attach all relevant reports with your request. Reports from relevant professionals, e.g. Educational Psychology, Advisory Teacher, Paediatrician etc completed in the last 6 months must be attached to the applications. If the Panel consider that this information is relevant to the case and it has not been submitted, the request could be refused and would need to be resubmitted.
Settings must be able to demonstrate and provide evidence that they have used a graduated response to meet a child’s needs, which may prevent the need for a statement. A request for Statutory Assessment should not be the first action taken.
Any incomplete requests will not be submitted to panel and will be returned to the setting to re-submit with all the necessary information.
Requests for statutory assessment should not be submitted during term 6.This is because submitting at that late stage can affect the quality of the assessment undertaken as professionals may not be able to visit the child or setting due to the school holidays. If a setting feels this is unavoidable they must contact the Admissions and SENAT Manager to discuss in advance of submitting an application.

Completing the Request Form.

Part 1.

Please complete all of this section in full. This helps us check our information is up to date and to contact the relevant people if necessary.
If the pupil has more than one address for parents, please indicate this and provide the information on a separate sheet of paper if necessary.
Information on ethnicity and language enables us to monitor the ethnic profile of statemented pupils and to ensure we communicate appropriately with the family.
Please ensure you complete both the Date of Birth and age group so that we know whether the pupil is working out of their chronological year group.
Parents must know about the request. If there is a specific reason for their not knowing, please explain this in section 7.
Please list any professionals who have been involved with the pupil, and the start and end dates of any involvement. This should include any input from Social Services and the EWO.
Reports submitted should generally be no more than 6 months old but the Panel would welcome reports that are still relevant. If an EP report gives evidence of a cognitive assessment and is older than 6 months it may still be helpful to submit this.
Please ensure any reviews of intervention programmes have been completed before submitting a Statutory Assessment request.
Please tick the end box if a report is to be enclosed.

Part 2.

Please refer to the Early Years Entitlement Document to determine the primary need of the child and whether the need is action/action plus.
Do NOT send copies of the Entitlement Document back with the application as this is for your reference only.
The EY Entitlement Document can be found in the EY Resources section –
Please number the descriptors in order of need if this is appropriate.
Please do send in a copy of your highlighted banding descriptors with your application for SENAT to keep for the file.

Part 3

Please ensure this section is fully completed so that the panel can gauge the levels and progress of the pupil – if this is incomplete it may delay the application.
If the child is Early Years Foundation 2 or in Reception Year, please attach the Early Years Foundation stage developmental summary. Please ensure that this could be easily read as the SENAT team photocopy all papers and these are sent out in black and white. School or setting’s own versions of EYFS progress/summary will NOT be accepted.
Please provide information on any standardised tests that have been carried out.
A checklist is provided to ensure that all the relevant documents have been enclosed. NO OTHER DOCUMENTS ARE REQUIRED OTHER THAN PROFESSIONAL REPORTS and EYFS DEVELOPMENTAL SUMMARY.

Part 4.

Please indicate if you are applying for Statutory Assessment.
Outline in detail why you are applying for Statutory Assessment and why the child’sneeds meet the proposed banding and criteria. For this you will need to make reference to the following documents that are available in the EY Resources section –

-Guidance Criteria for Statutory Assessment

-Early Years Entitlement Document

-Banding Descriptors

List all interventions that have been put in place and how/why a Statutory Assessment would help to meet the child’s needs.
A full description of the childis essential to help the Panel understand the pupil’s needs.

In addition to meeting the criteria for statutory assessment, there needs to be a clear rationale supporting the request.
You should consider:

-What needs the pupil has that need clarifying through a statutory assessment.

-Whether a statutory assessment would add to your knowledge and understanding of the pupil.

-What provision might be necessary which would need to be set down in a statement of special educational needs

Part 5

Please indicate if the child is already under statutory assessment or if the child has a statement of Special Educational Needs.
Please note that additional resources may be in the form of teaching assistant hours but could be others provision e.g. educational resources, therapeutic support, speech and language therapy, but should not include the running costs of the setting.
Please also attach a timetable of support that clearly demonstrates the support and time. It must be clear on the level of support at all times, e.g. individual or group support.
Please include information on programmes such as Action Plus and are evidenced in the IEP/IPP.
Please explain why you are seeking additional resources, and if you are seeking additional resources, how they will be used.
All evidence must also show impact on the child’s progress and needs..
Please note that if the child already has a Statement of SEN and you are requesting additional funds, this action must be taken as part of the annual / six month review.

Part 6 and 7.

The views of the parents and the child (if appropriate) must be included. If they are not, the reason for this should be explained.
Every effort should be made to encourage parents to make their views known. Parent Partnership can support parents in this process.
Pupils should be encouraged to contribute their views in any way appropriate to the individual e.g. smiley charts etc.
Consideration should be given to any safeguarding issues when completing your Request Form.

Alternatively

Settings may choose to submit extended educational advice which could then be used as Appendix B if the statutory assessment goes ahead. A completed example of Appendix B can be found in the EY Resources section –
If settings submit extended advice at this stage and the assessment goes ahead, you will be asked if you wish the advice to be used as Appendix B and whether you wish to send an update on the report.

Remember, everything you write must be factual and evidence based. Parents must be aware of what you have written. Even if the statutory assessment does not go ahead, the documentation will be placed on file. Parents have the right to see their child’s file at any time. If there is information of a confidential nature, which you wish to draw to the attention of the panel, please put it in a sealed envelope marked “Confidential. For the attention of SENRAP only.”

Part 8.

Incomplete applications will not be put to panel and will be returned to the setting for re-submission with all the necessary information.
Please make sure that the form has been signed by the head teacher or head of setting, and the parent/ carer.

When completed the form, school evidence and all documentation should be sent to:

SEN Assessment Team

Swindon Borough Council

Wat Tyler House,

Beckhampton Street,

Swindon, SN1 2GH

PART 2: The process of Statutory Assessment:

Making a Request:

A child is brought to the LA’s attention as possibly requiring a statutory assessment through:

a request for an assessment by the child’s school or setting;
a request for an assessment from a parent;

A referral by another agency.

Schools and relevant nursery education providers have the right to ask the LA to conduct a statutory assessment or reassessment of a child’s educational needs. They must consult parents before requesting an assessment and should provide parents with the “Swindon Guide for Parents and Carers” and information about Swindon Parent Partnership Service.

If a parent makes a request for an assessment the LA will seek advice and evidence from relevant professionals including those in the child’s school or setting. After consideration of this evidence the LA will decide whether it is appropriate to initiate a statutory assessment.

Health or Social Services Departments may draw children to the LA’s attention, particularly with regard to children under five with complex needs. The LA will collect evidence before considering whether it is necessary to assess the child.

Where specialist equipment is needed for a child to have full access to the school’s curriculum there are alternative ways of providing this support. One way that this can be done is through the Access Initiative Fund, which is designed to promote inclusion in mainstream schools. Further details can be found in the section on Swindon’s Accessibility Strategy in the SEN Handbook.

Deciding whether a Statutory Assessment is needed:

Pupils eligible for a statutory assessment of special educational needs will have been registered at Action Plus and supported from resources available to the school/setting.

During this time the school/setting will have implemented the advice of external professionals and have completed and reviewed at least two Action Plus Individual Education Plans/Individual Play Plans (IEPs/IPPs). Parents and pupils will have been appropriately involved in supporting and reviewing the child’s learning targets.

Prior to a request being submitted, advice should be sought from the relevant Advisory Teacher, outreach etc., for a child’s specific needs as part of a Graduated Response.

At a subsequent Action Plus review meeting, school staff and parents, with the support of the external professional(s) involved, will consider if the child meets the threshold criteria for a statutory assessment. Where appropriate they will complete and submit a request form.

Requests for a statutory assessment must be submitted to the Special Educational Needs Assessment Team (SENAT) for consideration by the Special Educational Needs Assessment and Resourcing Panel (SENRAP) accompanied by the following evidence:

clear evidence of the views of the parent/carer and any ascertainable views of the child;
a statutory assessment request form, fully completed and signed by the headteacher or head of setting and the parent / carer;
Two IEPs/IPPs at Action Plus, which conform to DfE guidance in the Code of Practice (Sections 5.50-5.52 and 6.58-6.60). In the case of a pupil having recently entered a school/setting, one of these IEPs/IPPs may have been drawn up in the previous school/setting;
two IEP/IPP Reviews at Action Plus, which give evidence of parental involvement and pupil involvement (as appropriate);
copy of relevant and current Educational Psychologist Joint Problem-solving Review and/or written evidence of involvement of external professionals in the last six months if possible and their advice implemented in the Action Plus IEPs/IPPs;
Other evidence where appropriate, e.g. reports from Health or Social Services professionals written in the last six months.
Evidence as to why the child would need a statutory assessment (refer to new Banding descriptors and guidance criteria) and how this would benefit the child.
Clear evidence of how the school / setting have been using its delegated resources to meet the child’s needs, including all strategies and interventions and outcomes.
Clear evidence of a graduated response that has been followed prior to applying for assessment
Clear evidence of the child’s progress.

In the case of requests with regard to emotional, behavioural or social difficulties, planned intervention should have taken place for at least a term. Written evidence of an analysis of the pupil’s observed behaviours over time, a description of the strategies used to address these behaviours and an evaluation of the outcomes must be provided.

A school may also submit additional evidence from their records that they feel is particularly relevant e.g., assessment profiles, Pastoral Support Programmes.

The moderation of statutory assessment requests is conducted by the Special Educational Needs Assessment Resource Panel (SENRAP).

The Panel meets weekly to consider requests. All requests for statutory assessment are scrutinised carefully by the Panel members who reach a corporate decision as to whether or not it meets all aspects of the published guidance criteria. The Panel will evaluate the level of pupil need and whether it is reasonable to expect the school to meet it within the range of differentiated provision within the school. The Panel looks for evidence in the IEP/IPP Reviews that the school/setting has done everything it can to meet the pupil’s needs within the resources available to it. This includes evidence that schools have actively attempted to involve parents in supporting their child’s special educational needs. Evidence of good practice at Action Plus (SEN Code of Practice) is expected from schools/settings. Further details on the SEN Resourcing and Assessment Panel can be found in Swindon’s SEN Handbook.

Universal Banding Descriptors

Applicable to all settings and pupils 2-25 – early years, mainstream, specials, SRPs and Post 16

These descriptors will also be used as the eligibility criteria, along with separate guidance criteria applicable to each need and progression criteria, for statutory assessment. Settings will need to highlight the child’s needs and descriptors under each relevant heading, to determine which band is best fit for that child and their needs. Possible outcomes of a Statutory Assessment:

Following the multi-disciplinary assessment the LA will decide whether a pupil’s needs are sufficiently complex and severe to justify making a statement.

If the LA decides a statement is not necessary it may issue a ‘note in lieu’ which summarises the advice collated and outlines the provision that should be made to meet the child’s needs.
The LA may decide that it is appropriate to issue a ‘monitoring statement’ if it is reasonable to expect the school/setting to meet all of the child’s needs from within their delegated resources.
The LA may decide to issue a statement, which specifies how much support should be provided for the pupil from school and any additional LA resources.

See Chapter 8 Special Educational Needs Code of Practice for further details.