SEND

Back

SENCO

Our Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCo) is Miss Kirsty-Anne White (kaw@johnwarner.herts.sch.uk) and our Assistant Special Educational Needs Coordinator is Mrs Vanessa Winslow (vmw@johnwarner.herts.sch.uk), who lead a fantastic team of Teaching Assistants.

The SEND department is line managed by Mrs Clare Price, Assistant Headteacher for Vulnerable pupils (cmp@johnwarner.sch.uk)

If you have any questions about the provision for students with special educational needs and disabilities, please contact Deborah or Vanessa.

AIMS

The aims of the SEND department:

  • To support inclusion for all children with SEND that attend our school;
  • Ensure that all staff in the school are able to identify pupils with additional needs in order to provide a fully inclusive education;
  • To support staff in providing positive whole school approaches towards the learning and achievement of children with SEND.

 

INTERVENTIONS

The school run a range of interventions to meet the needs of our children to include the following.

READING INTERVENTION

All children in KS3 with a reading age that is more than 24 months below their chronological age are put onto reading intervention. Children have a timetabled slot on their timetable and check in with the SEND team once a week during form time. The intervention typically consists of reading out loud to an adult and testing comprehension and understanding through discussion. We also ask for adult support at home so children are encouraged to read out loud and continue to value reading.

Children are tested termly to monitor progress and if the gap narrows to with 24 months, they can be taken off the programme.

SMALL GROUP LITERACY AND NUMERACY INTERVENTIONS

If children are identified by the English and Maths departments as being below target, they can be picked up for small group intervention.  Small group interventions are timetabled wherever possible in core PE lessons where there will be the least impact to their learning. Small groups can be anything from 4 to 10 children depending on need. Children work on a specific programme provided by either the English or maths faculties.

The English and Maths faculties use their own testing and monitoring systems to decide which children are put in or taken out of intervention.  

1-1 SUPPORT

If there is a significant need identified, staff can be deployed for 1-1 support. Examples of this are where the safety of other pupils can be a significant risk or some specific work needs to be carried out with an EHCP pupil, such as speech and language work set by a therapist or the SPLD team. 

CORE ENGLISH AND MATHS LESSONS

Children identified as below expected levels in English and maths on entry are put into 2 extra core lessons as week instead of a second language. This can be English or maths depending on need.

NURTURE INTERVENTION GROUPS

Small group lessons are run on a weekly basis following a programme of study which builds each week to teach children all aspects of nurture that they may have missed or found difficult. The success is monitored and measured using the Boxall profile system and children can be taken off the programme or added, this is usually done termly. The Nurture Programme started in November 2018 and we now run an extensive programme for year 7 – 11. Nurture encompasses the five values and ethos of the JW school, Participation, Endeavour, Aspiration, Creativity and Respect.  

Groups are run by the Assistant SENCO and trained TAs and students are selected for a variety of reasons. Some may have experienced early trauma, others may have difficult and unstable home lives and some may have difficulty settling into secondary school and making friends. Often children show us through their behaviour that they can find it difficult to express themselves in a socially appropriate way and they can lack self-esteem and confidence and therefore, may not be ready to learn. The aim of the Nurture programme is to build trusting relationships, break down barriers and react immediately to relevant issues as they arise.

LEVEL 1 EMOTIONAL SUPPORT

We have trained staff in school who have designated slots on their timetables to carry out level 1 emotional support. Referrals are made via the pastoral team, and children are picked up as soon as it possible for their first meeting. There can be a waiting list and we frequently review our provision and train new staff where appropriate to respond to need. Children can also be picked up immediately in the case of an urgent referral. Typically, we will work with a child for about 4 – 6 weeks, sometimes longer if deemed necessary. Most issues are resolved within this timeframe, but occasionally children are referred for higher level outside agencies.