School SEND Report 2022-23

Updated January 2023

Review date September 2023

Introduction

Welcome to our SEND information report which is part of the Norfolk Local Offer for learners with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND). All Governing Bodies of maintained schools and maintained nursery schools and the proprietors of academy schools have a legal duty to publish information on their website about the implementation of the Governing Body’s or proprietor’s policy for pupils with SEND. The information must be updated annually. At Northgate Primary School we are committed to working together with all members of our school community.

The local offer has been produced with pupils, parents/carers, governors and members of staff. We would welcome your feedback and future involvement in the review of our offer, so please do contact us. The best people to contact are:

Name of SEND Governor - Mrs J Bailey

Name of SENDCo – Mrs Vicki Baker (National Award for SEND Coordination)

Name of Head – Mr Mike Collins

School Council Link – Mrs Nicola George

Parent Support Adviser - Mrs Penny Manning

If you have specific questions about the Norfolk Local Offer please click here .

If you think your child may have SEND please speak to their Class Teacher or contact Mrs Baker our SENDCo on 01493 856515.

The following policies provide additional information alongside this report:

Safeguarding policy

Behaviour policy

Complaints policy

Our Approach to Teaching Learners with SEND

At Northgate Primary School we believe in participation for all. We want all adults and children to participate in learning and we celebrate all members of our community. We want to create an inclusive culture in our school and we aim to be responsive to the diversity of children’s backgrounds, interest and experience, knowledge and skills. For more information on SEND please click here to go to our SEND policy.

We value high quality teaching for all learners and actively monitor teaching and learning in the school. For more information on our approach please see our teaching and learning policy by clicking here. We foster a collaborative approach to learning where children and staff are supportive of each other while fostering independence through appropriately differentiated learning and targeted adult support.

We aim to create a learning environment which is flexible enough to meet the needs of all members of our school community. Lessons are planned and structured in such a way that all children can access them. For example, through differentiated work, specific grouping (children will be grouped in different ways depending on the task and this can include: friendship groups, mixed ability groups, similar ability groups, pairs, specific groups to complete given interventions), adult/peer support, concrete materials, seating plans, templates and word banks. Teachers give instructions using appropriate vocabulary, they vary the words they use and make sure instructions are in the order they are to be carried out. They may be written on the board and are concise and short. From year 2, the learning objective is written on the board and in the children’s books so expectations are clear.

Teachers’ check children’s understanding by questioning them, checking in with them as they work and, in the final part of the lesson, when they are summing up the learning which has taken place they may ask for feedback. Children will be engaged in their learning by: praising their efforts as well as their achievements; acknowledging their perseverance and resilience; developing meta-cognition skills; celebrating success and using ‘Marvellous Me’ to communicate achievement with parents.

We monitor the progress of all learners. Staff continually assess, ensuring that learning is taking place. Our whole school system for monitoring progress includes teacher assessment following learning and termly assessments followed by pupil progress meetings (discussions about individual pupil’s progress with the senior leadership team). Staff engage regularly in coaching, training and professional development.

In accordance with the legislation, School will make reasonable adjustments to enable all learners to take part in school activities.  Activities will be modified and adapted to meet the needs of all children including residential trips, school trips, sporting activities and out of school activities. 

 

How we identify SEND

At different times in their school career, a child or young person may have a special educational need. The Code of Practice defined SEND as:

“A child or young person has SEND if they have a learning difficulty or disability which calls for special educational provision to be made for them. A child of compulsory school age or young person has learning difficulty or disability if they:

(a) Have significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of others of the same age: or

(b) Have a disability which prevents or hinders them from making use of educational facilities of a kind general provided for others of the same age in mainstream schools or mainstream post-16 institutions.”

If a learner is identified as having SEND, we will make provision that is ‘additional to or different from’ the normal differentiated curriculum which is intended to overcome their barrier(s) to their learning.

Learners can fall behind in school for lots of reasons. At Northgate Primary School we are committed to ensuring that all learners have access to learning opportunities and for those who are at risk of falling behind, we will intervene. This does not mean that all vulnerable learners have SEND. Children with specific needs that are a barrier to making progress in school and who require specific educational provision as a result, will be identified as having SEND.

If a parent/carer has a concern about their child’s learning they should speak to their child’s teacher.  The class teacher may then speak to the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Coordinator (SENDCo) for advice and/or ask the parents/carer for permission for their child to be discussed at the next School Support Team meeting.  The School Support Team meetings happen termly and they are where the senior management team discuss children who may need additional support or a change of support to assist their learning.  At the meeting it may be decided that a child: can be supported in the class by additional resources/strategies/changes to the curriculum; an assessment is needed to help inform the provision a child needs; a classroom observation by the school SENDCo would be best to further explore a child’s needs and provide support for teachers.  The results from these meetings are fed back to parents by the class teacher.  If assessments are required then parents will be asked for their permission and they will receive a copy of the report.

An Educational, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) will be applied for when school and parents agree that despite all the additional support the school has put in place for the child they are still not making progress or there are medical conditions affects their ability to learn effectively. Information about EHCPs can be found here.

Where a child needs to be seen by medical professionals to decide if they have a medical need (ADHD, dyspraxia, ASD) then the SENDCO will provide a written report for parents to take to their GP.  Reports from the health service do not always come to school so we would like to ask parents to please make sure we have any reports that they are sent.

 

Assessing SEND at Northgate Primary School

Class teachers, support staff, parents/carers and the learner themselves will be first to notice a difficulty with learning.

At Northgate Primary School we ensure that assessment of educational needs, directly involves the learner, their parents/carers and their teacher. The SENDCo will provide support with the identification of barriers to learning. We have a range of assessment tools available including Boxall, the 7C’s, Salford and Sandwell.

For some learners we may want to seek advice from specialist teams. In our school we have access to various specialist services. We have access to services universally provided by Norfolk County Council, which are described by the Local Offer website available here.

Northgate Primary School has commissioned for 2022/23 support from:

Kath Wallace - Art Therapy

The Benjamin Foundation - Counselling

EPSS Educational Psychology and Specialist Support

We also employ additional Learning Support Assistants who deliver the interventions in the provision map as co-ordinated by our SENDCO.

Most classes have at least 2 full time TAs who support children with SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) in class. We staff a morning only EYFS/KS1 Nurture class for 10 children based on the Marjorie Boxall model. We have a Pastoral Support Teaching Assistants who will be available in the mornings, across the school, to support children who are currently on the emotional log and need help to build confidence and self-esteem. Two Pastoral Support Assistants provide additional support in KS2 classes in the afternoons. They work closely with a small group of children in lessons who have been identified as needing support to build their self-esteem, resilience and positive learning behaviours. 

The kinds of Special Educational Needs for which provision is made at our school

• Moderate learning difficulties
• Developmental delay
• Speech, language and communication disorders
• Sensory impairments
• Specific learning difficulties – e.g. dyslexia, dyscalculia, dyspraxia
• Social communication disorders – e.g. autism/Oppositional defiant disorder
• Medical needs
• Behavioural difficulties
• Social and Emotional difficulties
• Mental health issues
• Although comprehensive this list is not limited and there may be other areas of need that are supported based on the individual needs of children.
• Children who are Looked After by the local authority and children with English as an Additional Language may qualify for SEN provision which is based on an individual need.

 

How we Support Children with SEND

Support for Cognition and learning

We have a range of interventions throughout our school to help children with their learning. Each intervention has been researched and evaluated. In years R, 1 and 2 children are taught to read using Essential Letters and Sounds (ELS). Additional small group support is provided in ELS to those children who need extra practice. ‘Catch-up’ Reading is one-to-one support for children in Years 1 and 2 whose reading level is below their chronological age. In every year group, Teaching Assistants are available in all lessons to give targeted support within class which might be individual or delivered in small groups. Alongside these interventions, children work on the specific targets from their Individual Education Plan (IEP) usually twice a week either one-to-one with an adult or in a small group.

Support for Social and Emotional Development

Our school is a nurturing school and this approach has been adopted throughout. In KS1 we have ‘Cosmic Corner’ which is based on the work of Marjorie Boxall. In Cosmic Corner, a group of up to 10 children from KS1 (identified using the Boxall Profile) work in a small group in the morning. They follow the National Curriculum and work on additional targets to improve their resilience, listening and social skills. This is a short term intervention for up to 2 terms, aimed to help them learn successfully in their base class. In KS2 there are a number of interventions to support children’s social and emotional needs including: Lego therapy, art therapy, counselling and targeted support in class from Pastoral Support Teaching Assistants.  We have introduced ‘Zones of Regulation’ and ‘Desty Island’ which are programmes to help children understand how they feel and teach them strategies for managing feelings. Social stories are used throughout the school to help children understand a range of situations. Some classes within the school practice yoga as part of their PE classes and through the nurture sessions children are taught mindfulness and self-regulation.

This provision changes and adapts as the needs of our children change. Each class has at least one teaching assistant who is able to provide pastoral support for all our pupils including those with SEND. 

Supporting children with Medical Needs

Children with medical needs will have a Health Care Plan which is known to all relevant members of staff. A copy is displayed in the medical room and/or staff room. There will be sufficient members of staff trained to provide specific support/administer medication etc if a Health Plan requires this. If there are absences from school, staff will discuss the provision of suitable work which can be completed at home and the Medical Needs Team contacted where necessary - they work with schools and professionals to ensure children and young people with medical needs and those who cannot attend school receive a good education.)

Other support

We work closely with the SaLT team (Speech and Language Therapy) who provide assessments for speech difficulties.  Their recommendations are then implemented in school before their impact is reassessed by a therapist.

Children are often referred by their GP to The Newberry Clinic and we provide reports to help with the referral process and provide provision based on assessments completed. 

The school nurse is another member of the health team we work closely with when we have children with medical needs. They help train staff and provide Health Care Plans.

Occupational Therapists provide parents and school staff with reports outlining exercises which are completed at home and within the school day and form part of a child’s IEP.

We have strong links with social care and liaise regularly with them when we consider that their help is needed with a particular issue.  Mrs Manning, our Parent Support Adviser (PSA) is in regular contact with social care and is able to help and direct parents to appropriate services including early help, young carers, Winston’s Wish, Nelson’s Journey and Family Support). She has also set up a food bank which can be accessed by all our families.

The local authority has a number of traded services we can buy in to, if required, but we also make use of many outreach and non-traded services including:

Virtual School SEND: funding for SEND and advice around provision for children with SEND.

Virtual School for Looked After Children: termly review meetings and discussion about Looked After Children.

Inclusion Team: discussion around attendance issues and children who may be at risk of exclusion.

School-2-School Support: direct support from specialist schools to help support children within mainstream school.

Dyslexia Outreach Team: We are a member of their service and they have provided support and training for staff.

In the past we have used a number of voluntary sector organisations for children with a particular need.  One such organisation is Nelson’s Journey which supports children through bereavement.  Again contact is generally made via Mrs Manning, the Parent Support Adviser (PSA).

Children with English as an additional language and SEND will be supported through an Individual Education Plan supporting their special educational needs, in line with our SEND policy.

Our Provision Map identifies the support provided in each year group click here.

What we do to Support Learners in class with SEN at Northgate Primary School

Every teacher is required to adapt the curriculum to ensure access to learning for all children in their class. The Teacher Standards 2012 detail the expectations and we, at Northgate Primary School, are proud of our teachers and their development. The Teacher Standards are available here.

Our teachers will use various strategies to enable access to the curriculum:

Written text:

• coloured paper/overlays
• larger font and double line spacing on documents
• access to technology to replicate the interactive whiteboard

Curriculum adaptation:

• use of laptops for longer writing
• audio stories to support comprehension teaching
• specific seating plans - children sat near the board to be able to see/hear, own work stations
• Cosmic Corner - adapted teaching and learning of the National Curriculum
• Individual Education Plans with targeted support
• Tests - Extra time, scribes, small groups, quiet rooms
• KS2 pastoral support teaching assistants
• Visual timetables
• Peer and small group support
• Positive behaviour rewards system
• Pre-teaching of vocabulary/ideas and over-learning - teaching parts of the lesson before it takes place and repeating the learning after a short break to ensure the children have retained the information
• Precision teaching - teaching a specific fact or skill for short periods in a multi-sensory way until the child has learnt it.
• Displays around the classroom to help support learning

Medical and Health needs

• Regular movement breaks
• Where necessary lessons are adapted to ensure the children can participate e.g. PE
• Discussion with parents about the amount and type of work the child can complete if they are off school.
• Discussion with Medical Needs Team if the child is off school for a prolonged period of time (More than 15 days in one go)

Physical Environment

• All buildings are wheelchair accessible.
• Specific seating arrangements for children who need to be near the front of the class to hear/see
• work stations for children who need a less stimulating environment
• Each learner identified as having SEND is entitled to support that is ‘additional to or different from,’ the normal differentiated curriculum.
• Children have access to a sensory tent if/when needed.

The type of support is dependent on the individual learning need, and it is intended to enable access to learning and overcome the barrier to learning identified. We also have an accessibility plan which can be accessed on the school website. Specific activities and organisations appropriate for children with SEND are advertised on the school notice boards when appropriate.

 

Staff Training

Autumn and Spring Term TA training for supporting children in class

Trust TA training for teachers in supporting TAs in their classroom.

Trust training for 10 TAs working with children in the classroom.

Some staff members are trained in the following:

• ELKLAN – speech and language
• Language groups
• Catch-up – reading
• Essential Letters an Sounds (ELS)
• Precision Teaching
• ASD strategies
• Talking and Drawing
• Mental Health Champion training
• ELSA
• Desty Island
• Lego therapy
• Attention Autism

Funding of SEND

Northgate Primary School receives funding directly from the Local Authority to support the needs of learners with SEND. This is described in an SEND memorandum and changes every year. Please click here to access Budget Tracker to find out what our school funding is.

Schools are also invited to apply for “top up” funding from Norfolk County Council for high need children who require support beyond the nominal allocation included in the SEND memorandum. The amount allocated is dependent on the needs of the child and is used to contribute to additional high level support, the purchase of specialist equipment and provision for additional needs as detailed in some Education Healthcare Plans (EHCP). The money we have been granted by the County Council has been used to employ two counsellors, an art therapist and provide one-to-one support for children.

Please see below for the current year's SEND spending and last year's spending.

How do we find out if this support if effective?

Monitoring progress is an integral part of teaching and leadership within Northgate Primary School. Parents/carers, pupils and staff are involved in reviewing the impact of interventions for learners with SEND. We follow the ‘assess, plan, do, review’ model and ensure that parents/carers and children are involved in each step. Before any additional provision is selected to help a child, the SENDCo, teacher, parent/carer and learner, agree what they expect to be different following this intervention. A baseline will also be recorded, which can be used to compare the impact of the provision.

Children, parents/carers and the teaching and support staff will be directly involved in reviewing progress. This review can be built into the intervention itself, or it can be a formal meeting held at least once a term, where we all discuss progress and next steps. If a learner has an Educational Health and Care Plan (EHC plan) the same termly review conversations take place, but the EHC plan will also be formally reviewed at least annually.

We are committed to making reasonable adjustments to ensure participation for all, so please contact the SENDCo or Parent Support Advisor to discuss specific requirements.

At Northgate Primary School we abide by the provisions of the Equality Act 2010. This legislation places specific duties on schools, settings and providers including the duty not to discriminate, harass or victimise any child or adult linked to a protected characteristic defined in the Equality Act and to make ‘reasonable adjustments’.

The Equality Act 2010 definition of disability is:

“A person has a disability for the purposes of this Act if (S)he has a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on his/her ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.”

Section 1(1) Disability Discrimination Act 1995

The definition of disability in the Equality Act includes children with long term health conditions such as asthma, diabetes, epilepsy and cancer. Children and young people with such conditions do not necessarily have SEN but there is significant overlap between disabled children and young people and those with SEN. Children and young people may therefore be covered by both SEN and disability legislation.

For more information about the Equality Act, the protected characteristics or duties on public bodies please click here.

Preparing for the Next Step

Transition is part of life for all learners. This can be transitioning to a new class in school, having a new teacher, or moving on to another school, training provider or moving into employment. Northgate Primary School is committed to working in partnership with children, families and other providers to ensure positive transitions occur.

Some children will need additional transitional support which may include transitional booklets made by the child, additional visits to the new school or class and any other reasonable support that may be appropriate for that child to ensure they have a positive transition. We have close contact with the SENDCos at the local high schools and have enabled parents to make contact with them to ensure that the high schools are aware of their child’s needs. Many of our children come back to see us and tell us how they are getting on. We also speak to the parents/carers of children who have moved on to high schools to assess how well our arrangements for transition work.

To ensure we are able to meet the needs of every child when they join our school we may make home visits for Reception, speak to their previous school/nursery and read through the information the child’s previous school has sent through. Before they join us, full time, children may have several short visits to familiarise themselves with the routines and people and they may have a transfer booklet which shows the key adults in their class.   Staff will talk to parents at the end of the day to keep them informed about how well their child is settling in. As soon as we are notified by the County Council that we have a new child starting, the office will request both their electronic and paper records.

Throughout our PSHE, PE and Science curriculum children are given the opportunity to explore:

• how they keep safe and healthy,
• their personal goals for the future,
• their community engagement,
• their personal responsibility to protect the planet
• how they are part of a wide community.

Have your say

Northgate Primary School is a community school. We shape and develop provision for all of our learners ensuring achievement for all. This SEND report declares our annual offer to learners with SEND, but to be effective it needs the cooperation of all parents/carers, learners, governors and staff. So please work with us to ensure the best outcomes for your child.

To help us provide what our learners need we regularly ask children with SEND and their parents to complete a questionnaire which is used to inform our SEND Action plan. In the Autumn term we will start our children’s SEND forums and Parent Drop-Ins again.

Complaints procedure

If you have any concerns or worries regarding the provision made for a child with SEND then in the first instance please contact the school SENDCo (named above). However, if your concerns persist, then you should contact the head teacher to discuss this further.

If you would like support in making a formal complaint, advice and support can be found at:

SEND Partnership

https://www.norfolksendpartnershipiass.org.uk/

phone: 01603 704070

email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

This is a voluntary organisation run by parents of children with SEND. They provide impartial advice and support to parents of children with SEN.

Our Primary School SEN Profile Term: October 2021

	Our school number	Our school Percentage	National percentage
Pupils with SEN additional support	40	9.7%	13%
Pupils with EHCP	19	4.6%	2.3%
Total Pupils with SEND	59	14.3%	15.3%
	SEN support	EHCP	Total for year group
Reception	3	5	8
Year 1	8	1	9
Year 2	6	4	10
Year 3	10	1	11
Year 4	3	5	8
Year 5	5	1	6
Year 6	5	2	7
	40	19	59

Year Group Distribution of Pupils at SEN Support

Year group	Cognition and learning	Communication and interaction	Social, emotional and mental health	Physical and/or sensory
Reception	1	5		2
Year 1		9
Year 2		9	1
Year 3	8	3
Year 4	5	2		1
Year 5	5	1
Year 6	5	1	1
	24	30	2	3

 

 

Provision/Interventions		Frequency	Size of Group	Cost of Adult                     £	Cost of Resources                       £	Total Cost of Provision/ Intervention                                               £
Art Therapy		weekly	one to one 5 children	£65 per hour		12,025.00
Counselling		weekly	one to one 16 children	£35 per hour		7,350.00
KS2 support class		daily	12	53,482.00	845	54,327.00
KS 1 support class		daily	12	51,004.00	845	51,849.00
Nurture class		daily	7	50,882.00	845	51,727.00
Ed Pysche reports		ad hoc	6	500 per report		3,000.00
Premier Sports		weekly	2 groups of 11	4,440.00		4,440.00
1:1 support TW including lunchtimes		daily	1	21,198.00		14,991.00
1:1 support CK daily including lunchtimes		daily	1	14,991.00		14,991.00
1:1 support A W-T including lunchtimes		daily	1	21,198.00		21,198.00
maths intervention Year 6		daily	10	4,683.00		4,683.00
maths intervention year 5		daily	17	6,129.00		6,129.00
maths intervention year 4		daily	6	1,960.00		1,960.00
Dycalculia training		one off	15		250	250
Attention Autism/ speechlinks		daily	16	6,769.00		6,769.00
Licence for Speechlinks					789	789
SEN resources for classes					200	200
Certificate of Competency in Educational Testing			30	1425		1425
Testing materials			30	1,000.00		1,000.00
Mindfulness and nurture provision			14	22,390.00		22,390.00
			30	16,593.00		16,593.00
Dyslexic Route assessments		10	1	£350		3,500.00

 

 

Predicted Provision Costing for 2022- 23

Provision/Interventions		Frequency	Size of Group	Cost of Adult £	Cost of Resources £	Total Cost of Provision/ Intervention £
Art Therapy		weekly	one to one 5 children	£65 per hour		12,025.00
Counselling		weekly	one to one 16 children	£35 per hour		7,350.00
Nurture class		4 mornings a week	9	50,882.00	845.00	51,727.00
Ed Pysche reports		ad hoc	6	500 per report		3,000.00
Sports		weekly	1 group of 9	1467.00		1467.00
1:1 support		daily	1	14,991.00		14,991.00
1:1 support		daily	1	14,991.00		14,991.00
maths intervention Year 6		daily	10	4,683.00		4,683.00
Attention Autism/ speechlinks		daily	16	6,769.00		6,769.00
Licence for Speechlinks
SEN resources for classes					200.00	200.00
CCET			30	1425		1425
KS1 intervention			30	16,593.00		16,593.00
Ks2 Intervention			10	5531		55310
Dyslexia assessments		8	8	350		2800
Educational Psychologist assessments		6	6	500		3000

 

www.norfolk.gov.uk/SEN 

 

Useful links

Parent Partnership

Department for Education