SEND

The Learning Support Assistant

Learning Support Assistants make a valuable contribution to the achievements of students. They may attend a student’s care needs but a high proportion of their role is educational. The key responsibilities of the LSA include:

Support for Students:

• To provide in class support, small group or individual intervention
• To offer help, as appropriate, to any student experiencing difficulties
• To praise, encourage and develop positive relationships
• To foster the participation of students in the social and academic processes of the school
• To enable students to become more independent learners
• To help raise the standards and achievement for all students

Support for Teachers:

• To help develop effective collaborative working across the curriculum to support SEND students
• To assist in the preparation of teaching and learning materials for students with SEND
• To assist in the development and implementation of appropriate systems for recording the progress of students with SEND
• To assist in the management of the whole class
• To assist with display work
• To provide regular feedback to the SENCO

Support for the School:

• To promote home school liaison for students with SEND
• To contribute to review procedures for students with SEND
• To liaise with staff and other relevant professionals and provide information about students as appropriate
• To contribute to the evaluation of the school’s SEND policy and practice through discussions with relevant staff
• To attend appropriate in-service training provided by school or LEA
• To be aware of and follow school policies and procedures
• To participate in educational visits
• To attend meetings required for information, planning and development
• To respect confidentiality at all times

We value all students equally. Our guiding principle is one of inclusion. We want to identify and break down possible barriers to learning.

In addition:

Primary Liaison

During the Summer Term, liaison meetings are held with the main feeder of the primary schools. The SENCO visits the Primary schools to meet the students and parents, students and their Primary school SENCOs are invited to Tabor Academy for a coffee morning and to tour the SEND department. Information about students with SEN is collated and transferred so that it can be used in to inform the Year 7 grouping process.

Year 7 Target setting for students with EHCP

Initial targets for students in Year 7 with EHCPs are set at their last Annual Review in Year 6. These are then revised after the interim review which takes place during the Autumn Term, following discussion with the students and parents.

Reading Test

All new students are to take a reading test which enables us to identify students who, for instance, are competent readers with weak comprehension skills. The results are used to help us identify students who would benefit from inclusion on the Reading Recovery scheme.

Reading Recovery

During afternoon registration students use an age appropriate Lexia computer programme to improve reading, spelling, and comprehension

In-Class Learning and Support

The majority of support takes place within the classroom through the class teacher. Additional support is prioritised for students with EHCPs.

SLCN Literacy Skills Group

SLCN Literacy skills groups run for years 7, 8 and 9 and 11.

Skills covered in these sessions include:

• Reading (stories/plays)
• Writing (handwriting, written expression)
• Speaking (retelling stories, being able to justify an opinion, telling a story in chronological order)
• Listening ( listening, understanding and remembering what someone else says)
• Spelling ( 100/200 most common words)
• Reference skills ( being able to use a dictionary, an atlas, an index)
• Memory
• Self-esteem (We KNOW you CAN do well, we need to convince you!)

We will be working in different ways.

• Individually: you will be asked to work on an activity on your own.
• In pairs: you will need to discuss a topic with a friend.
• In a group: all of you will be asked to contribute to the class discussion. One of you will speak for the group during feedback time.

We will be using different resources:

• Worksheets
• The library
• The ICT suites
• The interactive white board

Groups run every term, one lesson a week. Progress is reviewed at the end of each term.

Social Skills group

In Years 7, 8 and 9 an intervention will be initiated for students to increase their personal awareness around the school and environment.

CATs Testing

Is an assessment of a range of reasoning skills. The tests looks at reasoning in three types of symbols: words, numbers and shapes or figures, i.e. verbal, quantitative, and non- verbal reasoning.

Homework, Film and Games Club

Games club takes place in the Autumn term and is for students with SEND only. It takes place every day between 1:25pm and 2:00 pm. Film Club takes place at lunchtime in school and is open to all students. It’s a quiet place to relax, watch a movie and eat lunch. Special needs teachers and LSAs are available to support students with their homework after school between 3:30pm and 4:30pm and to discuss any other concerns. Homework Club is open until 5:30pm Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.

Supporting learning at home

Support from home is vital for all students, including those with special education needs.

By listening to parents / carers we can understand students’ needs better.

By working in unison with them a strong framework of support can be provided to help students feel safe secure and ready to learn.

Parents / carers can help in the following ways, which may seem just everyday common things but are crucial to help young people succeed.

• Help your child to organise herself / himself – Make checking the homework, that must be done, and packing the bag part of the evening routine.
• Help your child to be organised – find them one place to keep all their books together at home.
• Support your child in keeping on top of homework – try to encourage your child to complete homework on the day that it is set, they will respond better and include more detail from the lesson.
• Pack your child’s bag for school with her/him until this can be done independently, do this in the evening if possible- show them how to do it and encourage them to take part at a regular slot in your evening routine
• Ask your child how the day at school went. Use an open question such as – ‘What did you learn today?’ or ‘What are you most proud of from today’s lessons?’
• Ask them to show you some work and give them praise for what has been achieved.
• If possible work with your child at home.
• Encourage your child to give regular time to homework and look at her/his homework diary at least once a week.
• Contact the school if you have any concerns about how your child is getting on.
• Listen to your child read and help them to understand key words in different subjects and to learn their times tables.
• Give plenty of praise and encouragement – each day take the time to look at something or talk about something they have done and praise them.
• Provide a reading slot in the daily routine – they are not too old to read with you.

Website to help students:

• www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/
• www.bbc.co.uk › Bitesize › KS3

Websites to help students

• http://www.bbc.co.uk/guides/z3c6tfr
• https://www.mymaths.co.uk/

username: tabor
password: equilateral

• http://www.bbc.co.uk/education
• https://www.duolingo.com/
• http://www.nessy.com/
• http://www.childline.org.uk/pages/home.aspx

Websites to help Parents

• http://schools.essex.gov.uk/Pages/EssexSchoolsInfolink.aspx
• http://www.parc-essex.com/
•  http://kidsinspire.org.uk/
• http://www.autism.org.uk/
• http://www.bdadyslexia.org.uk/
• http://www.adhdfoundation.org.uk/
• http://www.dyspraxiafoundation.org.uk/
• http://www.look-uk.org/
• http://www.4children.org.uk/Page/Young-people
• www.autism-anglia.org.uk
• www.snapcharity.org.uk
• http://www.supersummary.com/dyslexia-guide/

Support for Dyslexic Students and Parents

Support for Dyslexic Students and Parents

Welcome to SNAP

If you have a child between 0-25 years who has any special need or disability and you live in Essex, then we are here for you and your family.

No formal diagnosis or professional referral is necessary to access SNAP services.

SNAP (Special Needs and Parents) is a registered charity (No.1077787) that helps Essex families with children and young people who have any special need and disability. Our aims are to inform, encourage and support parents, so that they can grow in strength and knowledge and become better equipped to give the best possible help to their children. We do this by providing various services the details of which are given on this website.

Telephone: 01277 211300 or Email: info@snapcharity.org
The SNAP Centre, Pastoral Way, Brentwood, Essex CM14 5WF

Just for fun

• www.sciencemonster.com
• www.rudimentsofwisdom.com
• www.kidsites.com
• www.innerbody.com/index.html
• http://www.thunk.com/
• http://www.protozone.net/AJinteractives.html
• http://www.sciencetoymaker.org/
• http://www.scienceworld.ca/teachers_outreach/play_online/bw_games.htm
• http://www.forgefx.com/casestudies/prenticehall/
• http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/gpe/
• http://www.peepandthebigwideworld.com/activities/

ADHD Guide for parents

Outreach Agencies and what they do

Kids Inspire

• Kids Inspire, Head Office, Fox Crescent, Chelmsford, Essex,CM1 2BN
• 01245 348707
• admin@kidsinspire.org.uk

Kids Inspire helps to heal the wounds of trauma and to reconnect young people with both themselves and society. This increases feelings of self-worth and prevents individuals from self-harming, joining gangs or becoming involved in crime.

This takes time, patience and commitment. But, by taking an inclusive approach, Kids Inspire turns lives around and in turn, positively influences society.

The children supported by Kids Inspire vary widely – some have suffered trauma, neglect or abuse and as a direct result, may feel disconnected from society. Behaviour that challenges teachers means these children are often labeled, neglected and are either not in education or are at risk of exclusion.

Our team members have between them many decades of combined professional experience in providing family therapy, mental health services, arts therapies, psychotherapy and therapeutic social work to complex families. We also have volunteers with a huge variety of experience and skills.

Our work in schools helps to identify and address vulnerabilities in children, which might otherwise have gone undetected. By reducing these and other emotional barriers to learning we help to re-engage children with academic tasks.

Our intervention helps to prevent children from disrupting classes and being excluded from school. We help children thrive and to develop a joy of learning. Our aim is for each child to feel valued and be a valued part of the school and wider community

Christian Youth Outreach

CYO
Elim Church
Clematis Way
Colchester
CO4 3PY
CYO is a registered charity No. 1027818
01206 863835

Pastoral care

When life gets difficult, as school or at home, our chaplains can provide just the right level of support for a young person. The gift of time, typically about 20 minutes a week, is often all that’s needed for a student to talk over what’s going on and to work towards positive outcomes.

When Abby came to chat to one of our chaplains, teachers were only too aware of her ‘anger’ issues. But what emerged was a frightened girl who was trying to live up to an unrealistic expectation of herself and forever saw herself as a failure. In just a few weeks Abby had changed, bringing positive change to her own life, the lives of those around her and her achievement in school.

All of our chaplains work within the pastoral care structure of the school or college

Emotional Wellbeing and Mental Health Services (EWMHS)

EWMHS is for anybody aged between 0-18, living in the Southend, Essex and Thurrock areas and is free at the point of entry. The service is also for young people with special educational needs (SEN) up to the age of 25.

Any young person experiencing emotional wellbeing or mental health problems, or any parent, guardian or teacher of a child who is experiencing emotional wellbeing and mental health difficulties, may access our services.

The Specialist Teaching Service

Specialist teachers aim to improve the performance of children with statements of special educational needs. The specialist teachers can also provide assessment, advice and support for children on Essex school based approaches – ESA+ especially. Each specialist teacher is a member of an area team led by Area Team Leaders who are managed by the County Team Manager.

The Specialist Teaching Service is one of the SEN and Disability Support Services.

Specialist teachers have:

• a teaching qualification
• a range of teaching experience, with particular reference to special educational needs
• an additional qualification or extensive training in a specialist area of SEN. This can be in an area such as visual impairment, hearing impairment, speech and language, autism, moderate learning difficulties, specific learning difficulties, British Sign Language, early years, physical and neurological impairment, ICT

Local Authority Educational Psychology Service

The work of educational psychologists falls within the following core activities:

• consultation;
• assessment;
• intervention;
• training
• research;
• contributing to Local Authority strategy policy and priorities.

These activities underpin the work of an educational psychologist across the Every Child Matters ‘windscreen of need’. This is a conceptual framework for understanding a continuum of need from universal to severe and complex.  The work of EPs across the continuum was recognised in a review of the work of EP services, commissioned by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES), entitled ‘A review of the Functions and Contribution of Educational Psychologists in England and Wales in light of Every Child Matters. Educational Psychologists’ work contributes to local authority strategy and policy, and school improvement.  EPs work at a systems level with whole schools or departments as well as with groups of pupils and individuals.

Educational psychologists work with children and young people across the 0-19 age range and across the continuum of need.

Transition Pathways Service

Lee Smith, IAG advisor, visits pupils in the year before transition to the next stage (Years 9 and 11). He discusses course options and offers guidance about colleges/courses, etc.

Respect Project

Essex Boys & Girls Clubs in Chelmsford work with low attendance/low self-esteem/disengaged pupils in Year 9 and more recently also Year 10. The course starts off with a day at Stubbers Adventure Centre in Upminster. The successful students (about half) are then invited to another day at Stubbers along with pupils from Alec Hunter Academy and Notley High School. They are further screened again and the successful students are then offered a Life Skills course one night a week for 8 weeks. They are collected and returned home by minibus. The final stage of the course is a week away in the Lake District at High Row Centre, an ex-youth hostel, now owned by The Essex Boys & Girls Clubs. The students are able to take part in challenging activities including rock climbing, abseiling, map reading and orienteering, ghyll walking and more, and learning social skills required when sharing communal spaces. Students hope to gain more self-confidence and self-worth and often become more settled after these experiences.

Young Carers

Lucy Freeman from Action for Young Carers comes into school in the autumn term once a month to run lunchtime drop-ins. She also visits the identified young carers in the summer term on a one to one basis.

Family Solutions (Essex County Council)

Who are we?
Family Solutions is a service that has been set up by Essex County Council, working together with a range of other agencies and organisations including district councils, Job Centre Plus, police, housing providers and charities.

We currently have four teams based around the county in Basildon, Harlow, Clacton and Braintree; however we offer a countywide service and are happy to travel to where you are in order to support you and your family.

Our teams are made up of employees from a range of backgrounds with experience in health, education, probation service, mental health, substance misuse services, housing providers, district councils and youth offending teams.

What do we do?
Our focus is to help you to identify areas in your life that you would like to improve and support you to do this.

What we do will depend very much on the needs identified by you and your family. We are not here to judge you, to tell you what to do or pretend we can solve all the challenges that you face.

We will however work alongside you, support you and do whatever we can to help you and your family achieve the best possible outcomes. This doesn’t mean that we will not challenge or push you to achieve your full potential, but we strongly believe that only by working together can we move forward.

Travel Training

Travel training is designed to help people get more from life by giving them the confidence to travel independently.
Being able to access public transport helps people to make their own choices about how they live and what they want to achieve.

Travel training can help overcome barriers to:

• Employment
• Social inclusion
• Independent journeys to School/College

How do we help?
Trainers will accompany trainees on their journeys, providing encouragement and guidance until we feel confident that trainees have developed the appropriate skills to travel independently.
Our team of specialist travel trainers are there to develop skills such as:

• Coping with traffic on major roads, with and without pedestrian crossings
• Learning the highway code
• Confidence in using buses and trains
• How to plan a journey
• Familiarisation of travel routes and timetables
• Identification of landmarks
• Where to get help
• Personal safety
• Money skills.

Who can we help?
We work with clients who have behavioural difficulties, physical difficulties and additional needs to enable them to use public transport services. We can help prepare participants for travel on any specific journey – perhaps to work, school further education or a training opportunity.  Help is also available on walking routes.

Provide (NHS – School Nurse services)

We work to engage schools in the Essex Healthy Schools Programme and pro-actively support them in maintaining Healthy Schools status and working towards Enhancement Stage.

Through Healthy Schools activity, we aim to increase the capacity of schools to improve universal health and wellbeing, for example:

• Training school staff on a range of health issues, such as understanding health improvement, managing playground behaviours, domestic abuse and delivering the PSHE curriculum.
• Supporting schools in adopting a whole-school approach to health and wellbeing.

We also work with schools and other agencies to develop and deliver Health Improvement Interventions as required to support targeted work in schools, such as:

• Therapeutic groups for children with identified social and emotional needs, such as Dina’s Dinosaur School, Children Living with Domestic Abuse, Friendship and Social Skills, Anger Management and Managing Change, Stress and Anxiety.
• Working with young people taking risks.
• Cooking with young carers.
• Working with parents to overcome barriers to health and wellbeing.

In addition, we engage and support secondary schools in developing and sustaining the Youth Health Champions initiative.

Community Police Officer (CPO)

The school has a Community Police officer attached to it.  The CPO helps ensure that students are fully aware of the dangers and legal implications of certain behaviours to help keep them safe.