3. Who decides if a child has special needs?
- Every child is an individual and we aim to provide the best environment for all our pupils to develop.
- If a child needs something more than what is available through normal classroom practices then they can be described as having special needs. This covers a wide range of needs from a child struggling to make good progress in reading or maths to a child with significant disabilities.
- As a result there is more than one route to deciding who has special needs. Sometimes children are identified in infancy, before they start school. There may be professionals involved with the child and the family who will work with the school to settle the child into Nursery or Reception.
- Some children are diagnosed with a medical condition or disability either before starting school or during their time with us.
- The school works with the relevant outside agencies to ensure that the child’s needs are met. A medical condition does not always mean that a pupil will find learning difficult.
- We may only need to make sure that we help them to be safe and healthy while they are in school and that their condition does not prevent them making the best possible progress.
- We monitor academic progress for all our children very closely and put in additional support whenever we feel a child is not making the progress we expect. Parents are kept informed of this intervention through meetings and parents’ evenings.
- When a child continues to struggle, even with this additional support, more detailed assessments are made.
- Decisions about how best to address the difficulties are made through discussions between the SENCO, staff and parents often with advice from outside agencies.