SEND

All staff at St. Aidan's Academy recognise that every pupil is entitled to a quality of education that will enable them to achieve their potential.

We believe in removing barriers to learning, raising expectations and levels of achievement in order to provide a positive educational experience for all our pupils, including those with a special educational need and/or disability.

Our academy recognises there are particular groups of pupils whose circumstances require additional consideration by those who work with them to support their needs. All staff working within our academy will strive to make reasonable adjustments to ensure your child can access all aspects of academy life.

To ensure there is an overarching inclusive strategy, we have appointed a Deputy Headteacher who is responsible for SEND, who works closely with staff to ensure all teachers in the academy understand the implications for children with additional needs or barriers to their learning.

A pupil has SEND if they have learning difficulties or disabilities that make it harder for them to learn, than most other pupils of the same age.

Should a parent or carer have a concern about the provision made for their child they should in the first instance discuss this with the SENDCo.

To contact our SENDCo, please email SENDCo - contact, with the title FAO, Mrs Keane SENDCo.

If the concern cannot be satisfactorily dealt with by the SENDCo it should be brought to the attention of the Principal. If the Principal is unable to resolve the difficulty the concern should then be put in writing to the Chair of Governors in accordance with the St Aidan’s Academy Complaints Policy.

General Information

At St Aidan's Academy we ensure that all pupils, regardless of their specific needs make the best possible progress.

Types of SEND at the School:

At St Aidan's Academy, we have experience of supporting children and young people with a wide range of needs.

There are four broad areas of SEND, these are:

Communication and Interaction

This area of need includes children with Autism Spectrum Condition and those with Speech, Language and Communication Needs.

‘Children and young people with speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) have difficulty in communicating with others. This may be because they have difficulty saying what they want to, understanding what is being said to them, or they do not understand or use social rules of communication. The profile for every child with SLCN is different and their needs may change over time. They may have difficulty with one, some or all of the different aspects of speech, language or social communication at different times of their lives.’

Cognition and Learning

This includes children with Specific Learning Difficulties, Moderate Learning Difficulties, Severe Learning Difficulties and Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulties.

‘Specific learning difficulties (SpLD) affect one or more specific aspects of learning. This encompasses a range of conditions such as dyslexia, dyscalculia and dyspraxia.’

‘Support for learning difficulties may be required when children and young people learn at a slower pace than their peers, even with appropriate differentiation. Learning difficulties cover a wide range of needs, including moderate learning difficulties (MLD).’

Social, Emotional and Mental Health Difficulties

This includes any pupils who have an emotional, social or mental health need that is impacting on their ability to learn.

'Children and young people may experience a wide range of social and emotional difficulties which manifest themselves in many ways. These may include becoming withdrawn or isolated, as well as displaying challenging, disruptive or disturbing behaviour. These behaviours may reflect underlying mental health difficulties such as anxiety or depression, self-harming, substance misuse, eating disorders or physical symptoms that are medically unexplained. Other children and young people may have disorders such as attention deficit disorder, attention deficit hyperactive disorder or attachment disorder.’

Sensory and/or Physical Difficulties

This area includes children with hearing impairment, visual impairment, multi-sensory impairment and physical difficulties.

'Some children and young people require special educational provision because they have a disability which prevents or hinders them from making use of the educational facilities generally provided. These difficulties can be age related and may fluctuate over time. Many children and young people with vision impairment (VI), hearing impairment (HI) or a multi-sensory impairment (MSI) will require specialist support and/or equipment to access their learning, or habilitation support. Children and young people with an MSI have a combination of vision and hearing difficulties. Information on how to provide services for deafblind children and young people is available through the Social Care for Deafblind Children and Adults guidance published by the Department of Health.’

Curriculum

Arrangements for ensuring access to a broad and balanced curriculum

All pupils follow the National Curriculum at a level and pace suitable for their ability and we endeavour to make our curriculum appropriate for all needs.

At times modifications to the curriculum may be implemented. To successfully match pupil ability to the Curriculum, we continue to be committed to:

A range of teaching and learning styles.
Differentiated materials (both for reinforcement and extension).
Access to ICT.
Additional in class support.
Additional out of class support.
The appropriate use of rewards and consequence sanctions.
Pastoral support.
Applications to examination boards to obtain access arrangements as appropriate.

Supporting Pupils with SEND

SEND provision is an integral part of our overall school provision. Teachers use the SEND data we collect from primary schools, parents/ carers, outside agencies and our own information and assessments to plan lessons and differentiate provision for students with SEND.

The provision may be in the form of:

specific support
literacy intervention programmes
numeracy intervention programmes
one to one tuition
Mentoring

We also offer in-class support with a team of highly dedicated Learning Support Assistants to personalise their learning and maximise learning opportunities.

The department policy reflects current best practice in line with the Code of Practice for Special Educational Needs and other relevant legislation.

Applying for a place at St. Aidan's Academy

Identification of SEND pupils, Referrals and Assessment Procedures

We are committed to meeting the needs of all children, including those with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities. We would ask parents to discuss or ensure that their child’s primary school share the identified needs with St Aidan's Academy prior to starting so that appropriate intervention and support can be planned and implemented.

A copy of our Admissions Policies can be found here:

Admissions Policy for 2024.pdf

Applying for a school place if your child has an Education, Health and Care Plan

Children and young people with an Education, Health and Care Plan follow a different admission and transfer process for a new school. Please continue to complete Darlington Council’s parental preference form, as part of the admission process to a new school. You continue to have a right to request a particular school and this will be considered alongside the information that we have about your child’s special educational needs or Disabilities.

In regards to SEND, any member of staff, parent, or outside agency can make a referral to the SENDCo regarding a pupil at St Aidan's Academy.

Transition

Other Colleges and Schools

When pupils with SEND are transferring to or from other educational establishments, the Year Lead and the SENDCo will liaise with all parties concerned to ensure that the transfer is for the benefit of the pupils and disruption to the pupil’s education is kept to a minimum. An early review of progress is arranged and parents are invited to join the review.

KS2 to KS3: St Aidan's Academy promotes links with their feeder primaries to ensure early identification of pupils who will be moving to our academy. We encourage this link to start from as early as year 5 depending on the level of need and current SEND support that they require. This link can be done through liaising with the Transition lead, Mr N. Wilkie, who can then discuss increased support regarding transition with the school SENDCo, Mrs J. Keane.

Contact Details:

Email link - please address your email FAO Mr Wilkie: Transition lead or Mrs Keane: SENDCO.

Changes between academic years are supported in close liaison with the SENDCo, year leads and the form tutor. Our small teaching groups will maintain a similar timetable throughout their time at the Academy and therefore have as unsettled transition as possible. Again, strong relationships with parents/ carers are promoted to make sure the support can be offered where concerns may be arising.

KS3 – KS4: Options time can be difficult, especially for pupils who have a SEND. Parents are welcome to contact the school to discuss the options booklet and a parent’s information evening will be available to allow any concerns or queries may be discussed. This is also a crucial time for the SENDCo to identify Access Arrangements in an official capacity, through testing and JCQ approval documents.

Consultation with Children and Young People with SEND

Teachers/SENDCO and Support Staff will work with children and young people to identify the support needed to meet agreed outcomes. The provision is planned and interventions are allocated to individual needs. The children take an active role with setting their outcomes, discussing them with the class teacher/SENDCO.

The children have regular meetings with support staff to discuss their progress and support.

Teaching, Learning and Assessment

Pupil Assessment is an on-going process and forms an intrinsic part of the teaching cycle, designed to promote the raising of achievement. Pupil assessment may be used as a basis for an initial referral to the SENDCo.

The SENDCo may also use assessment (reading, writing, numerical) to further assess a pupil’s Special Educational Need.

It is important to note that not all pupils referred to the SENDCo will be SEND pupils; and any support and guidance given may be short, medium or long term. Support is tailored to the individual.