Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND)

SEND Coordinator: Joanne Robinson • 01732 454 608

Our AEN department operates in line with the Code of Practice laid down by the Department for Education. We are currently in the process of implementing changes, following on from the Department for Education’s new Code.

At Knole Academy, the AEN department works very closely with the teaching staff to ensure students with additional needs are supported and can access the curriculum. Staff are trained and qualified to teach all students, including those with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), using a wide range of differentiation to ensure all students can access the work and progress.

At Knole Academy, we monitor student’s work six times a year to review their academic progress. We also use various assessment methods with students at various points, as and when required.

The levels of need are carefully assessed, ensuring regular monitoring of teacher assessments, opinions, and student work across the whole of the Academy is part of the formative assessment process so that the correct level of support can be given.

Within Knole Academy, the needs we can provide for currently include:

• Specific Learning difficulties
• ADHD
• Hearing Impairment
• Visual Impairment
• ASD/Asperger’s Syndrome
• Social, Emotional and Mental health
• Speech, Language and Communication Difficulties
• Physical difficulties

At Knole Academy, we ensure that teachers and support staff who work with particular students are aware of the support to be provided and the teaching approaches to be used. Some students may continue to make inadequate progress despite high-quality teaching targeted at their areas of weakness. For these students, we will use appropriate assessment tools, where relevant, to determine the cause of the problem and implement suitable strategies to remove barriers to students’ progress whenever possible.

We need to ensure that all students reach their full potential; therefore, where a student is identified as having special educational needs and disabilities, we take action to remove learning barriers and aim to put effective special educational provision in place.

We aim to ensure that all students reach their full potential by:

• Identifying and assessing students who have an additional need
• Meeting students with special educational needs to record their Individual Teaching Strategies, which are then disseminated to the teaching staff
• Actively involving students and parents in their Annual Review meeting
• Inviting parents in on at least three occasions to discuss students’ progress; and more often should the need arise
• Identifying the appropriate support required
• Implementing the identified support
• Monitoring the effectiveness of intervention
• Differentiating resources across the curriculum
• Meeting with the parents of identified students to help with GCSE option choices
• Offering support across all key stages, including 6th form
• Offering support for students to engage in activities out of the classroom if required and possible
• Monitoring students’ progress with our strong pastoral support

Depending on their needs, students may receive the following:

• Timetabled Learning Support Assistant in-class support in some lessons, focusing on the core subjects as well as targeted support in key areas of weakness, allowing and promoting independent learning
• Speech and language assessments and intervention
• One-to-one support
• In-school counselling
• Mentoring sessions
• Literacy intervention with specialist teachers
• Numeracy and Maths intervention
• Understanding and Managing Emotions intervention
• Social Communication intervention
• Specific equipment, including:
  • ICT, such as laptop computers
  • Specialist writing equipment
  • Colour overlays / coloured reading overlays, coloured exercise books and paper
  • Reading rulers
  • Writing slope
  • Enlarged text books / modified papers

We can also offer:

• Lunchtime homework support club, which provides a quiet study place for all students and the opportunity to work with learning support assistants on a one-to-one basis or in small groups
• Access to relevant AEN resources
• Opportunities to discuss difficulties with, and receive help from, AEN staff
• Access arrangements – identified students are tested to see if they are eligible for support in examinations such as extra time
• Differentiated curriculum with alternative option choices
• Breakfast club
• Specialist support from outside agencies – including Early Help, LIFT, CHYPS, Visual Impairment Services, Hearing Impairment Services, Occupational Therapy, Young Healthy Minds, CAHMS, Porchlight, Specialist Teaching Service.