SEND
Our vision and approach to send
At MCPA we believe that the nurturing of pupil well-being is paramount to success. Inclusion is at the heart of MCPA as we strive to include all children in all activities throughout school to ensure they have the best experience of education we can provide.
Children with any Special Educational Need/Disability will come under one of the four areas of need; Social Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH), Cognition and Learning, Sensory and Physical and Speech Language and Communication Needs (SLCN). Any child with an additional need is assessed and supported appropriately. MCPA have built up strong relationships with external professionals and use these to help us gain a full picture of a child’s needs. These reports are then used to inform the provision that is offered to individual children to remove any barriers, ensuring that all children have a pathway to success.
Any child with identified Special Educational Needs/Disability will have a Personal Learning Plan in school. This identifies strengths and areas for development for the child and documents how school will support their individual needs. This is a collaborative document between school, the child, and parents/carers.
cognition and learning
Cognition refers to the process a child goes through to acquire knowledge and learn. Children with Cognition and Learning needs may require additional resources or support to engage with their lessons in school and complete the relevant classwork. As with every area of need, we look at how we can remove any barriers to enable the children to achieve. Children may have cognition and learning needs in one area of the curriculum or in several areas of the curriculum. However, we ensure that all children are supported in all areas of their learning needs.
To support Cognition and Learning needs we may do the following:
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Specific dyslexia intervention programme
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Small group learning for English and Maths
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Bespoke and adapted curriculum
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1:1 booster sessions (particularly with younger children)
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Memory game interventions
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Precision teaching
We also take advice from the Educational Psychologist where necessary.
Our Inclusion Team works hard across all year groups to ensure that cognition and learning needs are met.
Our key Inclusion team is made up of:
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Mrs Hall: SENDCo & Assistant Head
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Mr McClean: Lead teacher of DEN Provision
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Miss Howse: Lead tutor of NEST provision PECS.
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Mrs Torkamani: Inclusion TA & SLCN lead
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Mrs Riley: Inclusion TA & Forest School lead
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Miss Jallow: NEST Support TA
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Miss Ndey: Physical Disabilities Support
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Miss Ziba: DEN Support TA
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Miss Hunt: EYFS and NEST TA
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Miss Dillon: Nurture TA
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Miss Claybourn: Nurture TA
sensory and physical
At MCPA we aim to support children with sensory and physical needs as much as possible. For children with physical needs, we are stringent in our training and follow advice from external professionals. Wherever possible we complete physiotherapy and occupational therapy sessions according to plans provided by professionals involved. These are delivered by members of staff who have been trained by external professionals on the need of the individual child. The building is accessible for wheelchair users and other equipment, with plenty of space and a lift up to the first floor. We also have spacious changing facilities and follow the school’s intimate care policy.
Children with sensory processing needs may find a variety of aspects of the school day difficult, such as noise, changes in routine, movement, a messy environment amongst other things. We take guidance from external professionals and offer adaptations or resources to support these children to succeed.
We are prepared to support and add provisions for children who may have a visual impairment or a hearing impairment. In this case, through a Doctor’s referral or with parental consent, we would be in contact with the sensory support service and will implement what they have suggested.
To support sensory and physical needs we may do and/or use the following:
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Follow physiotherapists advice and complete interventions
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Follow occupational therapist’s advice and complete interventions
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Use ear defenders for children who may benefit
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Use of sensory equipment
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Support from the Sensory service
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Large print
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Seating arrangements
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Hoist and rise and fall plinth
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Writing slant
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Pencil grips
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Specialist cutlery
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Fine and gross motor skills interventions.
We have a number of staff training in moving and handling if necessary:
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Mrs Jallow
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Miss McCullough
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Mrs Torkamani
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Mrs Pears
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Miss Ndey
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Miss Howse
SOCIAL, emotional and mental health
Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH) refers to a range of difficulties children may have that can manifest through a variety of different behaviours. Children may be isolated, quiet, have low self-esteem and seem anxious or they may demonstrate disruptive and difficult behaviours in classroom or refuse to complete what is being asked. This can also manifest in Emotional Based School Avoidance (EBSA). At MCPA, we do a lot of work around nurturing the children to enable them to manage their emotions and feelings. Some of our staff have received specialist training to support children in developing new skills and strategies that will assist them with their SEMH needs.
For more information on nurture, please see the nurturing schools section of the website.
To support children with SEMH needs we may:
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Follow a programme of support such as ELSA
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Complete small group interventions designed around the children’s needs
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Social skills interventions
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Nurture lunch
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Nurture play times
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Bespoke interventions for individuals
There are a number of staff at MCPA who specialise is SEMH needs.
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Mrs Riley
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Mr Williams
Assessment and pupil progress
All children have access to Quality First Teaching in class in the first instance. Some children may require support that is additional to this. Through a referral to the Special Educational Needs/Disabilities Co-ordinator (SENDCo), staff can identify their concerns around the child’s needs. Through discussion with the Deputy Head for Inclusion and the Deputy Head for Teaching and Learning, next steps are identified and actioned.
These steps may include:
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Discussion with class teacher about what has already been put in place
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Observations in class
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A look at the child’s work
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A discussion with parents/carers
A decision is then made as to whether children should be placed on the SEND register and the level of support required. Parents/carers are always a part of this discussion and further steps may be taken such as;
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Referral to appropriate external agencies
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Adaptive teaching implemented within class.
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Interventions being used during the school day
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Gathering evidence to apply for an Educational Health Care Plan (EHCP)
At MCPA we follow a tiered system to manage the support we provide for all children with SEND.
Electronic resources to support:
SALT - First Response Pack
Motor Skills - Warwick NHS
Adaptive Teaching - Resources
Behaviour Log - ABC
Praise Report - Template
Useful Websites:
Children on the SEND at Tier 2 or above will access interventions during the school day. Some of these will be delivered by the class team, and some may be delivered by a more specialist TA from the Inclusion team. These interventions are assessed at baseline and at points during the year to track how effective the support is.
We regularly use support from external agencies and follow the advice on their reports to deliver interventions. This will then be reviewed by their team after a period of interventions being delivered and new targets identified where appropriate. This is called Assess, Plan, Do, Review (APDR).
We use a programme called B-Squared to report progress in core subjects for children with Cognition and Learning needs. The programme breaks down the National Curriculum and Pre-Key Stage standards into much smaller and manageable steps. By recording a percentage of each step achieved we are better able to monitor and manage progress in small steps.
Pupil voice is important to us at MCPA and we ensure that we provide time to listen to what the children with SEND are telling us. Older children are able to regularly give their views during their annual reviews or Personal Learning Plan reviews where appropriate.
At MCPA, we believe that communication is essential and that parents are a really important part of the decision making process. Parents are always invited to multi-agency meetings and feedback is delivered personally by the agency brought in to school.
If you have any concerns about the progress your child is making, or feel that they may have some additional needs, please speak to Mrs Hall (SENDCo).
Learning spaces
At MCPA we have a number of spaces that are dedicated to ensuring the children with additional needs get the most out of their time at school.
These spaces are:
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The DEN (Dedicated to Education & Nurture): bespoke classroom provision that provides full breadth of curriculum for children that struggle to access a mainstream classroom environment.
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The NEST (Nurturing Education through Specialist Teaching): bespoke classroom provision that supports children with Autism Spectrum Condition (ASC) who are non-verbal.
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The OCEAN: An intervention room and safe space for children who struggle with SEMH needs.
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A classroom space for large group learning with access to classroom technology and resources.
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Hygiene suites & lift: We have 2 access to 2 hygiene suites with access to 1 hoist and 1 rise and fall plinth. There is space in both for wheelchair access and use of the equipment. We have a lift and 2 EVAC chairs to enable our wheelchair users to access every area of the school safely.