Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND)
Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) Local Offer:
There is a wealth of information and local support group contacts available to parents through the Norfolk SEND Local Offer and can be searched for information about specific services in our area.
Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Information Report
At Lakenham Primary School and Nursery we aim to provide everyone in school with opportunities to grow and develop academically, physically, intellectually and emotionally according to their own individual needs.
We embrace the fact that every child is different and therefore the needs of every child are different. We are proud to be a fully inclusive school.
The staff at our school are dedicated to encouraging all children regardless of their Special Educational Need and/or Disability (SEND), to make the best possible progress while they are in our care.
How does the school know if children need extra support?
When children have identified SEND before they start at Lakenham Primary, we will liaise with the people who already know them and use information already available to identify what the child’s needs are and how best to support them – this could be the nursery school that a child has attended prior to joining reception or a primary school that they are transferring from.
If you tell us that you think your child has a SEND, we will discuss this with you and agree on how to proceed. We will then share what we discover with you, what the next steps will be at school and how you can best help your child at home.
We will observe
them, assess their understanding
of what we are doing in school and use a variety of strategies to find out what could be causing the difficulty.
The identification of SEND may also arise as a result of classroom observations made by teaching staff or teaching assistants or from the tracking of children’s progress. If our staff think that your child has SEN this may be because they are not making the same progress as other children; this may be evident through their work, behaviour or social skills. We will observe them, assess their understanding of what we are doing in school and use a variety of strategies to find out what could be causing the difficulty. Should we require further help we will look for support from the Specialist Support Teacher but then seek consultation with the Educational Psychologist, Parent Support Advisor, or other external agencies where relevant.
How will school support my child?
The class teacher is responsible for all of the children in their class.
They will plan the daily provision for all children, including those with SEND, and will be supported and advised by the school Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCo) where necessary. The class teacher will discuss with you any support they think is required that is additional and different to what we would offer to children as part of our usual practice.
If you and the teacher identify a need for a specific in-school assessment or involvement from any outside specialist services, then the SENCo will talk to you about this and seek your permission to proceed. The SENCo then becomes the lead person for working with outside services and keeping you, and everybody in the team around your child, informed of key events and information.
How will the curriculum be matched to my child’s needs?
High quality classroom teaching, with adjusted plans and resources for individual pupils, is the first step in responding to children who may have special needs.
All our staff are trained to make lessons accessible or more challenging, and children can be provided with additional resources or support so that every child is able to learn at their own pace – this is known as adaptive teaching and will enable your child to access a broad, balanced and relevant curriculum.
If your child is not making the expected progress and has specific gaps in their understanding then, he/she may work within a smaller group of children or one to one with a teacher or teaching assistant; this may happen within the classroom or in another room or area. The type and amount of support your child will receive will depend on their individual need.
All children are able to access extra-curricular activities including sports, art and drama. The pupil premium document shows how the school focus is about broadening experiences for all. The sports premium document shows how many different activities SEN children accessed, which was many. Some of which only SEND children attended.
Admission arrangements
If your child have a special educational need or disability, come in and talk to the staff about how we would be able to support them. We are a very inclusive school and have been able to support a wide range of children to achieve their potential.
The local authority will give priority to children who have an EHCP naming Lakenham.
More information is available in our Admissions policy.
Lakenham Primary School and Nursery - Admissions
Accessibility plan
Steps are taken to prevent pupils with disabilities from being treated less favourably than other pupils within a maintained school environment. the building is accessible, including having a lift, disabled toilets and ramps.
Read the accessibility plan for more details.
SEN Co-ordinator
Our SEN co-ordinators are Miss Jess Morrison and Mrs Amanda Mancini. They can be contacted by email at office@lakenham.norfolk.sch.uk or make an appointment in the office.