Special Educational Needs and Disability
SEND
At Lark Hill Primary School, we strive to support all pupils to enable them to achieve the very best that they can at school. All our pupils receive quality first teaching. This means that a range of teaching and learning approaches are used and that appropriate learning objectives are set for all pupils with a curriculum matched to their needs.
Our SENDCo (Special Educational Needs and Disability Coordinator) is Mrs Sarsfield who can be contacted at senco@larkhill-pri.stockport.sch.uk. Mrs Sarsfield has completed the National Award for Special Educational Needs Coordinator. Our SEND governor is Mrs Joanne Clark.
All our classes are supported by teaching assistants and pupils are also offered small group work, 1:1 interventions and groups interventions.
The progress and attainment of every pupil is reviewed every half term by the Head teacher and class teacher at which time provision may be adjusted to meet identified needs. Parent/Carers are informed about their children’s general progress through Parent’s Evenings that take place twice a year and through a detailed written report on your child at the end of the year.
The 0-25 SEND Code of Practice identifies 4 broad areas of need and support. Special educational needs could mean that a child has a need in one of more of the following areas:
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Cognition and learning
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Communication and interaction
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Social, emotional and mental health
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Sensory and/or physical needs
If your child requires extra support in school they will require a SEND support plan. This is when a pupil's 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 (COP:2015:6.15).
If a child continues to have difficulty after interventions or has a high level of additional need when they join the school, they may be considered to have Special Educational Needs that require an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP). If your child has an EHCP, you and your child will be involved in an annual review of needs or a Secondary School transfer review if they are in Year 5, the review will include reviewing the plan and sending review notes to the Local Authority. this will be in addition to the termly meetings.
At Lark Hill we follow Stockport's Co-production Charter which states that "Co-production happens when all voices are actively listened to from the start of the planning process. This involves a mutual respect for each other’s views, with an open and honest relationship that's transparent and continually evolving to achieve meaningful and positive outcomes"
At Lark Hill we work closely with a range of agencies which include-
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Learning Support Service (LSS) teacher at school for one day per week to work one-to-one with children with cognition and learning needs, as identified by the SENDCo/headteacher.
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An Educational Psychologist is allocated to the school, she normally works with children who have significant and complex needs, who have an EHCP or are in the process of an EHCP referral.
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Let’s Communicate speech therapist one day each week to assess children, refer to the core SALT service, provide individual or group intervention.
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In addition to the above agencies, we also work closely with Speech and Language Therapy, Inclusion, Primary Jigsaw, Occupational Therapy, Sensory Support Service and the Ethnic Diversity Service.
At times it may be necessary to consult with other agencies which include: GPs, School Nurse, Paediatricians, Physiotherapists, Signpost Young Carers, Social Services, , Health Visitors, Child Development Unit (CDU) and CAMHS
If you have a concern about your child and their education the first point of contact is your child’s class teacher.
Your next point of contact is the SENDCo and Acting Deputy Headteacher, Mrs Sarsfield, or the Acting Head teacher, Mrs Greenaway. Appointments can be made by contacting the school office or by telephoning 0161 480 6295 or you could email direct to senco@larkhill-pri.stockport.sch.uk
The Stockport Local Offer provides advice, information and services to children and young people with Special Educational Needs or Disabilities (SEND) and their families. Click on the link to find out what is available for you and your family.
The Local Offer was first introduced in the Green Paper (March 2011) as a local offer of all services available to support disabled children and children with SEN and/or disabilities and their families. This easy to understand information set out what is normally available in schools to help children with lower-level SEND as well as the options available to support families who need additional help to care for their child.
The school offer is part of the wider Local Authority Offer, and is based on the requirement for all schools to outline the support available to children with SEND and/or disabilities.
The School Offer.
At Lark Hill Primary School we believe all children are unique and all children are special. We recognise each child as a unique individual with his or her own personal talents, experiences, learning styles and needs. We value their abilities and achievements, and are committed to providing an effective learning environment which promotes their intellectual and personal development. We are an inclusive school – we wish to see children of all abilities, talents and disability educated together. We aim to enable all children to participate fully in school life.
Our experience has helped us realise the positive benefits that inclusion brings, enriching and strengthening our community. Where children have additional needs the whole school community is committed to supporting them.
All teachers here are teachers of children with SEN and/or disabilities. We seek to support all children’s’ access to the curriculum so that they have the opportunity to progress and achieve success. We strongly believe in involving the children and you as their parent/carer in a helpful working partnership with us.
Who can I contact for further information?
You can email the Headteacher at the following address:
Headteacher@larkhill-pri.stockport.sch.uk
You can email the SENDCo at the following address:
senco@larkhill-pri.stockport.sch.uk
If you would like to visit the school you can make an appointment via the office on 0161 480 6295 or at the following address
admin@larkhill-pri.stockport.sch.uk
The following links offer support, information and guidance
Neurodiversity Advice for Parents/Carers
Please have a read of the latest Stockport SEND newsletter
Stockport SENDIASS offer free, impartial and confidential information, advice and support to parents and carers of children and young people with SEND and to young people themselves. We have a role in ensuring parents’ and young peoples' views are heard, understood and respected
Support for parents - links to the BBC Parents' Toolkit: SEND
Parents and Carers Together Stockport (PACTS) - links to Stockport’s official local parent carer forum run by parents for parents, carers, grandparents and family members who have a child / young person between the ages of 0 & 25 years with special educational needs & disabilities including any additional need. PIPS was founded in June 2008 and the name changed to PACTS March 2020.
Please read in conjunction with the Accessibility Plan 2015-2017.
Our Special Educational Needs Policy and Disability Policy can be found on the Policies page of this website.
Stockport as a LA are very keen to hear more from parents.