1 | Page Annual SEND Report to Governors 2018/2019 Secondary
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Annual SEND Report to Governors 2018/2019 Secondary
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This report reflects academic year ending July 2019
Name of Academy Westbourne Academy
SENCO Maxine Abbott
Date of Report November 2019
SEND Governor Natasha Duerhing
SEND profile
Total Number of pupils on SEND register
SEND Support Education, Health and Care Plans
% of academy population SEND support EHCP
115 27 11% 2.6%
% boys and girls SEND and Pupil Premium % of SEND cohort
SEND needs breakdown should be shared with Governors
Boys 70%
Girls 30%
38%
Identifying pupils with SEND We use the following data to look at identifying whether a student has SEND needs:
Key Stage Two results.
Baseline testing of reading and spelling across all age groups.
Information from external agencies.
Observations.
Parental or pupil concern.
Referrals from the pastoral team.
Results from the CATS test which is taken by all Year 7 pupils.
Friendship or behavioural issues.
As the students progress from Year 7 to Year 11, any new SEND that is identified will be assessed
by the SENCO who will seek outside agency and/or Local Authority support when necessary.
We have a comprehensive transition programme in place from Year Six to Year Seven. The SENCO meets with all of the SENCOS at the primary schools to discuss each individual students’ needs and ensure that appropriate support is implemented when students start in Year Seven. This academic year, we have started an initiative called Transition TAs where we have two TAs attached to each of our main feeder primary schools. They visit on a regular basis and deliver different sessions so that we can gain a further understanding of students’ needs. For example, they deliver literacy and numeracy sessions as well as sessions on ‘All About Me’ so we can gain a full understanding of each students’ individual needs.
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Our teachers closely monitor the progress made by all pupils and ask advice from the SENCO as soon as they have any concerns about any pupil. Concerns may be raised by a pupil’s teacher – for example, low self-esteem could be affecting performance and indicate an underlying need. We use the SEN Toolkit from GL Assessment to assess students’ needs. On SIMS, we have a marksheet where there are strategies for individual students and this is accessible by teachers. Additionally, there is also an intervention column where staff can also write down interventions which have worked for individual students. In terms of mid year transfers, we liaise carefully with the SENCOs from the previous schools and implement strategies to support these students. The register is reviewed on a half termly basis.
Progress made by pupils with SEND This academic year is the first time that the Progress Eight score has been positive for SEND students at 0.26 from -0.86 last academic year. We are now ensuring that students have a full complement of qualifications. Maths progress for SEND students is strong but there is still an issue with progress within English.
Achievement – Year 11
All SEND
Non SEND
SEND support
EHCP
SEND and PP
SEND Non PP
Cohort size 12 183 9 3 5 7
Progress 8 0.26 0.20 -0.05 0.5 0.03 0.28
Attainment 8 31.50 46.79 32.72 28.5 31.25 31.82
Progress 8 English element -0.24 -0.11 -0.70 0.22 -0.33 -0.43
Progress 8 Maths element 0.42 0.58 0.38 0.47 0.29 0.33
% Basics Level 4 16.2 67 22 0 20 14.3
% Basics level 5 0 44 0 0 0 0
Effectiveness of targeted interventions As an academy, we run a variety of different interventions to support our students. All interventions are tracked and have clear entry and exit criteria:
Dyslexia 1:1. This intervention is for students with a diagnosis of dyslexia who would benefit from extra support. The programme is tailored to individual students’ needs. The intervention started in January 2019 and students on the programme made an average of thirteen months progress.
Multi Sensory Project. This was an intervention which we had the opportunity to participate in as part of the Let’s Talk Reading programme in Ipswich. This looks at developing students’ primitive and reflex skills. Students made an average of fifteen months progress.
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Catch Up Literacy. Catch Up Literacy is an intervention aimed at students with a reading age two/three years behind their chronological age. Students are withdrawn for 1:1 fifteen minute slots and work on a bespoke programme for their needs. On average, students made sixteen months progress over a six month period.
Catch Up Numeracy. Students are selected for this based on their numeracy needs. Students are tested using the Sandwell Numeracy Test at the start of the programme to generate a numeracy age. Students are then retested at the end of the programme. Students on the programme made an average of 17.5 months progress.
Comprehension. Our bespoke comprehension programme for students where they work on skills such as inference and deduction within a small group. On average, students made fifteen months progress.
Phonics. Starting January 2019, we had a group of students with reading ages significantly below chronological ages. Following the intervention which we started in January, students made an average of twelve months progress.
Vulnerable Outdoor Learning Day. Twenty two students attended and by the end of the first half term, no student had a behavioural incident logged on SIMS.
Nurture Group. This is for students who need extra support in terms of the transition for secondary school. The majority of students had a successful transition to secondary school.
Nurture 1:1. Students have 1:1 sessions with our dedicated Nurture TAs where they can discuss issues etc.
Forest School. Launched in the Summer Term, we had a pilot group of Year Seven and Eight students who participated in a variety of activities including den building. Students did a baseline test at the start and end of the project looking at skills such as self esteem and confidence. 100% of students made progress.
Ecotherapy Gandalf’s Garden is our gardening intervention which has become extremely popular in the academy. Students have been learning about the environment and planting different crops. This is also run as an after school club.
Breakfast Club. From Easter 2019, we are running the breakfast club in the mornings before school. On average, we are having sixty students per day.
Wider Outcomes effectiveness for this cohort Attendance is still an issue although the gap between SEND and Non SEND is closing for those students who are on K for support. The issue is still with EHCP students and we have had some students whose attendance for a variety of reasons has been poor. Various interventions have been implemented to support students including the use of Oasis etc.
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Attendance and exclusions
Overall attendance %
% of pupils PA
% and number of SEND pupils
FTE or PEx
SEND Non SEND SEND Non SEND SEND Non SEND
EHCP 88.66 93.1 18.67 11.98 No PEx
1%
Supt 91.34
M/tor 90.98
Ongoing professional development on SEND for staff in the last 12 months and any issues relating to time and resources to enable the SENCO to carry out their duties.
Fresh Start Phonics Training for SENCO and five Teaching Assistants.
Reader Leader Training as part of Fresh Start Phonics.
Multi Sensory Training.
Catch Up Literacy.
Catch Up Numeracy. One member of staff is working towards an accredited qualification for this.
Thrive Information Session.
Thrive Training for Nurture TA.
Forest School Leader Training.
Ecotherapy.
Managing Meltdowns for ASD students.
Mental Health First Aider training for SENCO, Assistant Principal, Senior Pastoral Lead and Exams Officer.
Emotional Wellbeing conference.
SWERL training.
Supporting Learners with Autism.
International Festival of Learning.
Getting best use from the IPad.
Inclusion Mindset training.
The Write Stuff – looking at developing writing for weak learners.
Other initiatives in the last 12 months to improve the quality of SEND provision leading to improved outcomes including any external specialist support services that work with the school and the impact they have.
SENCO Network Meetings. We host half termly SENCO Network meetings to share best practice.
CISS. CISS support us with students in terms of ASD, school refusing and behaviour.
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Achievement Clinics.
Suffolk Parent Carer network. They have worked with us in hosting coffee mornings and also attended parents evenings.
SENDIASS. SENDIASS have met with us to discuss how to support EAL parents with SEND, especially Roma.
Acorn Psychology Service.
SWERL. Through the SWERL project, we have had the services of a facilitator to look at the programme.
Raedwald Trust – We have built links with the Raedwald Trust so that we can share best practice and also for Teaching Assistants to visit.
Extra visits to primary school to support transition.
KS4 Mentoring programme for SEND students.
Travel Training via Suffolk County Council.
Liasion with Post 16 providers regarding transition.
Oasis is seen as an example of best practice within the LEA and has also been recommended by the Raedwald Trust to other mainstream schools which wish to set up their own provision.
Speech and Language therapists have been in to work with selected students and have supported the upskilling of TAs delivering the speech and language interventions for identified students.
Physiotherapists from Ipswich Hospital have advised TAs on how to support the physio programme for identified staff.
SENCO has been involved in the High Tariff Needs Funding moderation at county.
ASD Mentoring Programme run in house by our ASD Advocate.
Dyslexia Outreach Team.
Outline how the specific targets, objectives and learning needs of SEND pupils will be addressed through quality first teaching and how this will be reflected in your curriculum intent. In terms of quality first teaching, we have devised intranet pages for SEND which can be accessed via the ‘Achievement and Progress’ Link on the Intranet. The area is divided into the four areas of need and contains a wealth of information about different needs e.g dyslexia and ‘tip’ sheets which contain strategies for staff to use within lessons. Westbourne Academy follows the guidelines within the SEND Code of Practice (2014) where all teachers are teachers of SEND. All teachers have the highest possible expectations for all students in their classes. The Code of Practice (2014) states that ‘high quality teaching, differentiated for individual pupils, is the first step in responding to pupils who have or may have SEND.’ Teachers are aware of students’ individual targets and adapt their teaching to ensure that all pupils make progress.
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Differentiation is key and staff have had training on differentiation. Within lessons, the following forms of differentiation may be used:
Use of ICT.
Teaching Assistants providing small group work within a lesson.
Visual stimulus.
Word banks.
Task sheets.
Mind maps.
Writing frames.
Cloze exercises.
Different ways of recording information e.g. using graphic organisers. The SENCO is available to support departments and/or individual staff when needed to advise on students and how to best support them within lessons. The SENCO will also support the monitoring programme within the academy in terms of teaching and learning
Outline of objectives for 2019-20 1. Implement the MITA programme. 2. Focus on speech and language with an emphasis on verbal comprehension.. 3. Implement Thrive across the academy to support the emotional wellbeing of students 4. Ensure QFT for SEND via liaison with Teaching and Learning Team and focused learning
walks Other interventions
Launch of Gym Trail.
Launch of Let’s Cook.
SEND Young Person Network group via Suffolk County Council.
Westbourne Academy’s Local Offer What kinds of Special Educational Needs are provided for? Pupils may be identified as having a Special Educational Need (SEN) at any stage of their education. This may be a long-term difficulty requiring continuous support or a short-term issue which requires a specific intervention. The SEN Code of Practice (2014) identifies four broad areas of SEN:
Communication and Interaction, including Autistic Spectrum Disorders and speech and language issues.
Cognition and Learning, including dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties and dyscalculia
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Social, Mental and Emotional Health, including behavioural difficulties, ADHD etc.
Sensory and/or Physical, including hearing impairment, visual impairment, and medical conditions.
How are the needs of special educational needs of pupils identified and assessed?
As a department, we have several ways in which we identify and assess pupils’ needs:
Transition. The SENDCo works closely with the Transition Lead to ensure that there is
a seamless transition process. The SENDCo visits all the primary partner schools where
the needs of SEN pupils are discussed and identified. Additional transition visits are
offered to SEN pupils to help them become more confident about starting high school.
Our teachers closely monitor the progress made by all pupils and ask advice from the
SENDCo as soon as they have any concerns about any pupil. Concerns may be raised
by a pupil’s teacher – for example, low self-esteem could be affecting performance and
indicate an underlying need.
Key Stage Two results.
Baseline testing of reading and spelling across all age groups.
Information from external agencies.
Observations.
Parental or pupil concern.
Referrals from the pastoral team.
Results from the CATS test which is taken by all Year 7 pupils.
Friendship or behavioural issues.
In house testing, as determined by the SENDCo, using a range of tests to pinpoint areas
of weakness.
Assessment for access arrangements in formal examinations.
Liaison with previous secondary school, if relevant.
As the pupils progress from Year 7 to Year 11, any new SEND that is identified will be assessed
by the SENDCo who will seek outside agency and/or Local Authority support when necessary.
If a pupil is performing below age expected levels, we will investigate to decide if the pupil
requires additional support.
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What kinds of support may be available for your child?
At Westbourne Academy, our aim is to ensure that all pupils are supported and encouraged
to make the best possible progress. We aim to be as inclusive as possible.
Our Learning Support team includes the SENDCo, SENDCo Administrator, OASIS instructor,
Senior Literacy TA, Senior Numeracy TA, an HLTA in Maths, an HLTA in English who also leads
on interventions in the department and nine Teaching Assistants.
Where there is a lack of progress, additional support may be needed. Any support provided
will always be personalised to pupils’ individual needs. Pupils with SEND might be supported
in any of the following ways:
Nurture group support
Nurture 1:1
Lego Therapy
Thrive programme
Fresh Start Phonics
Catch Up Literacy
Catch Up Numeracy
Cogmed
Lexia
Handwriting programmes
Forest School
Gardening
ASD Mentoring
Dyslexia 1:1 support programme
Reading Enrichment
Speech and Language Therapy
KS4 Boost programme in summer term of Year 9
Physiotherapy
Gym Trail
In class support from a member of our TA Intervention Team
Additional resources
Let’s Cook (starting Autumn Term)
Access arrangements for examinations e.g. use of ICT, extra time, or a scribe
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KS4 Mentoring for SEND pupils focusing on revision skills and looking at post sixteen
options.
CISS support.
Intervention from external agencies
Homework club after school
Counselling from 4YP
Provision in the OASIS centre
Interventions follow a monitoring cycle involving: assess–plan-do-review. Where we feel
something is not working, we are quick to respond and find alternatives through talking with
staff, pupils, and parents.
How will the curriculum be matched to your child’s need?
Our teaching staff adapt their teaching to meet individual needs through differentiated
activities. Differentiation is a key focus area for the academy. All teaching staff will use a range
of inclusive strategies in the classroom and will adopt strategies which have been identified
as useful for individual pupils.
Ability grouping is used in the core subjects (English, Maths and Science) from Year 7. This
ensures that pupils receive the best support possible.
Our Teaching Assistants are linked primarily to individual departments. This approach helps
our Teaching Assistants to become experts within the subject areas and provide appropriate
interventions and support where needed.
At KS3, we offer the Study Plus option for pupils who need extra support with their literacy
and numeracy.
At KS4, we offer the ‘Green’ pathway option to support pupils who will struggle with the
demands of GCSEs. This pathway option allows pupils to take the ASDAN Certficate of Personal
Effectiveness and provides extra support for pupils with their core subjects.
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How parents will be informed about their child’s progress?
During the academic year, parents will receive a termly report on their child’s progress. This
report will show current working grades as well as pupils’ behaviour for learning. Additionally,
there are parents’ evenings where parents can meet with all their child’s subject teachers.
Through the Vertical Tutoring system, there will also be opportunities for parents to meet with
the principal tutor. For example, Year 7 parents are invited in during the first half of the
autumn term to discuss the transition process whilst Year 11 parents are invited in after the
progress review examinations (PREs) to discuss their child’s progress.
For pupils on an EHCP, there will be an annual review meeting with the SENDCo. We will also
be hosting Achievement Clinics which will happen twice per half term and provide parents
with the opportunity to raise any concerns or queries.
Additionally, we will also be hosting drop in coffee afternoons and running workshops for
parents on how they can support their child at home. For example, in Year 10, we run a
revision evening for parents on how they can support their child with GCSE revision.
The SENDCo will always be available at all parents’ evenings to deal with any queries or issues.
Ways teaching may be adapted to meet individual needs of pupils
Westbourne Academy follows the guidelines within the SEN Code of Practice (2014) where all
teachers are teachers of SEN. All teachers have the highest possible expectations for all pupils
in their classes. Teachers are aware of pupils’ individual targets and adapt their teaching to
ensure that all pupils make progress.
Differentiation is key and staff have had training on differentiation. Within lessons, the
following forms of differentiation may be used:
Use of ICT.
Teaching Assistants providing small group work within a lesson.
Visual stimulus.
Word banks.
Task sheets.
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Mind maps.
Writing frames.
Coloured overlays.
Whole school differentiation via Bronze, Silver and Gold.
Exercise books are marked regularly according to the academy’s policy and staff ensure that
they set personalised tasks through effective feedback in order to help pupils make further
progress.
Training for staff supporting SEND pupils.
All classroom teachers receive information about the SEND pupils in their classes; this
information is regularly updated. We will also launch a fortnightly SEND bulletin for staff which
will include updates and information on strategies which may be useful in the classroom.
The SENDCo will have a weekly ‘drop in’ session for staff and is available if they need any
advice or have any queries about supporting SEND pupils.
We have a comprehensive intranet site which is accessible to all staff within the academy. This
intranet sites contains a wealth of information on different areas of need and strategies which
staff can use to best support pupils within their group.
The SENDCo runs sessions for student teachers and newly qualified teachers as part of the in
house CPD programme.
Teaching Assistants
Our Teaching Assistants are line managed by the SENDCo and work with designated
departments in order to develop subject expertise and knowledge. This approach ensures that
they become familiar with the GCSE specifications in their subject areas and can support all
pupils. We encourage our Teaching Assistants to develop areas of expertise in order to ensure
that we can provide the best possible services to our pupils. This also gives Teaching Assistants
ownership and responsibility within the department. We try and ensure that there are many
opportunities for external CPD.
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Last year, Teaching Assistants completed courses in ASD, Ecotherapy, Forest Schools Leader
Training , Thrive, The Write Stuff and Dyslexia. We have also hosted the regional training for
Catch Up Literacy/Numeracy and some of our Teaching Assistants have been on this training.
Several Teaching Assistants have also completed the Fresh Start Phonics training which
enables us to deliver phonics to bespoke groups. Furthermore, one of the Teaching Assistants
has completed the Reader Leader training linked to Fresh Start Phonics.
Currently, we are the Ipswich Hub for the Making Best Use of Teaching Assistants programme
and we are working with five other secondary schools in Ipswich and the Raedwald Trust
(specialist provision) to develop best practice.
We also have a weekly CPD session on Wednesdays after school where TAs will have relevant
training and an opportunity to share best practice.
Furthermore, we are also looking at offering courses for Teaching Assistants at Westbourne
delivered by our Teaching Assistants.
Transition Arrangements: KS2 to KS3
During October, Westbourne hosts its open evening for Year 6 pupils and their parents. This
provides an opportunity for both parents and pupils to look around the academy. The SENDCo
also hosts an additional afternoon in October for parents to come, visit the school, and ask
any queries. Parents can also make appointments for extra visits and meetings when needed.
The SENDCo and the Transition Lead work together to ensure that the transition process is
effective. The SENDCo liaises closely with the SENDCos in the feeder schools and will attend
Year 6 Annual Reviews. Additionally, the SENDCo arranges visits to all the feeder schools in
the Spring Term to discuss the pupils on the SEN register and the support they are offered in
order to ensure that the correct support is in place as soon as pupils start in September.
Year 6 will also attend Westbourne for the two Discovery/Transition days where they will meet
their form tutors and have a variety of different lessons. On the second transition day there
will be a parents’ evening where parents can meet their child’s principal tutor. The principal
tutor is the first point of contact in the academy. The SENDCo will also be available during the
evening for any queries.
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We also have in place a further transition programme for pupils who may struggle with the
transition process. This involves staff visiting pupils in the feeder schools and then inviting
them up for further visits. We also run an outdoor learning day for those pupils who are the
most vulnerable and anxious about starting high school.
We have also implemented a new scheme called ‘Transition TAs’. Each of our main feeder
primary schools have two Teaching Assistants attached to the school. They visit the feeder
primary schools regularly where they support pupils in class but have also offered delivered
sessions in literacy and numeracy. This has been extremely effective in building up effective
relationships with the primary schools but has also empowered our Teaching Assistants to
take ownership for the project. This project has had a major impact on pupils in terms of
making the transition process much easier for them.
The SENDCo has also established a Pyramid Forum at Westbourne where all staff from the
feeder schools meet on a half termly basis to discuss issues and share best practice.
KS3 to KS4
Pupils will have an options pathway assembly delivered by our Assistant Principal in charge of
Curriculum. This gives pupils an introduction to the options pathway process. Following on
from this, all pupils have a progression interview with a member of SLT. During the interview,
pupils will discuss their post-16 and careers aspirations as well as looking at the pathways on
offer. Additionally, all pupils on the SEND register will have a meeting with the SENDCo to
discuss the options pathway process in more detail.
Westbourne hosts an annual options pathway evening for parents and pupils. This provides a
valuable opportunity for both parents and pupils to talk to subject specialist staff about the
different subjects on offer.
We also work closely with the careers department in the academy and they are providing 1:1
interviews for pupils in Year Nine and also implementing programmes and events to support
our SEND students in terms of aspects such as careers, interviews and CVs.
Throughout KS4, the progress of SEND pupils is monitored closely and if a pupil is struggling
within a subject, we will ensure that TA support is available within the lessons.
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We also have a KS4 Mentoring programme which is run by one of the Teaching Assistants and
looks at skills such as revision timetables, ways to revise and offering additional support.
During the Summer Term after Year Eleven have left, we will try and put in a KS4 Ready
programme to help pupils who may need extra help with literacy and numeracy before
starting their GCSE courses. This programme involves pupils being withdrawn from a subject
which they will not be studying at KS4 and working on a 1:1 or 1:2 basis with one of our
dedicated Teaching Assistants.
Transition Arrangements: KS4 to KS5
Westbourne has a careers advisor who works with pupils to prepare them for further
education or training post-16. There is an annual careers fair where post-16 providers and
local employers provide information about the opportunities available. Furthermore, the
careers advisor organises trips to the local FE colleges so pupils can gain a valuable insight into
different courses. Additionally, all SEND pupils will have a careers interview where they can
discuss their future plans. We will help pupils with application forms and interviews.
We have built up links with the SEN teams at the post-16 institutions and we liaise regularly
with them about the pupils who will be attending their institutions. Through this liaison, we
can ensure that we can arrange extra visits if needed etc.
Who parents can contact for further information (SENDCo, Link Governor)
SENDCo Ms Maxine Abbott Direct Tel: 01473 466174
Email: [email protected]
SENDCo Administrator Mrs Lea Pepperill Direct Tel: 01473 466111
Email: [email protected]
Link Governor Mrs Natasha Duehring
Email: [email protected]
Useful telephone numbers e.g. LA SEND team, parent partnership.
Suffolk County Council Local Offer https://infolink.suffolk.gov.uk/kb5/suffolk/infolink/localoffer.page?localofferchannelnew=0 SENDIASS (Special Educational Needs and Disability Information, Advice and Support Service) – 01473 256210 or via https://www.suffolksendiass.co.uk/