Children with Special Educational Needs

Each child in the school is unique and teachers plan their lessons to cater for all the abilities in the classroom. Many children experience difficulty with a specific area of learning at some time in their school life and may need an Individual Education Plan for a short period. In addition to this very common situation, schools are expected to cater for specific needs, including visual or hearing impairment and other complex conditions. Our last Ofsted report stated that pupils “achieve well whatever their background, need or ability”.

Supported by specialist advisory staff from the local authority (LA), we modify resources and provide additional adult support or equipment as needed to give every child access to learning. We are proud of the high level of success we have had in helping children with a wide range of difficulties to achieve their personal targets and make significant progress. If any parent feels that their child requires very high levels of support in order to cope with school, they should discuss the possibility of applying for a statement of special educational need with the school Special Needs Coordinator. We have an ongoing Disability Access Plan and Disability Equality Scheme, copies of which are available to downlaod here and from school.

Each year we make maximum use of the funds generated by children with special needs, providing the staff needed to support children in lessons or in small groups for skills practice. We create an individual learning plan for the child in order to try to overcome any obstacles which could hinder learning or participation and we encourage children to be involved in this process. We develop partnership with parents of all children based on trust, understanding and open communication. This is especially important with the parents of children who have difficulties with accessing learning for any reason.

We have a wide range of extra-curricular activities including clubs, outings and residential trips at Tadworth. We encourage every child to participate. Some children may require high levels of support, but our aim is to ensure that every child can be included. We ask parents of children with special needs to discuss these with us before booking places. Our intention is to remove any barriers which might prevent access. Given enough notice, we can usually manage to include every child and help them participate in the exciting range of activities we have to offer.