William Brookes School Communication and Interaction This policy should be read alongside the Equal Opportunities Policy and the Accessibility Plan.

William Brookes endeavours to identify, monitor and put interventions into place to foster student support in the 4 areas of need: 1.Communication and Interaction; 2.Cognition and Learning Difficulties; 3.Social, emotional and mental health; 4.Sensory and/or physical development.

How do teachers know what needs pupils have? It is really important that the class teacher has all the information at their fingertips. When they open their register, a column shows next to the child’s name stating whether they have any SEN. It shows T for ‘teacher support,’ K for ‘SEN Support’ and S or ECHP for the highest levels of support. Individual teachers are then expected to cross reference this with the SEN list and the one-page profile, which have more detailed descriptions of a student’s needs.

This shows part of a (fictional) SEN list. In addition, staff will know what provision (e.g. spelling groups, social groups, small-group maths) is available for that child from Sept 2014 to June 2015, which is when our timetable changes. T

How we adapt our curriculum and learning environment to include students with support needs in the area of communication and interaction: We can provide a ‘meet and greet’ for students who are anxious or disorganised; Games Club at lunchtime provides a quiet ‘sanctuary;’ Movement between lessons can be adapted to alleviate anxiety due to busy corridors; Visual and coloured timetables can be provided to provide prompts to students; Social skills groups can teach friendship skills; Homework Amnesties may be put in place; We aim to prepare students for any changes in routine; The use of ‘social stories’ can help students unpack the social curriculum of secondary school.

How we identify and assess support needs In the New Code of Practice, it states: “6.16 Schools should assess each pupil’s current skills and levels of attainment on entry, building on information from previous settings and key stages where appropriate.” Information from primary schools is seen as paramount when organising support for new Yr 7 pupils, but students adapt to secondary schools at different rates and it is necessary to keep flexibility in teaching arrangements until past Christmas.

We also ask our staff and parents to contact us if they feel that something is preventing a student reach their potential. Students can also self-refer. SENCO – Lesley Ravenscroft, We can purchase specialist screening from a private speech therapist. We can liaise with our Primary Mental Health Worker to start the diagnostic process for conditions such as ASD.

How we review support needs 1)Teachers are asked to make sure that students make progress appropriate for them using 4 matrix and tutors, especially are tasked with watching a student’s ‘flight path.’

What training has been provided for our staff? Anxiety Anger management Social stories Elklan (language)

Complaints. We hope that you can discuss issues with the SENCO and come to a mutually-satisfactory conclusion, However, in the event of a dispute that cannot be thus satisfied, please use the link to our school complaints procedure on the web site.

There are organisations that will help parents make their way through the ‘local offer’ and School SEN Information Reports. Parent Partnership is a great service. Their web page is at Their telephone number is Their is “We are here to give you help so that you can feel much more confident in being able to take an active role in making sure your child’s educational needs are being met.” (from their website)