Rachel Briscoe (SENCO) contact: Laughton site - 01427 628348

Welcome to Blyton cum Laughton’s Local Offer page. I am Mrs Briscoe, the school SENDCo since January 2018.

This area of our website is designed to explain the way we support all children in our school, particularly those with special educational needs. We hope it will be informative and interesting for all parents. We will make every effort to provide equal opportunities for all pupils irrespective of gender, ethnic origin, religion, age, physical ability or academic ability.

Every child has an entitlement to the full curriculum and the needs of each individual child are recognised and met using a variety of approaches and differentiated teaching in partnership with parents and other professionals.

September 2023

1. What should I do if I think my child has special educational needs?

• Speak to your child’s class teacher about your child’s needs.

• If you and your child’s class teacher feel that your child’s need is additional and different to what is being provided for the class, then an appointment will be made to speak to the SENDCo (Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator), Mrs Briscoe.

2. How will the school respond to my concern?

• We will listen to your concerns and discuss them with you and arrange a meeting if required, so that we have time to discuss your child’s needs, and can share information between home and school.
• We will take time to look into, and respond to, your concern, so that we can discuss the next steps with you.

3. How will the school decide if my child needs extra support?

At Blyton cum Laughton our children are identified as having SEND through a variety of ways

including:

• Discussions with nursery schools

• Discussions with parents/carers before their child starts school

• Daily assessments of children’s learning in class

• Half termly reviews of children’s attainment and progress which indicates if they are

• Performing significantly below where they are expected to be at their age

• Concerns raised by parents or child

• Termly meetings to discuss how children are progressing

• Concerns raised by adults in school such as teaching assistants and the learning mentor

• Discussion with external agencies such as Specialised Teaching Service

• A report from a doctor indicating a health related issue or diagnosis

4. What will the school do to support my child?

Your child’s targets will be set on the Pupil Passport and their progress monitored by the class teacher, however they may receive support from Teaching Assistants, other teachers or agency support workers. The process of

providing support is through an Assess, Plan, Do, Review cycle (see bottom of page)

5. Who will support my child in school?

Your child’s class teacher will plan and assess your child’s learning whilst our SENDCo oversees all support and achievement of any child requiring additional support across the whole school and supports individual teachers with provision and assessment. Teachers, Teaching Assistants (TA) or the learning mentor will work with your child either individually, part of a group or on a whole class basis to provide support.

6. How is the decision made about what type and how much support my child will receive?

The class teacher alongside the SENDCo and if applicable, the learning mentor,  will discuss the child’s needs and what support would be appropriate, effective and possible. Different children will require different levels of support in order to close the gap between where they are and where they should be. Alongside this are the myriad of expectations related to behavioural barriers and individual medical diagnoses which may need additional support. This will be through on-going discussions with parents.

7. How regularly is the support reviewed?

Support is reviewed at least every 12 weeks through the Assess, Plan, Review, Cycle when the pupil passport is reviewed and new targets are set.
 

8. How do we know if the support has had a positive impact?

• By reviewing the children’s targets and ensuring they are being met.

• The child is making progress academically against national levels and the gap is closing – they are catching up with their peers or age related expectations.

• Verbal feedback from the class teacher, parent and pupil.

Children may move off SEND support when they have closed the gap or made sufficient progress.

Again, some children may need a more tailored approach if they have specific behavioural difficulties

but our aim is to ensure they can learn with their peers and have a smooth transition to Secondary

Education.

9. How will my child’s learning be matched to his/her ability?

All learning is pitched at an appropriate level to accurately match each child’s individual needs. This

means that in one lesson there can be up to six different levels of learning and on occasions this can

be individually differentiated. This means that all children can access learning at their level.

10. What opportunities will there be for me to discuss my child’s achievement?

You are very welcome to come in at any time to make an appointment to meet with either the class

teacher or SENDCo to discuss how your child is getting on. We can offer advice and practical ways that you can help your child at home.

Parents are invited to termly consultations to discuss your child’s achievement, needs, support and

next steps. If your child has SEND support they will have individual targets which are discussed on a

termly basis.

If your child has more complex SEND they may have an Education and Health Care Plan (EHCP) which

means that a formal meeting will take place to discuss your child’s achievement and a report will be

written.

11. How will my child be able to contribute their views?

Children who have individual targets will discuss and set their targets with their class teacher or an

adult who is supporting them in class.

12. How does the school know how well my child is doing?

The class teachers continually assess each child’s strengths and any areas where further support or

challenge is needed. Children who are not making expected progress are identified through daily

‘Assessment for Learning’ in class as well as regular pupil progress meetings which take place

between the class teachers and Head Teacher. In these meetings a discussion

takes place regarding all individual children and what further support and challenge can be given to

aid their progress.

When the child’s SEND targets are reviewed comments are made against each target to show the

progress the child has made. If the child has not met the target, the reasons for this will be

discussed, then the target may be adapted into smaller steps or a different approach may be tried to

ensure the child does make progress.

13. How does the school manage the administration of medicines?

The school has a policy regarding the administration and managing of medicines on the school site . If your child has specific medical needs then please contact either your class teacher or the SENDCo so appropriate plans can be put into action. If needed a ‘health care plan’ can be written to inform all staff of the specifics of the condition and what should be done to support the needs of the

child. However day-to-day medicines such as antibiotics are never administered by school unless it is

part of an EHCP.

14. How are the School Governors involved and what are their responsibilities?

A Governor is allocated the role of SEND Governor. The school’s governor for SEND is Mr Nathan Verran. Mr Verran will meet with Mrs Briscoe on a termly basis to monitor this area and ensure children are receiving appropriate support for their need.

15. What specialist services and expertise are available at or accessed by the school?

We access support from a range of outside agencies including:

• The Specialist Teaching Service

• The Educational Psychology Service

• Lincolnshire Pupil Referral Team (BOSS)

• Social Communication Outreach Support (Autism Outreach)

• Speech and Language Therapy

• Sensory Impaired Service

• Educational Welfare Officer

• Family Action

• Child and Adult Mental Health Service (CAMHs)

• Grief and Loss

16. How are the staff qualified in supporting children with additional needs?

At each of our school we have staff trained in:

• Child protection

• Paediatric first aid

• First Aid

• Autism

• Epilepsy

17. How will my child be included in activities outside the classroom including school trips?

All children are given the opportunity to be included in all parts of the school curriculum and we aim

for all children to be included on school trips. We will provide the necessary support to ensure that

this is successful. A risk assessment is carried out prior to any off site activity to ensure everyone’s

health and safety will not be compromised. Any child, not just those on with SEND support, who are

deemed a risk to the safety and well-being of other children may be restricted access to school trips

and visits.

18. How accessible is the school environment?

Both sites are wheelchair accessible with a disabled toilet. The Laughton site is all on one level. The Blyton site has a wheelchair lift close to the entrance of the school and a ramp access. 

19. What support will be there for my child’s emotional and social well-being?

• Pastoral care: All our school staff support the children’s pastoral care needs, but the first point of contact is your child’s class teacher. Please share any important emotional or social information with the class teacher so that we can best support your child. The learning mentor will also be allocated time to support your child.
• Social skills: Our teachers and teaching assistants work with individual children and small groups on social skills as and when required. This includes all children, both those on the SEN register and those who aren’t, and may take the form of discussions, circle time, turn taking games and social scripts, which are short stories about social situations and how to cope with them.
• Medication: If your child requires medical support, please share this information with us.
• Medication is stored in the office for safe keeping and children can come and self-administer their medication at the appropriate time, or a parent may wish to come to school to administer the medication.
• Inhalers can be kept in classroom cupboards so that they are easily accessible when required.
• Behaviour: We will differentiate between your child’s learning needs and their behaviours. Children may have an individual behaviour plan which is communicated to parents.  All children are expected to adhere to the school rules. Our behaviour policy can be found in the ‘Useful Information’ Section of our website.
• Avoiding exclusion: Exclusion is very rare in our school and is used only in extreme circumstances. If children are displaying behaviours that put them at risk of exclusion, we will work with the child, parents and external support agencies, to put strategies into place to help them to cope with school life.
• Increasing attendance: We operate the First Call system; if we are not informed of why a child is not in school we will telephone to find out where they are. This is recorded.
• Bullying: The children are taught to recognise and understand what bullying is; that it is repeated and targeted over a period of time and that it can take many forms. It is regularly discussed so that all children are aware of the signs and what to do if they think bullying is happening.

20. How will the school prepare and support my child to join the school?

To ensure a smooth transition from nursery school we:

• Meet your child in their current setting, whether that be at home or nursery school

• Receive and use relevant paperwork from their current setting, e.g. your child’s learning journey,

• any SEND or medical information

• Arrange visits before your child starts school, including opportunities for your child to meet

• some of the children currently in Reception

• Hold Parent meetings with your child’s class teacher before they start school in their own home

• Hold a ‘welcome evening’ in the summer term before they start, where you will meet your

• child’s class teacher get information about how the school runs, the order of the day and a

• chance to visit your child’s classroom

• Meet with Agencies already involved with your child, e.g. Speech and Language therapists to

• discuss their targets

Transition between year groups also involves:

• Sharing of information between class teachers (including paperwork, successful strategies)

• Class swap days where your child will meet their new teacher

21. How will school prepare and support my child to transfer to Secondary School?

We understand the transfer to secondary school can be a daunting time for everyone and maybe

even more so if your child has SEND. We will support you and your child by:

• Organising agency support for transition, e.g. Pupil Referral Team (BOSS), Social Communication Outreach.

• Provide information about the needs of your child to their transferring school through face to face meetings, paperwork, emails, etc

• Complete transition booklets to support your child in becoming familiar with the new routines of the school, e.g. maps, timetables, photos of key members of staff

• Organise additional visits to the school

• Invite the Year 7 staff and Special Needs teachers from the secondary schools to come to the last review meeting of Year 6

22. Who can l contact for further information?

The first point of contact would be your child’s class teacher to share your concerns. You could also

arrange to meet Mrs Briscoe, SENDCo or contact her at the Laughton site.

Our SEND policy is located within the Policy tab.

website http://www.blyton.lincs.sch.uk

23. How do I make a complaint if I am not happy with the SEN support the school provides?

Please see the school's Complaints Policy within the Policy tab which provides a clear structure of the complaints procedure.

If a complaint is made it will be handled by the Headteacher in the first instance alongside the SEND Governor, Nathan Verran.

23. How can I access support?

Telephone Website/Email

Family Service Directory www.lincolnshire.gov.uk/fsd

Lincolnshire County Council Support and Aspirations 01522 782030 http://www.lincolnshire.gov.uk/parents/supportand-aspiration/

Lincolnshire Children’s Services 01522 554673

Parent Partnership 01522 553351 www.lincolnshireparentpartnership.org.uk

Parentlineplus 0808 800 2222 www.parentlineplus.org.uk

Lincolnshire ADHDSupport Group 01522 539939 lincoln.adhd@btconnect.com

EMC Services Equality for Minority Communities 01427 787190 emc_lincs@lincolnshire.gov.uk

Family Action 01427 619519 lincoln@family-action.org.uk

Lincolnshire Centre Grief & Loss 01522 546168 www.lcgl.org.uk

Gainsborough Sure Start 01427 617761

Young Carers 01427 612096

Youth Offending Service 01522 554554 www.lincolnshire.gov.uk/residents/communityand-

living/community-safety/crime-anddisorder/

lincolnshire-youth-offending-service

Addaction / Hidden Harm Counselling 01522 305518 www.addaction.org.uk

SEN Information

Short Breaks services are available for any child that has any disability including; children and young people with Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), severe learning disabilities, complex health needs, visual and/or hearing impairments, cognitive impairments, moving/handling needs, and life limiting conditions. Please see leaflets below.