Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND)
Every child is of equal importance and unique in their own way. All teachers at Blakehill Primary School are teachers of SEND who successfully provide for the diverse needs of pupils through good differentiated teaching. Children may require ‘additional ‘ or ‘different’ provision and the quality of their provision is relevant and matched to their individual needs. Blakehill are proud to have designated and experienced SEN support staff who offer specialised SEN support to children in both key stages.
At different times children at Blakehill Primary may require different levels of support. We aim to:
- promote inclusion in the broadest sense
- ensure that all children’s needs are met through the culture, agreed practices and procedures, management and deployment of resources in school.
- facilitate early identification, assessment and provision for all pupils with special educational needs
- ensure that all pupils are in receipt of a broad and balanced curriculum which is well differentiated.
- ensure the wishes of the child are considered in light of their age and understanding alongside the views of individual parents
- ensure that professionals and parents are encouraged to work in partnership.
The Local Authority must publish a ‘Local Offer’ which provides clear, comprehensive and accessible information about the support and opportunities that are available to children with SEN and their parents.
Blakehill have also completed a 'school offer' and information report.
All schools are supported to be as inclusive as possible, with the needs of pupils' with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities being met in a mainstream setting wherever possible.
The four broad ‘areas of need’ are defined as:
Communication and Interaction, Cognition and Learning, Social, Emotional and Mental Health Difficulties, and Sensory and Physical Needs.
Mrs Gould and Miss Dickinson have the responsibility for leading and managing SEN. If you have any questions or comments about SEN provision in school please speak to either SENDCO or alternatively email the school office. We encourage any parent wishing to discuss their child's SEN provision to speak to our SENDCOs.
At Blakehill the SEN Team pride ourselves on providing a high level of support for parents. In addition to the weekly surgeries, we have held a number of enrichment training events for parents. Our most recent event was a series of workshops in January 2023, led by mental health practitioner George Zito, a specialist in neurological diversity. This focused on supporting children with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties and was attended by many parents, together with staff from Blakehill. It is our intention to continue to support parents in this way, when we are able to hold such events again. We have George to return to Blakehill in March to deliver further staff and parent workshops.
As a school we regularly invest in our staff development, so that all staff feel supported and involved. The SEN Team are constantly looking for training opportunities to enable us to fully meet the needs of all our children. Since the start of Autumn Term 2022 SENDCO and SEN Support Staff Training has covered a wide range of issues including: Inclusion, Adverse Childhood Experiences, Behaviour Management, Attachment Issues, Neurodiverse Learners, Selective Mutism, Precision Teaching as well as Makaton. Class teachers, teaching assistants and lunchtime staff have also attended all training that is relevant to the individual children in their class. This includes epilepsy training, haemophilia training and behaviour management training. Some staff have also attended Mental Health Champions training and we hold whole school training sessions as appropriate. In addition, the SENDCOs attend termly SENCO Network Meetings, to ensure that we are up to date with national and local developments and with current practices.
Makaton Training
Makaton is a unique language programme that uses symbols, signs and speech to enable people to communicate. It supports the development of essential communication skills such as attention and listening, comprehension, memory, recall and organisation of language and expression.
Being able to communicate is one of the most important skills we need in life. Almost everything we do involves communication; everyday tasks such as learning at school, asking for food and drink, sorting out problems, making friends and having fun. These all rely on our ability to communicate with each other.
With Makaton, signs are used, with speech, in spoken word order. This helps provide extra clues about what someone is saying. Using signs can help people who have no speech or whose speech is unclear. Using symbols can help people who have limited speech and those who cannot, or prefer not to sign.
Early Years and Key Stage 1 staff attended Makaton training in school.
Makaton training for our EYFS and Y1 teams.
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Makaton training for our EYFS and Y1 teams.
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Makaton training for our EYFS and Y1 teams.
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Makaton training for our EYFS and Y1 teams.
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Makaton training for our EYFS and Y1 teams.
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Makaton training for our EYFS and Y1 teams.
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Makaton training for our EYFS and Y1 teams.
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Makaton training for our EYFS and Y1 teams.
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Makaton training for our EYFS and Y1 teams.
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Makaton training for our EYFS and Y1 teams.
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Andrew Whitehouse Parent Conference
Andrew Whitehouse is a specialist in Neurological Disorders. We were very excited about hosting a parent conference yesterday with Andrew which was very well attended. We appreciated the positive feedback from everyone who attended. "Andrew was insightful and interesting. I really enjoyed the workshop and truly value the information Andrew provides at these events". (parent comment) Following the parent conference, Andrew then delivered a twilight to the staff of Blakehill looking at understanding Dyslexia and how how to support children in the classroom.
Andrew Whitehouse's Dyslexia twilight PowerPoint is available below.
Fundamentals of Communication Training
Early Years and KS1staff took part in training on the Fundamentals of Interaction, led by a specialist teacher from the Communication and Interaction Team. The training covered an awareness of the barriers to communication and interaction and also developed our knowledge and strategies to help promote and develop communication and interaction with the children we work with.
Zone of Regulation
Dr Summer, our Educational Psychologist, worked with staff during 2 twilights to introduce the Zones of Regulation. The Zones of Regulation framework and curriculum (Kuypers, 2011) teaches students scaffolded skills toward developing a metacognitive pathway to build awareness of their feelings/internal state and utilize a variety of tools and strategies for regulation, prosocial skills, self-care, and overall wellness. This includes exploring tools and strategies for mindfulness, sensory integration, movement, thinking strategies, wellness, and healthy connection with others. The Zones of Regulation provides a common language and compassionate framework to support positive mental health and skill development for all, while serving as an inclusion strategy for neurodiverse learners, those who have experienced trauma, and/or have specific needs in terms of social, emotional, and behavioural development.
SEND Parent Conference 14 February 2022
We were very pleased to host our Parent Conference this morning, with guest speakers from AWARE. The focus of the meeting was for parents to find out more about where they can access support and advice. We looked at Bradford's Local Offer and also the Bradford Parent Forum. We also shared information about the Bradford Matrix of Need and how this is used to highlight the four different areas of need and the provision that should be in place for each. The conference was well attended and gave parents a valuable opportunity to chat, share ideas and find out about the new Blakehill Parent Support Group/Forum, which will be launched at a coffee morning in school at 9.00am on Wednesday 9 March. More information to follow!
SEND Parent Forum 1
We understand how difficult it is for parents of pupils with additional needs to find the support they need. Parents often say that they feel isolated and uncertain of what to do and who to speak to for the best advice. You are not alone!
We are pleased to announce that we are starting our first ever Parent Forum at Blakehill, with the intention of providing opportunities for parents to regularly meet together, share experiences and seek and offer advice and support. Out first parent coffee morning/forum is at 9.00am on Wednesday 9th March in school.
Today we had our first Parent Forum meeting. Thank you to Adele from the Bradford and Airedale Parent Forum and to George Zito (children's mental health practitioner) for attending the session.
Parents asked that at our next Forum, we discuss children's anxiety and how to cope with this at home and which support agencies can help.
George will be doing a 'Drop In' clinic after the session.
The next session will ne 5th April at 9am.
SEND Parent Forum 2
We had our second parents forum in April 2022 and we discussed anxiety.
How to help an anxious child
If a child is experiencing anxiety, there are things that parents and carers can do to help.
First and foremost, it's important to talk to your child about their anxiety or worries. Reassure them and show them you understand how they feel.
If your child is old enough, it may help to explain what anxiety is and the physical effects it has on our bodies. It may be helpful to describe anxiety as being like a wave that builds up and then ebbs away again.
As well as talking to your child about their worries and anxiety, it's important to help them find solutions.
For example, if your child is worried about going to a sleepover, it is natural to want to tell them not to go. However, this could mean your child feels that their anxiety will stop them from doing things.
In the Parent Forum meeting, parents wrote down questions and concerns and the next session is going to be used to address the questions and provide links to support.
Interactive Parent Workshop
Thank you to George Zito (mental health practitioner) from Inspired Neighbourhoods who delivered an interactive workshop about understanding sensory processing difficulties.
George showed us some breathing and meditation techniques to support children who are feeling overwhelmed.
Parent Workshop
Suzy Zito from Great Minds Together attended our Parent workshop. Suzy is supporting some of our Blakehill families with both mental health support and navigating through the EHCP process. She spoke to the parents about her service and what support it offers to the local community.
Parent Workshop
Olivia from Kooth attended our parent workshop to share information on the services they offer for mental health support.
A new online counselling and support service for young people aged 11 to 18 years is now available in Bradford district and Craven. The online service, called Kooth - kooth.com, provides safe, anonymous online support for young people with emotional wellbeing needs or emerging mental health issues.
The service aims to provide an early response to, and identification of emotional wellbeing and mental health problems, leading to improved well-being, prevention of symptom escalation and provision of the right care at the right time. It is intended for children and young people with emotional wellbeing and/or emerging mental health problems, many of whom will require a low level/targeted/short-term intervention. It also aims to engage with children and young people who may be hard to reach and who may not engage with services through traditional routes.
Service hours:
- The digital platform, which is available on any web-enabled, internet connected device (including laptop, smart phone, tablet) is available 24/7, 365 days a year. This includes features such as messaging the team, static forums and magazine articles.
- Scheduled and ‘drop-in’ counselling sessions take place between midday-10pm, Monday to Friday and 6pm-10pm Saturday and Sunday; these are available 365 days a year.
- On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, a live moderated forum will take place in the early evening.
Makaton
We started the 2022/23 academic year off by refreshing our key stage one and reception staff with Makaton training.
Makaton is a unique language programme that uses symbols, signs and speech to enable people to communicate. It supports the development of essential communication skills such as attention and listening, comprehension, memory, recall and organisation of language and expression.
Being able to communicate is one of the most important skills we need in life. Almost everything we do involves communication; everyday tasks such as learning at school, asking for food and drink, sorting out problems, making friends and having fun. These all rely on our ability to communicate with each other.
With Makaton, signs are used, with speech, in spoken word order. This helps provide extra clues about what someone is saying. Using signs can help people who have no speech or whose speech is unclear. Using symbols can help people who have limited speech and those who cannot, or prefer not to sign.
Parent Forum
Today we had our final parent forum run by Adela from the Bradford and Airedale parent forum group. We discussed sensory difficulties and looked at where we could find support. The handouts given out at the meeting are attached below.
Empty Cup Cafe
Jamie from Inspired Neighbourhoods has delivered an Empty Cup Cafe to offer a private place for parents to talk about any feeling of loss that they have experienced. The sessions covered a range of feelings of loss such as parents coming to terms with a given diagnosis or the loss of a way of life style to actually losing a loved one.
George Zito - parent workshops
Following our Parent Conference in school led by George Zito in January , George lead 4 workshops to parents. The workshops were to discuss behaviour as a form of communication and what strategies can be used to support young people at home. Behaviour and communication may be linked to trauma, Autism, ADHD.
George Zito is a Young Persons Mental Health Coordinator who has a wealth of knowledge and experience of working with young people and their families. George is based at Inspired Neighbourhoods in Idle. Inspired Neighbourhoods offer solution focused support around social, emotional and mental health via delivery of the Nurture Group Programme within schools.
The workshops were be held in school on the morning of:
Friday 20 th January 9am – 10am
Friday 27 th January 9am – 10am
Friday 3 rd January 9am – 10am
Friday 10 th January 9am – 10am
Staff Autism Training
Teaching staff as well as teaching assistants took part in the Schools Making Sense of Autism from the Schools AET Professional Development Programme. Staff developed their understanding of Autism and how different profile can be identified in different children.
Staff learnt how to identify sensory difficulties and how to support these in school.
The training was delivered by the specialist communication and interaction teachers from the local authority scil team.
Autism Workshop for parents to make resources. SCIL team
Nicola Doherty is the Local Authority link Specialist Teacher for Blakehill. She specialises in supporting schools to develop strategies for working with children with communication and interaction difficulties as well as pupils who require social, emotional and mental health support.
Nicola kindly offered to provide a two hour session to parents discussing strategies which are being used in school and showing parents how these can be used to support children a home.
The session will included:
A brief input on Autism and reasons behind issues with sleeping; eating; behaviours and the importance of routine,
A question and answer session around Autism,
Sign posting parent to other supports and agencies,
Resource making – parents made resources to take home which included ideas for developing routines at home.
The session received excellent feedback from parents. Parents reported that they would use the resources to support them at home.
Andrew Whitehouse
We are very excited to announce that Andrew Whitehouse will be delivering a parent workshop on 11th July about Autism, melt downs and school refusal.
Andrew Whitehouse
Parent workshop 2 - 3pm
Staff twilight 3.30 -5.00
We were delighted to invite all parents to a workshop in school led by SEN Consultant Andrew Whitehouse. The workshop looked at the needs of learners with Autism and social and emotional difficulties, but was beneficial for any parents who are looking for support with their child’s social, communication, emotional or behavioural needs. Andrew discussed support for children in crisis (meltdowns) and children who are refusing to come to school.
Andrew is a SEND consultant and experienced educator, who has held leadership, teaching and outreach roles in a range of settings and has extensive training and experience in the inclusion of learners with ADHD, Autism, Asperger Syndrome, Dyspraxia and Dyslexia. In addition to his work as a trainer Andrew actively provides outreach services to educational settings nationwide.
His session with staff and parents were very well attended and have received positive feedback. We shared the training with staff from another local primary school.
Effective Classroom Environments
Esther Veale from the scil team delivered staff training to all teachers about making their learning environments for autism friendly by reducing the sensory stimuli in the room.
All staff reported that the training was really informative and would help all children.
The use of visuals
All staff had training with Esther from the scil team about using visuals to support children as part of quality first teaching. Teachers used the visuals to see how it supported them to retain the information and follow instructions.
Parents are invited to attend the same session in the parent workshop with Esther.
Parent Workshop Session led by AWARE
We were delighted to host a parent support session run by Philippa from AWARE. AWARE is an SEND group supporting families with children and young adults on the autistic spectrum (formal diagnosis not required). The group covers the Airedale, Wharfedale, Bradford and Craven areas.
During the session Philippa:
Offer an introduction to neurodiversity,
Discuss autism and support families through the assessment stage,
Discuss support for families through the AWARE group,
Signpost families to other support groups and agencies,
Discuss understanding the underlying issues with Social Interaction and Social Communication difficulties,
Discuss why and how your child may be experiencing or reacting to certain situations and environments,
Develop strategies to support the development of Social Interaction and Social Communication, Answer questions from parents.
The session received positive feedback from the parents who attended.
Parent Workshop
Parents attended a workshop with Esther from the scil team. Esther delivered a session focusing on using visuals to to support children with their learning and to support children to manage their emotions and communicate their needs.
The workshop received good feedback from the parents who attended.
Parent SEND Training
Staff who work with Autistic children used the link for free online learning workshops.
PDA
Preparing for Christmas
Parent/Carer wellbeing.
Sensory Difficulties in the main stream classroom
This evening staff attended the 5th staff training sessions with Esther Veale from the scil team. The training was about understanding and managing sensory difficulties in the classroom. Blakehill have worked closely with the scil team to make our classrooms friendly for neurodiverse learners.
Parent Workshop
Coping with meltdowns and dysregulation at home.
Alison Copley from the SEMH department of the scil team delivered a very busy workshop to parents. We were delighted with the number of parents who attended the session.
Natalie and Collette from the school nursing team, George Zito from Inspired Neighbourhoods and Suzy Zito from Great Minds together also attended to support parents.
The session received great feedback so we are now looking to run the session again for parents after school.
SEN Support Group
Introducing our new WEEKLY Sen Parents Junior Sports Club Session.
Blakehill Primary School have kindly offered SEN Leeds their premises in order for us to be able to run this, which is amazing.
This will be every Tuesday night (except for School Holidays) 5-6pm
Many of SEN Leeds events are on a weekend and monthly, so a weekly club to be able to provide children to be able to run off some steam after school (just in time to be shattered for bed time) is exactly what we needed.
Our first session will be on Tuesday 27th February.
Each session will be slightly different with use of different resources, we have a range of equipment which the school are kindly allowing us to use, along side a large outdoor area (when the weather is looking slightly better)
So if you want to enjoy a tea or coffee whilst your child runs wild, we would love to see you there!
Our first session will be free entry and just turn up whilst we try and work out numbers and capacity :)
Behaviour and Meltdowns Workshop Part two
Thank you to Esther Veale - scil team and Rachel Pouncey and Alison Copley - SEMH specialist teachers - for delivering the parent workshops on Behaviour and Meltdowns. Over 45 parents attended the two sessions offered.
Tonight's session received extremely positive feedback from the parent and carers who attended.
Sleep Clinic - Workshop for parents
We had a regular requests from parents for support and advice about sleep so we were delighted to be able to offer a parent workshop from the Children's Community Support Team (CCST). The Children's Community Support Team Service at Bradford Council and Blakehill Primary School organised a workshop to look at the issues of sleep difficulties for children who have or may have a disability or special need. The workshop was open to all parents and the child did not need to have a diagnosis. The workshop aims to cover:
1. Common sleep problems and possible causes.
2. The health benefits of good sleep.
3. How light and darkness affect the sleep cycle.
4. Our body clock.
5. How diet affects sleep.
6. Medical conditions that affect Sleep
7. How exercise affects sleep.
8. Attachment and association.
9. Developing good sleep hygiene.
10. Further strategies.
The feedback from the session was very positive.
Parent workshop with the Social Communication Interaction & Learning (SCIL) Team:
Zones of Regulation Tuesday 4 th June at 9.15 – 10.15 and 3.30pm – 4.30pm
The Zones of Regulation is an internationally renowned intervention which helps children manage their emotions. At Blakehill Primary we use the Zones of Regulation throughout school as part of our daily practice. The zones provide a framework for our children to develop self-regulation and how to manage their emotions. Children learn to identify emotions, recognise events that may upset them and use the tools they have learnt to help them regulate how they are feeling. What are the different Zones?
Blue Zone: low level of arousal, not ready to learn, feels sad, sick, tired, bored
Green Zone: calm state of alertness, optimal level to learn, feels happy, calm, focused
Yellow Zone: heightened state of alertness, feels frustrated, worried, silly/wiggly, excited
Red Zone: heightened state of alertness and intense emotions, out of control, feels mad/angry, elated
We teach the children that everyone experiences all of the zones and that all of the zones are expected at one time or another. We regularly get asked by parents about the zones and how these can be used at home to help children regulate their emotions. We are delighted to be able to offer parents a workshop on how the zone can be used at home.
Esther Veale is a Local Authority link Specialist Teacher who regularly works with Blakehill. She specialises in supporting schools to develop strategies for working with children with communication and interaction difficulties as well as pupils who require social, emotional and mental health support. Esther has kindly offered to provide sessions to introduce Zones of Regulation and the strategies used to support children to manage their emotions. The session will include:
An introduction to the Zones of Regulation
Examples of how the zones are used in every day practice in school
Explanation on how the zones can be used to support children to manage their emotions.
AWARE - Autism Support
We had a very informative parent workshop with AWARE. The parents who attended were keen to set up their own support group for Blakehill families and will use this to work with the SENCO to plan future parent support and SEND coffee mornings.
Parents reported that the session was informative and provided resources to help them to understand and support their children.