What are the different types of support available for children?

a) Class teacher input, via excellent targeted classroom teaching (Quality First Teaching).

For your child this would mean:

• That the teacher has the highest possible expectations for your child and all pupils in their class.
• That all teaching is built on what your child already knows, can do and can understand.
• That different ways of teaching are in place, so that your child is fully involved in learning in class. This may involve things like using more practical learning.
• That specific strategies (which may be suggested by the SENDCo) are in place to support your child to learn.

Whilst carefully monitoring each child's progress, the class teacher may identify gaps or areas of need.  If this is the case, your child's class teacher will speak to you and, alongside yourself and the SENDCO, complete our 'initial concerns form'. This will confirm that everyone is in agreement that your child should be added to the SEND register. This is to ensure your child makes the best possible progress. Next steps are written as targets on your child's SMART target sheet and may result in specific group work and intervention which will be timetabled on your child's provision map.

Specific group work/Intervention which may be:

• Run in the classroom or a group room.
• Run by a teacher, team teacher (TT) or a Learning Support Assistant (LSA).

b) Specialist groups supported by outside agencies, e.g. Speech and Language therapy, Occupational Therapy etc.

SEN Code of Practice 2014: School Support (SS)

This means a pupil has been identified by the SENDCo/Inclusion Manager/class teacher as needing some extra specialist support in school from a professional outside the school.

This may be from Local Authority services, such as the ASD Outreach Team, or Behaviour Support Team, Vision Support Team, Hearing Support Team or Learning Support Team. Or outside agencies such as the Education Psychology Service (EPS), Speech and Language Therapists (SALT) or Occupational Therapists (OT).

What will this look like?

• You may be asked to give your permission for the school to refer your child to a specialist professional, e.g. a Speech and Language Therapist or Educational Psychologist. This will help the school and you to understand your child’s particular needs better and be able to support them more effectively in school.
• The specialist professional will work with your child to understand their needs and make recommendations as to the ways your child is given support.
• A report is often produced for you and the school, identifying next steps, to use to enhance the learning of your child.
• If felt to be beneficial, the school may also use specialist assessors to undergo different assessments which may result in diagnosis of different learning needs.

c) Specified Individual support:

This type of support is available for children whose learning needs are severe, complex and lifelong.

This is usually provided via an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) or intervention funding. This means your child will have been identified by professionals as needing a particularly high level of individual or small-group teaching and support within school.

This type of support is available for children with specific barriers to learning that cannot be overcome through Quality First Teaching and intervention groups.

Your child will also need specialist support in school from a professional outside the school. This may be from: Local Authority central services such as the ASD Outreach Team, or Behaviour Support Team, Vision Support Team, Hearing Support Team or Learning Support Team.

Outside agencies such as the Speech and Language Therapy (SALT) Service.

For your child this would mean:

The school (or you) can request that Local Authority Services carry out a statutory assessment of your child’s needs. This is a legal process which sets out the amount of support that will be provided for your child.

After the request has been made to the ‘Panel of Professionals’ (with a lot of information about your child, including some from you), they will decide whether they think your child’s needs (as described in the paperwork provided), seem complex enough to require a statutory assessment. If this is the case, they will ask you and all professionals involved with your child to write a report outlining your child’s needs. If they do not think your child needs this, they will ask the school to continue with the current support.

After the reports have all been sent in, the Panel of Professionals will decide if your child’s needs are severe, complex and lifelong. If this is the case, they will write an Education Health Care Plan (EHCP). If this is not the case, they will ask the school to continue with the current level of support and also set up a meeting in school to ensure a plan is in place to ensure your child makes as much progress as possible.

The EHC Plan will outline the number of hours of individual/small group support your child will receive from the LA and how the support should be used, and what strategies must be put in place. It will also have long- and short-term obectives for your child.  The school will utilise these to create your child's provision map and SMART targets which will the be reviewed weekly with you and revised, as appropriate, half termly.

The additional resources stipulated on the EHCP or through intervention funding may be used to support your child with whole class learning, run individual programmes or run small groups including your child.