Learning Support

The SEN Department aims to meet the many and varied needs of a wide range of students with special educational needs. The department is led by an Assistant Headteacher who is responsible for inclusion. The SENCO who is a teacher leads the department of 30 including one SEN teacher, Teaching Assistants (TAs) and a part-time teacher of EAL (students with English as an additional language.)

We support students with a range of needs in the following areas:

  • Communication and interaction
  • Cognition and learning
  • Social, mental and emotional health
  • Sensory and or physical

The SEN department support students who are EHCP as well as those who have special educational needs without a statement at SEN support stage.  The majority of support is provided in class to ensure students with SEN have access to teacher and TA support. The support may be in small groups or individually and will aim to encourage independence.  A small group of students have a reduced curriculum where they have additional support in areas such as speech and language, literacy and numeracy.

We work closely with parents to achieve the best outcomes for their son/daughter.  Communication with the department is welcomed and each Year group has a Senior TA who is the key contact.  Parents can contact the department by phone, email or thought meetings at school. 

We have access to an Educational Psychologist and work with Specialist Advisory teachers for Hearing and Visual impairment and Autism Spectrum Conditions. We also have access to a CAMHS worker and NHS practitioners including a Speech and Language Therapist and Physiotherapist.

The SEN department is able to offer:

  • Student profiles and support strategies
  • Tracking and monitoring of progress
  • Breakfast club and lunch clubs (including craft club, motor skills clubs, lego therapy and transition club)
  • Homework club for Key stage 3 and 4
  • Access arrangements for exams
  • Reading club
  • Spelling groups
  • Extra literacy support
  • Social skills groups
  • Mentoring support
  • Curriculum mentoring support with organization and revision
  • Meta-cognition groups
  • Coffee Mornings for parents
  • INSET and training for staff

Every Local Authority must have a local offer which outlines the provision they expect to be available across education, health and social care for children and young people in their area who have SEN or are disabled, including those who do not have Education, Health and Care (EHC) plans. In setting out what they ‘expect to be available’, local authorities should include provision which they believe will actually be available.

The Local Offer has two key purposes:

  • To provide clear, comprehensive, accessible and up-to-date information about the available provision and how to access it, and
     
  • To make provision more responsive to local needs and aspirations by directly involving disabled children and those with SEN and their parents, and disabled young people and those with SEN, and service providers in its development and review.

The local offer can be found at: 

https://www.barnet.gov.uk/citizen-home/children-young-people-and-families/the-local-offer-and-special-educational-needs/education-in-the-local-offer.html

Parent Support

To find out about upcoming support events for parents of children with SEN please go to:

https://www.barnet.gov.uk/citizen-home/children-young-people-and-families/the-local-offer-and-special-educational-needs/Events-.html

There is also a Parent/Carer Forum and more information can be found here:

http://www.barnetpcf.org.uk/

More information about Services, training and support groups for parents available here.