Yoredale Schools has an inclusive ethos and works in partnership with families and experts at North Yorkshire’s SEND Hub to provide the best possible outcomes for all children.

We believe early identification of need is key to finding the right support to enable children to overcome barriers and thrive in our schools.

Support and communication with parents is key to this. Please come and talk to us if you feel your child needs some extra help. Our class teachers are a great first point of contact, a wealth of knowledge and will probably already have begun to identify any possible areas of additional need. They may put some informal support in place to see if that helps your child and will log the conversation as a ‘short note’ (the recommended term in the SEND Code of Practice for a school record of these early discussions).

You are, of course, also welcome to make an appointment to chat to Vicky Collins, the SENDCo, at any point, including at these earliest stages. She can be contacted directly on: headteacher@b-a-wb.co.uk. 

From this point onwards, the school will use the graduated approach, as recommended in the SEND Code of Practice, to support your child.

This approach is used throughout the different stages of SEND support in schools: 

1. ‘Short Note’ in-class support and monitoring. There would usually be between one and three cycles of this, each of which can last between half a term and a term, depending on progress

2. If the child requires more support, the school will arrange to meet with you to discuss them being placed on the SEND Register. If it is agreed that this would be in the child’s best interests, the child will then get an Individual Education Plan (IEP) which details both in-class provision and one-to-one or small group interventions. These IEPs are reviewed with families at the end of each term, at which point it might be deemed that the child no longer needs additional support or that they need a new IEP for the following term. The SENDCo and class teachers will closely monitor progress in order to make informed decisions about the best next steps for the individual child.

3. If it is felt the school requires additional expertise and support, the SENDCO may suggest a referral to the SEND Hub to request an expert in the particular area of need to do some assess the child and advise the school further. This can only be done after three cycles of in-school SEN support.

4. For a small minority of children, an Educational Health and Care Plan (EHCP) may be required. This is a legal document for children with complex needs requiring support beyond normal mainstream school provision. The SENDCo will advise you on whether this might be right for your child and will guide you through the process.

Policy

An SEND Policy (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Policy) is a formal document that sets out how a school or educational setting identifies, supports, and includes pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities. It is a statutory requirement under the Children and Families Act 2014 and the SEND Code of Practice (2015) for schools in England.

Information Report

An SEN Information Report (Special Educational Needs Information Report) is a statutory document that schools in England must publish on their website under the Children and Families Act 2014 and the SEND Regulations 2014. Its purpose is to explain how the school implements its SEN policy in practice and what support is available for pupils with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND).

SEND - Local Offer

All North Yorkshire maintained schools have a similar approach to meeting the needs of pupils with Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities (SEND.)   They are supported by the Local Authority to ensure that all pupils, whatever their specific needs, make the best possible progress in school.   The Local Authority publishes its Local Offer which provides information for children and young people with special educational needs (SEND) and their parents or carers in a single place.