Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND)

At Bishop Ellis, we embrace the fact that every child is different and, therefore, the educational needs of every child needs to reflect this. We believe that every child’s uniqueness should be celebrated and that everyone should feel valued and included.

What does INCLUSION mean?

Involved

Not judged

Can be myself

Listened to

Unique

Safe

Independent

Open to others

Never left out

We aim to do this by;

  • Having high expectations and challenge at the right level for children.
  • Overcoming barriers to learning.
  • Regular learning support assistant support within class.
  • Expectation of being independent and building independence.
  • Short focused intervention.
  • Clear dialogue with parents
  • Close liaison with Headteacher, SENDco, class teachers and support staff.
  • Forming close relationships with our children to ensure that they are able to be open and honest about their difficulties and ensure their happiness and continued progress.
  • Celebrating an individual’s strengths and giving children the opportunity to see that we are all different and all constantly learning.

The kind of special educational needs for which provision is made at Bishop Ellis

All our staff are trained so that we are able to adapt to a range of special educational needs. For example;

  • Specific learning difficulties, including dyslexia (SPLD)
  • Autistic spectrum disorders (ASD)
  • Speech, language and communication needs (SLCN)
  • Behavioural, emotional and social difficulties (BESD)

How do I contact the SENDco at Bishop Ellis?

Our SENDco is Sarah Franklin

If you wish to contact the SENDco, please contact the school by email at admin@bishopellis.leics.sch.uk or by phone on 0116 2695510 to make an appointment.

You can also find information at the Leicestershire Education website

SEND Information Report 2025

Useful links

School nurseA link to the NHS website with ways of contacting our school nurse

SENDIASSA free, impartial, confidential support group who support parents and carers through the EHC assessment and planning process.

Speech and Language Service – An excellent website to support any parents who have any speech and language concerns

Dyslexia guidance for families

Dyslexia guidance for families from the specialist teaching service

Dyslexia ActionA link to Dyslexia Action with lots of information, guidance and support

Contact IPSEA (Independent Parental Special Education Advice)

Contact SENDIASS or ring on 0116 3055614

Website of LA Local offer

Autism Support Telephone: 0116 305940

Hearing Support Service Telephone: 0116 305940

Learning Support Service Telephone:0116 305940

Vision Support Service Telephone: 0116 305940

Psychology Service Telephone: 0116 5510

The Parent Partnership Service Telephone: 0116 305614

SENA: 0116 305660

 

SEND Provision In Leicestershire (SPIL)

Please find below some information about our newly launched SEND Provision in Leicestershire (SPIL) Guide and Directory!

What are Education, Health and Care plans?

Where the special educational provision required to meet the child or young person’s needs cannot reasonably be provided from within the resources normally available to the school, the school, in consultation with parents, will consider if requesting a LA SEND Support Plan or Education, Health and Care assessment from the Local Authority is appropriate. To inform this decision, the Senco will have close regard to the local authority’s criteria for funding through an SEND Support Plan or for an EHC Plan assessment. Support within an EHC Plan can be found in many forms from access to specialist provision to extra support for children during the school day.

This can be found on the Leicester Local Offer web site (http://www.localofferleicester.org.uk/) and the Leicestershire Local Offer web site (http://www.leics.gov.uk/index/children_families/local_offer.htm) along with information on the EHC plan coordinated assessment process and will be shared in full with parents to ensure they are confident and clear about what the process and how they are involved in it.

How are pupils with SEND identified and assessed?

Bishop Ellis pupils are identified as having SEND through a variety of ways, including the following;

  • Concerns raised by the class teacher, for example, behaviour or self-esteem is affecting performance.
  • Concerns raised by parent.
  • Child performing below age related expected levels.
  • Liaison with external agencies.
  • Health diagnosis through paediatrician.

Once a child has been identified as having SEND, we follow these steps;

  • Teacher raises concern with the SENco.
  • Teacher raises the concern with the parent and together a Cause for concern sheet is completed and discussed. At this meeting, steps are put in place to support the child and targets set.
  • The child is monitored for a short time and following this period the SENco will review the Cause for concern sheet with the teacher and parent.
  • After this time, if it is still felt that the child is having difficulties then an IEP (Individual Education Plan) is drawn up and any involvement from outside agencies (if required) are requested.

The Graduated approach to SEND support

Identifying and adapting teaching to meet pupils’ needs is a process that is in place for all pupils. The school has a rigorous and regular system, through termly pupil progress meetings, to identify any pupils are not making expected progress or who are working below national expectations. If needed, class teachers will put in place if necessary, relevant and timely interventions, through quality first teaching and appropriate differentiation and in-class support, aimed at closing the gap or raising the attainment. The class teacher will also talk with parents to ensure there is a shared understanding of pupil needs and to gain parental perspective on any emerging concerns and areas of strength.

Where a pupil’s needs are persistent, the class teacher will complete an initial concerns form and arrange to meet with the Senco. At this meeting the requirement for additional fine-tuned assessments will be ascertained. Parents will be invited to attend this meeting and share their perspective. Where appropriate, the child’s views will be sought. If, as a result of this process, it is clear that different and additional provision is required to meet the child’s needs, the child will then be placed on the school SEND record at ‘SEND Support’. The parents will be informed if the school is making special educational provision for a child. The class teacher remains responsible and accountable at all times for the progress and development of all children in his/her class, even where a child may be receiving support from a teaching assistant. High quality teaching, differentiated for individual pupils is always seen as the first step in responding to pupils’ who may have SEND.

  1. Senco and class teacher will select appropriate timely support and intervention to meet any outcomes identified for the pupil, based on reliable evidence of effectiveness and professional advice (external and internal) that have been sought, taking parent and pupil views (where appropriate) into account. This SEND support will take the form of a four part cycle (assess – plan – do – review) through which earlier decisions and actions are revisited, refined and revised with a growing understanding of the pupil’s needs and of what supports the pupil in making good progress and securing good outcomes. This is known as the Graduated Approach. It draws on more detailed approaches, more frequent reviews and more specialist expertise in successive cycles in order to match interventions to the SEND of a child.

The effectiveness of the support and interventions and their impact on the pupil’s progress will be reviewed each term. The review process will include an evaluation of the impact and quality of the support and intervention and the views of the pupil and their parents. This review will then feed back into the analysis of the pupil’s needs. The class teacher, with support from the Senco where needed, will revise the support in light of the pupil’s progress and development, deciding on any changes to the support and outcomes in consultation with the parent and pupil.

The school can involve specialists at any point for advice regarding early identification and effective support. However, where a pupil continues to make less than expected progress, despite evidence based support and interventions that are matched to the pupil’s area of need, the school will consider involving specialists, including those secured by the school itself or from outside agencies. Parents will always be involved in any decision to involve specialists along with the child’s class teacher and in appropriate cases, the child them self. Specialist agencies will only be contacted where parents are in agreement. It is the Senco’s role to contact any specialist agencies and ensure that the involvement of specialists and what was discussed or agreed is recorded and shared and fully understood by parents, teaching staff and, where appropriate, the child. The involvement of specialists and what was discussed or agreed will be recorded and shared with the parents and teaching staff supporting the child.

Examples of specialist agencies used by and that are available to be used by the school

• Educational psychologists

• Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS)

• Education Inclusion Service specialist teachers

• Specialist teachers for children with hearing and vision impairment, including multi-Sensory impairment, and for those with a physical disability

• Speech and language therapists

• Occupational therapists and physiotherapists

• ASD services

• Cognitive learning services

In many cases, there is a charge to the school for accessing specialist agency support, funding for which will come from the school’s nominal SEND budget and will be monitored by the Senco and Headteacher.

Where pupils are made subject to a Statement of SEND or and EHC plan, the school will work in close partnership with any specialist agencies as named on the plan to provide support and specialist advice.

How do we adapt the curriculum and learning environment for pupils with SEND?

All our staff are trained to ensure lessons are delivered at the right level of challenge for the different children in their class so that every child is able to learn at their own level of challenge whilst building on strengths in learning styles and broadening developing ones.

We will provide any additional resources to remove barriers for example;

  • LSA support
  • Prompt sheets
  • Reference sheets/writing frames
  • Number lines/hundred squares
  • Use of ICT

Dyslexia

Research shows that 1 in 10 people are affected by dyslexia.

We are a dyslexia friendly school where all classrooms have a visual timetable, children do not copy from the board and different strategies and learning styles that are engaging and motivating are encouraged.

More information and ideas of how our classrooms are dyslexia friendly can be sink on the link below.

Dyslexia friendly school

Creating a Dyslexia Friendly Classroom

How do we provide additional support for children with Special Educational Needs?

We offer many different forms of additional provision. This can include:

  • Additional in-class support.
  • Additional out-of- class support.
  • One-to-one support
  • Flexible groupings (including small group work)
  • Access to specific resources
  • Mentoring
  • Counselling
  • Access to a wide range of outside agencies, for example;

School Nurse, Autism Outreach, Educational Psychologist, Speech and Language Therapists, Physiotherapists, Child in Care team, CAMHS (Child and mental health service), Specialist Teaching Service, Visual Impairment Team, Strong links with our local special school.

Additional provision is overseen by our SENco and is designed and implemented by an excellent team of teachers, ably supported by a fantastic group of teaching assistants.

How are parents/carers involved?

We believe that partnership with parents is crucial when ensuring the progress of our children. For this reason, parents are regularly updated on their child’s well-being and progress either through informal chats in the playground, phone calls or pre-arranged meetings. Parents of children with SEND are invited to attend termly IEP reviews and are asked to comment on their views of their child as well as share targets. We ask our teachers to provide parents with resources and strategies to help them with working on targets at home. Parents can contact the SENco at any time if they are concerned or have any questions.

How are children involved in their education?

Children are given their own child friendly version of the targets from their IEP and these are explained during their IEP meeting. At the meeting, they are also encouraged to tell us how they feel about their well-being, work and progress.

What kind of support is offered to children who need to improve their emotional and social development?

We have a variety of strategies and clubs available depending on the needs of the children at the time. Some examples are;

  • A lego club- to help children with their social interaction;
  • School social worker from Faith in Families;
  • One to One mentoring sessions with LSAs;
  • The use of social scripts/stories.

What is….? SEND information posters for parents

What is ADHD

What is dyslexia

What Is Dyspraxia

What Is Autism

What Is Dyscalculia

Meltdowns How to Help and Dysregulation vs tantrum information sheet

Dysregulation Vs Tantrum Information Sheet

Meltdowns How To Help

What type of training has been provided for staff to support pupils with SEN?

  • Our SENco has completed the National SENco award.
  • All staff have completed attachment disorder training.
  • Speech and Language training, including Makaton.
  • Phonics, Reading and Writing training with the Specialist Teaching Service.
  • Visual impairment training.
  • Support staff are trained in carrying out the Draw and Talk intervention which enables children to talk about their feelings and things that may be bothering them.

How do we support children in times of transition?

Children with SEND joining us at Bishop Ellis will;

  • Be invited for pre-visits to our 4+ Unit;
  • Our 4+  staff will often go and visit SEND pupils in their pre-school and meet with staff, parents and the child.
  • Our 4+ staff make a book with photographs for the parents to read to their child regularly before they start.
  • Regular communication between pre-school, parents and our staff.

Children with SEN leaving us at Bishop Ellis will;

  • Be invited for pre-visits at their secondary school to have a look around before the other children.
  • The SENco from the secondary school will meet with our SENco and our Year 6 staff to discuss any needs the child may have.
  • All records and IEPs will be shared with the new secondary school.
  • The pupil is often asked to make a book or use ICT to tell their new teacher all about themselves.
  • Some secondary schools run Summer classes for children to attend over the holiday.

Every year, our children with SEND are supported with their transition into the next class.

  • Some children are encouraged to visit their new classroom and meet their new teacher in different circumstances and for different reasons.
  • Teachers have lots of discussions about the pupil.
  • The SENco makes sure that every teacher knows who the children with SEND are and what their needs are.

How do we evaluate the effectiveness of our provision for our pupils?

Typically, a child with SEN and/or disabilities will have an IEP (Individual Education Plan) which sets out targets that are currently being worked on and what additional provision is put in place for that child. The content of the IEP is negotiated, as appropriate, with the child and the child’s family. This is why it is so important that parents/carers attend our termly IEP review meetings. Children’s progress is constantly monitored by the class teacher and SENco.

Staff at Bishop Ellis will also;

  • Carry out individual, group and whole school data analysis termly.
  • Evaluate any intervention/provision put in place for pupils.
  • Conduct pupil interviews and gain feedback from the children.
  • Carry out regular book monitoring.
  • Lesson observations.

At Bishop Ellis, we feel that it is important that every child is supported to be themselves, become the person they want to be and to succeed. As a school, we endeavour to do everything we can to support the children to be happy, positive members of the community.

Children are encouraged through positivity and a growth mindset, to work at their own level and set their own personal goals. If a child is treated in a discriminative way, all staff will follow school policy and report the incident to the Headteacher.

Access facilities

All access arrangements are made on an individual basis and would be put into place before a child started school. At Bishop Ellis, we have made several access arrangements for children with a variety of special needs and would make provision for each individual case.

This is in compliance with paragraph 3 of schedule 10 to the Equality Act 2010.

Funding for SEND and allocation of resources

The school’s core budget is used to make general provision for all pupils in the school. In addition, every school receives an additional amount of money to help make special educational provision to meet children’s SEND. This is called the ‘notional SEND budget’.

The amount in this budget is based on a formula set by the local authority. The government has recommended that schools should use this notional SEND budget to pay for up to £6,000 worth of special educational provision to meet a child’s SEND based on internal and external views and the advice of professionals. Most children with SEND need special educational provision that comes to less than £6,000. If the school can show that a pupil with SEND needs more than £6,000 worth of special educational provision, it can ask the local authority to provide top-up funding to meet the cost of that provision. Where the local authority agrees, the cost is provided from funding held by the local authority in their high needs block. Schools are expected to use this funding to make provision for that individual pupil.

The school may also make use of Pupil Premium Funding where a pupil is registered as SEND and is also in receipt of Pupil Premium grant to address the needs of these pupils and enhance learning and achievement.

Each term, in consultation with the Headteacher and class teachers, the Senco will map the targeted provision in place for pupils on the SEND record to show how resources are allocated and to monitor the cost of the whole of our SEND provision.