SEND

If you have concerns about your child’s progress you should speak to your child’s Achievement Co-ordinator initially who will then refer any issues on to the AHT Inclusion when appropriate. If you are not happy that the concerns are being managed and that your child is still not making progress you should speak to the AHT Inclusion and contact the school through its main office number. If you are still not happy you can speak to the Head Teacher and then the school SEND Governor.

If your child is identified as not making sufficient academic progress, then the school will set up a meeting to discuss this with you in more detail and to: Listen to any concerns you may have. Plan any additional support your child may receive. Discuss with you any referrals which may need to be made to outside professionals to support your child’s learning

The school budget, received from Birmingham LEA, includes money for supporting children with SEND. The Head Teacher decides on the budget for Special Educational Needs and Disabilities in consultation with the school governors, on the basis of needs in the school. The Head Teacher and the AHT Inclusion discuss all the information they have about SEND in the school, including the children getting extra support already. The children who have been identified as not making as much progress as would be expected and decide what resources/training and support is needed. All resources/training and support are reviewed regularly and changes made as needed.

AHT Inclusion/SENCO Inclusion Assistants External Agencies available to support the needs of SEND pupils: Autism Outreach Service Educational Psychology Service Sensory Service for children with visual or hearing needs COBS (Behaviour, Emotional and Social Needs) Pupil Support Services (for assessment of literacy and numeracy needs) Physical Difficulties Team’ (Please note that the school has restricted accessibility for students with severe physical difficulties) Provided and paid for by the Health Service but delivered in school: School Nurse INSET training for staff to support students with Medical needs e.g. Asthma, Epilepsy

The AHT Inclusion’s job is to support the class teacher in planning for children with SEND via a team of Inclusion assistants. The school has a training plan for all staff to improve the teaching and learning of children including those with SEND. This includes whole school training on SEND issues such as ASD and literacy difficulties via external agencies. The Inclusion Assistants team attend bespoke training courses run by outside agencies that are relevant to the needs of specific children e.g. from the Communication and Autism team, Sensory or Pupil Support Services.

Class Teachers plan lessons according to the specific needs of all groups of children in their class, and will ensure that your child’s needs are met. Specially trained support staff can adapt the teachers’ planning to support the needs of your child where necessary. Specific resources and strategies will be used to support your child individually and in groups. Planning and teaching will be adapted on a daily basis if needed to meet your child’s learning needs.

Your child’s progress is continuously monitored by his/her subject teachers, Head of Faculty, Achievement Co-ordinator, Assistant Achievement Co-ordinator, AHT Inclusion and AHT Teaching and Learning. His/her progress is reviewed formally every term and a Curriculum Assessment Level given in each subject. Children with an EHCP (Education and Health Care Plan) will have more tailored support in line with their EHCP document and what it states must be provided for your child. This document will be reviewed with your involvement annually during which time forward-planning will take place with yourselves, the SENCO and relevant external agencies in order to inform our provision for your child.

The Form Tutor and Subject teacher is regularly available to discuss your child’s progress or any concerns you may have and to share information about what is working well at home and school so similar strategies can be used. The AHT Inclusion is available to meet with you to discuss your child’s progress or any concerns/worries you may have. All information from outside professionals will be discussed with you with the person involved directly, or where this is not possible, in a report. Appropriate homework will be provided and adjusted accordingly to meet your child’s individual needs.

How is Hodge Hill College accessible to children with SEND? The school was built in 1950’s on a physically challenging site as it is on a hill. The school consists of a range of buildings on various parts of the site which can be a challenge to access for pupils with mobility issues due to significant changes in levels and the large numbers of steps & stairs both inside and outside which require navigation. West Building is partly accessible to all children including those with SEND as it has a lift to some floors on the front of the building. Whilst the ground floor of East building is fully accessible for children with SEND access difficulties externally between East and West building may mean that it is inaccessible to pupils with mobility challenges. After school provision is accessible to all children including those with SEN. Extra-curricular activities are accessible for children with SEN.

We recognise that transitions can be difficult for a child with SEND and take steps to ensure that any transition is a smooth as possible. If your child is moving to another educational setting e.g. college. We will contact the SENCO and ensure he/she knows about any special arrangements or support that needs to be made for your child. We will make sure that all records about your child are passed on as soon as possible. When moving between sets/classes in school, information will be passed on to the new subject teacher IN ADVANCE and in most cases through Faculty meetings.

The school is in close contact with our multiple feeder schools and during the Summer Term, annual transition visits are arranged within our network in order to ensure that SEND pupils are provided with opportunities to visit the school site and familiarise themselves with the setting and key staff attached to their new year group including: Achievement Co-ordinator, SENCO and members of the Inclusion Team.