What is a Special Educational Need:

At different times in their school career, a child or young person may have a special educational need (SEN).  The Code of Practice (2014) defines SEN as:

 

“A child or young person has SEN 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 a young person has a learning difficulty or disability if they:

 

(a) have a 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 generally provided for others of the same age in mainstream schools or mainstream post-16 institutions.”

 

If a learner is identified as having SEN, we will provide provision that is ‘additional to or different from’ the normal differentiated curriculum, intended to overcome the barrier to their learning.

 

Our SEN Profile

Our SEN profile for 2014-15 shows that 22% of our children have been identified as having a SEN.   

2% of children have an Education Health and Care Plan.

 

Of those children identified as having a Special Educational Need:  

• 12% have a need related to Cognition and Learning

• 65%  have a need related to Communication and Interaction

• 22%  have a need related to Social, Emotional and Mental Health Difficulties

• 1% have a Physical or Sensory need.    

 

How do we identify children who are finding learning more difficult?

 

At St Martin’s school we are committed to ensuring that all learners have access to learning opportunities, and for those who are at risk of not learning, we will intervene.  This does not mean that all vulnerable learners have SEN.  Only those with a learning difficulty that requires special educational provision will be identified as having SEN.

 

We identify learners at risk of not learning or making expected progress through:

 

• Using our regular, in school assessment procedures.  

Assessment for learning within the classroom and tracking children’s progress at the end of each term.

 

• Formal assessments

 eg.  The Phonics Screening Test and End of Key Stage Assessments.

 

• Responding to concerns raised by children, parents and teachers.

 

We ensure that all children have access to quality first teaching and that the curriculum and teaching styles are adapted to suit the needs of the individual.  If despite this a child continues to make little progress our SENCo will contact the child’s parents and work closely with them, the class teacher and child to identify and overcome any barriers to learning.  

 

This may include classroom observations and specialist assessments to help identify the learner’s strengths and difficulties.