Special Educational Needs and Disabilities
Special Educational Needs and Disabilities
At St. Mary’s Catholic Primary School and Nursery we are committed to offering an inclusive curriculum to ensure the best possible outcomes for all our pupils whatever their needs or abilities. We follow the Cheshire East Toolkit for Inclusion.
Provision for children with Special Educational Needs and disabilities is co-ordinated by Mrs. L Hemming.
If you wish to contact Mrs Hemming please email admin@stmarysrc.cheshire.sch.uk
The governor responsible for Special Educational Needs is Mrs V Ng.
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The Equality Act 2010 describes a disability as ‘…a physical or mental impairment which has a long-term and substantial adverse effect on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities’. This includes sensory impairments such as those affecting sight or hearing, and 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 a significant overlap between disabled children and those with SEN.’
We are committed to creating a welcoming, caring, and inclusive environment where every child is valued and supported. As part of our inclusive ethos, we encourage and enable children with disabilities, where appropriate, to participate fully in our mainstream curriculum and wider school life.
Where St Mary’s is able to meet a child’s individual needs safely and appropriately, we aim to be fully inclusive, ensuring all pupils are supported to achieve their full potential within a nurturing Catholic community. As an inclusive school, St Mary’s Catholic Primary School makes reasonable adjustments to meet the needs of disabled children and fulfil the requirements of disability equality legislation- please also refer to the Special Educational Needs Disabilities Policy
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For most children, the universal provision available in every class will enable them to make progress. This is known as ordinarily available inclusive provision (OAIP)
Children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities [SEND] may need more targeted provision to make progress. Some children may require a School Support Plan (SSP) which outlines specific individual targets that are over and above what can be offered through OAIP.
Parents and external agencies are consulted with at this process of writing an SSP and the children also have opportunity to share their views, as pupil voice is extremely important and the plan is for them, so needs to be person-centred.
A small number of children may have significant complex needs and the Local Authority may have agreed an Education, Health and Care Plan [EHCP] detailing their needs and provision. If a child is not making progress as expected through the SSP level of support a needs assessment may be required, which may result in an EHCP being awarded
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St. Mary’s liaises with many external agencies where further advice is needed to support children with special educational needs and disabilities. These may include:
· Educational psychology service
· Community paediatrics
· School nurse service
· Speech and language therapy service
· Occupational health service
· Physiotherapy service
· Sensory impairment service
· The Cheshire East Autism Team (CEAT)
· Specialist outreach services
A full list of support services can be seen below as a link
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School shares any concerns with parents and asks for consent before any of the above agencies are consulted. If parents or carers have any concerns about their child, they should contact the class teacher in the first instance, who will then refer to the SENDCo if required. This follows a graduated approach.
We work, very much in collaboration with parents and external agencies to meet an individual child’s needs. We ensure that parents are informed at all stages of the SEND process to ensure a positive relationship.
Our policy is constantly reviewed and monitored and our practise and provision is also monitored regularly, and adjustments are made if required. As a school the provision for any child with SEND is the responsibility of the whole school staff. As a school, we use the graduated approach and use all paperwork from the Cheshire East Inclusion Toolkit.
To view the school’s Accessibility Plan and Special Educational Needs Disability Policy please refer the policy section on the website
