We will endeavour to make changes to our provision where a child has a significantly greater difficulty in learning than their peers, or a disability that prevents or hinders them from making use of our facilities. In all cases, early identification and intervention is key. Pupils are identified as having special educational needs if they continue to make inadequate progress once they have experienced interventions, adjustments and good quality personalised teaching. The purpose of identification at our school is to work out what action we can take to remove barriers to learning, not simply to fit the pupil into a category.

Children’s special educational needs are generally thought of in the following four broad areas of need:

These areas give an overview of the range of needs that we plan for. However, individual children often have needs that cut across all these areas and their needs may change over time. For instance speech, language and communication needs can also be a feature of a number of other areas of SEN, and children with an Autism Spectrum Condition may have needs across all areas. The special educational provision that we make for a child is based on an understanding of their unique strengths and needs and we seek to address them all, using well-evidenced interventions targeted at areas of difficulty and, where necessary, specialist equipment or software. This will help to overcome barriers to learning and participation. We aim to provide family-centred support whenever this is appropriate.