PARK VIEW

WHOLE SCHOOL POLICY FOR INCLUSION

General Statement

The Governing Body and Staff of Park View Primary School believe that every pupil has the right to learn and to play together. Each child is valued as an individual and the school believes that every pupil has an entitlement to develop their full potential. Educational experiences are provided which develop pupils’ achievements and recognise their individuality. At Park View we recognise a child’s right to a broad, balanced, relevant and challenging curriculum which is appropriate to their individual abilities, talents and personal qualities. Diversity is valued as a rich resource which supports the learning of all. Each child will be offered all the opportunities that the school has to offer, academically and socially, and, where necessary additional support will be provided.

It is important that this policy is not seen solely as being just for the benefit of those children with Special Educational Needs and physical disabilities; it also reflects the provision that we make for girls and boys, minority ethnic and faith groups, travellers’ children, asylum seekers and refugees, EAL pupils, gifted and talented pupils, ‘looked after’ children, disaffected pupils, sick children, young carers and children from families under stress.

Park View Primary School is committed to inclusion and its importance in helping children to develop relationships and prepare them for adult life in the community. This is reflected in:

• The ethos of the school
• The school’s systems and structures
• A broad and balanced curriculum for all pupils
• Systems for early identification of barriers to learning
• High expectations and suitable targets for all pupils
• Appropriate modifications to the buildings and grounds
• The deployment of support staff
• The professional development of both the teaching and support staff

Park View School’s commitment to inclusion is at the heart of equal opportunities. All pupils share the right to a broad and balanced curriculum, including the National Curriculum, and this right extends to every registered pupil at Park View, whether or not he or she has a Statement of Special Educational Needs.

• This policy will underpin all other policies of the school.
• This policy will ensure that the provision of the SEN and Disability Act 2001 and Disability Discrimination Act 1995 and the subsequent Code of Practice for SEN is implemented.
• This policy will ensure that the provisions of the Race Relations (Amendment Act) 2000 together with the Race Relations Act 1976 and subsequent Code of Practice underpin all aspects of the school’s work.

Definition of inclusion

Inclusion is an ongoing process that celebrates diversity and involves the identification and systematic minimising of barriers to learning and participation that may be experienced by any pupils, irrespective of age, ability, gender, ethnicity, language and social background, and the maximising of resources to reduce these barriers. An ethos is developed where all pupils are welcomed, supported and valued, and relationships are intentionally built.

The National Curriculum handbook for primary teachers in England (QCA/99/457) provides statutory guidance in developing a more inclusive curriculum – that is, one which is based on the principles of:

• setting suitable learning challenges;
• responding to pupils’ diverse learning needs;
• overcoming potential barriers to learning.

Inclusion is ‘about much more than the types of school children attend: it is about the quality of their experience and how far they are helped to learn, achieve and participate fully in the life of the school’.

 (Removing Barriers to Achievement, The Government’s Strategy SEN 2004).

Aims

‘An Educationally Inclusive School is an Effective School’ (Ofsted)

An educationally inclusive school is one in which the teaching and learning, educational achievements and well-being of every person matters. IT DOES NOT MEAN TREATING ALL PUPILS THE SAME.

Park View Primary School aims to

• Help all pupils to develop their personalities, skills and abilities
• Provide appropriate teaching which makes learning challenging and enjoyable
• Provide equality of educational opportunity.
• Identify those pupils who are ‘missing out’ and take positive steps to rectify this.
• Ensure that all pupils derive maximum benefit from their educational experience.
• To help children to develop relationships built on friendship, respect and understanding, and to endeavour to eliminate fear, ignorance and prejudice.

Objectives

• To ensure the implementation of government and LEA inclusion recommendations.
• To ensure that the school’s inclusion policy is implemented consistently by all staff.
• To ensure that any discrimination or prejudice is eradicated.
• To identify barriers to learning and participation, and provide appropriately to meet a diversity of needs.
• To ensure that all pupils have access to an appropriately differentiated curriculum.
• To recognise, value and celebrate pupils’ achievements, however small.
• To work in partnership with parents/carers in supporting their child’s education.
• To guide and support all school staff, governors and parents in inclusion issues.

Coordinating inclusion

The Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator, Mrs R McClean, is the Inclusion Co-ordinator (INCo). Her role is:

·         To monitor the inclusion policy and practice and to report annually to the governing body on its effectiveness.

·         To monitor and assess inclusive provision.

·         To identify barriers to learning and to provide staff with appropriate strategies.

·         To share inclusive expertise with, and support the professional development of classroom teachers and teaching assistants.

·         To purchase appropriate resources.

·         To monitor pupil progress.

·         To liaise with parents.

·         To coordinate cross phase/cross school transition.

·         To coordinate external specialist provision.

·         To deploy staff and resources effectively to support inclusive teaching and learning across the school.

The INCo is also responsible for keeping the head teacher regularly informed about inclusive provision in the school. All teachers are also responsible for meeting the needs of all pupils in their class.

The role of the class teacher

The class teacher will

·         Ensure that planning shows clear differentiation, using different levels of tasks and activities, and a range of teaching strategies, so that the curriculum is accessible to all.

·         Ensure that in their classroom management all furniture, resources and displays are appropriate to all.

·         Ensure that teaching methods and styles take into account the needs of all pupils, showing respect for pupils’ individual learning styles and differences, and being responsive to pupils’ different learning styles.

·         Encourage positive attitudes to all members of both the school and wider community.

·         Challenge stereotypical views and teach children to appreciate and view positively differences in others, whether arising from race, gender, ability or disability.

·         Challenge all forms of bullying and harassment, including racial harassment.

The role of the Governors

The Governors of Park View Primary School will take reasonable steps to

• Ensure that the school building, as far as is reasonably possible, is accessible to all adults and children in accordance with the Disability Discrimination Act.
• Ensure that the necessary equipment, personnel, training and resources are available to facilitate inclusion.
• Make reasonable adjustments to all school policies, practices and procedures in accordance with the Disability Discrimination Act.
• Plan strategically and make progress in increasing physical accessibility to the school’s premises. (School Accessibility Plan).
• Ensure that the arrangements made for determining the admission of pupils to the school do not place disabled pupils at a substantial disadvantage in comparison with other pupils who are not disabled.
• Ensure that education and associated services, provided for, or offered to, pupils at Park View, do not place disabled pupils at a substantial disadvantage in comparison with pupils who are not disabled.
• Ensure that they do not discriminate against a disabled pupil by excluding him/her from school, temporarily or permanently.

Inclusive provision

The school offers a continuum of provision to meet a diversity of pupils’ needs. Although all classes are mixed ability, class teachers have the flexibility to set smaller ability groups, within their class, particularly for Literacy lessons. In Years 3-6 the children are set into ability groups for Mathematics lessons. Additional in-class support is available in the two Reception classes by full-time teaching assistants, and Special Support Assistants are available to support children with a Statement of Special Educational Needs, or children who are at School Action Plus or School Action on the Special Educational Needs Code of Practice. In addition, the SENCo also supports children, mainly those who are deemed to be at School Action, in small withdrawal groups to target literacy and numeracy skills. Computers are available to support learning in every classroom, as well as being centrally located in the Computer Suite.

A range of extra-curricular activities are available during lunch-time and after school, for example: school choir, football and netball teams, craft club, drama group, gardening club and residential adventure activity weekends.

Park View School maintains good links with local High Schools, and the SENCo, who is also the INCo, meets with the SENCOs from the High Schools to which pupils are transferring in order to disseminate information and ensure a smooth transfer for the pupils.

Specialist provision

The school has a full-time SENCo who works with children who have been identified as significantly underachieving in the area of Literacy and Numeracy. Currently the Governors employ 18 Special Support Assistants, some of whom support children with Statements of Special Educational Need and children at School Action Plus. In addition, the other Special Support Assistants give support to children at School Action and School Action Plus, as well as implementing intervention programmes.

External Support

External specialist advice and support is available from the LA through its service level agreement. Specialist teachers from the following Services are available to assess pupils’ needs, give support and advice, and provide intervention programmes that may involve some direct teaching:

·         Curriculum Language Access Service

·         Advisory teacher for children with Autistic Spectrum and Communications difficulties

·         Learning Support Service

·         Sensory Support Service

·         Pupil Learning Centre

·         Speech and Language Outreach Service

·         Portage Home Teaching Service

·         Parent Partnership

The school also has access to an Educational Welfare Officer, the Educational Psychologist and a School Improvement Partner (SIP). The latter two people are able to provide advice and guidance on issues related to curriculum provision, gifted and talented pupils, gender issues, early years provision, as well as assisting with the identification and assessment of pupils’ individual needs.

The school also fosters strong links with Health Service professionals, for example the School Health Adviser, Speech and Language Therapists, Physiotherapists, Occupational Therapists and those Practitioners who work as part of the Child Development Team at Fairfield Hospital, Bury.

We also endeavour to maintain strong links with Social Services and allied agencies.

Resource allocation

In order to move inclusive practice forward, each curriculum team leader is responsible for the identification of resources required and their purchase within the constraints of their Annual Budget allowance.

The SENCo organises and plans the amount of additional in-class and external specialist support required by pupils at School Action, School Action Plus and for those with a Statement.

Provision for pupils at School Action is made through the school’s existing budget. Pupils at School Action Plus receive a small allowance from the LA which is ‘topped up’ from the school’s own resources and those children with a Statement are given an LA allowance to cover the cost of their SSA support.

Assessment procedures

All children deserve to have their achievements and progression recognised and the school’s curriculum reflects the different levels of attainment likely to be achieved.

The school fully embraces using a consistent nationally recognised assessment system, which relates to the early learning goals, the P scales for pupils with learning difficulties, and the National Curriculum levels of attainment, including exceptional performance for gifted and talented pupils. All teachers monitor and review pupil progress using this assessment procedure. In order to ensure that accurate assessments are made, teachers annually moderate and standardise samples of pupils’ work and achievements across the curriculum.

Underachievement is identified as early as possible through teacher referral and additional assessment using standardised reading, maths and spelling tests. Pupils are set individual challenging targets which address the area of underachievement. Pupil progress is monitored and reviewed termly.

The school’s reward system of House points, Merit certificates, Merit badges and Head Teacher’s award as well as class awards for outstanding work and performance, effort and improved behaviour contribute to raising pupil self esteem and motivation.

Professional development

Staff are kept fully informed about LA, national and regional training courses, seminars and networks which relate to inclusive educational practice, and it is the job of the INCo to raise staff awareness of suitable training. Staff attending any courses are expected to disseminate and share their knowledge with other staff within the school. Staff are also encouraged to observe good inclusive practice within school, and also in other schools.

Parent partnership

The knowledge, views and first hand experience parents have regarding their children is valued for the contribution it makes to their child’s education. Parents are seen as partners in the educational process. All parents are welcome to contact the INCo if they have any concerns about inclusive educational provision. Parents are also strongly encouraged to keep in regular contact with the school regarding their child’s progress. The home – school agreement outlines how parents can support their child’s learning at home.

The voice of pupils

The United Nations Convention On The Rights Of The Child underlines that children who are capable of forming views have a right to receive and make known information, to express an opinion, and have that option taken into account in any matters affecting them. To this end, Park View has an elected School Council, made up of two elected representatives from each of the Key Stage Two classes (one male, one female).

The SEN Code of Practice highlights the importance of children and young people participating in all the decisions about their education, and Individual Education Plans are discussed with the pupil, and their views are made known as part of any statutory assessment. Where appropriate, children are invited to part or all of their Annual Review, if they have a Statement of SEN.

Evaluating the inclusion policy

This inclusion policy is reviewed annually at the end of the academic year. Policy evaluation focuses on

• Establishing how far the aims and objectives of the policy have been met
• How effective the inclusive provision has been in relation to the resources allocated
• The attainment of pupils in judging ‘value added’ factors

In the light of the findings, the policy is revised and amended accordingly.

Further information

The following documents should be read in conjunction with this policy

• The whole school policy for Special Educational Needs
• The whole school policy for Differentiation
• The LAs Statement on Inclusive Education 2^nd Edition rev. July 2002
• Inclusion: providing effective learning opportunities for all pupils(www.nc.uk.net/general/general_inclusion.html)
• The LAs document ‘Accessibility Strategy – Increasing the Accessibility of Schools (Revised Edition – April 2004

Close window