SEND information report

Who can I contact about Special Educational Needs at Firs Primary School?

Miss Hartshorn is the SENCo. She has day-to-day responsibility for reviewing our SEND policy and arranges specific provision made to support individual pupils with SEND, including those who have Education, Health and Care plans. She also helps our children who have physical, medical and speech & language needs.

To discuss your child’s education and needs with Miss Hartshorn, please contact the school office to make an appointment.

Phone: 0121 464 3792

Email: enquiries@firs.academy

What kinds of Special Educational Needs does the school make provision for?

Firs supports the needs of all pupils including those with SEND (Special Education Needs and Disabilities).

Such needs include:

• Cognition and learning
• Communication and Interaction
• Social emotional and mental health difficulties
• Sensory and/or physical needs

The areas of need listed above are as stated within the Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice 0-25 which can be found by using the following link:

Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice 

All children in school have support through differentiation and quality first teaching strategies. This means that activities are planned according to the level the child or young person is working at. This can include a variety of adaptations including, changes to physical environment, use of resources, changes to teaching styles as well as level of adult support. 

How does the school identify and assess Special Educational Needs?

At Firs, all staff are involved in assessing whether a child has an educational need. If a member of staff or a parent identifies a possible learning need for a child, the flow chart below is followed. 

What happens once my child has been added to the SEND register?

At Firs, all children on the SEND register have an Individual Learning Plan (ILP) which includes a profile of the child's areas of strengths and developments, their targets for that term and how the graduated approach (assess, plan, do, review) will be used to assess the impact of the support the child receives during the term. Parents will receive a copy of this updated ILP document at the start of each new term and will be able to book a meeting with teachers to discuss. 

What type of provision will my child get in school?

Depending on the needs of your child they may receive some of the different provision available in school, listed below. 

Cognition and Learning

Examples of support in our school:

• All children on the SEND register will have Toolkit continuums for 'Mathematics', 'Reading', 'Writing' and 'Speaking and listening'. These will be used by teachers to support differentiated planning for children who need it. 
• We have teaching assistants who are trained to: 

1. Support children in small groups or 1:1 within the classroom. 

2. Pre and post tutor children outside the classroom to ensure they experience success within the classroom.

• We have support from our learning mentors and outside agencies to support children with learning needs.

Communication and Interaction

Examples of support in our school:

•  We run intervention groups using 'Wellcomm' to support children gain skills relating to speech, language and communication.
• We run intervention groups using 'Talk About' to support children learn and understand different social skills.
• We have a Speech and Language Therapist (SaLT) that is in school every Wednesday afternoon. 
•  We help children when things change by using transition booklets and visual timetables.
• We work with the Communication / Autism Team (CAT) to help support children who learn in different ways.

Social, Emotional and Mental Health Difficulties

Examples of support in our school:

• We get advice from Educational Psychologist trained in working with children who have social, emotional and mental health needs.
• Our Family Support Worker supports children and families in a wide variety of ways.
•  Our Learning Mentors provides 1:1  mentoring sessions
• Teachers set high expectations for behaviour and have support from school leadership to do so.
• Structured lunchtimes including additional adult support to offer a set routine on a daily basis.
• We work with Beacon School Support to develop strategies for children with behavioural needs.

Sensory and/or physical needs

Examples of support in our school:

• We have an Occupational Therapist (OT) that is in school every Wednesday afternoon. 
• We run intervention groups for children to develop both their fine motor and gross motor skills.
• We run twice daily 'sensory motor' intervention groups for children who need a specialised sensory diet.
• We work with the Physical Difficulties Support Service (PDSS) and Sensory Support for visual and hearing impairments.

The Firs Primary School Accessibility Plan can also be found in the Key Information section of our website under Polices and Documents.

Where can I get more information about SEND across Birmingham? 

Watch this video to understand what the Local Offer is https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TcAblK6EVQ0

Click this link to view the Local Offer https://www.localofferbirmingham.co.uk/parents-carers-and-young-people/