SEND | Conway Primary School

At Conway Primary School, all pupils with additional needs will have access to the National Curriculum and flourish in their learning. Staff provide the tools to remove barriers and provide opportunities to make all pupils independent and confident learners.

Pupils who are identified as having additional needs have their needs detailed on a provision map which outlines adaptations that will be made to ensure that they can access all learning. Alongside this information, all pupils are assessed via the Birmingham Toolkit Progress Tracker which breaks down assessment statements into small and achievable milestones. This information is then used by staff when planning lessons to ensure individual needs are catered for.

SEND INFORMATION REPORT September 2024

Mr Gunchala is the interim SENCO at Conway Primary School. His role is to ensure that any children requiring extra support to access the curriculum make progress whilst at Conway. He arranges meetings with external agencies when necessary, so that the best provision can be put into place.

He also arranges frequent training for all staff so that they are able to identify those children in their classes who may require extra help and support. They then work together - parents included- as a team to put things in place to ensure that your child makes progress.

Sometimes the support required may be short term, allowing children to close any gaps in their learning so that they can keep pace with the rest of the class. Other children may require long term support due to their medical, developmental or emotional needs.

Mr Gunchala is also a member of the local schools’ consortium for SEND and receives support from the local authority (Pupils and Schools Support), so that he is able to share concerns regarding individual children.

If you have any questions, the list below is designed to help you.

Our school has a Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator, we usually call her the SENCo. AT Conway this is Mr Gunchala, who is covering Mrs Begum while she is on maternity leave.

If you would like to talk to the team, then you can make an appointment during term time. The best way to contact our SENCo is by telephoning the school office.

You can also speak to your child's class teacher any time about your child's needs. They are available every day after school or ring the school to make an appointment.

Cognition and Learning - Children who find learning, thinking and understanding harder than most other pupils. Some of the things children might find difficult are:

Taking longer to learn important skills.
Finding it difficult to remember things such as the important words for reading or times tables.
Finding it hard to understand how to use letter sounds to read and spell words.
May need more time to think about their answers.

Communication and Interaction - Children who find it difficult to interact with the people and world around them. Some of the things children might find difficult are:

Talking to other adults and or other children, especially when in a group.
Talking about a topic they haven't chosen to talk about.
Making friends or keeping friends for a long time.
Following rules made by someone else.
Dealing with noises, smells or other sensations around them.
Understanding what other people mean when they are talking.
Getting equipment and books organised - especially homework.
Any change to the normal routine.

Social, emotional and mental health difficulties - Children who find it difficult to manage their emotions and behaviour in a way that affects their daily life. Some of the things children might find difficult are:

Following rules set by others.
Sitting still for long.
Listening to and following instructions.
Understanding how they are feeling.
Making friends.
Dealing with their difficulties in a way that does not cause harm to themselves or others.
Taking responsibility for the things they do.

Sensory and/or physical needs - Children who have a disability that may make it difficult for them to manage their everyday life without changes to the environment or support. This may be because of hearing or visual difficulties, physical disabilities or other medical needs. Some of the things children might find difficult are:

Hearing what others in the classroom or school setting are saying.
Reading words in books, on worksheets or whiteboards that are not made bigger or changed to help them.
Moving around without the aid of a walking aid or wheelchair.
Using pencils, scissors, knives and forks and other things that they need to use without changes or support.
Taking medication without adults helping them.

Teachers adapt what they are teaching or the way that they are teaching to help your child to learn with the rest of the class at the appropriate level.
Additional support can be given in a small group by an adult to help your child to learn the things they are finding difficult.
Additional support can be given to your child by an adult for a short time during the day to support them to learn skills.
Individual targets set to help show what your child needs help with.
Advice from a specialist support teacher or other professional will be called upon if required.
Support can be tailored to a child with particular needs upon consultation with the class teacher and SENCo.
Specific interventions are planned to encourage children bridge the gap in their learning and development.

Our school has an open-door policy, ensuring we are always approachable, so parents feel involved in the education of their child. This is done in a variety of ways including:

Parents' evenings every term.
Regular meetings with class teacher, (support staff where relevant), the SENCo and Deputy Head Teacher for Inclusion when needed.
Target setting so parents can see what their child is working on next.
Home/school books if needed to inform parents of important information.
Regular newsletter to inform parents of what will be going on during the term.
Important information on our school website.
Parent workshops.
Signposting to parent groups.
Parents' views on IPP/Annual Review documents.
Working with the parent link worker.

Contact via the class teacher in the first instance.
Scheduled Parents Evenings.
Termly review meetings and Annual Reviews (where needed).
Graduated approach to learning difficulties, using the 'Assess, Plan, Do, Review' model.
Open Door Policy of School.
SENCo advice and coordination.

All children's progress, including those children with special educational needs and disabilities, is tracked using the school's assessment tracking system. Pupils are assessed regularly using teacher marking, observations and questioning as well as more formal assessments such as curriculum tests and standardised tests.

In Birmingham we also have access to the Birmingham Language and Literacy and Maths toolkits which support assessment when a child is making small steps of progress. In addition, for children with special educational needs, we also set individual targets that are reviewed at least three times a year. This helps the school to monitor how well interventions are working. The progress each child is making is discussed at pupil progress meetings with the class teacher, phase leader (assistant head) and SENCo.

In our school we make provision for pupils with all types of Special Educational Needs and Disabilities.

We know that some pupils will have difficulties in more than one area and we will always do our best to meet their needs. All children in school have support within lessons through differentiation and quality first teaching strategies. This means that activities are planned according to the level the child is working at. This can include a variety of adaptations including changes to the physical environment, changes to teaching styles as well as levels of adult support.

Members of staff have received training from the Communication and Autism Team, Visual and Hearing Impairment team and Occupational Therapy Team so that we can implement practical classroom strategies and support children with social skills, organisation and communication.

Conway is a two-storey building. Where children have a physical or medical difficulty the school ensures it provides appropriate resources. As a school we would always make adjustments to ensure that all children are fully included.

We also have resources to support children new to the country and with limited English to develop their understanding and use of English.

Agency or Service

Pupil and School Support (PSS)

Who they work with –

Children with cognition and learning difficulties. Staff in school to offer support, advice and training.