Introducing the Provision Guidance in schools… Dear SENCOs Following the input from the Senior Specialist EPs at the recent SENCO Primary update meetings.

Introducing the Provision Guidance in schools…Dear SENCOs

Following the input from the Senior Specialist EPs at the recent SENCO Primary update meetings and Secondary conference, it was requested that some slides were provided which could be used to support Senior Managers/SENCOs to introduce and use the Essex Provision Guidance with their staff.

These slides could therefore be used for school improvement work and staff training. You can re-order/amend the slides to suit your context.

Some examples were given of how EPs had started to work with schools using the Provision Guidance in Primary and Secondary Schools, which you may want to consider in relation to your

context if this was helpful…

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An example: Introducing Provision Guidance in a Primary School• SENCO met with HT and school link EP to introduce the Provision

Guidance and discuss how it might be used to support school improvement, High Quality Teaching and individual pupils with additional needs.

• SENCO met with school Senior Management Team and school link EP to introduce the Provision Guidance, develop a clear joint vision about how it could support school improvement, and plan how the High Quality Teaching tiers might be introduced and embedded first. It was decided to focus on the HQT in ‘All Pupils’ and ‘Learning Difficulties’ sections first, but signpost staff to other sections as relevant to current pupils. Specific outcomes for this academic year were agreed, relating to the school’s monitoring/evaluation/review systems.

• Staff meeting A with all teaching staff (Autumn 2014): HT/SENCO/EP introduced Provision Guidance, using slides and opportunities to explore the document using laptops. Staff given specific task re. embedding HQT levels into classroom practice as part of PMRs.

• Staff meeting B with all teaching staff (Spring 2015): HT/SENCO/EP revisit previous training and actions, and agree next steps.

An example: Introducing Provision Guidance in a Secondary School• SENCO met with HT and school link EP to introduce the Provision

Guidance and discuss how it might be used to support school improvement, High Quality Teaching and individual pupils with additional needs.

• SENCO met with school Senior Management Team and school link EP to introduce the Provision Guidance, with the planned aims for the meeting being:

- SMT have a clear strategic vision for improving the outcomes of students, through using the Provision Guidance

- For SMT to support Middle Leaders in embedding the use of the Provision Guidance, through the Monitoring/Evaluation/Review process

- For all staff to be implementing strategies as outlined in the Provision Guidance

Discussion and planning took place around: - Initial focus: ‘All Pupils’ and ‘Learning Difficulties and Disabilities’ Quality First Teaching sections

- Then other sections if appropriate to a student in the class (see SEN Directory)

- What opportunities do we have to deliver on these 3 aims (of meeting, above)?

- What are our agreed actions?

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An example: Introducing Provision Guidance in a Secondary School

Autumn Term 2014• SENCO/EP delivered twilight ‘training for trainers’ to Middle

Leaders on Quality First Teaching tiers of Provision Guidance• SENCO/EP facilitated twilight workshop, where Middle Leaders

trained all teaching staff in their departments• Staff advised to consult with SENCO re students at Additional

School Intervention/High Needs Levels of Provision Guidance at this point in time – consultation based on Provision Guidance

Spring Term 2015• SENCO/EP facilitate review of training with all teaching staff• SENCO/EP plan next stage of training with SMT

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Slides which can be used in schools

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Essex Provision Guidance

Supporting High Quality Teaching and SEN in our school

Outcomes of the session

• To know about the Essex Provision Guidance toolkit and how it supports the new SEN COP

• To plan how we can use it to improve outcomes in our school

• To plan how to embed it in Quality First Teaching across our school

• To plan how to monitor, evaluate and review the use of the Provision Guidance in our school

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New SEN Code of Practice Sept 2014

Why a new Code of Practice?

• To improve outcomes for children and young people with Special Educational Needs (SEN)

• To help young people make a successful transition to adult life

• A single system, from pre-school to Further Education

• Less of a struggle for families: a transparent system that is collaborative and actively involves families in making decisions

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7 key points

1. Stronger focus on the involvement of children, young people and families

2. Education, Health and Care plans (EHCPs) to replace statements (and SA/SA+ now ‘SEN Support’)

3. LA, health and care services to commission services jointly for children and young people with SEN & disabilities

4. Local authorities to publish the “local offer”

5. New statutory protections for young people aged 16-25; stronger focus on preparing for adulthood

6. Offer of a personal budget for families and young people with a Plan, extending choice and control over their support

7. All SEN duties to apply equally to all maintained nursery schools, mainstream schools (maintained schools and academies and free schools that are not special schools), 16-19 academies, further education colleges, pupil referral units and academies offering alternative provision

Curriculum (Code of Practice 6:12)

• All pupils should have access to a broad and balanced curriculum

• Potential areas of difficulty should be identified and addressed at the outset

• Lessons should be planned to address potential areas of difficulty and to remove barriers to pupil achievement

• In many cases, such planning will mean that pupils with SEND will be able to study the full curriculum

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Identifying SEN in schools

‘A pupil has SEN where their learning difficulty or disability calls for special educational provision, namely provision different from or additional to that normally available to pupils of the same age. Making higher quality teaching normally available to the whole class is likely to mean that fewer pupils will require such support. Such improvements in whole-class provision tend to be more cost effective and sustainable.’ CoP 6:15

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Essex Provision Guidance

Written over 2014 to • support High Quality Teaching for all• be a resource/toolkit for all teachers to

support all pupils with SEN

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Why Change?

• Previously used Essex ‘Banding Descriptors’ to identify child’s level of needs

• These focussed very much on what the child could not do

• There was no information about what should/could have been happening to support the child’s progress

Why Change? continued

The Provision Guidance…….• Provides a greater focus on provision to

improve outcomes for children and young people

• Is updated in line with new legislation and new ways of working with children with SEN

• Is a revised system to better reflect current and ongoing research and practice developments in education

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The Provision Guidance…

• Highlights the need for High Quality Teaching to be the essential element in the education of all children and young people

• In line with the new SEN Code of Practice,

where additional needs are identified, it supports schools to work through a cycle in order to recognise needs, aspirational outcomes, strategies and achievements

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The Cycle of Improvement/Graduated Response

Assess

Review Plan

Do

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What is the Provision Guidance?

• It arose from collaboration between EP, ST and Pre-school Teams

• It is a document based on:– good practice in schools, – on-going review of psychological theory– current research of what works

• It is not an exhaustive set of guidelines • It is an evolving document that is available

electronically and will have links to the Local Offer

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How can the Provision Guidance be used? To support School Improvement

• supports staff in the process of building on current good practice

• helps to develop systems for improving High Quality Teaching, responding to pupils’ needs and improving outcomes

• reflects best practice in working with all pupils, including those with special educational or additional needs

• supports working towards outcomes feeding into the One Plan and EHCP system

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How else can the Provision Guidance be used?

• As a self-help guide when considering provision (at school, class or pupil levels).

• Providing a point of reference for staff when deciding which level of the graduated response pupils are working on.

• As an audit tool to check that appropriate and purposeful support is being provided for pupils at different levels. It may identify gaps in provision or new ideas for working with individual pupils.

• Partnership with parents and carers as a way of providing clarity and transparency when explaining provision the school is making for their child.

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How else can the Provision Guidance be used?

• Conversations between schools and EP / Specialist Teacher teams about developing systems and approaches to support pupils effectively.

• Use by the Local Authority to determine to determine whether schools/settings are making appropriate provision to meet the needs of all pupils and to help determine whether schools/settings have taken sufficient, relevant and purposeful action before requesting additional resources.

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What does it include?• All Essex Pupils section (always start here)

• Learning difficulties; including specific learning difficulties

• Sensory impairment - hearing, sight and multi-sensory

• Physical and neurological difficulties• Speech, language and communication

difficulties• Autism and social communication difficulties • Social, emotional and mental wellbeing • Early Years

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How is the Guidance structured?

Three main tiers of provision• High Quality Teaching (HQT)

Pupil characteristics

Provision

• Additional School Intervention and Support (ASI) (SEN Support - building on High Quality Teaching)

Pupil characteristics

Provision

• High Needs Support (HN) Pupil characteristics

Provision

Look out for colour-coded page backgrounds

Considering levels of support

There should be evidence that schools have implemented recommendations for High Quality Teaching and for Additional School Intervention and Support before implementing High Needs interventions or seeking additional resources from the Local Authority

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Considering levels of support• There should be evidence of:

– Individual plans/One Planning– A cycle of assessment, planning, intervention and review– Assessment being used to inform planning– Incorporation of external advice into planning– Person-centred outcomes, with SMART targets to address each

element of these where appropriate (e.g. if the outcome is to play football with a local team, SMART targets to support that may be around specific coordination skills, social skills etc.)

– Recording of implementation and impact of interventions– Termly review of personalised plans

At High Needs level there should also be evidence that staff have received relevant training and that the One Planning process

has been implemented.25

Looking at the Provision Guidance…finding your way through…

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Where to find it…

The Provision Guidance is intentionally electronic, to make access and updates easier, with links to sub-levels and other resources.

It can be downloaded (as a PDF), but you may then not be using the most up to date version.

It can be printed out (or some pages), but the electronic version will be needed to access the sub-levels and other resources.

Search/Google ‘Essex Schools Infolink’

Go to SEN > Provision Guidance

https://schools-secure.essex.gov.uk/pupils/sen/Provision%20Guidance/Pages/default.aspx 27

Practice navigating around the Provision Guidance…

Look for• How to use the coloured buttons to jump around the document• ‘All Pupils’ section – this must be the starting point for every pupil• The different sections in the index/home page• The left hand margin colour coding for the different categories of need• The High Quality Teaching tier of the Learning Difficulties section• The links to the sub-levels in the Additional School Intervention tier of the

Learning Difficulties section – takes you to another document with assessments, interventions, resources etc

• The different lay-out of the Speech and Language section and Autism and Social Communication section – with specific provision for pupils of different ages

Activity in pairs with laptopsIf you like a bit of competition, play ‘first person to tell me what page

the High Quality Teaching section of Social, Emotional and Mental

Health Difficulties is on…/High Needs section of the Physical and

Neurological Difficulties is on’ etc., a few times to get familiar with navigation…

Questions/issues for school senior management and staff to consider…• Where will the toolkit sit in terms of whole school practice? • There might be a school champion or even a new role? To raise

awareness, elucidate, support staff, track use and impact • Will induction for new staff include navigation of the tool? Ideally, “yes!”• There is need for school leaders to be advocates • There is a need for, over time, the impact of guidance to be tracked.

Outcomes are essential; if progress continues to be weak then staff will need to review strategies and suggestions in terms of individuals

• We can support progress by mapping and illustrating the links between national drivers and the qualities of the tool - especially around assessment and effective ways of demonstrating mastery/depth of understanding

• There is an opportunity to develop a deeper understanding of evidence- based practice here

• What CPD activities will need to happen?

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Questions/issues for school senior management and staff to consider…

How can the Provision Guidance be used to support PMRs?

Adapt teaching to respond to the strengths and needs of all pupils

Teachers’ Standards 2013. Section 5.

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Teachers Standards / PMRs

• Know when and how to differentiate appropriately, using approaches which enable pupils to be taught effectively

• Have a secure understanding of how a range of factors can inhibit pupils’ ability to learn, and how best to overcome these

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Teachers Standards / PMRs

• Have a secure understanding of how a range of factors can inhibit pupils’ ability to learn, and how best to overcome these

• Demonstrate an awareness of the physical, social and intellectual development of children, and know how to adapt teaching to support pupils’ education at different stages of development

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Teachers Standards / PMRs

• Have a clear understanding of the needs of all pupils, including those with special educational needs; those of high ability; those with English as an additional language; those with disabilities; and be able to use and evaluate distinctive teaching approaches to engage and support them

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Questions/issues for school senior management and staff to consider…

Risks to manage• Tick box syndrome• Outcomes for pupils being negative because

of greater need for High Quality Teaching /teacher skills and, in turn, incorrect evaluations being made about pupils

• Vital linkage with the One Planning process being missed

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• How could the Provision Guidance be used to help to design / update our assessment and provision map?

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Questions/issues for school senior management and staff to consider…

Planning the way forward

• What will we do first?• What will we do before the end of term?• What will we do before the end of this

academic year?• What will we put on the development plan for

next year? Create a clear plan

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What Who When