St George and St Martin Catholic Academy
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St. George & St. Martin's is a Catholic school and the teachings of Jesus Christ are at the very centre of the daily lives of the children. We aim to provide a Catholic environment enabling each child to grow, learn and love to meet their full potential. |
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| Contact telephone | 01782 234384 |
| Contact email | sgsmcp@sgsmnewman.co.uk |
| Venue address | Boulton Street |
| Birches Head | |
| Stoke on Trent | |
| Staffordshire | |
| ST1 2NQ | |
| Website | http://www.sgsmacademy.co.uk |
| School's extended local offer response |
What kinds of SEND does the school provide for?The school accommodates all SEND in line with Equality Act 2010 and provision is available for all four areas of need outlined in the 2014 SEND code of practice. The code of practice defines the four broad areas of need as: *Communication and interaction Including speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) and Asperger’s syndrome and Autism (ASD). *Cognition and Learning Moderate learning difficulties (MLD), severe learning difficulties (SLD), profound and multiple learning difficulties (PMLD), specific learning difficulties (SpLD). *Sensory and/or physical needs Vision impairment (VI), hearing impairment (HI), multi-sensory impairment (MSI), physical disability (PD) *Social, emotional and mental health difficulties (SEMH) These four broad areas of need give an overview of the range of needs that are planned for but school undertakes assessment in order to meet individual needs. How does this setting know if their children/young person needs extra help and what should I do if I think my child/young person may have special educational needs?We know that a child needs extra help if: • Their parent or carer tells us about difficulties the child is experiencing • Their previous school/ nursery / private day care setting tells us • Another professional working with your child tells us • The child asks for help • The child’s class work, test scores or behaviour shows us that extra help is needed • An adult in school notices that the child is finding something particularly difficult • The child’s behaviour changes suddenly • The child seems ‘stuck’ and does not make as much progress as expected If you think that your child has special educational needs then you should talk to Mrs Griffiths (the SENCO) or any other member of staff at school about your concerns as soon as possible. How will the setting support my child/young person?There are as many answers to this question as there are children! We will support your child in whatever way you, the child and we feel is the best way to enable your child to make progress. Each term we will meet together to talk about how your child is doing, identify the priorities for the next term and decide the best ways to help your child. We will listen to your views as well as sharing our own and record the support that we decide is best on a form called a Pupil Passport which will be shared with all the staff working with your child in school. We may support your child by: • doing something extra or a little different in the classroom e.g. giving them a list of words on their table to help them or a particular piece of equipment • including them in a small focused group inside or outside of the classroom to help them to practise specific skills. The group may be led by a teacher or a member of Support Staff • working individually with your child on a programme to help them practise specific skills • including your child in structured games on the playground to help them to learn social skills How will teaching approaches and the curriculum be matched to my child or young person's needs?Your child’s teacher will know your child, their strengths and their needs well. Information about your child will always be shared with all those who need to know. The teacher will plan the curriculum based on their knowledge of ALL the children in their class and differentiate the work to meet their needs. If your child needs something additional to this, it will be recorded on their Pupil Passport and the teacher will write on their planning sheets how this will be included. How will both you and I know how my child/young person is doing and how will you help me to support their learning?We will know how your child is doing by: • talking often to your child about their learning • watching your child in the classroom / on the playground / while they are working • looking at the work which your child produces • reading the notes which you write in your child’s diary or books and talking to you at least once a term at Parents Evening and once a term at the child’s SEN review • regularly assessing your child to make sure that their support matches their progress You will know how your child is doing by: • looking at the tasks/ information which are sent home e.g. words to practise reading, words spelled correctly in a spelling test • reading the notes in your child’s diary / books • spending a little time often working with your child on the activities which are sent home • talking to your child about how things are going at school • talking to your child’s teacher at least once a term at Parents Evening and once a term at their SEN review and making an appointment if you would like to talk more often • talking to your child’s teacher or support staff briefly on the playground after school What support will there be for my child's/young person's overall wellbeing?At St George and St Martin, we firmly believe that each child is a gift from God, created in the image and likeness of Jesus Christ. We are fully committed to ensuring that each and every child grows into a well rounded young person. Meeting the spiritual, personal, social and emotional needs of our children is our top priority and we routinely devote time and resources to doing so. This may be through whole class activities, small group or individual activities or through access to a specific programme. We also pride ourselves on nurturing all children’s gifts and talents whether they are personal, spiritual, social, musical, artistic, sporting or academic. What specialist services and expertise are available at or accessed by the setting?We maintain links with our School Nurse, local Health Visitors, Educational Psychology Service and SEND Service advisors to ensure that we are able to access specialist support and guidance as and when required. In addition, school staff strive to remain up to date with the external agencies who are accepting referrals in all areas of SEND. We employ a Father Hudsons Family Support Worker who is able to support children and their families experiencing social or emotional difficulties and a Younger Minds Counsellor who is able to provide more specialist support with social and emotional difficulties. We also have support staff in school with particular strengths in the following areas:
What training are the staff supporting children and young people with SEND have had or are having?At St George and St Martin, we take staff training and development very seriously and are committed to ensuring that all of our staff have the necessary knowledge and skills to do the very best for our children.
How will my child/young person be included in activities outside this classroom including school trips?Your child will be fully included in all aspects of school life including theme weeks, school trips and after school clubs. If necessary, we will ensure that additional staff are present to support your child. When planning a visit or club, we will consider the needs of all the children involved and make any necessary arrangements, for example wheelchair access, special equipment, rest breaks. If you feel that your child will require additional support to access any school activity, we will be pleased to discuss their needs with you. How accessible is the environment?The school has disabled parking and disabled access to the grounds through the main gates. One building is on one level only, is fully accessible and has disabled toilet facilities. The KS2 building is on three floors but has a lift to all floors with initial access through emergency doors. How will the setting prepare and support my child/young person to join the next stage of education and life?All children in each class are prepared for the next class, Key Stage or school through whole class transition activities. Nursery children are prepared for entry into the school through induction meetings, home visits and Stay and Play sessions so there is ample opportunity for information about a child’s needs to be shared and the child to form relationships with Key Workers. Children in Reception through to Year Two are prepared for their new classes through a series of Stay and Play sessions. A transition package is arranged for each child moving to secondary school. Where children need further support, this often takes the form of small group activities, circle time, one to one activities, additional visits and the use of transition books. Extensive transition information is passed from teacher to teacher and school to school and time is devoted to teachers sharing this information. Excellent information sharing ensures a smooth transition. How are the setting's resources allocated and matched to children's/young people's special educational needs?Every child has needs and we endeavour to address these needs through a high quality, well differentiated and creative curriculum. There are occasions when the level of differentiation or pace of delivery of the curriculum needs to be adapted beyond the expectations for the age or stage of development of the child; in these circumstances it may be necessary to provide additional support for the child. If a child receives support that is deemed additional to or different from the range of support offered to their peers then they would be considered to be on the SEN Code of Practice. The notational funding received for a child on the Code of Practice can be allocated in a range of ways. It can be beneficial for the child to receive additional high quality support from the class teacher and additional Teaching Assistant hours may be used to free the teacher to spend additional time with a child. It may be preferable for the child to receive additional support within the classroom to undertake the tasks and activities that the class are doing. On occasions it may be beneficial for the child to be part of a small group of children receiving additional support from either the class teacher or the Teaching Assistant through an intervention group. The type and range of support provided is dependent upon what is considered to be of greatest benefit to the child and can be varied in extent and focus. The nature, structure and impact of any additional support is monitored closely by the SENCo and Senior Leadership Team, we are mindful of the need to use the resources made available to the school in an efficient and effective manner. How is the decision made about what type and how much support my child/young person will receive?Decisions about how best to support a child are based on the nature and extent of the needs of the individual. Our aim is always to provide the support which will have the most impact upon a child. When making such decisions, consideration is given to the thoughts and feelings of the child, the views of their family, the views of all the school staff who know the child’s needs well, the advice given by any professionals working with the child. Decisions are informed by a wide range of factors including the impact of previous support, the evidence bases of particular interventions and our previous experiences of the effectiveness of particular interventions. How will our child and young person be involved in the decisions about their learning?Your child will be involved in the decisions about their learning by:
How will we be involved in the decisions about the learning of our children and young people?You will be involved in the decisions about their learning by:
Annual parents questionnaires are sent to parents to actively seek the viewpoints of parents How are parents involved in the setting? How can I be involved?We truly value the crucial role of parents in the education of their children and strongly urge you to be involved in the life of our school in any way that you can. We understand that work commitments, personal difficulties or your own school experiences can sometimes make this challenging and strive always to be as welcoming as possible and to offer a range of ways for you to be involved. If you yourself have particular needs, we are happy to help with these in any way that we can. We invite you to be a part of your child’s learning through: • a termly class newsletter which gives information about the learning for the following term and invites you to share with the class any relevant resources, skills or experiences • encouraging you to work with your child on their targets and record your comments in their target book • reading regularly with your child and recording your views in their diary • sharing gospel stories weekly with your child through the Wednesday Word • attending Parent Workshops • termly parents evenings • termly SEN reviews We invite you to communicate with your child’s class teacher as necessary through: • writing a note in their diary / target book / homework book • having a brief chat before or after school • telephoning the school • sending a message to the school email address • making an appointment for a face to face meeting We invite you to be a part of our community through: • attending your child’s class assembly once a term • attending class, Key Stage and whole school masses • attending special events e.g. Arts Week, Sports Day • keeping up to date with school news through the monthly memo • completing Parent Questionnaires • coming into school for Family Days • helping out in school / on visits (subject to the necessary checks) What do I do if I want to make a complaint?If a parent or carer has any concerns or complaints regarding the care or welfare of their child the school’s complaints policy is available from the school office. What other support Is available to parents and how can I contact them?For further support and advice you might wish to visit the following websites:
http://www.ahtstokeparentforum.com/
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