SEND Annual Information Report
September 2022
This report outlines how Moor End Academy supports students with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and how our policy has been put into practice. For ease of use, this has been set out in a question and answer format from page 2 onwards.
Assistant Principal, SENDCo: Kamran Ayub
Contact: 01484 22 22 30 kayub@edu.moorend.org
SEND Governor: Mohammed Afzal
Kirklees Local Offer: http://www.kirklees.gov.uk/localoffer
Whole School Approach
At Moor End Academy we passionately believe as educators we have the responsibility to inspire our students to be the very best they can be. We are ambitious and have high aspirations for every student. Our Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) provision embodies MEA’s core values of respect, ambition and responsibility. Every student receives a high quality learning experience in order to ensure individual success.
Moor End Academy is fully inclusive and welcomes all students with a wide range of SEND. Steps are taken to ensure that children and young people are treated with fairness, equality and are supported to achieve their potential. Students identified as having a SEND have the same access to high quality teaching, enrichment opportunities, educational visits and trips. All children and young people are actively encouraged to participate in enrichment and learning experiences outside of the classroom.
SEND vision:
Our vision is simply to maximise every child’s potential to ensure we can confidently say we gave every student his or her GCSE passport to success. Our motivation is to ensure that positive relationships are at the core of what we do every day, along with high quality teaching and pastoral care overseen by strong and passionate leadership. Our ambition for students with SEND is the same for all students. We want to ensure students identified as SEND have the same equal access to high quality teaching, enrichment opportunities, educational visits and trips, and where required provided with bespoke tailored support.
Our ambition is to:
- place students at the centre of all practice, understanding their needs and ensuring their voices influence our practice
- create an ‘everyone's responsible’ approach to SEND through high quality professional development
- provide tailored approaches by applying reasonable adjustments for identified students to enable students to maximise their potential.
- provide high quality tailored teaching linked to powerful and impactful strategies (RADs)
- develop the effective use of ETAs to offer additional tailored support linked to carefully implemented intervention
- use the EEF research to underpin our strategy
What type of SEND does the Academy provide for?
As an inclusive school Moor End Academy provides support for students with a variety of needs summarised by the broad areas of SEND below:
- Cognition and learning - difficulties with memory, information processing, comprehension, phonological skills. A wide range of needs where students learn at a slower pace than peers of the same age. It includes moderate and severe learning difficulties, profound learning difficulties and specific learning difficulties (SpLD) such as dyslexia, dyspraxia and dyscalculia
- Speech language and communication needs - difficulties with understanding and using language, social interaction needs including Autistic Spectrum Condition. Speech, language and communication needs, conditions where there are challenges with social communication rules, for example Autistic Spectrum Condition
- Social, emotional and mental health - difficulties with managing emotions; displaying troubling or withdrawn behaviours, anxiety or eating disorders, attention deficit hyper-activity disorder (ADHD). A range of difficulties including mental health needs, social, emotional and mental health needs including attention deficit disorder (ADD), attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and attachment disorder (AD)
- Physical, Sensory and medical - this category includes visual impairment (VI), hearing impairment (HI) and multi-sensory impairment (MSI), as well as physical difficulties (PD) requiring ongoing support and/or specialist equipment
Moor End Academy also hosts the Kirklees resourced provision for secondary aged students with a profound visual impairment (VI), intake is from across North and South Kirklees. Students accessing the provision all have an EHCP. Students are either taught in mainstream classes or are part of the Achieve enhanced provision.
The specialist provision also delivers outreach across the Kirklees Local Authority to students with visual impairments who attend their local mainstream school. This on average is around 80 students.
Support has allowed students to access their learning in ways that are accessible for them. It provides students with different methods of coping/managing their vision. Provided emotional support on top of the literal physical support.
Batley Girls’ High School
The service has provided us with guidance to give to staff to enable students to have fairer access to the curriculum. It has helped students accept the support that is being offered and we have worked together to agree this support with the students. Communication with parents has been excellent, especially in areas where we have struggled to engage them. Advice regarding access arrangements is timely and appropriate, as always.
Spen Valley High School
Both myself and my child are extremely happy with the VI provision. We both feel very happy and fully supported. My child’s needs are met before we realise he has them most of the time! Thank you !!
Y10 parent
Information about students’ needs is shared with all staff via the additional needs register. Below is a breakdown of the additional needs register:
- Cognition and learning - 40%
- Social Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH) - 24%
- Speech Language and Communication Needs (SLCN) - 14%
- Physical and/or sensory - 19%
- Medical - 3%
Year Group |
SEND Students |
% |
Cognition and Learning |
SEMH |
Medical |
Sensory/ |
SLCN (inc ASC) |
PP (SEN) |
EHCP |
Y7 |
40 |
19% |
19 |
4 |
0 |
8 |
9 |
19 |
8 |
Y8 |
34 |
16% |
12 |
8 |
2 |
5 |
7 |
15 |
6 |
Y9 |
36 |
17% |
10 |
14 |
1 |
7 |
4 |
20 |
7 |
Y10 |
24 |
12% |
14 |
7 |
0 |
2 |
1 |
16 |
3 |
Y11 |
23 |
12% |
8 |
5 |
1 |
8 |
1 |
15 |
6 |
Total |
157 |
15% |
63 |
38 |
4 |
30 |
22 |
85 |
30 |
Total % |
|
15% |
40% |
24% |
3% |
19% |
15% |
54% |
3%* |
* % of all student on roll |
High quality teaching underpins all practice at Moor End Academy. Appropriate differentiation (adjustments to learning activities) takes place to ensure students with SEND fulfil their potential and have high ambitions for their futures. We follow a personalised approach for students with complex learning needs following the graduated approach (outlined below)
Underpinning all our provision in the Academy is the graduated approach cycle:
Teachers are responsible and accountable for the progress and development of the pupils in their class, including where pupils access support from teaching assistants or specialist staff.
SEND Code of Practice 2014
How do we know if your child needs extra support?
Key staff at Moor End Academy liaise closely with our feeder primary schools to discuss the needs of students before they arrive at the Academy. Most student’s needs are already identified by primary schools. We ensure all students who require additional support have this in place when they arrive at the Academy.
If there are concerns students may have additional needs and are not currently making adequate process or facing barrier to learning, our SEND team investigate and put in creative solutions. These solutions are known as reasonable adjustments or interventions.
Where there are concerns regarding your child’s progress, we conduct diagnostic assessments to gain a better understanding of particular strengths and weaknesses. This can also involve referrals to external agencies including: Educational Psychologists, speech and language therapists, Kirklees specialist outreach services and Thriving Kirklees. Prior parental consent is always sought before referrals are made.
What should I do if I think my child or young person may have special educational needs?
At Moor End Academy we pride ourselves on building positive relationships with parent/carers and we are transparent with the support we offer. If you have concerns that your child has special needs please discuss your concerns with your child’s teacher, form tutor or Head of Year initially. This will then be passed on to the SEND team if required.
Slow progress and low attainment do not necessarily mean that your child has SEND. However, it may be an indicator of a range of learning difficulties or disabilities. In the same way, persistent disruptive or withdrawn behaviours do not necessarily mean that your child has SEND.
How does the school enable students with SEND to engage in all activities?
As an inclusive school the Academy ensures all students are provided the best opportunities to engage in learning and to succeed. Reasonable adjustments (adaptations) are made to support students so they can engage in all activities and we ensure students with SEND are not treated unfairly.
A number of our students use laptops in lessons for extended pieces of written work and all assessments. Some students use coloured overlays (plastic sheets with coloured tints) to support with reading. Students with visual impairments use a range of low vision aids to support their engagement including; modified large font, braille, tactile diagrams, iPads and specialist VI technology.
I can type a lot faster than I can write and it is neater. My spelling has improved.
Year 9 student with fine motor difficulties who uses a laptop to access learning
Listen below to a Year 8 student with fine motor difficulties sharing their views on
how using a laptop helps them access learning
/_Parents_Carers/Additional-Needs/Student_Sounds/Year_8_student_with_fine_motor_difficulties_sharing_his_views_about_using_a_laptop.mp4
Delivering high quality teaching is a priority at Moor End Academy. We place a high emphasis on teachers differentiating (adapting) work appropriately in lessons for students of all abilities. Typically, this is outlined by teachers as part of their Venn diagrams. Venn diagrams provide a summary of adaptations to lessons by incorporating personalised learning approaches to challenge and extend students who may need additional support. These are matched according to students’ needs. This method is embedded in all lessons and ensures students receive appropriate support. Some examples may include sentences starters, additional key words and prompt questions.
Asking students opinions and ideas is a fundamental part of our practice. We place students at the center of decision making by encouraging them to add their views on their one page profiles and help them to understad their personal targets for progression. We regularly seek feedback from students to develop our support offer.
For our new to school year 7 students we deploy a number of ‘Peer Mentors’ who play an important role in being a ‘buddy’. They provide additional support and guidance for new students to help them settle into secondary school life.
To support the inclusion of students with physical or medical needs, risk assessments are created on an individual basis and shared with relevant members of staff before commencement of activities.
All students are fully involved in trips and events. This year we has also arranged a number of activities and trips primarly aimed at supporting students with SEND. Below is a brief summary of the events/ trips:
Music:
DJ trip to Wardrobe Club, Leeds. This was a celebration event for the 'Integrate' DJ workshops that have taken place at MEA in the Spring and Summer terms. These have involved a diverse group of students songwriting and learning to DJ with professional DJs and equipment. The trip involved 16 schools, and students were able to show off their DJ skills on stage in a nightclub in front of an audience.
SEND focused trip to watch the orchestra of Opera North in concert. This was a great opportunity to watch a top-class evening concert in the Town Hall with many other members of the public. A really great way of deepening cultural capital through arts experience.
Achieve group:
Greek Day in Achieve
The students in Achieve enjoyed a fabulous day when they took part in a Greek workshop. They were able to get hands-on experience of what life was like in Ancient Greece by looking at a range of artefacts and finding out about how they would have been used. They learnt about how life would have been very different for males and females and how many things developed in medicine are still used today. It was interesting to learn about what clothes would have been worn and what they may have done in their leisure time, together with what materials were used to make a range of equipment such as bowls and knives.
It was a really interesting day and I found out a lot about Ancient Greece.
Year 8 student with communication difficulties
My favourite thing was trying on the different Greek helmets.
Year 11 student with VI needs
Trip to the beach:
During the summer term the Achieve group have been learning all about the seaside as part of their Topic lessons. They have learnt about the features of a typical seaside resort and wrote their own tourist guides for a seaside town. They have also learnt about the formation of coasts and how erosion can lead to environmental problems. In their science lessons they learnt about animals and their habitats, with a focus on animals that live in the sea. Subjects covered included life processes, food chains and classification keys. The culmination of all of this work was a trip to Scarborough where they explored the beach area and had a chance to see some of the animals they had learnt about by visiting the sea-life centre.
SEND football tournament:
A total of 5 schools took part a local football event with students from different year group and mixed gender. The tournament catered for the needs of students with physical impairments, hearing impairments, ADHD and general learning difficulties. Moor End Academy came 3rd overall! Other schools responded well to the needs of our VI pupils by wearing the bright colour bibs we provided them with.
Who will be working with my child?
We have a number of highly skilled staff as part of SEND and VI team. The SEND team includes the Assistant Principal - SENDCo, an Assistant SENDCo, two Intervention Co-ordinators (SEND and EAL), a SEND administator and a number of highly experienced Educational Teaching Assistants (ETAs).
Listen below to a Year 10 student with learning difficulties sharing their views on how
teachers and ETAs help them in lessons
/_Parents_Carers/Additional-Needs/Student_Sounds/Year_10_students_with_learning_needs_sharing_their_views_on_in_class_support.mp4
The VI team includes includes a Lead Teacher, Qualified Teachers of Visual Impairment (QTVI), specialist ETAs, a disability sports specialist, braille and large print resource technicians, and habilitation specialists.
If additional support is required, our SEND/VI team work with targeted students, individually or as part of a small group. Staff are deployed to support in lessons according to students’ needs and have a range of expertise including autism, supporting learning needs, social emotional and mental health and speech and language.
Students that are supported by the VI provision attend mainstream lessons alongside their peers. To promote their access to learning and in preparation for adulthood student receive specialist interventions linked to their EHCP outcomes and VI needs.
In addition, staff with specialist pastoral and safeguarding knowledge ensure students’ well-being needs are met appropriately. The current staff have a wealth of experience of working with a range of students with SEND; some having worked with SEND students for over 15 years.
The VI provision has provided amazing and outstanding support for my child. Thankyou to the VI staff for supporting and helping parents and students throughout the whole year, they couldn't have done a better job:)
Y7 parent
What training and development is accessed by staff who support students with SEND?
It is a prerequisite that all classroom based staff undertake SEND awareness training which consists of understanding what SEND is; knowing how to access relevant information and understanding how to adapt their practice to support the inclusion of all students. Throughout the year numerous training sessions have been delivered by key staff and external partners to raise awareness of various aspects of SEND and to maintain high standards. These include; collaboration, scafolding technqiues, dyslexia awareness, attachment and resilience and autism awareness. Regular updates about SEND students’ needs and training is shared with members of staff.
The SEND team works closely with the local authority outreach services, the Educational Psychologist, Complex Communication and Interaction Team, Mental Health Support Team, nurses and speech and language therapists. Key members of staff attend briefings and training regarding our students to keep up to date with changes.
In addition, external partners have delivered bespoke training to key staff including:
- Radio Aid training (to support students with a hearing impairment)
- Autism Awarenes training
- Attachment and resilience
- Disability Sports
All ETAs are trained on how to effectively deliver specialist programmes. They also have regular opportunities for continued professional development by sharing best practice. This place weekly. As a result of various training, members of staff are more able to effectively respond to the needs of individual students.
A number of staff have undertaken Disengagement and physical intervention training to support and re-engage students who may present with significant behavioural difficulties. Physical intervention is only used as a last resort to prevent injury to any person.
What arrangements are in place for meeting parent/carers and providing support?
It is a prerequisite that all classroom based staff undertake SEND awareness training which consists of understanding what SEND is; knowing how to access relevant information and understanding how to adapt their practice to support the inclusion of all students. Throughout the year numerous training sessions have been delivered by key staff and external partners to raise awareness of various aspects of SEND and to maintain high standards. These include; collaboration, scafolding technqiues, dyslexia awareness, attachment and resilience and autism awareness. Regular updates about SEND students’ needs and training is shared with members of staff.
The SEND team works closely with the local authority outreach services, the Educational Psychologist, Complex Communication and Interaction Team, Mental Health Support Team, nurses and speech and language therapists. Key members of staff attend briefings and training regarding our students to keep up to date with changes.
In addition, external partners have delivered bespoke training to key staff including:
- Radio Aid training (to support students with a hearing impairment)
- Autism Awarenes training
- Attachment and resilience
- Disability Sports
All ETAs are trained on how to effectively deliver specialist programmes. They also have regular opportunities for continued professional development by sharing best practice. This place weekly. As a result of various training, members of staff are more able to effectively respond to the needs of individual students.
A number of staff have undertaken Disengagement and physical intervention training to support and re-engage students who may present with significant behavioural difficulties. Physical intervention is only used as a last resort to prevent injury to any person.
What arrangements are in place for meeting parent/carers and providing support?
We are proud to have an open door policy and encourage an open dialogue to ensure the highest outcomes for our SEND students. Annual parent/carers’ evenings take place throughout the year for each year group. This allows parent/carers an opportunity to discuss their child’s progress and provide updates. Parent/carers of students who have high needs or Education Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) are invited to review the progress of their child more regularly. Students are also invited to take part in the review meeting. Key staff regularly communicate and share updates with parent/carers.
All parent/carers of students with EHCPs attend review meeting which are conducted at least annually and led by our SENDCo. The Academy continues to develop the dialogue between staff and parent/carers to maintain the home-school link to promote the engagement of parent/carers in the decision-making process.
If you require additional impartial advice, we encourage you actively seek support from Kirklees Information Advice and Support Service (KIAS) – 0300 330 1504. We have a professional and effective working relationship KIAS and signpost parent/carers if they require support.
Prior to joining Moor End my son was terrible at home, he was grumpy and moody. He would lash out at me kicking and biting. Since joining Moor End my son is much more settled, he still has his moods however, he is much better. He does not hit, kick or bite me. There is a big positive change. My son loves going to school and is a much calmer happier child.
Parent of a year 7 student
How does the school measure how effective its arrangements are for the provision of children with SEND?
We regularly review our Academy accessibly plan. This outlines how we plan to further improve access to the curriculum, environment and communication.
Curriculum
We strongly believe in offering a broad, balanced, rich and inclusive curriculum experience, where every student - whatever their starting point - is challenged academically and prepared with the knowledge, skills, understanding and cultural capital relevant for the next stage in future learning, employment and adult life. Our curriculum is designed and tailored to provide a range of high-quality opportunities for students to develop as independent, confident and successful learners who think critically and have high aspirations.
All teachers are teachers of SEND and are responsible for setting work to ensure students are able to access the curriculum and make progress accordingly. Typically, this may indicate there are different levels of work set for the class and this may be individually tailored. The benefit of a taliored approach is that all students can access the curriculum content at an appropriate level and make progress in line with expectations.
To support inclusion and access to the curriculum, additional provisions are made for some students. These are outlined below and they provide all students with the opportunity to initially work towards and then exceed their targets:
- VI additional curriculum teaching – delivered by teachers of VI with a focus on promoting access to learning, overcoming barriers presented by their visual impairment, supporting social and emotional needs, and as part of preparing them for adulthood.
- Achieve group – a discrete group of students that all have EHCPs for complex physical, sensory and cognitive difficulties. They follow a bespoke primary style curriculum led by a full-time primary teacher, funded via the VI resourced provision, with a focus on holistic development as part of preparation for adulthood. The class has a specialist primary school teacher and consistent ETAs. The students work towards a number of qualifications including, GCSEs, Entry Level and ASDAN.
- Students transitioning to secondary school who are working below national expectations in English and/or maths – in most circumstances students are taught in small groups with increased levels of support from teachers and ETAs to accelerate their progress. The curriculum structure remains flexible with opportunities to move groups. All students receive their full national curriculum entitlement.
- Wave 2/3 specialist interventions - targeted withdrawal sessions delivered by our highly skilled SEND support team - with the principle aim of accelerating learning or reducing deficits in literacy, numeracy and wider skills.
- Personalised Learning Centre - an internal provision for students with significant complex learning needs; social and emotional needs or medical needs. Bespoke intervention packages are delivered as part of timetabled lessons via virtual methods and targeted intervention sessions.
- Extra-curricular clubs – all students are encouraged to participate in various clubs to develop leadership and personal develop skills.
Intervention helps massively. I want to get better grades. I can learn more and do extra revision. This helps me retain more knowledge so I am more prepared and know what's coming in lessons.
Year 11 student with Autism sharing their views on intervention sessions
Listen below to a Year 10 student with dyslexic traits sharing their views on how
interventions has supported them with their learning
/_Parents_Carers/Additional-Needs/Student_Sounds/Year_10_students_with_dyslexia_sharing_their_views_on_interventions.mp4
Environment
The building at Moor End Academy has had a number of adaptations made to support accessibility. Below are some of those adaptations:
- Handrails have been installed on some staircases.
- The PLC area is all on one level and can be accessed from the car park should a student be experiencing temporary mobility issues.
- A ramp has been created to the external area leading to one of the playground areas.
The VI provision has 2 habilitation specialists whose role it is to develop personal mobility, navigation and independent living skills for students with VI. They also support with ensuring the Academy environment is safe and enables students to be independent when moving around.
The needs of all students and staff are taken into account with further adaptations made where appropriate, including but not limited to:
- Risk assessments including Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans.
- Access to word processors to support students with fine motor difficulties and visual impairments.
- Specialist VI equipment e.g. long canes.
- Auxiliary aids (e.g. radio aid) for students with hearing impairments.
- Written materials in alternative formats including modified large print and braille.
- Alternative arrangements for exams including, but not limited to extra time, rest breaks, readers and prompts.
- Coloured overlays - to support students with visual processing.
The transition work I did with Miss means I can go around the school without getting lost. It makes me feel happy I won't get lost. I use my long cane to help me find my class independently.
Year 7 student with VI needs
How are the Governors involved and what are their responsibilities?
The role of the Governing body is to provide appropriate challenge to the school leadership and to ensure the team is fulfilling its statutory duties, as well as ensuring all students have appropriate provision to meet their educational needs. The leadership team ensures the SEND policy is in line with the Disability and Discrimination Act and that resources are used efficiently and effectively. Mohammed Afzal is our SEND Governor and communicates with the Senior Leadership Team.
The Governors agree priorities for spending for SEND budget with the overall aim that all children receive the support they need in order to make progress. The Heads of School report to the Governors to update them on the progress of students with SEND. This report does not refer to individual children and confidentiality is maintained at all times.
How will I know how well my child is doing?
The communication link between school and home is paramount to our students’ success. Moor End Academy are proud of having an open door policy and encourage regular contact from parent/carers. The initial point of contact is your child’s Form Tutor or Head of Year.
Parent/carers are expected to check their child’s planner on a regular basis to monitor their progress using positive and negative comments. Parent/carers are also encouraged to write comments if there are any concerns or to pass on essential information.
Throughout the academic year, there are various opportunities for parent/carers to discuss their child’s progress. These may be through pastoral staff or parent/carers’ evenings. Reports are also shared on a regular basis following teacher assessments.
In addition, we have various open days throughout the year which are organised to showcase our Academy and give parent/carers the opportunity to discuss matters further with staff.
The support he got was absolutely fantastic, I can't praise it enough. His ETA became like his new best friend. He changed because of the help he got. His results were much better than I thought they would be.
Parent of a student with SEMH needs
What support is there for my child’s overall wellbeing including social and emotional development?
Moor End Academy is proudly part of the Kirklees Mental Health Support Teams (MHST) Trail blazer. This provides us with additional support from the Educational Psychology team and access to staff training.
We are proud of the exceptional pastoral care we provide for our students through our Pastoral teams. Heads of Years support our students’ pastoral, social, emotional and behavioural needs, as well as monitoring their day-to-day needs.
In addition, we have a two trained Emotional Literacy Support Assistants (ELSAs) and a designated Mental Health First Aider. They provide an additional layer of expertise to support students that have emerging SEMH/ well being needs.
Furthermore, to support our SEND students, we have designated highly skilled ETAs. These members of staff provide above and beyond support including social emotional support, mentoring, independent travel training and social skills interventions to ensure all our students feel safe and have the best opportunity to succeed.
If there are concerns regarding emotional wellbeing, referrals are made to our Head of Years and Safeguarding Team who provide direct support. Further guidance is also sought via Thriving Kirklees, once we have sought consent from parent/carers. As a result, there has been a noticeable positive impact on a number of students’ emotional wellbeing. Numerous SEND students have benefitted from additional support from external targeted support services who liaise closely with academy staff.
Some students access our Personalised Learning Centre (PLC) to support with meeting their individual need, during social times. This is seen as a safe space for students to spent their time. Some of these students may have anxiety or emotional regulation difficulties.
Listen below to a Year 8 student with SEMH needs sharing their views on how
accessing the PLC has helped to engage in learning
/_Parents_Carers/Additional-Needs/Student_Sounds/Year_8_student_sharing_their_views_on_how_the_PLC_has_supported_them.mp4
All our students have weekly contact with their form tutors, allowing them the opportunity to discuss any other concerns regarding academic progress or pastoral needs. The Academy has a zero tolerance on all forms of bullying and deals promptly with incidents if/when they occur.
The following members of staff are Designated Safeguarding Officers:
Amy Eagleton (Safeguarding Lead), Amy Leonard (Assistant Safeguarding Officer), James Wilson (Vice Principal).
We also have a number of first aid trained staff who provide treatment for minor injuries and administer medication for students, under the guidance of medical professionals.
What external services are accessed by the school?
The academy also works closely with external agencies who are crucial to providing advice and guidance on students’ needs.
These include:
- Kirklees Local Authority Educational Psychology Team.
- Kirklees Specialist Outreach Services – Hearing Impairment, Visual Impairment, Communication and Interaction, Physical Difficulties and Social, Emotional and Mental Health Difficulties (
- Kirklees Social Care – supporting children who are looked after and those who have social care support within their families.
- Locala – Speech and Language Service, Physiotherapy, School Nursing Team, Specialist Nurse Team (Nutricia and Diabetes).
- Chatterbug – Speech and language therapy service.
- Mental Health Support Team (MHST)- Northorpe Hall Child and Family Trust
- C & K Careers Service, careers information, advice and guidance services for young people
- Alternative provision providers:
- - ETHOS Academy Trust - alternative provision and outreach support
- - Employability Solutions – Alternative Provision for students experiencing social, emotional and mental health difficulties making school attendance difficult.
- - Brian Jackson College – Alternative Key Stage 4 provision for students experiencing difficulties in attending mainstream education.
- - Pivot Academy – Kirklees, a therapeutic nurture provision for learners with complex social, emotional, mental health and other associated needs
The majority of my work as a Speech and Language Therapist (SLT) consists of working with children and staff directly to assess children to identify their speech, language and/or communication needs (SLCN). Once the initial assessment has been completed, we provide an individualised programme and resources for children to work on to help develop their abilities further within the school setting. Alongside this, I provide modelling sessions for staff to work on therapy programmes, and I provide targeted and specialist therapy sessions to some students who require this. The staff and students I have worked with this year have been amazing and supportive, they have made me feel very comfortable working in the school and have continuously worked well with the support provided.
Speech and language therapist - Chatterbug
How will the school support students with the transition to the next phase of education?
One of the biggest challenges faced by most primary school students is without question the daunting trasition to secondary school. As part of Moor End Academy’s continued drive for excellence, we develiered a bespoke transition in addition to our wider transition offer. In liaison with our key feeder primary schools, we identify a cohort of students who would benefit from the additional visit.
In addtion, transition support includes numerous visits with parent/carers and key staff from primary schools. Students are encouraged to take part in a variety of social activities and team building activities to support them to feel more prepared for their arrival in September. Our Year 7 Head of Year and SEND team liaise closely with primary schools to share essential information in preparation for our new starters.
For post 16, all students in Year 11 have support around careers to explore options and career aspirations; all have direct support from our careers advisor. All SEND students leaving the Academy will be in some form of education, employment or training. Our Year 11 SEND cohort have successfully completed applications. Their intended destinations being sixth form and a variety of vocational level 1 and 2 courses at Kirklees College, Huddersfield New College and Greenhead College.
For students with Education Health and Care Plans, our SENDCo and Lead Teacher of VI liaise closely with post-16 provisions to ensure students have an effective and thorough transition. This can include additional visits to college, bespoke careers advice and supported transition visits.
How are the school’s resources/funding allocated and matched to children’s needs?
The Academy ensures students with additional levels of funding - students who are working considerably below their peers or have complex needs - receive additional support in class, specialist interventions, support from external partners and additional specialist resources, where applicable. We carefully monitor this additional support to ensure the efficient use of resources are having a positive impact on students.
Listen below to a Year 8 students with learning difficutlies sharing their views on
interventions
/_Parents_Carers/Additional-Needs/Student_Sounds/Year_8_students_with_learning_needs_sharing_their_views_on_interventions.mp4
Who can I contact if I want my child to attend the Academy or if I want any further information?
If your child has SEND, please contact our SENDCo to discuss their individual needs before completing the admissions form. This will ensure appropriate measures are in place before your child begins education at Moor End Academy.
If your child has an EHCP you must make contact with SEND Assessment and Commisionning Team (SENDACT) who can support with naming an appropriate school. This may include a visit to our Academy and a meeting with our SEND team.
Admission forms can be obtained from the Academy’s main reception or website.
Who can I contact if I have a complaint?
In the first instance please make contact with our SENDCo outlining your concerns. A meeting can then be arranged to discuss the matter where we hope to come to a resolution. We find that most concerns can be resolved in this way. We take all complaints seriously and they are dealt with swiftly.
The Academy’s complaints policy is available on the Academy website: