SEND
You may have come to this section of our website because you have a child with a special educational need or you might have some worries about your child’s progress or difficulties they may be having with their work. The information below should give you an idea of how we support children with special educational needs at Priory Academy.
All schools must have a Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCo). At Priory, Academy this is Miss Y. Wilson. Please get in touch if you have any questions or concerns about special educational needs.
SEND Information Report 2023/24
Where Can I Find Out More?
For more information about support for families of children with a range of special needs and disabilities in Central Bedfordshire you can visit the Central Bedfordshire Council website to look at the ‘Local Offer’. This gives information about a range of issues, contact numbers for support groups and advice about who to talk to about your concerns.
Central Bedfordshire Local Offer
Central Bedfordshire Children and Young People with SEN-Disability
At Priory Academy the Special Education Needs & Disability Lead is Miss Y. Wilson. She can be contacted on ywilson@prioryacademy.co.uk.
The school’s Special Education Needs & Disability Governor is Mrs J Veyres. She can be contacted on jveyres@governors.prioryacademy.co.uk.
At Priory, we keep a SEND Register, which is a record of all children who receive additional support in the following categories:
- School Support
This means that your child is receiving extra support to help them achieve their expected level in school. Some children also receive support from outside specialists. For example, Speech and Language Therapy or Physiotherapy.
- Education, Health or Care Plan (previously known as a Statement).
Your child has been identified as having needs that require extra help across the curriculum. They will be entitled to addition adult support for their learning and their teachers will adapt work to meet their needs.
What can I expect if I send my child to Priory Academy?
A personalised approach to learning with the relevant support and adjustments that will maximise your child’s learning and opportunities.
What should I do if I think my child has Special Educational Needs?
If parents have concerns relating to their child’s learning then please initially discuss these with your child’s form tutor or subject teacher. This then may result in a referral to the school’s SENCo, Miss Wilson. She can be contacted by telephone or email as above. All parents’ views and aspirations for their child will be central to the assessment and provision that is provided by the school.
How will the school support my child?
If your child has a special educational need, then the class teacher and SENCo will work with you from the start to make sure that the necessary support is in place. Our standard assessment procedures will be used to see if the support is working and adjusted as necessary. Targets which fall outside of our normal assessment for learning processes will be judged by the teacher in consultation with the parents. Depending on the level and type of need required, there may be additional adult support for your child in the classroom.
How will I know how my child is doing?
Children’s progress and attainments will be shared with parents each term either with the SENCo and/or through the school’s reporting system and Parents’ Evenings.
• Parents may also find the home-school planner a useful tool to use to communicate with school staff on a more regular basis.
• Parents are encouraged to arrange an appointment to discuss their child’s progress with the class/subject teacher, the SENCo or a member of the senior leadership team at any time when they feel concerned or have information they feel they would like to share that could impact on their child’s success. Please contact the school office who can put you in touch with the relevant member of staff.
How will you help me to support my child’s learning?
The class/subject teacher or SENCo can suggest additional ways of supporting your child’s learning.
If you have ideas on support that you would like to have access to in order to further support your child’s learning, please contact the SENCo who will locate information and provide guidance for you in this area.
What does the school provide to support my child’s overall well-being?
The school offers a wide variety of pastoral support for pupils. These include:
• An evaluated Personal, Social, Health, Citizenship and Economic Education (PSHCEE) curriculum that aims to provide pupils with the knowledge, understanding and skills they need to enhance their emotional and social knowledge and well-being. Please visit our website to see the topics that are included within this area of the curriculum.
• Small group evidence-led interventions to support pupil’s well-being are delivered to targeted pupils and groups and aim to support improved interaction skills, emotional resilience and well-being.
• Pupils who find outside class times difficult are provided with alternative small group or one to one opportunities in order to help them develop their social interaction skills.
What specialist services or expertise are available at or accessed by the school?
- Specialists in other schools e.g. teaching schools, special schools.
- Autism Outreach Team
- Hearing Impairment team
- Visual Impairment team
- Educational Psychologist Service
- Educational Welfare Officers
- Physical and Disability Support Service
- Social Services
- School Nurse
- Child & Adolescent Mental Health Service
- School counsellor
• In addition, the school will involve external agencies as appropriate including health and social services, community and voluntary organisations for advice on meeting the needs of pupils with SEND and in further supporting their families.
• For a very small percentage of pupils, whose needs are significant and complex and the SEN Support required to meet their needs cannot reasonably be provided from within the school’s own resources, a request will be made to the local authority to conduct an assessment of education, health and care needs. This may result in an Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan being provided.
What training have staff supporting pupils with SEND had?
All staff receive basic training as part of the teacher training programme. Most recently, awareness training has been provided by an outside specialist to all staff on:
• How to support pupils on the autistic spectrum
Specialist training has been provided to the SENCo on:
• The SEN Coordination award.
• The school has regular visits from SEN specialist teachers who provide advice to staff support the success and progress of individual pupils.
• The NHS Speech and Language Therapist visits when necessary to assess and plan support for targeted pupils. These programmes are then delivered by a Teaching Assistant.
