SEND Policy

Last reviewed: March 2025 Next review: March 2027

1. Introduction

This document is a statement of the aims and objectives for the identification and management of children with Special Educational Needs at Orchard House School. It is intended to provide a consistent framework and to ensure that all children have their needs met, allowing them to work to their full potential.

Orchard House School is a co-educational independent day school for boys and girls aged 4-11. We seek to create a safe, caring and happy environment in which all pupils are valued and can thrive personally, socially and academically. This policy applies to all pupils including those in EYFS.

2. Special Needs and Disabilities Defined

Within the context of Orchard House School, we would define a child as having Special Educational Needs and disability as set out in section 20 of the Children and Families Act 2014.

A child has special educational needs if he or she has learning difficulties that call for special educational provision to be made.

A person has a disability if:

• They have a physical or mental impairment, and
• The impairment has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.

Orchard House School aims to ensure accessibility by making reasonable adjustments for students with disabilities. Parents are therefore urged to discuss with the Head any reasonable adjustments that would need to be put in place well in advance of an application for a place at the school.

The term Learning Support is applied to the department which oversees the SEND provision at the school, as well as the provisions of support for pupils who may be a cause for concern. The school adheres to the definition of special educational needs.

Learning Support is provided for children with a range of special educational needs. The 4 broad areas of need are:

• Communication and Interaction
• Cognition and Learning
• Social and Emotional Mental Health
• Sensory and/or Physical Needs

(See Appendix 1)

Pupils may receive support on account of some of the following differences:

• Delayed reading development
• Phonetic spellings
• Written work does not reflect good verbal contributions
• Poor handwriting and presentation
• Delayed speech and language
• Difficulties retaining Maths facts
• Difficulties with planning and organisation
• Difficulties with concentration and remaining on task
• Difficulties with self-esteem and resilience

This list is by no means exhaustive.

3. Aims and Objectives “Every Teacher is a Teacher of SEND”

At Orchard House School we are committed to offering a balanced curriculum suited to the needs of pupils of different abilities in line with the 2015 Code of Practice. Some children will need learning additional to and different from that which is provided for the majority of children; this is special educational provision, and we will use our best endeavours to ensure that provision is made for those who need it.

At Orchard House School we seek to ensure the following:

• We aim to employ best practice when devising support for SEND.
• We recognise that the responsibility for SEND is a whole school issue and lies collectively with all staff, supported by the Head of Learning Support and SLT.
• We deliver appropriate CPD either externally or internally so that all staff receive training and advice related to the education of children with SEND.
• We recognise parents and carers have an important role to play in supporting their children’s education. We aim to work in close partnership with parents and carers, valuing their opinions and contributions.
• We believe in involving children and taking their views into account. They should be actively encouraged to participate in discussing learning tasks and the outcomes they would like to achieve based on their age and understanding.
• We work in partnership with other agencies as appropriate.

4. SEND Provision

As identified in the Code of Practice (2015) on the identification and assessment of SEND: Special Educational Provision is “provision which is additional to or otherwise different from the educational provision made generally for children of the child’s age peer group”.

Whilst it is the responsibility of the Head of Learning Support and SENDCo’s to coordinate SEND Support and SEND provision, all members of staff in the school have a positive and active part to play in ensuring that the most effective provision is made for children with SEND.

Roles:

• Children: by actively listening to and carefully considering their views, wishes, feelings, and needs, their requests are carefully considered.
• Head of Learning Support and SENDCO’s: are responsible for the organisation and administration of the SEND Learning Support provision in the school.
• Staff: by acting on the principle that every member of staff is responsible for meeting the needs of children by working in partnership with the child, the child’s parents/guardian, Headmistress, SENDCo’s and, when appropriate, other agencies.
• Parents/Guardians: by sharing in consultations about the views, wishes, feelings and needs of their child in order to facilitate the development of their child and help their child achieve the best possible educational and other outcomes, thus preparing them effectively for the next stage in their education. Children, parents, and the school need to work together in a robust and active partnership.

N.B. Possible costs incurred in the process of assessment, advice or provision from outside professionals will be met by the parents or guardians and not by the School.

Following assessment by outside agencies, the school may advise that a child’s special needs/disabilities would be more effectively met at another educational establishment. It is then the responsibility of the parents or guardians to consider and, if appropriate, act upon professional advice.

5. Identification of SEND

To fulfil these aims, the School is committed to following the key principles and procedures as laid down in the Code of Practice (2015) on the identification and assessment of children with SEND.

Access to the full curriculum of the school is achieved by careful differentiation of class work by the class teacher. Through careful planning, the teacher will define what the child is expected to learn and will use a variety of teaching strategies to help a child achieve the learning objective. The majority of children will learn and progress within these arrangements. However, some children will permanently or from time to time have greater difficulty in learning than the majority of children of their age, and consequently will fail to make sufficient progress. Before deciding that a pupil requires additional SEND Support, the SENCO and class teacher will review current arrangements to meet the child’s needs within daily class teaching and consider further differentiation that should be put in place to support satisfactory progress.

A teacher might identify a child as having a learning difficulty and disability if the child exhibits one or more of the following characteristics:

• A child is falling progressively behind its peer group;
• More explanations or assistance are needed than usual;
• Skills and concepts acquired after much practice are readily forgotten and not applied to new situations;
• A child has great difficulty in sustaining concentration or following instructions;
• A child appears isolated or withdrawn; and/or
• A discrepancy between verbal responses and writing skills.

Once identified as requiring additional SEND Support, an effective special educational provision will be put in place. This will be managed through a four-part cycle of assessment, planning, intervention and review. This cycle is known as the Graduated Response.

6. Graduated Response

Assess, Plan, Do, Review

The Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice makes it clear that all teachers are responsible and accountable for the progress of all learners in their class, including where they access support from teaching assistants or specialist staff.

Inclusive high-quality teaching is the first step in responding to those with SEN (or indeed those without). However, even when all the elements of inclusive high-quality teaching are in place there will still be some individuals who are struggling to make progress as a result of their additional needs.

Students who continue to face challenges in their learning, despite receiving high-quality teaching, are likely to need additional strategies or different provision in order to meet their needs. The SEND Code of Practice states that, for these learners, teachers are required to remove barriers to learning and put effective special educational provision in place through SEN support.

This support takes the form of a four-part cycle (assess, plan, do, review). Through this cycle, actions are reviewed and refined as the understanding of a student’s needs and the support required to help them secure good outcomes increases. This is known as the graduated approach. (See Appendix 2)

Assess

Initially, the graduated approach involves using the information teachers gather from ongoing, day-to-day assessments to make judgements about the progress a student is making and to alert them to any barriers that may be getting in the way of them making comparable progress to their peers.

Where concerns about a student’s progress continue, this is the time to have further discussions with the student, their parents and the SENDCO. We will also consider assessment scores which show a disparity between CAT scores and English and Maths assessments. Other concerns may involve a child’s behaviour such as not following instructions, displaying sensory needs etc.

At this stage the child will be placed on the ‘Concern Register’.

Plan

This part of the cycle involves discussing, planning and agreeing which approach or strategy will be used to address and support concerns. The planning should involve the student, parents and staff from the school who know the pupil well (this could be the class teacher, set teacher, SENDCO or another member of the SEN team). The initial step of the planning process includes agreeing targets for the student in order to focus attention on key areas and give them a clear idea of what they need to do to improve their work.

The targets should aim to support the student to work towards their long-term outcomes. Following this, additional or personalised support will be identified, along with any specific teaching strategies, approaches or resources to be used. This might include:

• Specialist programmes or a personalised curriculum.
• Additional resources.
• Working in a small group – e.g. for an intervention.
• Peer support or extra support from an adult.
• Physical or personal care support.

A timescale for reviewing the plan, and details of how progress will be monitored, will be identified. Once the support has been agreed, it will be recorded and shared with everyone in an APDR form or IEP.

Do

In practice, implementing the support plan will mean:

• Delivering high-quality teaching to the student in every lesson.
• Implementing any adjustments, specific strategies or approaches to classroom teaching that have been identified.
• Managing any teaching assistants who are supporting students in lessons.
• Implementing any targeted interventions or specialist provision.
• Continually assessing and monitoring the student’s progress and making any necessary adjustments to planning and teaching as a result.
• Regular communication between the student, their parents, the SENDCO and any other staff involved in order to establish how things are going and whether any changes are required.

Some students will be involved in interventions to develop the core curriculum areas of literacy or numeracy or to improve other key skills such as communication, social and emotional skills or motor skills.

Review

After 4-6 weeks of the plan being implemented, the review will provide an opportunity to focus on the specifics of the support plan and to formally evaluate how successfully the support is meeting the needs of the student.

The reviews may be incorporated as part of existing parents’ meetings or may be arranged as dedicated meetings. When the review meeting takes place, the following questions will be considered:

• What progress has the student made? Have they achieved their agreed targets and what is the evidence for this?
• What impact has the support/intervention had on progress?
• What are the student’s, parents’ and professionals’ views on the support/intervention?
• What changes need to be made to targets or provision next term?
• Will the support still be required or has the child made sufficient progress?

A record of the outcomes of the review discussions should be kept and all necessary information updated on the APDR form.

A Continual Process

The assess, plan, do, review process is a cycle – the idea being that this process is continual. If the review shows a student has made really good progress, this may mean they no longer require the additional provision. If this is the case, the student is likely to be taken off the Concern Register and, instead, will be monitored to ensure progress is sustained through inclusive high-quality teaching.

For others, the assess, plan, do, review cycle will continue and targets, strategies and provision will be revisited and refined.

After 2 cycles, a student may need to be assessed in more detail in order to explore the precise gaps in their learning or to move towards a formal diagnosis, if appropriate. This could include:

• Use of profiling tools to identify detailed needs, such as for speech, language and communication needs.
• Screening assessments, such as for dyslexia or dyscalculia.
• Request for advice from a specialist professional.

Children who receive a formal diagnosis may be placed on the school’s SEND register. This is a record of children who have SEND and require support that is different to and additional from that which is required by their peers. A consent form will be sent to you seeking your permission to place your child’s name on the SEND register.

7. Education Health Care Plan

If a pupil has lifelong or significant difficulties, they may apply to the Local Educational Authority for a Statutory Assessment. This process is usually requested by the school but can also be requested by a parent. This will occur when the complexity of need or lack of clarity around the needs of the pupil are such that a multi-agency approach to assessing the need to plan provisions and identify resources is required. The decision to make a referral for an EHCP will be taken at a meeting involving the parents, Head of Learning Support, SENDCO and Form Teacher.

Information will be gathered relating to the current provision and a summary of any action points taken. Parents have the right to appeal against a decision not to initiate a statutory needs assessment.

If a statutory needs assessment is granted and it is decided that a pupil’s needs are not being met by the support that is ordinarily available, the SENDCo, a caseworker from the LEA and parents will be involved in developing and producing the EHCP. Parents have the right to appeal against the contents of the EHCP.

Once the EHCP has been completed and agreed, it will be kept as part of the pupil’s formal record and reviewed annually by staff, parents and pupil. The Annual Review process allows provision to be evaluated and if appropriate for any changes to be made to the provision and to the EHCP.

8. Transition Arrangements

For pupils joining the school the Head of Learning Support will make every possible opportunity to seek information about the nature and level of needs for pupils identified with SEND and the provision that has already been offered to overcome these barriers.

To Nursery

Profiles/Learning Journals and reports will be handed from the previous setting.

Nursery to Reception

Transition meetings are held between Nursery and Reception staff. IEPs, monitoring forms and assessments are passed over to the new class teachers. Nursery children visit Reception twice in the Summer Term.

Yearly Transitions

A meeting between the Class Teachers will be arranged to discuss a child’s individual needs and IPPs. Monitoring forms and assessments are passed over to the new class teacher.

Year 6 Leaving to Their Next School

Entrance Examinations are taken in the autumn term, and the Headmistress provides the future schools with specific information about each child. Once a place has been offered and accepted, the pupils are invited to visit their next school and to meet the children in their new class as well as their new class teacher.

Addenda – Definitions

• SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) is the term applied to any child who has a learning difficulty which calls for a special educational provision to be made. Learning Difficulty can be applied to a child who has significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of children of the same age or has a disability that hinders him/her from making use of the educational facilities provided.
• Statement of Special Educational Need: (Educational Health and Care Plans come into force from 1 September 2015 but those already having a Statement will not have them changed to an EHCP until a time of transition in the child’s school career or for at least three years), is a document drawn up by the Local Authority after completing a formal assessment of a child. It will be written once the LA has concluded that the Special Educational Provision necessary to meet that child’s needs cannot reasonably be provided within the resources normally available to mainstream schools within the area. It will state the required provision which the LA monitors through the annual review process.
• Provision is any support that is made for children which is additional to or different from that which is generally made for pupils of the same age.
• Continuing Professional Development (CPD) refers to training provided for teaching staff.
• An Individual Education Plan (IEP) sets out targets and outcomes for a child and a review date so that parents are aware of what provision we are making and the impact it is having on their child’s learning opportunities. Along with this, we will keep a SEND Record on the database detailing all relevant information about a child, any reports held and provision put in place to support him or her.
• An APDR Form highlights the concerns/needs and the interventions put in place to support the child, which are then reviewed on the same form.
• Local Education Authority (LEA): this may be Hounslow, Ealing or the local authority where the child has permanent residence, e.g., Hammersmith.

10. The Orchard House School Offer

ALL pupils will access: High quality teaching and enrichment activities within the Nursery/School day, as well as access to clubs (Form 2 upwards) and educational visits.

Some pupils with additional SEND needs will access:

• Small group work
• 1:1 catch up for English and/or maths
• Specialist external advice
• Speech and language therapy (parental choice)
• Social skills groups
• Occupational therapy (parental choice)

How does the Nursery/School know when a pupil has learning difficulties or special educational needs?

• Some children start Nursery/School with a diagnosis or with specialist support.
• Some children will be identified by Nursery/School staff and referred for specialist support.
• Some children’s needs will be identified through tracking systems, testing and day-to-day observation by the class teacher or SENDCO. These children may have needs which can be met through differentiated teaching, small group work and/or catch up in School.

How is the curriculum matched to pupils’ needs?

• Teachers and teaching assistants plan the curriculum to meet the needs of the pupils.
• Class teachers meet termly with the SENDCO to plan for children with identified SEND and IEP’s are updated with SMART targets.
• Lessons are differentiated in various ways, and children may work in ability groups for literacy and maths lessons. Some of these groups are smaller to enable more focused teaching.

How does the Nursery/School know whether pupils are making progress?

• Progress is closely tracked and monitored by class teachers, teaching assistants and nursery nurses. This progress is then shared with the SENDCO at review meetings, or before if necessary.
• Termly assessments are administered, and staff meetings are held to identify those above and below expectations.

How are parents/carers informed about how their child is doing?

• Parents have regular communication with class teachers and teaching assistants.
• SEND reviews with the SENDCO and external professionals are held for some children with SEND.
• We plan regular parent/teacher meetings when ‘structured conversations’ take place and send home reports, twice a year.

What arrangements does the Nursery/School make to support pupils transferring from another Nursery/School?

• All children and their parents have an induction session in which they are shown around the Nursery/School.
• For children with SEND, a meeting will be held between the SENDCOs, class teacher and/or parents, and information will be shared about the child’s needs.

How is support organised for pupils with identified special educational needs or disabilities?

• Children are supported in class, in small groups or 1:1 with an adult. Some children receive 1:1 catch-up sessions in English and/or Maths.
• A range of external specialists work with the school in order to provide training, advice and assessment for children with higher needs.
• The support is overseen and organised by the Head of Learning Support and SENDCo’s.

How are decisions made about how much support individual pupils receive?

• Progress is tracked, and some children will receive catch-up for English or Maths.
• Support may be provided within lessons where needed, known as in-class support.
• Teaching assistants may be deployed to teach small groups in English or Maths.
• If progress is not made, then children’s needs are assessed, and external advice may be sought.
• Some children will receive ‘top up’ funding (through EHC plan) and a higher level of support is implemented.

How does the Nursery/School know if the extra support is helping pupils to make progress?

• Progress is regularly tracked and recorded.
• Review meetings are held with teachers and parents to discuss individual pupils’ progress.
• Teaching assistants are reviewed and receive appraisal meetings annually.

How are parents/carers informed about their child’s needs and what support they are receiving?

• Parents will be invited to an initial meeting to discuss their child’s needs; this will involve the SENDCO and class teacher.
• External professionals may be involved and will meet parents to gather information and seek views before assessments are made.
• Parents will be invited to meetings throughout the year and will be encouraged to talk to the teacher and/or SENDCO if they have any concerns.
• Reviews and Annual reviews will be timetabled, and parents and professionals will discuss children to assess progress and support.
• Parents are encouraged to meet with members of the Learning Support team if they have concerns/queries by requesting a meeting.

How does the Nursery/School involve parents/carers in planning to meet their child’s needs and in setting targets for learning?

• Parent evenings are held termly for all pupils.
• Through meetings with the teacher, Head of Learning Support, SENDCo and/or a relevant external professional.
• Annual reviews are held for pupils who have an EHCP.

What expertise and training do the staff who support SEND pupils have?

• All staff are trained internally by the Learning Support Team (when necessary) or visiting external professionals.
• Staff may attend specialist courses which are held at external venues.
• INSET training is arranged for all staff, based on their training needs.

What specialist support or services does the Nursery/School access for pupils with SEND?

The Nursery/School understands the ‘added value’ that working with a range of specialists can provide and how it enhances the quality of provision for pupils. The Nursery/School has regular contact with:

• Educational Psychologists
• Speech and Language Therapists
• BDA
• Deaf team (GOSH)
• Occupational Therapists
• Visual Impairment Team
• www.sendgateway.org.uk
• www.sendirect.org.uk – online sources of information

What arrangements are made to support pupils with SEND taking part in after school activities outside the classroom, including school journeys?

• All children are included in trips and visits as well as residential visits. We provide teaching assistant support and appropriate transport to enable this to happen. All visits are risk assessed, and appropriate safety measures are put into place.
• All of our children, including those with SEND, have the opportunity to attend a range of after-school clubs.

How will the Nursery/School prepare and support pupils who are transferring to a new school?

• All information will be transferred.
• The Learning Support Team will be invited to observe the child at the current school and invited to attend a review and planning meeting.

How does the Nursery/School support pupils’ overall well-being?

• We provide many enrichment activities, including school council, after-school clubs, and educational visits.
• We promote a Nursery/School culture in which children are encouraged to talk about their emotions and feelings, where it is acceptable to acknowledge difficulties and ask for help.
• We ensure that children’s individual needs are met in whatever way is relevant.
• We will go for local walks (in the Nursery) and teach the children to keep themselves safe when walking to and from the Church Hall/Rocks Lane (for PE).
• Children complete a ‘Pupil Passport’ with the SENDCO and share their views on their development and targets.
• Children attend their annual review meetings to share their views or be asked to provide comments for their annual review forms.
• External professionals will support where necessary to advise children and families who have particular concerns or requirements.

How does the Nursery/School prepare their pupils for their next stage of education and for adult life?

• Transition visits
• Transition books including photographs and timetables
• Parents meetings
• Sharing information between Nurseries/Schools and families
• Holding early review meetings which both Schools attend
• Seeking pupils’ views throughout

Arrangements for the Admission of SEND Pupils

We welcome pupils with special educational needs and disabilities, provided that we are able to offer them the support that they require, after making any reasonable adjustments. The School requests that parents of children with special educational needs or disabilities meet with the Head and Head of the Nursery to discuss their child’s requirements before accepting a place at the School, and that they keep the School informed of any changes.

Date reviewed	Date of next review	Date approved and agreed by Governors
September 2024	September 2027	September 2024

Appendix 1: Broad Areas of Need

1. Communication and Interaction

Children and young people with speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) have difficulty in communicating with others. Children and young people with ASD, including Asperger’s Syndrome and Autism, are likely to have particular difficulties with social interaction.

2. Cognition and Learning

Support for learning difficulties may be required when children and young people learn at a slower pace than their peers, even with appropriate differentiation. This can include specific learning difficulties, which encompass a range of conditions such as dyslexia, dyspraxia and dyscalculia.

3. Social, Emotional and Mental Health Difficulties

Children and young people may experience a wide range of social and emotional difficulties which manifest themselves in many ways. These may include becoming withdrawn or isolated, as well as displaying challenging, disruptive or disturbing behaviour. These behaviours may reflect underlying mental health difficulties such as anxiety or depression, self-harming, substance misuse, eating disorders or physical symptoms that are medically unexplained. Other children and young people may have disorders such as attention deficit disorder (ADD), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or attachment disorder.

4. Sensory and/or Physical Needs

Some children and young people require special educational provision because they have a disability which prevents or hinders them from making use of the educational facilities generally provided. These difficulties can be age-related and may fluctuate over time. Many children and young people with vision impairment (VI), hearing impairment (HI) or a multisensory impairment (MSI) will require specialist support and/or equipment to access their learning (SEN Code of Practice, 2015).

Children must not be regarded as having a learning difficulty solely because the language or form of language of their home is different from the language in which they will be taught.

Appendix 2: The Graduated Approach

SEN support: The graduated approach to supporting pupils’ needs.

Stage	Description
Start point	High-quality inclusive teaching and whole-school systems for assessing, planning, implementing and reviewing progress. If a pupil is not making expected progress, the cycle below begins.
1. Assess	Draw on information from class teaching, views of child/parent, and external services. Assess against SEN criteria.
2. Plan	Teacher, SENCO, parent and child agree interventions, support and expected outcomes. Record on school system. Inform staff.
3. Do	Implement plan. Class/subject teacher remains responsible for working with the child on a daily basis and assessing impact of the plan.
4. Review	Impact assessment, along with views of parent/child, used to review overall impact of support. Revise plan in light of outcomes.
Outcome	If progress means SEN Support is no longer required, the child returns to high-quality inclusive teaching. If not, the Assess – Plan – Do – Review cycle continues, with the child and their family at the heart of the process.