SEND Information Report

Our SEN Information Report – which is part of Durham County Council’s Local Offer – provides details about how we support children and young people with Special Educational Needs in our school.

The SEN Information Report was reviewed and updated in September 2023.

At Bloemfontein Primary School we recognise that all pupils are entitled to a quality of provision that will enable them to achieve their potential. We believe in positive intervention, removing barriers to learning, raising expectations and levels of achievement and working in partnership with other agencies in order to provide a positive educational experience for all our pupils including those with a special educational need or disability.

Our school recognises there are particular groups of pupils whose circumstances require additional consideration by those who work with them to support their SEN.

At Bloemfontein Primary School we have appointed a Designated Teacher for Children Looked After who works closely with the SENCO to ensure all teachers in school understand the implications for those children who are looked after and have SEN.

At Bloemfontein Primary School we ensure that all pupils, regardless of their specific needs make the best possible progress.

This SEND Information Report should be read alongside the school’s SEND Policy, the Equalities Information and Objectives and the Accessibility Plan.

Key Contacts

Headteacher name – Miss Anne Marie Lewis – 01207 232198
SENCO Mrs Joanne Henderson – 01207 232198
Dave Forster – Governor for Safeguarding and Looked after Children – 01207 232198

SEND Admissions

For information on the admission of pupils with a disability, please visit the School Admissions section of our website and view the Accessibility Plan in our School Policies section.

If you would like to discuss your child’s SEN in more detail please contact the school to arrange an appointment.

The full range of local support available for children/ young people with SEND and their families within and outside of school can be found in the County Durham Local Offer

Our SEN Provision

All children have a range of strengths and weaknesses, and it is expected that all children will find some elements of the whole school curriculum more challenging than others.

A child will be identified as SEN if the support they require to achieve is ‘additional to’ or ‘different from’ that of their peers.

There are four broad areas of special educational need, which help to categorise the types of difficulty children may encounter. these are:

Communication and Interaction
- This area of need includes children with Autism Spectrum Condition and those with Speech, Language and Communication needs.
Cognition and Learning
- This includes children with Specific Learning Difficulties, Moderate Learning Difficulties, Severe Learning Difficulties and Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulties.
Social, Emotional and Mental Health Difficulties
- This includes any pupils who have an emotional, social or mental health need that is impacting on their ability to learn.
Sensory and/or Physical Difficulties
- This area includes children with hearing impairment, visual impairment, multi-sensory impairment and physical difficulties.

Whilst these areas may help us to support a child at Bloemfontein Primary school we believe that every child is unique and should be treated as such.

Our SEN Provision

Kinds of SEN provided for

The kinds of SEN that are provided for:

At Bloemfontein Primary School, we have experience of supporting children and young people with a wide range of need including:

ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder)
ADHD
Speech and language
Attachment difficulties
Sensory needs
Cognition and learning
Social, emotional and mental health
Visual impairments

The school provides data on the levels and types of need to the Local Authority. This is collected through the school census.

Teaching approach for SEN

Our approach to teaching children & young people with SEN

Inclusive education means supporting all pupils to learn, contribute and participate in all aspects of school life alongside their peers. Our curriculum includes not only the formal requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum / National Curriculum but also a range of additional opportunities to enrich the experiences of all pupils.

The Curriculum also included the social aspects that are essential for lifelong learning, personal growth and development of independence.

Bloemfontein Primary School prides itself on being very inclusive and will endeavour to support every child, regardless of their level of need. All pupils follow the National Curriculum at a level and a pace that is appropriate to their abilities. At times and when it is felt appropriate, modifications to the curriculum may be implemented.

To successfully match pupil ability to the curriculum there are some actions we may take to achieve this:

Ensure that all pupils have access to the school curriculum and all school activities.
Help all pupils achieve to the best of their abilities, despite any difficulty or disability they may have.
Ensure that teaching staff are aware of and sensitive to the needs of all pupils, teaching pupils in a way that is more appropriate to their needs.
Pupils to gain confidence and improve their self-esteem.
To work in partnership with parents/ carers, pupils and relevant external agencies in order to provide for children’s special educational needs and disabilities.
To identify at the earliest opportunity, all children that need special consideration to support their needs (whether these are educational, social, physical or emotional)
To make suitable provisions for children with SEND to fully develop their abilities, interests and aptitudes and gain maximum access to the curriculum.
Ensure that all children with SEND are fully included in all activities of the school in order to promote the highest levels of achievement.
To promote self worth and enthusiasm by encouraging independence at all age and ability levels.
To give every child the entitlement to a sense of achievement.
To regularly review the policy and practice in order to achieve best practice.

How we identify SEN

How we identify, assess and review children with special educational needs

Assessments that are used to identify SEN include: curriculum assessments which are recorded termly on an online tracking system, Reception baseline both on entry and exit, speech link language assessment, Statutory SATs data, questionnaires, boxall assessments, samples of work, observations and any assessments undertaken by outside agencies.
Systems that are in place to record information/assessments include: SEN support/EHC plans and monitoring information, termly assessments, behaviour records, Boxall assessments for nurture group, questionnaires for Listening Matters, pre and post assessments for intervention groups and any other relevant information is kept within individual SEN files.
Progress is assessed using pre and post intervention assessments, samples of work, monitoring records, curriculum tracking, observations, pupil/staff/parent interviews and evaluation of support/EHC plans.
Parental concerns are responded to immediately. Depending on the nature of the complaint this would initially be managed by the class teacher/SENCo. If parents remained concerned the Headteacher would become involved in order to investigate the concern. Parents are aware of the complaints procedure and this is on the school website. If parents remained concerned and felt that this had not been addressed fully they would notify the Chair of Governors.
The Senior Leadership Team and Governors of Bloemfontein Primary School ensure access to appropriate high quality teaching, differentiation and intervention through the Teaching and Learning Policy which sets out details of the broad and balanced curriculum in each year.
The ‘assess, plan, do, review’ cycle is incorporated into SEN provision through the whole school monitoring cycle, planned staff meeting time and the SENCo managing the process.
Parents and pupils are invited into school on a termly basis to work alongside staff to review and identify new targets for support plans.
Planning within all classes is differentiated in order to meet the needs of all pupils. Any external advice is also implemented in both the plans and the required interventions. All classes have at least one Teaching Assistant in order to enable high levels of support throughout the school.
The SLT (SENCo is part of this team) ensures a holistic approach in addressing all needs through her role in the support plan cycle, book scrutinies, staff training and ensuring she disseminates all relevant information to all staff.
The impact of provision is evaluated for individuals and groups through pre and post assessments. An example of this would be a cutting exercise prior to a fine motor skill intervention and then a follow up cutting exercise to measure progress. All interventions MUST have pre and post assessments. Nurture group utilise Boxall assessments to measure progress, Listening matters is a questionnaire process and curriculum interventions are measured through evidence in books/assessments.
Bloemfontein Primary has a high level of additional support including HLTAs, TAs, 1:1 support and access to a range of external agencies. Support is allocated according to level of need and is evaluated on a regular basis. Interventions are in place throughout school and Teaching Assistants are not classroom based during afternoon sessions in order to deliver these interventions. The SENCo monitors this through a whole school provision map and also the pre and post assessments.
The school has a rigorous monitoring process and ensures through observations, book scrutinies, pupil interviews, monitoring of DATA and general walkthroughs that there is consistent high quality teaching with differentiation, personalisation and interventions.
Progress is measured through the EYFS baseline and exit data, Year 1 phonics assessments, Year 2 and 6 SATs data and termly school assessments.
The school behaviour policy identifies that adjustments may need to be made in order to meet the needs of all pupils.
These adjustments/ adaptations are made on an individual basis and would be reflected in a personal plan and if necessary a risk assessment.
Bloemfontein is highly inclusive and all children are educated to be tolerant and understanding of pupils with SEN. PSHCE lessons, assemblies, playground buddies and staff all ensure pupils with SEN engage in activities with pupils who do not have SEN.
Risk assessments are developed if required and are written alongside staff, outside agencies, parents and children where appropriate. They are then shared with relevant staff.
Individual arrangements are made for pupils with SEN undertaking tests and exams. This ranges from additional time, scribes, reading support where appropriate, smaller room to mutual agreements with parents that it is not in the child’s best interest to sit the test/exam.
There are extremely high levels of support, focused interventions, effective links with outside agencies and a highly dedicated SENCo in place to ensure all pupils achieve to the best of their abilities, despite any difficulty or disability they may have.
Through planning, delivery, access to resources and staff CPD the curriculum is modified to meet individual needs. Where necessary children also have a personalised curriculum.
Through the whole school ethos, CPD and regular discussions all staff are aware of and sensitive to the needs of all pupils. The termly review cycle also enables all staff to ensure they are teaching and assessing pupils in a way that is appropriate to their needs. Advice from outside agencies is regularly sought and staff also attend feedback sessions to enable them to adapt curriculum, resources and interventions.
Bloemfontein Primary school is fully inclusive and ensures SEN pupils have every opportunity to fully develop their abilities, interests and aptitudes and gain maximum access to the curriculum. There is no barrier to after school clubs, trips, residential experiences (including a skiing trip abroad), sporting activities, representing the school on the School Council and working as a playground buddy.

For further information please view or download our Accessibility Plan which can be found in the School Policies section of our website.

How we adapt the curiculum

How we adapt the curriculum and learning environment for children & young people with SEN

We adapt the curriculum and learning environment for pupils with SEN:

At Bloemfontein Primary School, we believe that inclusive education means providing all pupils with appropriate education and support alongside their peers. The Curriculum is all the planned activities that the school organises in order to promote learning, personal growth and development.

It includes not only the formal requirements of the National Curriculum, but also the range of additional opportunities that the school organises in order to enrich the experiences of our children. Our curriculum also includes the social aspects that are essential for life-long learning.

More details on how we adapt information, our environment and curriculum can be found in the Accessibility Plan which you can find in the School Policies section of our website.

SEN Support

Where a pupil is identified as having a special educational need we follow a graduated approach which takes the form of cycles of “Assess, Plan, Do, Review”.

This means that we will:

Assess a child’s special educational needs
Plan the provision to meet your child’s aspirations and agreed outcomes
Do put the provision in place to meet those outcomes
Review the support and progress

As part of this approach, we will produce a SEN Support Plan that describes the provision that we will make to meet a child’s special educational needs and agreed outcomes. Parents and carers will be fully involved in this process.

A small percentage of children and young people with significant learning difficulties might need an assessment that could lead to an Education, Health and Care Plan.

For more detailed information see the Local Offer

You can find details of how we adapt the curriculum and make it more accessible for pupils with SEN below:

Quality First Teaching that provides high levels of differentiation, in depth subject knowledge and a range of learning resources to support learning.
Specific group work and interventions for reading, writing, spelling and maths, enabling children to develop key skills.
Specialist group support from outside agencies e.g. Speech and Language Therapy; Behaviour Intervention Team, CAMHS and counseling Service.
Specific individual support for children whose learning needs are severe, complex and lifelong. This is through a programme of personalised learning through a modified curriculum. Pupils and parents are fully involved in the target setting.
Range of teaching and learning styles are catered for and adaptions are made to the curriculum to ensure it is accessible to all. This includes dyslexic friendly resources, personalised work stations, visual timetables and high quality practical resources and prompts
An innovative and supportive curriculum that engages the interests of pupils. Pupils actively contribute their ideas and what they would specifically like to find out. Visits and visitors are fully incorporated into the curriculum. Detailed visit planning sheets and risk assessments are completed to ensure visits are accessible for all pupils. See Year group pages for more information.
Mentoring and Counselling; Within Bloemfontein Primary School, we have two members of staff who are fully trained to deliver ‘Listening Matters’ programme which supports children through a counseling approach. Staff are extremely nurturing and children are allocated specific members of staff as mentors who discuss targets and any areas of need. School also access an external counseling service for children who require additional support.
We have targeted interventions running throughout the day including a nurture group provision, lego therapy, emotional literacy support, additional literacy and numeracy sessions, working memory groups and fine and gross motor skills sessions.
A broad range of extra-curricular activities, including games club, lego club, art club, drama activities and sporting sessions, which are fully accessible for all children.
A broad range of extra-curricular activities, including games club, lego club, art club, drama activities and sporting sessions, which are fully accessible for all children.
Differentiated materials including ICT packages, reading rulers and prompts for children who require this, sensory resources, visual timetables and practical equipment to reduce barriers to learning.

Support for literacy includes:

High quality first teaching with differentiated activities and resources
LEXIA packages
Read Write Inc (support in phonics development)
Accelerated Reader and Reading Plus
Small group interventions
Writing prompts, informative displays and reading rulers
Handwriting and fine motor skills interventions

Support with numeracy:

High quality first teaching with differentiated activities and resources
Interventions focusing on rapid recall of number facts and times tables
Small group interventions
Numeracy prompts, practical equipment and informative displays
Mathletics ICT programme and homework club

Support for children with significant learning difficulties:

High quality first teaching and support from Teaching Assistants who have attended relevant training in order to effectively meet the needs of the child
Personalised plans with clear, specific targets identified through close links with pupils, parents and all relevant staff.
A structured timetable shared with the child through a visual timetable and ‘now and next’ approach
Personal workstation with appropriate resources to aid learning and opportunities for sensory input
Close links with outside agencies and regular review meetings to ensure that everyone involved adopts consistent strategies
Nurture group provision

Support for children with physical needs:

Accessible learning environment with wheelchair access
Staff attend relevant training in order to effectively meet the needs of specific children
Access to external agencies
Gross motor skills intervention
Access to after school clubs and competitive events tailored for children with specific needs

Develop speech, language and communication

Small group specific interventions to develop speech and language
Close links with the nearby Nursery to ensure information is shared and interventions can be put in place immediately on entry into school
Close links with one point and sessions implemented to provide speech and language enhancements for example, story times with Seven Stories
Close links with external agencies for speech and language

Support for children with a hearing, visual or multi-sensory impairment:

Links with School Nurse to ensure appropriate resources and interventions are in place within school
Modifications to the curriculum in order to enable all children to access including visual, auditory and kinesthetic resources
Close links with parents and outside agencies in order to best meet the needs of the child
Access to nurture provision
Opportunities for a sensory rich diet on a daily basis

Support for children with social, emotional and mental health difficulties:

High quality first teaching with consistently high expectations, rewards and sanctions
Rules displayed and regularly referred to
Individual specific targets
Small group interventions to support unstructured times e.g. lego club at playtimes
Nurture group
Relax kids therapy sessions
Specific allocated member of staff who the child feels confident around and supported by
Interventions delivered within school to address behaviour as a barrier to learning including ‘Listening Matters’
Links with outside agencies including Behaviour Support team, Educational psychologist, Counselling Service and CAMHS

Support for children with medical needs

Medical support plans are regularly reviewed and updated
Staff access appropriate training e.g. diabetic training, administration of medication including inhalers/epipens
Significant information including photographs displayed in relevant places for example, a child with a nut allergy.
Close links with parents and relevant outside agencies
Support for children with English as an Additional Language:
High quality first teaching and opportunities for a rich and varied curriculum
Small group interventions to develop language
Visual prompts

Support for Looked after Children with SEND:

Children have access to various interventions including Listening Matters and a mentor within school in order to remove any barriers to learning. Regular meetings take place in order to discuss the progress of the children and any strategies that could be implemented within school.

Bloemfontein Primary School is fully inclusive and ensures that all children have access to all extra curricular activities and sporting opportunities.

Pupils progress is tracked through a rigorous data system which ensures that all children make progress and there are no barriers to learning.

SEN pupils make good progress within Bloemfontein Primary School through quality first teaching, skilled staff and effective interventions. Close links with home and external agencies ensure the best possible provision for pupils.

How SEN Children engage

How children with SEN engage in all activities?

We enable all children to engage fully in all aspects of school life. To do this, we:

Ensure that all children with SEND are fully included in all activities of the school in order to promote the highest levels of achievement.
Ensure that all pupils have access to the school curriculum and all school activities.
Ensure every child has the entitlement to a sense of achievement.
Ensure all children contribute to their own support plan/EHC and that we seek their opinions

Support for Development

Support for Emotional & Social Development

Bloemfontein Primary School supports children and young people with social and emotional developments through the following interventions:

Listening Matters (1:1 support) – to explore emotions through art and develop coping strategies
Access to Behaviour Intervention Team (BIT) – access strategies to remove anxiety, develop anger management and control emotional outbursts
Lego therapy – to develop team building/turn taking and social interactions
Nurture group – to develop team building/turn taking and social interactions. To improve social and communication skills. To develop confidence.
Emotional literacy support – to explore emotions through storytelling
Relax kids – to develop strategies to cope with a range of emotions
High levels of TA support – to ensure all needs are met
Access to external agencies including counselling
EWEL referrals – for children who need a more in depth analysis of strategies to support their emotional well being

There are support arrangements for listening to the views of children and young people with SEN and measures to prevent bullying in place. Please view the Anti-bullying Policy in our School Policies section.

Looked After Children with SEND

Children Looked After with SEND

We have a Designated Teacher for Children Looked After Miss Anne Marie Lewis who works closely with the SENCO to ensure all teachers in school understand the implications for those children who are looked after and have SEN.

Bloemfontein support children and young people who are looked after and have SEN through SEN Support Plan/EHCP and PEP process.

All relevant agencies are involved and included in the review, plan and do process. There are no barriers to receiving a full educational experience including trips, residential experiences and participating in all school events. Pupil progress is closely tracked and immediate interventions put into place when required.

SEN Effectiveness

How we evaluate the effectiveness of SEN Provision

We continuously ensure the provision has a positive impact on the outcomes for all of our children/young people. We do this in a variety of ways, including:

Robust evaluation of policy and practice
Book scrutinies
SENCO/SLT/Governor monitoring
Learning walks
Performance management

SEN Trasition

SEN Transition

How we support children/young people with SEN starting at our school

Close links with local Nurseries exist and Bloemfontein Primary is proactive in the transition process. Nursery aged children are invited into school on a regular basis during the Summer term in order for children to become familiar with both the setting and the staff. Parents are also invited to visit and meet with staff in order to alleviate any concerns and share relevant information. The Headteacher, SENCo and Reception staff, attend meetings prior to SEN pupils starting school in order to plan for a smooth transition. Part of this process also involves looking at staffing, resources and any adaptions we may need to make to the provision in order to effectively meet the needs of all pupils.

How we support children/young people with SEN moving between classes in our school

Our whole school ethos relates to developing the holistic child and preparing all pupils for their next steps to education and adulthood. We encourage all pupils to develop their resilience, confidence and independence, which are key skills to benefit through life. In addition to this, we also provide a wide range of both curricular and extra curricular activities to provide a rich experience for all. As a small school, pupils benefit from knowing all staff, which supports transition each year. Staff attend meetings in order to pass on significant information and strategies and also, where necessary, key members of staff move with specific children e.g. a child with an EHC plan. Pupils also attend a transition morning and where necessary additional visits to the new classroom. Specific pupils are also provided with a ‘passport’ to look at over the Summer break which includes photographs of key staff, the learning environment and any changes they may experience.

Strong links also exist with the Secondary school and pupils are supported through visits from key members of staff, a transition period and visits to the school.

How we support children/young people with SEN leaving our school

Pupils are supported with transition into Secondary and any children requiring additional support may access relax kids, listening matters or other relevant programmes to ease anxiety relating to change. Staff will attend additional transition visits with the child if this is deemed necessary.

If you would like to discuss your SEND requirements in detail please contact the school to arrange an appointment.

Disability and Accessibility

We are committed to providing a fully accessible environment which values and includes all pupils, staff, parents and visitors regardless of their education, physical, sensory, social, spiritual and emotional needs. We are committed to challenging negative attitudes about disability and accessibility and to developing a culture of awareness, tolerance and inclusion.

What we do to prevent pupils with disabilities from being treated less favourably:

Bloemfontein is fully inclusive and we ensure there are no barriers to learning. Our building is on one level and has wheelchair access and disabled toilets provided. Any children with disabilities would have a personal risk assessment plan in order to ensure that they are able to access all areas of the curriculum whilst also keeping all children safe.

Our curriculum can be adapted to meet all needs and we also attend SEN P.E activities for example, Boccia. We have high levels of staffing within school. Children are actively encouraged to participate in all aspects of school life, including residential trips, it is our responsible to put in place any adjustments to enable these first hand experiences for all.

The facilities to assist access are outlined in our Accessibility Plan which you can find in the School Policies section of our website.

Our Accessibility Plan and the short, medium and long term actions, will be reviewed and adjusted on an annual basis and a new Accessibility Plan will be produced every three years.

The Accessibility Plan contains relevant actions to:

Improve access to the physical environment of the school, adding specialist facilities as necessary.
Increase access to the curriculum for pupils with a disability. This covers reasonable adjustments within teaching and learning, specialist aids and equipment and the wider curriculum of the school, such as after school clubs, visits etc,
Improve the provision of information to pupils, staff, parents and visitors with disabilities. All information will be made available in various formats within a reasonable time frame.

Consulting Pupils & Parents

Consulting with our SEN Pupils, Parents & Carers

Consultation with Children and Young People with SEND

Teachers/SENCO and Support Staff will work with children and young people to identify the support needed to meet agreed outcomes. The provision is planned and interventions are allocated to individual needs. The children take an active role with setting their outcomes and discussing them with the class teacher/SENCO. The children have regular meetings with staff to discuss their progress and support.

Staff also review and set new targets for support plans alongside parents. Pupils either attend these meetings or are asked their opinion prior to the meeting.

Consultation with parents and carers of children and young people with SEND

We are committed to working with parents and carers to identify their child’s needs and support. Parents and carers will be involved throughout the process.

There is a range of ways this can be done, for example:

Termly parents/ carers evenings;
Ongoing discussions with a class teacher and/or SENCO;
An ‘open-door’ policy, where parents and carers are welcome to come into school to discuss any concerns they may have;
Through regular reviews of their child’s SEN Support Plan/ EHC Plan.

Compliments & Complaints

Compliments, Complaints & Feedback

We are always seeking to improve on the quality of education we provide for children with SEN and are keen to hear from parents about their child’s experience.

We would also like your views about the content of our SEN Information Report. If you would like to comment please complete the online form in the Contact Us section of our website.

Compliments are always greatly received and can be passed on either directly to staff and the SENCO, or formally recorded via our regular questionnaires to parents or in the form of a letter to the Head Teacher. These positive comments will be published on this area of our school website.

We hope that complaints about our SEND provision will be rare, however, if there should be a concern the process outlined in the school Complaints Policy should be followed.

Further information can be found in the Complaints Policy in the School Policies section of your website or by visiting the Durham County Council Local Offer website.

If you would like to discuss your SEND requirements in detail please contact the school to arrange an appointment.

Key Policies

Key Policies for SEND

All of our school policies can be found on the website but the most important ones for parents of children with SEND are listed below:

SEND Policy
Equality Policy
Equality Information and Objectives
Accessibility Plan
Anti-Bullying Policy
Behaviour Policy
Medical Needs Policy
Complaints Policy

If you would like to discuss your SEND requirements in detail please contact the school to arrange an appointment.

If you would like a paper copy of any of our documents on our website please speak to the school office, who will provide them to you free of charge.