Bournemouth, Poole & Dorset SENCO Forum Training Monday 22nd January 2018 Identifying the needs of sensory impaired (SI) learners Bev Mars & Caireen Sutherland – NatSIP Associates bev.mars@natsip.org.uk caireen.sutherland@natsip.org.uk

How can we raise awareness of the needs of SI learners in this session? What is NatSIP and why are we here? What does the Code of Practice say about SI learners? What do you know about SI learners? What does Quality First Teaching for SI learners look like? Accessibility plans NatSIP web-site and Sensory Learning Hub Technology support for SI learners What do you know about SI learners now? Evaluation and questions

NatSIP is a unique national partnership of professionals and voluntary organisations working with children and young people with sensory impairment (SI) and their families The purpose of NatSIP is to improve outcomes for children and young people with sensory impairment through promoting collaborative working between education, health and social care professionals Details, published guidance and outcomes from the NatSIP workstreams, including from the contract programme, can be found on the NatSIP website: www.natsip.org.uk

What is “Low incidence” special educational need and disability (LISEND)? A need which has the potential to have an adverse impact on learning and development unless additional measures are taken to support the child/young person The prevalence rate is so low that a mainstream setting is unlikely to have sufficient knowledge and experience to meet these requirements. Settings will need to obtain specialist support and advice on how to ensure equitable access and progression (against national standards) The prevalence rate is so low that any formula for allocating specialist resources for additional needs, which is based on proxy indicators of need, will not reflect the true distribution of children and young people identified as having low incidence SEND NatSIP August 2012

NatSIP contract with the DfE 2017 – 18 Objective 1: To enhance the capacity and knowledge base of the front line workforce “Every teacher is a teacher of children with SEN and disabilities” – and with LISEND you need more help! Some key delivery objectives for the contract which support SENCOs: NatSIP website: The Sensory Learning Hub Development of What Works guides, including Technology Online Training: Recruiting more learners and schools/settings to OLT SI courses Include OLT FE module for HI and VI Courses are free to access until March 2018

We need your help with this please! Development of face to face training and support materials for SENCOs - working with national SENCO qualification providers and SENCO forums to deliver awareness training and develop training materials Develop a mainstream SI training pack - to deliver with local SI services We need your help with this please! Technology - easy to use Technology guide Face to face training - 2-day courses for TAs supporting HI, VI or MSI children and young people Examination access - online awareness raising resource 16 – 25yrs - regional events for providers of apprenticeships for HI and VI young people

Sensory impairment in context: DfE data (July 2017) for January 2016 -17 Increase in pupils with SEND from 1,228,785 to 1,244,255 Percentage of pupils with SEN 14.4% (stable) 25.2% of pupils with SEN support - Moderate Learning Difficulty 26.9% of pupils with Statement or EHC Plan - Autistic Spectrum Disorder Pupils with sensory impairments (hearing impairment, visual impairment and multi-sensory impairment) are significantly lower with only 2.8% of pupils receiving SEN support and 4.3% of pupils with Statement or EHC Plan.

Headline data: numbers and provision Deaf: 46,000 deaf children in England ; 78% of school-age deaf children attend mainstream schools with no specialist provision 6% attend mainstream schools with resource provisions 3% attend special schools for deaf children 12% attend special schools not specifically for deaf children 22% have an additional need Support from specialists services needs to be targeted to mainstream schools

Headline data: numbers and provision 24,500 under 16 66% in mainstream schools 33% other special schools 2% specialist schools for VI (10 schools) 50% have an additional disability/health need (Source: RNIB 2016) 16,701 pupils VI primary or secondary need. 39% with EHC Plan (Source: DfE 2016) MSI Estimated 4000 under 19s (Source: UK CeDR research 2010) 16% in mainstream education 41% in specialist deaf/VI or MSI provision 43% in other special schools (Source: Sense 2014)

Code of Practice: Chapter 6 Involving specialists Early identification of SEN and effective support and interventions Where a pupil makes little or no progress or where they are working substantially below ARE despite evidenced based SEN support “Where an assessment indicates that support from specialist services is required, it is important that children and young people receive it as quickly as possible” 6:60 Starting point – Local Offer which should include information on your sensory services

Code of Practice: Chapter 6 …specialist teachers or support services, including specialist teachers with a mandatory qualification for children with hearing and vision impairment, including multi-sensory impairment…. 6:61 The SENCO and the class teacher, along with the specialists, and involving the pupil’s parents, should consider a range of evidence-based and effective teaching approaches, appropriate equipment, strategies and interventions in order to support the child’s progress 6:62

What do you know about learners with SI?

Outcomes for SI learners (… Outcomes for SI learners (….there is a policy imperative to have reliable data: ‘Because children don’t count if they are not counted…..’) Academic outcomes for pupils with SI will vary significantly depending on additional needs All should make good or better progress from their different starting points Good progress should also be evidenced in terms of: Language and communication skills Use of assistive technology Independent living skills Employability

Educational implications of SI Language development Impact of language deficit on all areas of development – all curriculum areas Perceived language ability vs actual understanding Loss of incidental learning/access to information Impact on social and emotional development Impact on inclusion in all activities within school Impact on parental confidence to support Independence skills

Implications for educational provision Access to qualified (MQ) teacher HI, VI and MSI Additional specialist support; Teaching Assistant, Communication Support Worker, Educational Audiologist, Intervenor Specialist equipment and technology Environmental adaptations Adaptation of curriculum resources Adaptation of teaching strategies Specialist curriculum – independence skills, mobility, braille Support for social and emotional development Parental support All underpinned by a multi-agency approach offering equality of opportunity for SI learners

Quality first teaching The day-to-day interactions between teacher and pupil in the classroom provide the bedrock for the effective development of personalised learning. So called ‘quality first’ teaching seeks to engage and support the learning of all children and young people. It builds on the pupils’ prior learning and responds appropriately to the ‘pupil voice’. The key challenge for personalisation in the classroom is how to cater simultaneously for all the different needs in one class. Personalised Learning A Practical Guide DCSF 2008

What does Quality First Teaching for SI learners look like? What would you expect to see in place for children and young people with: A hearing impairment A vision impairment A multi-sensory impairment

What does Quality First Teaching for SI learners look like? Adapting the classroom environment Management of specialist equipment Communication strategies Differentiating lessons Additional specialist support

Accessibility plan: legal context Definition of Disability According to the Equality Act 2010, a person has a disability if: a) He or she has a physical or mental impairment. b) The impairment has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on his or her ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities. Legal Background Under the Equality Act 2010 all schools must have an Accessibility Plan. The Equality Act 2010 replaced all existing equality legislation including the DDA. The effect of the law is the same as in the past, meaning that: ‘Schools cannot lawfully discriminate against pupils because of sex, race, disability, religion or belief and sexual orientation’.

Accessibility plan Three areas required by the planning duties in the DDA: Increase the extent to which pupils with disabilities can participate in the curriculum Improve the environment to enable disabled pupils to take better advantage of education and associated services Improve the availability of accessible information for disabled pupils In pairs discuss your school’s current accessibility plan, identify existing good practice for learners with SI and identify actions that need to be taken to improve the plan

NatSIP website The front page: Diary dates Quick links; EHC Plans, Outcomes Benchmarking and Exams and Access Sensory Learning Hub: Getting Started – introductory guide to top resources which signposts reader to additional specialist documents About Sensory Impairment – basic facts about HI, VI and MSI including guidance on levels of hearing loss and how clinical measurement of vision translates to print size What Works database: A database of resources used across the Sensory Impairment sector isan integral part of the Sensory Learning Hub Regularly updated by professionals in the field (via NatSIP editorial board)

Currently being developed… The mainstream SI training pack What would you find useful in such a resource? We would like to know….