Our Lady's Catholic Academy - Organisations

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Our Lady’s Catholic Academy is a mainsteam setting. We are very proud to be part of the All Saints Catholic Collegiate.  

At Our Lady's, we passionately believe that each child is made in the image of God and that we, working alongside families, have the privilege of bringing them to a deeper knowledge of Christ and a fuller awareness of their own part in His plan. As a Catholic school, we offer an education firmly based upon our Gospel values, and our Mission statement reflects our belief that, "With God, all things are possible." (Mt19:26) 

The fantastic team of dedicated staff ensure the needs of each individual child are met; working closely with parents and carers to enable pupils to make excellent progress and reach their full potential.  

1. How does the setting/school/college know if children/young people need extra help and what should I do if I think my child/young person may have special educational needs? All children in our school are monitored closely with half termly progress meetings taking place with a member of the SLT. The childrens’ progress is tracked in all areas of the curriculum and teachers are held account of their progress. Support staff in our school work very closely with the class teachers and any concerns about the pupils are discussed. Any concerns which are raised regarding a pupil will always be shared with parents/carers and they are involved in all decision making. We hold 3 formal Parent’s Evenings a year where parents are invited into school to meet the class teacher but also we operate an open door policy where parents can make an appointment at any time to see a member of staff. Parents are encouraged to always come into school to discuss their children and ask any questions or raise any concerns which they may have. Within our school we have a Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Coordinator (SENDCo) and an assistant SENDCo who supports staff with identifying children who may have a special educational need and works very closely with many external agencies to ensure that all our children’s needs are met. The SENDCo is also available to meet with parents/carers upon request.

2. How will Early Years setting/school/college staff support my child/young person? If required children have a pupil passport where important information is recorded and this is drawn up with the parents/pupils/SENCo and class teacher/key worker. The staff in the early years all work very closely as a team and are very experienced. They meet daily to discuss the children and any concerns are shared, these concerns will then be discussed with the parents and a support plan put At Our Lady’s Catholic Academy we aim to provide high quality support for the following special educational needs. The school accommodates all SEND in line with the Equality Act 2010 and provision is available for all four areas of need outlined in the 2015 SEND Code of Practice. in place for the child. This may include additional support during the day, for example speech and language activities, physical support or small group work. The staff in our early years will provide additional for the children in any area of the curriculum and also will meet any medical needs if required. The SENDCo supports the staff and children in the early years and will meet with parents and liaise with agencies when required. At Our Lady’s Catholic we have an effective Learning Support Assistant who works alongside the staff in the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) to offer support to all of the pupils and their families.

3. How will the curriculum be matched to my child's/ young person's needs?

All lessons and activities within our school are differentiated to meet all of the children’s needs. This is monitored by the SLT and the SENCDo to ensure that it takes place and that the work is closely matched to the pupil’s ability. Staff provide detailed planning where groups of children are identified and will receive targeted support. This support will also be recorded on their pupil passport ensuring that all members of staff who work in that classroom are aware of the children’s needs. The environments in our school are of a high standard and provide support for all of the children during their learning time. At times the timetable or provision may need to be adapted during the school day to meet a child’s need, for example a PE slot may need to be in the morning rather than the afternoon to ensure additional supervision. An extensive range of resources are available for the children to access and additional resources are purchased as required to support the teaching and learning.

4. How will both you and I know how my child/young person is doing and how will you help me to support my child's/young person's learning?

Parents/carers meetings will take place three times a year and a formal report will be sent home to share progress and achievements. Targets are set my class teachers and these are shared with parents and the children. The children are made aware regularly of how they are progressing and what they are working on to improve further. Workshops and Watch me Learn sessions will take place throughout the year where staff will share with parents and carers how they can support their children; this will include sharing calculation procedures, the pronunciation of graphemes etc. Staff update their class pages on the school website regularly and will post links to various additional websites which will support the pupil’s learning. When a child is identified as requiring additional support then the SENDCo will monitor their progress and meet with parent/carers when needed. In these meeting the pupil passports will be reviewed. Rigorous tracking and monitoring of the pupil’s attainment takes place continuously by the class teachers and are overseen by the SLT. Many specialist staff and outside agencies work together to support the children’s learning and offer support to our parents/carers.

5. What support will there be for my child's/young person's overall wellbeing?

Our school is committed to the safeguarding and welfare of all children and young people and expects all its employees to share this commitment. All staff are DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) checked and regularly updated with safeguarding training. This includes students and volunteers who work within our school. We have school policies which are available for parents/carers to read and they include child protection, anti-bullying and special educational needs. Pupils may require support for medical needs and staff receive training how to administer medication for example an epi pen or insulin. Staff are first aid trained with additional staff being paediatric first aid trained. All medication is stored in a secure place in staff store cupboards. If a child has an allergy or dietary requirements this information is stored in a file in the office to inform all staff and the class teacher is made aware of this. A record book is kept of any accidents which the children may have and a copy is sent home to inform parents. You may not use photographic devices unless all other parents and carers have given their consent. Photograph consent forms are completed by parents/carers and are stored in a confidential file in the school office. All disclosures made by a child are treated in line with our child protection policy in line with Stoke on Trent Children and Young Peoples Safeguarding Board. Our Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) is Mr T Burrows.

6. What specialist services and expertise are available at or accessed by the setting/school/college?

The members of staff at our school have a wealth of experience and have undergone many training sessions. The SENDCo oversees the additional support for the pupils and directs staff to work with particular pupils ensuring that their needs are best met. Many agencies are requested by school if needed to support the pupils and to offer advice to staff. We work closely with the Speech and Language Therapist, Educational Psychologist, Specialist Advisory Teachers and Health Care Professionals. Our Home School Link Worker (HSLW) also works with many external agencies and will seek support and guidance for all of our families when needed, for example, family support workers and the citizens advice bureau.

7. What training are the staff supporting children and young people with SEND have had or are having? Support staff are trained in delivering specific interventions and all have opportunities to develop their knowledge and skills by observing good practice in other settings. When we receive pupils who required additional support an audit of staff need is completed ensuring that the staff are equipped and skilled to work with the pupil. Regular training takes place throughout the year for all our staff. The SENDCo works closely with many outside agencies where training and support can be discussed and arranged. The SENDCo has achieved the mandatory SENCO qualification.

8. How will my child/young person be included in activities outside this classroom including school trips?

All of our children are involved in all activities outside of the classroom. We offer a breakfast club before school for all pupils from 8:00am. A range of after school clubs are available, these are offered to all pupils and change throughout the year. If a child requires additional support for a club, then this can be arranged. Education visits take place for each year group each academic year with a residential taking place for our upper KS2 children. Mass takes place and the pupils from Reception – Year 6 attend, this takes place in the school hall and in our church. Children are encouraged to read during the Mass and support if given throughout the week to rehearse their reading. Weekly PE sessions take place and the school fields are used and accessible by all the children. A sports day takes place each year with all pupils involved and the races are adapted to ensure that the are accessible by all pupils and are safe. Performances take place at intervals throughout the year and all the children get the opportunity to perform in at least one. Risk assessments are carried out for all of the above activities and specialist provision is put into place where needed, the legal requirement for adult:pupil ratio is always adhered to. Parents of children who are entitled to Pupil Premium Funding are invited into school discuss how funding can be used to support their child.

9. How accessible is the setting/school/college environment?

The school is fully accessible by all of our pupils and families. We have level ground access to the school and all of the classroom classrooms. Doors around the school have double openings making them extra wide openings. The school has three gate entrances and no steps providing us with accessible entrances and exists. The automatic gate which is located at the main entrance has a button at an appropriate height that can be reached by somebody in a wheelchair. There are no staircases inside the school building and corridors are wide and free from obstructions. Car parking is available for visitors at the front of the building. Door timers are set at a reasonable time limit allowing people to pass through at a comfortable pace.

10. How will the setting/school/college prepare and support my child/young person to join the setting/school/college or the next stage of education and life?

All of our pupils who begin their school life in our Nursery are offered a home visit from the class teacher and Early Years Practitioner. Many play and stay sessions are offered for the children to attend with their parents/carers. Transition days take place towards the end of the academic year where the children have many days with their new teacher in their new classroom. Learning support practitioners stay working with individual pupils as they change year groups within our school. They also support the pupils when joining high school to go along on change over day and additional sessions. The SENCo and high school SENCo regularly meet to discuss the transition of pupils to ensure that they are fully prepared and everything runs smoothly. Review meetings take place and parents/carers are invited along to attend to discuss the transition and the pupil passport.

11. How are the setting’s/school's/college's resources allocated and matched to children's/young people's special educational needs?

If a child has an Education, Health and Care Plan they will receive additional funding for special educational needs will have access to all facilities provided by the school. Funding is allocated to enable the child to achieve their full potential, possibly one to one support, specialist equipment, and appropriate toys to aid development or the creation of pictorial support aids. Parents/carers are involved in all the decisions that are made regarding the support that the pupils require and will receive. High Quality First Teaching and resources are constantly reviewed and matched to the pupils and their specific need. Budgets are closely monitored and are aligned to the School Improvement Plan.

12. How is the decision made about what type and how much support my child/young person will receive?

Decisions are made through consultation with all parties involved with the child’s care; this includes parents/carers, specialists, as well as the school’s Special Educational Needs coordinator (SENCo) and key staff. Meetings are arranged and take place in the schools meeting room. Observations and behaviour records are carried out by staff and shared with parents on a regular basis. These records may need to be shared with external agencies but permission will always be asked for from the parents/carer. The amount of support that a child receives is dependent upon their need. The Special Educational Needs coordinator (SENCo) will draw up a Pupil Passport in collaboration with the key people involved and with the pupil, this is reviewed each half term. At the review the impact of the support will be assessed and moderated as appropriate.

13. How are parents involved in the setting/school/college? How can I be involved?

We have a Parent’s Forum who meet to discuss any school-related issues and a PTFA who are group of people including parents, teachers and friends of the school who help to organise events, both fund raising and social. All parents/carers are invited to attend the meetings. Volunteers are warmly welcome in our school to support the children with their learning. Parent questionnaires are distributed and parents are encouraged to share their views about our school on Parent View and evaluate our performance. Our home school link worker runs a family learning session where all families are invited to attend. Parents are invited into school to contribute to pupil’s Learning Passports during the year.

14. What do I do if I want to make a complaint?

If there are any complaints relating to the provision for children with SEND these will be dealt with in the first instance by the class teacher and SENCOs, then, if unresolved, by the Assistant Headteacher and Head of School. In the case of an unresolved complaint the issue should be taken through the Academy Committee complaints procedure. In this instance please request a copy of the school ‘Complaints Policy.’ This is available on the school website or a copy can be obtained from the office.

15. Who can I contact for further information?

For further information about Our Lady’s Catholic Academy please contact the school office in the first instance on 01782 254832. Take a look at our website there is a wealth of information about our school community on it