Provision for pupils with special educational needs is a matter for the school as a whole. St Peter’s is non-selective and supports a number of children with a range of special educational needs.

The Assistant Head (pastoral care & safeguarding) takes day‐to‐day responsibility for the operation of the SEND policy and coordinates the provision for individual children, working closely with staff, parents/carers and external agencies. The Assistant Head (pastoral care & safeguarding) provides relevant professional guidance to colleagues with the aim of securing high‐quality teaching for children with special educational needs. Through analysis and assessment of children’s needs, and by monitoring the quality of teaching and standards of pupils’ achievements and setting targets, the Assistant Head (pastoral care & safeguarding) develops effective ways of overcoming barriers to learning and sustaining effective teaching. The Assistant Head (pastoral care & safeguarding) liaises and collaborates with class teachers so that learning for all children is given equal priority.

The principle responsibilities of the Assistant Head (pastoral care & safeguarding) include:

  • Overseeing the day‐to‐day operation of the SEND policy
  • Coordinating provision for SEND pupils and reporting on progress
  • Advising on the graduated approach to providing SEN support – Assess, Plan, Do, Review
  • Advising on the deployment of the school’s delegated budget and other resources to meet pupils’ needs effectively
  • Monitoring relevant SEN CPD for all staff
  • Overseeing the records of all children with special educational needs and ensuring they are up to date
  • Liaising with parents/carers of children with special educational needs
  • Contributing to the in‐service training of staff
  • Being a point of contact with external agencies, especially the local authority and its support services
  • Liaising with early years providers, other schools, educational psychologists, health and social care professionals and independent or voluntary bodies
  • Liaising with potential next providers of education to ensure a pupil and their parents/carers are informed about options and a smooth transition is planned
  • Monitoring the impact of interventions provided for pupils with SEND
  • To lead the development of high-quality SEND provision as an integral part of the school improvement plan

All teaching and non‐teaching staff:

  • All staff is aware of the school’s SEND policy and the procedures for identifying, assessing and making provision for pupils with special educational needs.
  • Class teachers are fully involved in providing high-quality teaching, differentiated for individual pupils. This includes reviewing and, where necessary, improving, their understanding of strategies to identify and support vulnerable pupils and their knowledge of the SEN most frequently encountered.
  • Class teachers are responsible for setting suitable learning challenges and facilitating effective special educational provision in response to pupils’ diverse needs in order to remove potential barriers to learning. This process should include working with the Assistant Head (pastoral care & safeguarding) to carry out a clear analysis of the pupil’s needs, drawing on the teacher’s assessment and experience of the pupil as well as previous progress and attainment.
  • Teaching assistants will liaise with the class teacher and the Assistant Head (pastoral care & safeguarding) on planning, on pupil response and on progress in order to contribute effectively to the graduated response, (assess, plan, do, review).

According to our March 2020 ISI Inspection report: