SEN Magazine - Issue 95 - July/Aug 2018

July • Aug 2018 Issue 95

Supporting parents Stress management for families of children with SEN

Autism and puberty Teaching appropriate sexual behaviour

Seeing the future How one blind learner is adapting to changes in his life

PDA • healthy eating for kids • dyslexia • AAC • literacy • bullying manual handling • cerebral palsy • joint area inspections • recruitment education, health and care plans • looked-after children • CPD and more…

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This issue in full July • Aug 2018 • Issue 95

Welcome Ofsted’s Bold Beginnings report on Reception teaching caused a great deal of controversy when it was published at the end of last year. In this issue of SEN Magazine, Debbie Hepplewhite looks at reactions to the report, what it said about teaching literacy and how, as the dust is settling, it may be opening a few minds on the way forward for teaching children to read (p.36).

Also in this issue, Jo Griffin discusses ways to help manage the stress of parenting a child with SEN (p.48); Catherine Tissot, Sue Piper and Sarah Butcher look at supporting young people with autism through puberty (p.44); and Mandie Wright explains how the right support is helping one blind learner to adapt to changes in his life (p.50).

In his regular column on SEN law, Douglas Silas concludes his in-depth explanation of education, health and care (EHC) plans (p.22).

Also in this issue, you will find articles on: healthy eating (p.26), dyslexia (p.30), AAC (p.33), bullying (p.40), manual handling (p.55), cerebral palsy (p.58), joint area inspections (p.62), looked-after children (p.64), autism (p.72), PDA (p.82), recruitment (p.84) and more.

If you have an opinion or experience relating to special educational needs to share, we’re keen to hear from you. Our point of view section (p.20) is for families, professionals and people with SEN to discuss any SEN topic. If you’re interested in contributing, send me a quick email to the address below.

Peter Sutcliffe Editor editor@senmagazine.co.uk

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SEN news

14

What's new?

20

Point of view

22

SEN law

26

Healthy eating for kids

30

Dyslexia

33

Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC)

36

Literacy/phonics

40

Bullying

42

Challenge in learning

44

PSHE

48

Emotional wellbeing of parents

50

Visual impairment

55

Manual handling

58

Cerebral palsy

62

Local area inspections

64

Looked-after children

70

Book reviews

72

Autism

82

Pathological demand avoidance (PDA)

84

Recruitment

86

About SEN Magazine

87

CPD, training and events

96

SEN resources directory

98

SEN subscriptions

CONTRIBUTORS

Contacts DIRECTOR Jeremy Nicholls EDITOR Peter Sutcliffe editor@senmagazine.co.uk 01200 409810

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ADVERTISING SALES Denise Williamson: Advertising Sales Manager denise@senmagazine.co.uk 01200 409808

Next issue deadline: Advertising and news deadline: 8 August 2018

Charlotte Williamson: Advertising Sales Executive charlotte@senmagazine.co.uk 01200 409805

The opinions expressed in SEN Magazine are not necessarily those of the publisher. The publisher cannot be held liable for incorrect information, omissions or the opinions of third parties.

MARKETING & ADMINISTRATION Anita Crossley anita@senmagazine.co.uk 01200 409802

SEN Magazine Ltd. Chapel House, 5 Shawbridge Street, Clitheroe, BB7 1LY T: 01200 409800 F: 01200 409809 W: www.senmagazine.co.uk E: info@senmagazine.co.uk

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Disclaimer

Pearl Barnes Laura Carr Graham Chatterley Barbara Crowther Jules Daulby Ed Duff Debbie Hepplewhite Warren Honey Jo Griffin I-ASC research team Julie Johnson Sarah Keating Jon Kirby Clare Lawrence Mary Mountstephen Bob Oliver Simon Pearse Amanda Richardson Sally Russell Douglas Silas Catherine Tissot Mandie Wright

SEN Magazine ISSN: 1755-4845 SENISSUE95

In this issue Literacy / phonics

24

26

36

58

Cerebral palsy

The state of SEN law

62

A dyslexia friendly ethos Creating a culture that encourages dyslexics to learn

33

64

Pupil Premium Plus

36

Are schools spending it on the looked-after children it is intended for?

72 Understanding neurodevelopmental difference Simple things schools can do to make autism more visible and accepted

The right communication aid A new study looks at improving AAC provision

Teaching literacy in the early years

64

What do joint area inspections look for when they assess a local authority’s SEN provision?

What can schools do to ensure pupils eat well throughout the day?

30

Looked-after children

Local area SEN provision

The reality of life for families four years into the Government’s SEN reforms

Healthy eating

July • Aug 2018 • Issue 95

82

Pathological demand avoidance Why pupils with PDA are often misunderstood

The impact of Ofsted’s Bold Beginnings report on Reception teaching

40

A bespoke approach to bullying Is it time to reassess how we tackle bullying?

42

Challenging learning How the right amount of challenge can stimulate brain development

44

48

6 14

Autism and puberty Helping young people with ASD to understand appropriate sexual behaviour

20

Supporting parents

22

Stress management for families of children with SEN and disabilities

50

Regulars

70

SEN news What's new?

The latest products and ideas from the world of SEN

Point of view

Have your say on any issue relating to SEN!

SEN law

Education, health and care plans

Book reviews

Seeing the future How one young blind learner is adapting to changes in his life

84 Recruitment How SEN settings are meeting their recruitment needs

55

Hoisting in special schools Putting safety, comfort and dignity at the centre of manual handling practice

58

Early support for cerebral palsy The role of recent NICE guidelines in early diagnosis and intervention

87 96

CPD, training and events

Your essential guide to SEN courses, seminars and events

SEN resources directory

26

HEALTHY EAT

44

ING

Healthy eati

A time and for sexual aplace ctivity

ng for child

ren

Barbara Crowth ensure pupils eat er looks at what needs to be don healthily through e out the school day to

“The obesity crisis is such a huge problem, it’s hard to know where to begin. But there ’s one group that seems to be most at risk. Our kids.

One-third of our children aged two to 15 are already overweight or obese. And things are getting wors e.”

Catherine Tissot how to support , Sue Piper and Sarah Butch young people wit er h autism through look at puberty

17 per cent of chi ldren’s vegetable intake comes from just two sou rces: pizza and baked beans

the Governme nt's Childhood Obesity Plan, it’s a good time to focus on some of the issue s getting in the way of healthy food a environment for our kids.

How many of us know , without searching onlin e, the level of hese were the sugar, salt or fat that it’s opening lines healt of hy for the aver chef, writer and child to cons age broadcaster ume on a daily tooth extraction Hugh Fearnleybasis (recognising Whittingstall , to which exce that some child ssive consumption during the rece ren may need additiona of sugar, mixe nt BBC three part documen l calories or d with poor dental hygie fat, if they tary “Britain’s have specific ne, is a majo Fat Fight”. healt He’s right. Acco r contributor. h conditions Around 95 per )? When rding to the we look at cent of 11- to National nutritional infor Childhood Mea 16-yearolds are not mation on surement Prog products, or eating enough ramme, the calories 34.2 per cent vegetables, and 17 per cent associated of children aged with food, are of children’s ten to 11 we really clear are overweig vegetable intake comes ht or obese, what are the healthy limits from as are just arou one in four of two sources: nd for kids? pizza and bake children aged The revised d beans. four to five.

For children Government from more disad School Food Standard vantaged backgrounds s, introduce What’s the pro d in 2015 the risk is under the blem? doubled. auspices of Today the mos With incr the School t common Food Plan (www easi ng caus exp e of childhood hosp .schoolfoodpla ecta tion s s u r ro u n d i n.com), italisation is made a reas ng the multiple onab imminent le stab at layin announcemen g out an approach t of “Chapter to encourag SENISSUE95 Two” of ing healthy eating habits in school. They set out the

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PSHE

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ne of the mos t challenging time s for any you ng person is ado lescence and the change s that occur during puberty . When you combine this with the social and com munication differences seen in ado lesc ents with autism, this transition bec omes even more complex . Add a learn ing difficulty to this mix and you have a pote ntially difficult com bination. Phy sical changes and processe s occur in line with age, not necess arily the mat urity of the individual, whic h makes ado lescence often one of the most prob lematic times for families (second only to receiving a diagnosis).

26 Healthy eating

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Understandi ng desires

There are a couple of key challenges that families and staff team s face.

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48

EMOTIONAL

Most adolescents demonstrate sex ual behaviours and this is not unnatural

families at a loss on how to man age this in a socially acceptable man ner. Many are quite righ tly embarrassed to even discuss it with professionals.

The second key challen ge is to recognise that the autistic ado lescent is no different in this respect The first of to other adolescents these is to reco who will gnis hav e autistic ado the e the same urges and des lescent as ires a with one exce maturing individual with ption – awareness the same urge of social norm s and sensations s. Those supporting autis of other ado tic adolescents lescents. It can be very should separate thes hard for fam e two concep ilies to see their child as ts.

The re is a basic need a young adu for all physica lt when they still have a lot lly mature individuals to of childlike pref find socially erences – for example, appropriate ways to sati if their preferre sfy bodily d video is Thomas the sensations.

This underst Tank Engine anding can or Disney films. Families sometimes be clouded are used to by our own providing quite a bit of personal (som etim es guidance and squ eam ish) direction to their adolesc feel ings towards witn ent and the essing this very private nature of sexu sex ualised behaviour alised activity when dem can leave onstrated in inap pro pria te plac es (kee ping in

WELLBEIN

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Parents ne ed support too

50

Jo Griffin looks at parenting a child ways to help manage the stre ss of with SEN and dis abilities

B

Seeing the

ecoming a parent can be a demanding as well as a rewarding worry in relat experience . ion to their child For parents 's of disability or a disa bled child, the add special need itional uncerta s • 70 per cent inty and challenges they said they felt face can mak anger regarding their e them more vulnerab child's disability le to increased • 73 per cent stress and reduced emo said they felt tional wellbein down or depressed g.

A child comes with regards with many asso to their child's ciated dreams and special need aspirations s • 66 per cent in the mind of parents. s repo rted feeling The reality guilt of hav y abo ing disabled child ut their child a of being alon 's may mean e. disa Ofte that bility n, what pare some . of those hop carers need ntes and expecta Som e pare isn’t necessar tions are nts repo rted not realised, ily an answer (and there may and a period pos itive themes, such be no easy answ of adaption and even mou as those liste er) but an acknowle rning may be d below, that corresp dgement that necessary.

The emotion ond with the the situation is difficult, al journey to idea of post traumat and compas a place of acceptance ic grow sion th, und and although “it is possible erstanding from is important and many the professi to bear in min parents repo onals with whom rt positives d that the experience they come into in relation to of growth is bringing up contact. not the sam a disabled child as the absence e , but not always an it is of personal Common em easy road and distress”²: • 70 per cent otions help may be necessar reported feeli Over the last y along the way ng a two years, I fighting spir . Additional pressures, such it on behalf have been surveying pare of as fighting for their disabled child nts online abo support and limited reso ut the emotional imp urces, can exac • 75 per cent act of having erbate the feeling of reported feeli a disabled child. I circu being overwhe ng lated the info pride when lmed by a “pile-up of dem rmation via they thought social media, ands”¹. of their child with spec Hemihelp con Through my ferences ial needs and parent con own experie • 57 per cent tacts, as well nce of having a son reported an as writing articles in jour with complex inner nals stre need . ngth I have s, and my professi or resilience received 98 responses so onal roles with with far. regards to their a number of disability child's disability charities, I Some findings To get to a . have spoken from the surv place of acce to many othe respondents ey’s ptance and r parents who growth, how to date are: report the ever, is mor same challeng e • 98 per cent chal es, stressors lenging when you are said they had and sense caught up in experienced practical and financial anxiety, stre difficulties. ss or It is already well documen ted that havi ng a disabled child can have a detrimental effect on a parent’s abili ty and flexibility to work, find appropr iate childcare and access leisure activitie s. There can also be heightened stressors with partners, wider family and social netw orks.

Depression and anxiety can make us mo re likely to withdraw at a time when we most need our social networks

Parents can neglect their own wellbeing when caring for a child with SEN. 5

48 Emotional wellbeing

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lind and visio n impaired (VI) children are routinely offered acce ss to practical school supp ort in the form of specialist teaching staff . But is this enough? In this article, I will argue that adding soci al and emotiona l support into the mix can make a big difference to positive educ ational outc omes for VI children.

Jay’s story

It was an ordi nary Frid ay nigh t when 14-yearold Jay lost his sight completely.

Sitting dow n to watch TV with his mum, he reali sed that he couldn’t see the screen at all.

Diagnosed at just four years old with the deg ene rativ e con ditio n retinitis pigm entosa (RP) , Jay had been gradually losing his eyes ight for ten years.

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Support in sch ool

Due to a lack of awareness around the various way s that sight loss affects different peo ple in diffe rent ways, visually impa ired children’s needs and abilities can often be misi nterpreted or overlooked in a school setti ng. This can lead to child ren being negl ected or left behind both academically and socially – in classroo ms, the lunc h queue and the playgrou nd.

Children and young peop le like Jay who lose their sight, as well as those who have lived with a vision impairment since birth, can access a range of services to help with their education and developm ent, and ensu re they are not left behi nd.

With most teac hers being unlik to have work ely ed with a child with VI before one arriv es in their clas sroom, support is not always immediately

With his confide nce hugely affected, he faced a big challenge when it came to coping at school

There are som e key factors which can have a supp ortive influence on parents and nurture resilience. Find ing other families in a simi lar situation can provide a shared und erstanding of their lived experience, which often feels slightly outside the mainstream world. This WWW.SENMAG

future

Mandie Wright discusses how the one blind young learner to adapt right support is helping to changes in his life

What helps?

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VISUAL IMP AIRMENT

“We knew he was goin g to lose his sight even tually,” says his mum Heather, “but it happened a lot quicker than anyone was expecting .”

At a time whe n most kids his age were gaining independence , Jay was adapting to a life without vision. He had to re-le arn how to do even the most basic of tasks, and with his confidence hugely affec ted, he face a big challeng d e when it cam e to coping at school.

50 Visual impairment SENISSUE95

Jay with his mum Heath er.

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SEN NEWS

£50 million to fund new school places for pupils with SEN and disabilities Government pledges to improve school experience for children with SEN All councils to receive share of extra funding Councils are to receive £50 million of additional funding to create new school places and “state-of-the-art” facilities for children with SEN and disabilities. The Government says this will provide families with more choice, and help to meet increasing demand.

In addition, the Government will provide £680 million to create 40,000 more good school places in primary and secondary schools, to add to the 825,000 new school places created since 2010.

The new investment in school places for children with additional needs is intended to build on the £215 million fund announced last year in an attempt to ensure children with SEN had access to a good school place.

The new funding could help create around 740 more special school places and provide specialist facilities to support children with complex needs, such as sensory rooms and playgrounds with specialist equipment.

The Government says the combined investment is part of the £23 billion it is spending between now and 2021 to ensure every child regardless of their needs, background or circumstances has access to a good school place so they will be able to fulfil their potential.

“All parents want to send their child to a good local school, one that meets their individual needs and supports them to achieve their full potential, regardless of the challenges they may face”, says Children and Families Minister Nadhim Zahawi.

“This funding will help to create thousands more school places across the country, with a clear focus on transforming the experience of education for children with special educational needs or disabilities”.

DfE proposals could create around 740 new special school places.

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Over half the councils in England will receive more than £225,000 to increase places or improve schools for children with SEN and disabilities, and every council will receive at least £115,000.

The Government has also published new school places scorecards which show 91 per cent of all primary and secondary school places created in 2016/17 were in Ofsted rated “good” or “outstanding” schools. The scorecards are designed to show how many good school places councils have delivered, and how well they meet the demand of local parents.

Cautious welcome A Department for Education (DfE) statement says these new measures “build on [the Government’s] reforms to improve the lives of children and young people with additional needs, through the introduction of the new education health and care (EHC) plans, helping to ensure children have access to a world-class education, with facilities and support that meets their individual needs. Overall investment in educational provision for children with SEND was £6 billion this year, the highest on record.”

Responding to the DfE’s announcement, Gail Walshe, head of parent carer participation at Contact said “We welcome any increase in funding that will help inclusion of children with additional needs in mainstream schools.”

This was echoed by Maureen Morris from the National Network of Parent Carer Forums who said that “Specialist provision continues to be under great pressure across the country and it is vital this money makes the greatest impact. We are pleased to note that local authorities will need to work with parent and carers to determine how it is most effectively spent.”

Councillor Richard Watts of the Local Government Association also welcomed the promise of additional funding. However, he warned that “this should not be a one-off cash injection and needs to be significant, on-going and sustainable funding, otherwise councils may not be able to meet their statutory duties and many of these children could miss out on a mainstream education.”

Valentine Mulholland, Head of Policy for NAHT, said the school leaders’ union has pleased to see funding for more specialist places in mainstream schools, but she said “this must be matched with sufficient funding for schools and more investment in the health and social care services available to schools and families.

Simply creating additional SEND places won’t help much if schools don’t have the funding and resources required to provide the right education and care.”

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SEN NEWS

Care system is “overstretched” and “overwhelmed” Workers subject to “culture of blame, shame and fear” Report calls for more family involvement in outcomes-based approach A sense of crisis is felt by many young people, families and those working in the care sector, says a new report by Family Rights Group.

The Care Crisis Review finds that the system is overstretched and workers are overwhelmed by demand, leading to frustration for professionals and poor levels of support for children and families, who are not getting the support they need at an early enough stage to prevent difficulties escalating.

The number of children in care is the highest since the Children Act 1989 was introduced, with applications for care orders reaching record levels in 2017.

Funded by the Nuffield Foundation, the report describes a “palpable sense of unease” about how lack of resources, poverty and deprivation are making it harder for families and the system to cope.

The Review brought together what the Family Rights Group describes as a “coalition of the willing” from across the family justice and child welfare sectors in England and Wales. It was launched in response to a statement from the President of the Family Division of the High Court, Sir James Munby, in 2016, which was seen as a call to arms by many care workers: “We are facing a crisis and, truth be told, we have no very clear strategy for meeting the crisis. What is to be done?”

An “inclusive listening exercise” with over 2,000 people in England and Wales was carried out as part of the report, along with an academic review of evidence relating to the state of the sector.

Contributors expressed a strong sense of concern that a “culture of blame, shame and fear” has permeated the system, affecting those working in it as well as the children and families reliant upon it. It was suggested that this had led to an environment that is increasingly mistrusting and risk averse and prompts individuals to seek refuge in procedural responses.

Sound base for change Despite these concerns, the Review found that the child welfare legislative framework is basically sound and there are some local authorities that are bucking the national trend. The system works well sometimes: children and families described individual practitioners who had transformed their lives and professionals described innovations, approaches and leaders who enable them to practice in a way that is respectful, humane and rewarding.

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An ethos of mistrust is creating unhealthy working conditions in the care sector.

The Review also found common agreement about the way forward, with a consensus that relationship building has been and is at the heart of good practice.

There are twenty proposals for change set out in the Review, including: moving away from a focus on processes and performance indicators, to a situation where practitioners are able to stay focused on securing the right outcomes for each child; involving and supporting families to be more involved in making safe plans for their child; changing statutory guidance to promote relationship-based practice; revitalising local and national family justice forums and other mechanisms for discussion and resolution of challenges within the system.

“It’s about moving away from an over reliance on the language of assessment and intervention and more towards understanding and helping”, says Nigel Richardson, Chair of the Review. “It’s about being less adversarial, risk averse and harsh and much more collaborative and kind.”

The report also suggests that: the Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Education look closely at the impact of benefit rules and policies, and the projected effect of planned benefit reforms, on the numbers of children entering or remaining in care; the Ministry of Justice undertakes an impact assessment of the present lack of accessible, early, free, independent advice and information for families on the number of children subject to care proceedings or entering or remaining in the care system, and the net cost to the public purse; the National Family Justice Board revises the approach to measuring timescales, including the 26-week timescale for care proceedings.

In addition, the Review supports the call by the Association of Directors of Children’s Services and the Local Government Association for Government to make up the £2 billion shortfall in children’s social care service.

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SEN NEWS

Dramatic increase in autism exclusions The number of children with autism being excluded from schools in England has seen a big rise. New figures obtained by Ambitious about Autism show nearly 4,500 exclusions of pupils with autism in one year. This is a 60 per cent increase since 2011.

Children with autism are statistically the most likely group of all pupils with SEN who have an education, health and care (EHC) plan to be sent home from school. The charity is calling for urgent action to find out why children with autism are disproportionately at risk.

The total number of pupils excluded from school has risen by four per cent since 2011 and some English regions, such as the South-East, have seen a drop. During the same period, exclusions of children with autism have increased by at least 44 per cent in every part of the country, with the number of cases doubling in the North-West.

Although there has been an increase in children with autism in schools, the exclusion rate remains disproportionate to their number. Children with autism account for just over one per cent of the school population, but make up 2.5 per cent of all exclusions.

“Schools are shutting out thousands of children with autism”, says Jolanta Lasota, Chief Executive of Ambitious about Autism.

“The impact of these exclusions can’t be underestimated – not only do children fall behind academically, but the isolation from their peers creates deep unhappiness, social anxiety and mental health problems.”

The charirty has submitted its findings to the School Exclusions Review, an independent review, commissioned by the Government and led by former Children’s Minister Edward Timpson. “The new School Exclusions review must get to the bottom of what is

happening to these children – who have been failed for too long by our education system”, says Jolanta Lasota.

The charity supports a number of recommendations aimed at tackling the growing rise in autism exclusions. These include: ensuring Ofsted has the power to thoroughly investigate unlawful exclusions and take appropriate action; and training all school staff, including teaching assistants in understanding autism. It also says the system of accountability should be strengthening to ensure schools and local authorities are incentivised to support children with autism, for example, by examining whether to make schools financially and academically responsible for children they exclude or place in alternative provision.

Department for Education data on pupils with autism and exclusions was obtained by the charity via a Freedom of Information request.

Ambitious about Autism has launched a new campaign, We need an education, to draw attention to the children with autism it says are being denied an education.

Study to examine link between child sex abuse and mental health 50,000 school-age children and young offenders are to take part in what is claimed to be the largest cross-cultural psychology survey to date.

Psychologists at the University of Huddersfield will conduct a survey of young people around the world in order to discover the extent to which victims of abuse begin to display mental health problems and psychopathic personality traits and how they can be halted. Findings from the exercise will feed into a £4.6 million, five-nation project that is developing pro-social computer games designed to prevent gender-based violence.

The project is named None in Three and is co-directed by Professor Adele Jones and Professor Daniel Boduszek from the University of Huddersfield. There will also be a contribution from Professor Matt DeLisi of Iowa State University. School-age children and young offenders in the UK, China, Uganda, Jamaica and India will take part in the study.

The aim is to discover how child abuse and neglect experiences can lead to a range of mental health problems. “We strongly believe that this experience can link not only to anxiety, depression and self-harm, but also to development of psychopathic traits,” said Professor Boduszek.

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News deadline for next issue: 8/8/18 Email: editor@senmagazine.co.uk

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SEN NEWS

School is good for abused or neglected children A full and active experience of school has a positive effect on the health and achievements of children who experienced abuse or neglect at an early age, according to a study from the University of Bristol.

Researchers looked at the influence of community factors such as education in children successfully adapting if they were maltreated before the age of five.

Huge support for compulsory PSHE There is overwhelming support for making personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education a compulsory subject for all pupils in all schools, according to a new report.

The publication, from a coalition of organisations including NAHT, the National Education Union (NEU), NSPCC, Sex Education Forum and PSHE Association, outlines how making PSHE statutory would have a meaningful impact on children and young people’s lives, in return for only a modest impact on workload and timetabling.

“Almost everyone involved with the care, protection and education of children believes that PSHE is the best way to help prepare young people for the challenges they will encounter in their adult lives and the current challenges they face beyond the school gates”, says Sarah Hannafin, Senior Policy Advisor for NAHT. “With ever-increasing expectations and responsibilities on schools, statutory PSHE would ensure some curriculum time is protected to enable children and young people to learn about key issues including physical and mental wellbeing, online safety, healthy relationships and preparation for the workplace.”

Over 90 per cent of school leaders surveyed by NAHT support compulsory PSHE and 91 per cent of National Education Union members want regular space on the curriculum for the subject.

The report found that more than 90 per cent of young people and parents support this move. It also reports that mandatory PSHE is supported by the Children’s Commissioner, the National Police Chiefs Council Lead for Child Sexual Abuse, the Bank of England’s Chief Economist, the Chief Medical Officer, Public Health England, teaching unions, four Commons select committees, two Royal societies and six Royal medical colleges.

“The school curriculum is over-stretched but it is vital that we give space to preparing pupils for their lives in the real world, not just for exams” says Sarah Hannafin. “The Government is due to announce a crucial decision on the future of PSHE soon, and we really hope that they will listen to educators and experts by making the subject mandatory in all schools.”

The publication, Statutory PSHE Education: meaningful change supported by busy teachers and school leaders, is available on the PSHE Association website: www.pshe-association.org.uk WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

Using parental survey data revealing emotional or physical maltreatment of children from Bristol’s Children of the 90s longitudinal study they assessed how the children attained good health and educational achievements despite their disadvantaged start in life. They found that factors such as taking part in after school clubs, being happy with school and not being bullied contributed towards good exam grades and general wellbeing, as well as having strong communication and social skills.

“Fortunately, many children who have been abused physically or emotionally can ‘bounce back’ with a rounded and positive experience at school”, says Dr Nisreen Khambati at the School of Social and Community Medicine. “This research helps us understand more of the role of communities in protecting the resilience of individuals and how school-based interventions have an important role.”

The research team say the next step is to look at how schooling might influence an individual throughout their life if they suffered from maltreatment as a child.

The paper, Educational and emotional health outcomes in adolescence following maltreatment in early childhood: A population-based study of protective factors by Nisreen Khambati, Liam Mahedy, Jon Heron and Alan Emond, is published in the journal Child Abuse and Neglect at: www.sciencedirect.com

Councils must meet timeframe for EHC plans Councils should avoid unnecessary delays when creating education, health and care (EHC) plans, the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has warned, following an investigation into a complaint about a council.

The report comes just a few months after the Ombudsman revealed it was upholding eight in ten complaints it investigates about EHC plans.

In this case, the Ombudsman found fault with the Council for the “significant delay” in completing the boy’s annual review and the severe delay in issuing the final amended EHC plan.

This resulted in the boy’s mother homeschooling her son, as the school had not put in place the support he needed.

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SEN NEWS

Vulnerable children missing out because of misconceptions about fostering

People with autism at risk of manipulation because they can't recognise lies The ability to distinguish truth from lies is diminished in people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), putting them at greater risk of being manipulated.

Researchers, led by Professor David Williams of the University of Kent, found that lie detection ability is “significantly diminished” in those with a full ASD diagnosis. It is also related to how many ASD traits people in the general population have: the more traits, the poorer the deception detection ability.

The research team in the UK and US conducted experiments with participants exhibiting varying ASD traits and compared them to those who were deemed “neurotypical” or not displaying autistic patterns of thought or behaviour. Participants were shown a number of videos of people responding to questions about their earlier participation in an experiment during which they had an opportunity to cheat by looking at an answer sheet while the experimenter was out of the room. All the people in the video denied cheating, but some of them had actually looked at the answer sheet. Participants had to judge whether the people in each video were lying or not.

In one video shown to participants a liar responds “I guess no” to the question “did any cheating occur when the experimenter left the room?” Those with a diagnosis of ASD and those from the general population with a high number of ASD traits found it difficult to make an inference about deceit, even when such cues were available.

The researchers suggest that limited social engagement among people with ASD, as well as neurotypical people with a relatively high number of ASD traits, may result in a failure to learn the social cues that indicate deceit. They suggest it is important to consider whether to train individuals with ASD to detect behavioural indicators of lying. “If such training were successful”, they say, “it would represent a significant opportunity to enhance the lives of a group of people who, on the basis of our results and anecdotal reports, are clearly susceptible to exploitation.”

The research, Can you spot a liar? Deception, mindreading, and the case of Autism Spectrum Disorder, is published in the journal Autism Research.

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A lack of awareness about the financial benefits available in fostering is seriously affecting the number of potential foster carers exploring the profession. So says the fostering service Five Rivers Child Care, which surveyed 2,000 respondents as part of its ongoing investigation into opinions about foster carer recruitment.

According to the Fostering Network, there is currently a nationwide shortfall of more than 7,000 foster carers, with the North-West of England facing the biggest shortfall of 1,050 carers.

The survey found that 64 per cent of respondents from across the UK weren’t aware that foster carers can be paid a fee of up to £25,000 a year, which increases if additional children are looked after. Despite this uncertainty, two-thirds of those surveyed viewed fostering in a positive light and 50 per cent said they would consider or had previously considered fostering as a career option.

Almost a quarter of respondents were reluctant to pursue fostering as they thought they wouldn’t meet the appropriate criteria, yet almost two-thirds were unaware that childless individuals or couples could foster. Around 40 per cent did not know that same sex couples could foster, and 40 per cent were not aware that those in rented accommodation or single individuals were eligible to foster.

“Our latest research revealed that over half of the British public would consider fostering, but they are deterred by the out-ofdate misconceptions that are no longer relevant”, says Martin Leitch, Head of Fostering Operations for Five Rivers Child Care.

“If we could even encourage ten per cent of them to get in touch and explore the possibility of fostering as a career option, we could stem the shortfall.”

Mindy Golder, a former foster child, is a care advisor at Five Rivers. “As a former child in care, I know from personal experience the significant impact foster carers can have on a vulnerable young person’s life”, she says. “My foster parents changed my life and I can only hope more people begin to explore foster care as a career opportunity so that more people like me can be helped.”

Autistic people four times more likely to be lonely People with autism are amongst the most lonely and isolated people in the UK, says new research by the National Autistic Society (NAS).

The charity compared its new survey of 869 autistic adults with equivalent data from the Office for National Statistics’ Opinions and Lifestyle Survey (2015) and concluded that autistic people are four times more likely to be lonely than the general public. Previous research by the charity suggested that 79 per cent of autistic people feel socially isolated.

The NAS is calling on the Government to ensure its upcoming strategy for tackling loneliness addresses the specific needs of autistic people.

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SEN NEWS

Healthcare inequalities for Patients with autism and learning disabilities Patients with autism and learning disabilities are more likely to experience a reduced quality of life, and to have health issues go undiagnosed and untreated. The life expectancy for a man with a learning disability is 23 years lower than in the general population, and the life expectancy for a woman with a learning disability is 29 years below average. #MyGPandMe, a new report by Dimensions found that patients with learning disabilities and autism are far less likely to receive routine cancer screenings than patients in the general population.

Only 19 per cent of eligible women with learning disabilities and autism have undergone a cervical cancer screening, compared with 73 per cent of the general population. Women with learning disabilities and autism are ten per cent less likely to have the recommended three-yearly breast screening than other women.

As many as 30,000 to 35,000 people with learning disabilities and autism are at risk of being wrongly prescribed psychotropic medication. Most GPs (80 per cent) recognise the problem and 48 per cent said they would benefit from additional training on prescribing this kind of medication for patients with learning disabilities and autism.

Compared to the general population, patients with autism and learning disabilities are 30 per cent less likely to feel “listened to” by their GP, 28 per cent less likely to feel that they have enough time in an appointment, and 22 per cent less likely to feel that they are treated with care and concern.

Under the Equality Act 2010, healthcare providers are obliged to make “reasonable adjustments” for patients with learning disabilities, but half of the GPs surveyed said a lack of training on how to make reasonable adjustments was stopping them from meeting the individual needs of these patients.

Almost half of GPs identified a lack of clarity around when to make reasonable adjustments, and 44 per cent said they didn’t know which reasonable adjustments to offer. A quarter of GPs said they don’t have enough time in appointments to make reasonable adjustments for patients.

GPs are not getting the training and support they need to improve health outcomes for patients. Two-thirds have received less than a day’s training on how to meet the individual needs of patients with autism and learning disabilities.

Almost all GPs (98 per cent) say they would benefit from additional training led by experts, including people with autism and learning disabilities, to improve health outcomes for patients.

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High risk children denied vital eye care New research by SeeAbility suggests that thousands of children with learning disabilities in England’s special schools are missing out on eye tests and eye care despite being 28 times more likely to have a serious sight problem than other children.

Around 100,000 children attend special schools in England, including the majority of children with severe learning disabilities or autism. SeeAbility’s study indicates that up to half of these children are likely to have a problem with their vision, yet an estimated 40,000 children will have never received any eye care.

This means thousands of children who desperately need glasses are going without, many suffering extremely poor vision without anyone knowing about it, impacting on their ability to learn, play and socialise. Others with more serious eye conditions are being deprived of sight saving treatment.

SeeAbility is calling on NHS England to make wide reforms to community eye care for children and adults with learning disabilities and introduce adjusted eye tests in special schools.

Failure to target these high risk children with eye care they are able to access is causing unnecessary vision impairment and putting eye sight at risk.

The report, Children in Focus – a clear call to action, is available on the charity’s website: www.seeability.org

Two children in every class experience language disorders Approximately two children in every Year 1 class will experience a clinically significant language disorder that impacts learning, according to a UCL-led study.

The impact of non-verbal ability on prevalence and clinical presentation of Language Disorder, published in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, found that children with unexplained language disorders have higher social, emotional and behavioural problems, with 88 per cent failing to achieve early curriculum targets.

It also found that non-verbal IQ, a commonly used exclusion criterion for language disorders, was not associated with more severe symptoms of language impairment, or more extensive behavioural and learning problems, unless associated with another developmental condition. This raises questions about the use of non-verbal IQ in diagnosis and treatment decisions.

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SEN PRODUCTS AND SERVICES

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SEN LAW

New tools to help young people and children with SEN learn about money NatWest has expanded its MoneySense programme to make it more accessible, to help young people and children with SEN and disabilities learn vital money management skills.

Working in partnership with the National Association of Special Educational Needs (nasen), the bank has developed new and tailored content to enable its free and impartial programme to better meet the needs of pupils with SEN and disabilities across England and Wales. To date, NatWest MoneySense has supported over 11,000 teachers around the country, building towards a goal to educate a further one million young people about money by the end of 2018.

The two new MoneySense lessons teach young people aged eight to 12 how to pay for things, and 12- to 16-year-olds how to keep their finances secure. This follows the launch in February of two classes focused on learning about different coins and notes (five- to eight-year-olds) as well as understanding the link between jobs and money (eight- to 12-year-olds).

Advice from educational experts to NatWest found that for young people with SEN and disabilities, money can be an abstract concept that is difficult to grasp. The new MoneySense topics are interactive and engaging, with extra time available to pupils to help them understand the lesson and tailored resources to help embed key learnings.

“We know how important it is to teach children and young people about money and I’m really pleased that we’ve been able to enhance the service we offer to those young people with special educational needs”, says Kirsty Britz, Director of Sustainable Banking at NatWest. “Financial education is a vital part of staying safe and secure, so it’s important that it’s made accessible to all.” mymoneysense.com WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

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WHAT’S NEW?

What’s new?

Bloomsbury Early Years Bloomsbury Early Years is a useful online resource for early years settings, with over 2000 activities linked to the curriculum. Written by experienced practitioners, Bloomsbury Early Years provides tried-and-tested activities you can trust, using inexpensive resources or items you will already have.

Once your setting has subscribed, everyone can use it and everyone can have access to everything – all in one place and accessible whenever you need it. You can also save, share and print activities, making planning easier and saving you time. www.bloomsburyearlyyears.com

Supporting adopted and looked-after children at school Family Futures’ training is designed to help you understand the impact of developmental trauma on children’s capacity to learn. It offers strategies based on current thinking and treatment for trauma and attachment difficulties resulting from childhood abuse and neglect.

Family Futures offers training for individuals and bespoke packages for schools.

Family Futures’ conference, Assessing and Treating Developmentally Traumatised Children, takes place at The Crystal, London on 19 October 2018. An early bird rate is available for bookings made before 31 July.

For more information, call: 020 7354 4161 or visit: www.familyfutures.co.uk/training

Fostering for Derbyshire Council Derbyshire County Council values the experience and skills that foster carers have which can transform lives.

They are looking for new carers who can provide a longterm, loving home for a disabled child, or who can give much needed short-break support to parents of disabled children or children with additional needs.

They offer competitive allowances and provide dedicated support, as well as a range of other benefits. They are also seeking new adoptive parents who could provide a permanent home for a disabled child.

If you are interested, email: fostering@derbyshire.gov.uk or adoption@derbyshire.gov.uk or telephone: 0800 083 77 44.

VENDLET Basic Patient Turning System Are you risking your musculoskeletal health? VENDLET Patient Turning Systems enable just one carer to comfortably turn a person in bed, with zero manual handling. The all-new VENDLET Basic is the simplest model to date, and it's also a very cost-effective turning system.

“We were shown a demonstration of the VENDLET at the school our child attends and were bowled over. Before the system, we needed two carers for all personal care, and now we can manage with just one. We would totally recommend the VENDLET – it’s the best piece of equipment we’ve ever had!” (Mr and Mrs Fox). felgains.com/vendlet

Glasgow 2018 World Down Syndrome Congress

New sign-up option for latest Hesley news and events

From 25 to 27 July Down’s Syndrome Scotland will be hosting the World Down Syndrome Congress, welcoming visitors to the SEC in Glasgow.

Hesley Group have introduced a new way of keeping up to date with details about their free events and the latest news regarding their services for young people with autism and complex needs.

The Congress offers a World Down Syndrome Lead unique opportunity for those who work with children Commissioners. From left: Andrew Macintyre, Sam Ross and Stuart and adults with Down’s Campbell. syndrome to share in the experiences of others from around the world, to learn about some of the best practice out there today and to hear from international speakers and experts.

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The sign-up form is now available on their website. If you’re interested in finding out when and where their free events for parents and professionals will be taking place, then opt-in to receive emails from them. Hesley promise they won’t share your details with anyone else and you will be able to update your preferences at any time. www.hesleygroup.co.uk WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

WHAT’S NEW?

Learn@ MAT boost for school places in the West A specialist-only MAT has announced plans to open a new free school by September 2020 to boost places for children with social, emotional, mental health and speech and language needs in the Bristol area.

The Learn@ Multi-Academy Trust has secured an old college site to provide a 136-place school for students aged between five and 18. It will also provide weekday overnight support and accommodation in a 12-place respite unit and a 20-place 6th form.

The school will be modelled on Knowle DGE Academy.

Helping parents As we approach the end of the academic year for 2017/18, Douglas Silas Solicitors are helping parents of children and young people with SEN get appropriate provision/ placements for the new academic year in 2018/19, through general assistance or by helping them appeal to the SEND Tribunal.

Douglas says: “Unfortunately, people may find themselves with an existing appeal for a change of provision or placement, but now realise that they need specialist advice or assistance. Alternatively, they may be looking ahead to a change of placement from September 2019. Either way, we can help them.”

For more information, visit: www.SpecialEducationalNeeds.co.uk

peter.evans@learnmat.uk www.learnmat.uk

The new WIAT-IIIUK for Teachers (WIAT-IIIUK-T) The new Wechsler Individual Achievement Test – Third UK Edition for Teachers is a flexible UK normed assessment for education professionals working with students aged four to 25 years in mainstream and special education settings.

The WIAT-IIIUK-T offers UK normed data reflecting current UK population, it helps to identify students' academic strengths and weaknesses and provides evidence for applications for access arrangements and the Disabled Students’ Allowance.

It can be used to design instructional objectives and plan interventions, and it has flexible administration, with five subtests to test key aspects of literacy. pearsonclinical.co.uk/WIAT-3UK-T

Autism and Mental Health Conference The National Autistic Society’s “Our Autism and Mental Health Conference” is returning, taking place in Leeds on 12 September.

Attend this one-day conference to further your understanding of autism and mental health, and hear autism specialists explore the importance of mental health awareness and targeted support for autistic individuals. Topics include depression and suicidality in autism, mental health issues in girls and young women, and support through online communities.

Visit: www.autism.org.uk/conferences to find out more.

The magic of theatre brought to you Caring reminders from MemRabel 2i At this year’s Alzheimer’s show at Olympia, Medpage will launch the MemRabel 2i.

MemRabel 2i allows reminders to be created on a mobile phone or PC to send directly through the internet to the person’s MemRabel 2i anywhere in the world.

You can record videos, send photos, voice messages and text messages. The reminder will play automatically at the selected time and can be repeated as and when required.

M&M Theatrical Productions are committed to combining theatre with education, providing value for money productions that are innovative, colourful and captivating.

Their expertly constructed sets, adaptable to any venue, allow for this experience to be enjoyed by the whole school, in the safety of their own surroundings.

Whether the person is living independently at home or in residential care, personalised reminders, greetings and messages can be created with ease.

The company aim to provide shows full of fun, laughter, excitement, music and larger than life characters. Produced by their experienced team of professionals, scripts, costumes, scenery and special effects are all designed to ensure the audience will enjoy a magical theatrical experience.

To find out more, visit: www.medpage-ltd.com and search MemRabel 2i.

www.magicoftheatre.com

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WHAT’S NEW?

Education resourcing for Yorkshire and Humberside

Conductive education at Rainbow Centre

Since launching in 2004 in Hull, Principal Resourcing have expanded across the whole of Yorkshire and Lincolnshire, employing a team of 30+ education recruitment professionals.

The Rainbow Centre inspires and supports children with cerebral palsy and their families, and adults with a stroke, MS and Parkinson’s, adult cerebral palsy and head injury.

Principal Resourcing offer a range of staffing solutions and bespoke services to support SEN and PRU provisions.

Their teachers and support staff can support pupils with ASD, EBD, PMLD and a wide range of complex needs and impairments.

Principal Resourcing stress the importance of safer recruitment and child protection, which is why they are holders of the REC Audited Education Accreditation.

Facebook and Twitter: principalres Instagram: principal_resourcing LinkedIn: principal-resourcing www.principalresourcing.co.uk

They are conductive education specialists, delivering a unified system of rehabilitation for people with neurological disorders which provides the following benefits: improves mobility, enabling more independence; builds self-esteem by experiencing success on a daily basis; develops physical stamina and independence promoting strong development of muscles and bones thus eliminating the need for some surgery; teaches daily living skills, such as dressing, eating and personal hygiene; and improves social/ verbalisation skills. http://rainbowcentre.org

Bakery opens the door for autism employment

Advice and support for autism families

People with autism will gain meaningful employment and work skills, thanks to a purpose-built commercial bakery at Prior’s Court. The charity provides education and residential care for young people with severe autism, and this project builds on its work experience programme.

Rescare is a small national charity run by families for families. It has a helpline open Monday to Friday 9:00am to 12:30pm, and can offer help and support with problems your autistic child may be experiencing.

After completing hygiene accreditations through their food technology sessions, students will progress to working in the commercial environment, under the guidance of a master baker.

Only 16 per cent of the autistic adult population are in full-time employment, but Prior’s Court hopes to prove the potential for autism inclusion in the workplace and buck the trend. www.priorscourt.org.uk

Rescare can offer advice on EHC plans, and DLA applications for under 16s or PIP for over 16s.

Staff are fully trained in all aspects of the Care Act and the SEND regulations. It also produces an informative magazine for members with advice on all aspects of learning disability and SEN. Helpline: 0161 474 7323 Email: helpline@rescare.org.uk www.rescare.org.uk

Independent Living Scotland 2018 Scotland's largest independent living and disability lifestyle event returns to the SEC Glasgow on 26 and 27 September.

Bringing families, carers, communities and healthcare professionals together, the event provides visitors with the opportunity to discover an incredible array of the latest products and services on the market.

If you are an allied healthcare professional, you can benefit from the CPD accredited seminars from leading industry professionals, and new for 2018 is the OTAC Arena, the free adaptations and equipment-based event for occupational therapists, showcasing leading exhibitors plus topical CPD accredited seminars.

Free picnic bench with Rhino Play orders The benefits of creative play go well beyond merely developing a creative mind. Any activity that involves creativity helps to develop lifelong intellectual and cognitive skills, and promotes invaluable problem solving and critical thinking competences.

Rhino Play specialise in building and transforming play areas to develop these skills. They are giving away a free picnic bench, worth £350 plus VAT (excludes installation), with every order of £5,000 or more if you order before 31 July 2018.

Free entry and free parking when you register in advance.

Order playground equipment for £10,000 and you will get a free roofed picnic table, worth £1,050 plus VAT (excludes installation).

Register at: independentlivingscotland.org

www.rhinoplay.co.uk

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WHAT’S NEW?

SNAP – new online editions

No child left without a voice

SNAP-SpLD and SNAP-B are now available in online editions, offering a user-friendly platform to diagnose and provide interventions for 20 learning difficulties and 17 behavioural difficulties.

Smartbox creates technology that enables people without a voice to communicate. Their flagship Grid software is used by children across the world, of all ages and abilities.

Online assessments are easy to administer without the need for specialist training. Users can quickly identify areas of need and strengths, generate reports and choose from hundreds of targeted interventions.

SNAP follows the Assess - Plan - Do - Review model detailed in the SEN Code of Practice (2015).

SNAP-SpLD and SNAP-B are available as 1-year subscriptions for £180 + VAT, including unlimited wholeschool access to questionnaires, interventions and reports.

Grid is packed with features and resources to support a wide range of communication and access needs. Users can find readymade resources for symbol and text communication, manage different user accounts for students, and edit content for their class.

Grid is now available on Windows and iPad. If you order 20 copies or more, you get a 50 per cent discount.

Visit: www.thinksmartbox.com to try Grid for free.

Order online: www.hoddereducation.co.uk/SNAP2018

Monitoring child protection CPOMS is a revolutionary software application for monitoring child protection, safeguarding, SEND and a range of pastoral and welfare issues. Concerns recorded by staff are sent immediately to a relevant member of the safeguarding team – ensuring students are well protected, and staff have made high quality, easily referenced records.

CPOMS is intuitive and fully customisable to draw lines between child protection, mental health, bullying, special educational needs, health and safety, and any other concerns. CPOMS is trusted by over 7000 schools in the UK – it’s “the glue that pulls everything together”. www.CPOMS.co.uk 0845 345 1155

Scotland’s residential school for visually impaired pupils The Royal Blind School is Scotland’s only residential school specialising in the care and education of visually impaired pupils, including those with complex needs.

It offers day places as well as a range of residential options including, weekly, termly and 52-week a year placements.

The School enrols pupils from P1 to P6 and has a weekly pre-school playgroup. As well as offering a full curriculum, the School delivers independent living skills, mobility and orientation to ensure that pupils become as independent as possible. www.royalblind.org/education

Indoor rebound rooms Indoor rebound rooms have, for most schools, been an unachievable luxury. For those who do investigate, they often find builders with no experience in this area who suck through their teeth and produce outlandish quotes.

Sunken Trampolines successfully launched their design and build service in 2016. Having now completed a number of bespoke Rebound Therapy Rooms for schools across the UK they are quickly becoming a leading installation company.

Their expertise and knowledge can help your school or organisation.

For more information on this and other options, visit: www.sunkentrampolines.co.uk or contact Joel or Angus at: sales@sunkentrampolines.co.uk

The Thrive Approach Thrive is a specific way of working with all children that supports emotional and social wellbeing. The Thrive Approach teaches you how to be, and what to do, in response to young people’s differing and sometimes challenging behaviour, providing targeted strategies and activities to help them re-engage with life and learning.

Add to your SENDCo toolkit and become a Thrive Licensed Practitioner: assess the social and emotional needs of all children and young people, and support them with individual action plans. Courses run across the UK for ten days over two terms.

Find out more or book online at: https://mythrive.uk/LPcourse

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WHAT’S NEW?

Free consultation and inspiration guide on inclusive, sensory outdoor play

Easy News for people with learning disabilities

The outdoor sensory space in any setting should be fully inclusive and provide the same opportunity for everyone to explore regardless of their ability or special need. It should be a place where diversity is respected and valued, enabling children of all abilities to explore their surrounding in a safe child-centred inclusive environment.

National disability charity United Response has produced the latest edition of the award winning Easy News – the first ever magazine designed specifically for people with learning disabilities.

Timotay Playscapes have a free inspiration guide to outdoor sensory play spaces and outdoor sensory play equipment.

For your copy, email: enquiries@timotayplayscapes.co.uk or call: 01933 665151.

Using simple language and visual cues, this edition gives readers a news roundup of stories including the Royal wedding, the Grenfell Tower inquest, the Home Secretary’s resignation, Trump and the North Korea summit and much more.

To download a copy and sign up for future editions, visit: www.unitedresponse.org.uk/press/campaigns/easy-news

Learning Hub to train teaching staff on vision impairment

Postgraduate Open Days at University of Derby

The Royal Blind Learning Hub provides teacher training, educational resources, advice and workshops to teachers and other education professionals working with vision impaired children and young people.

If you’re considering postgraduate study in Education, the University of Derby offers courses that are current, topical, relevant and designed to help you progress in your career.

The free service offers one-to-one outreach support, teacher training and seminars, and online learning including resources and instructional videos.

The Royal Blind Learning Hub aims to support teachers, classroom support staff and learning assistants who work with vision impaired pupils in mainstream and independent schools, complementing services provided by local authorities.

Find out more about the Royal Blind Learning Hub at: www.royalblind.org/learninghub

Foster carers wanted Could you use the skills gained in a previous career to become a solo placement foster carer for a child with a disability and/or medical condition? Warwickshire Fostering Service is looking for people who want to make a difference to a young person’s life.

As a foster carer, you will receive weekly fostering allowances, support to apply for a grant to adapt properties for the child’s needs, specialist training, support from a dedicated fostering social worker and regular support groups. You could also earn up to £28,000 a year.

To find out more, text: “CHILD” to 62266 or visit: www.warwickshire.gov.uk/fostering SENISSUE95

The University of Derby runs teacher training degrees in Early Years, Primary, Secondary and Post-14 and masters courses in Education, Childhood, Careers Education and Coaching, Inclusion and SEND and Educational Leadership.

You can find out more about their courses at their next Postgraduate Open Days on 7 July and 6 September 2018. www.derby.ac.uk/open-days

BitePRO® bite resistant clothing to protect teachers According to Jeffrey Barrett MD (Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, Temple University School of Medicine), approximately ten to 15 per cent of human bite wounds become infected owing to multiple factors.

Public facing professionals working within the complex mental health care sector could therefore be contaminated with pathogens. Transmissions of potentially life threatening viruses, such as Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C or HIV are also possible.

Looking at the potential and realistic consequences, BitePRO® believe that their Bite Resistant Clothing can help protect those men and women from such consequences. www.bite-pro.com WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

PLAY

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PECS

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POINT OF VIEW

Point of view: school leader

The battle over exclusions Schools are being forced to choose between an inclusive ethos and realism, writes Graham Chatterley

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he link between poverty and mental health is clear for all to see and one in two pupils who get permanently excluded have a mental health difficulty. Children in care are ten times more likely to be excluded and children who qualify for free school meals are four times more likely to be excluded. So these children have had a very challenging start to life; they are angry, resentful and anxious, which puts them in a position where it is extremely difficult to regulate themselves and therefore challenging behaviour occurs.

The schools don’t care and so the pupils are excluded, right?

Wrong! I’m not saying there aren’t a minority of schools who think this way but the majority I’ve worked with are desperate to help and have an ethos that is all about inclusion, but they are forced to make a choice.

Working with children with additional needs requires extra staff time, help from outside agencies and flexibility in their timetable. These children often come from a home that has little money to meet basic needs and they go to a school where the budget is being slashed every year. Schools and parents often look to outside agencies like child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) or social services for support.

But, yes, they are also being cut to the quick! Charities can offer support but even then waiting lists can now be six months plus.

Impossible demands At the SEMH school I work at, we refuse to exclude and it requires serious attention to manage the most violent and SENISSUE95

aggressive behaviours; but the child is not the behaviour; the child’s behaviour is a communication of their feelings and the result of their experiences. We cannot punish the child for reacting to neglect, trauma or abuse exactly as they would be expected to do. However, we have other children in the class and we have targets placed upon us.

Despite all of the additional needs and traumas, we are still expected to match up academically against mainstream schools and this is always challenging the ethos of the school. At the end of the day, we are dealing with staff who are human beings and who are hardwired to

Precious pennies saved cutting funding end up getting spent on the criminal justice system react in a certain way to being assaulted and want a punishment or exclusion.

The problem is, if we do exclude, we just confirm to the child what they already believe: that they are bad and they don’t belong. They then become more isolated and more vulnerable and all those precious pennies saved cutting funding to schools, CAMHs and social services end up getting spent on the criminal justice system for a child who maybe could have been saved.

It is even harder for mainstream schools to be inclusive regarding behaviour and until expectations change or funding is reintroduced, the inclusive

ethos will wither and die. There are amazing staff in mainstream schools – and headteachers who are naturally inclusive and distraught when they have to exclude – but when a decision comes down to leaving 29 children unsupported or providing two-for-one attention for an angry and aggressive child, it’s a near impossible position.

There is nothing to suggest that schools will be better funded in the near future, so what else could be done to help prevent exclusions? We could move away from a system where everything is judged on academic progress and schools are punished, not rewarded, for being inclusive. We could give recognition for attendance, engagement and reductions in aggression, and allow for a flexibility in timetabling that doesn’t make everything about what they write down. We could allow the school to work with that child’s interests and skills and not be worried that they haven’t done their spellings that morning. Or we could give the child the opportunity to have success rather than failure. Maybe we could let them show other children they have talents and give them a sense of belonging, because improving selfworth and stopping them feeling like an outsider are the only ways to break the cycle of exclusion.

Further information

Graham Chatterley is Assistant Head at Woolston Brook School, a special school in Warrington: http://woolstonbrookschool.co.uk

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POINT OF VIEW

Point of view: parent

Driving us mad Public attitudes towards his son’s autism turn a simple bus journey into a major ordeal, writes Jon Kirby

H

ave you ever been insulted, talked about, looked at or even moaned about on public transport because of your disability? Our son has, and this is his story.

Haydn is five years old, severely autistic and also non-verbal. Neither my wife nor I drive, so public transport is our only option to get around.

Recently, we began to notice, more and more, people's reactions to Haydn's sometimes unpredictable and uncontrollable behaviour. As he is unable to communicate his needs, Haydn tends to either shout, scream or mumble to himself at various volumes. He can also throw himself around in what we like to jokingly call the “crocodile death roll”, and physically lash out at either his mother, his brothers or myself at any given time and for any reason. On top of that, he struggles to sit still and will often attempt to climb over or under seats or lay on the floor to ground himself.

We have been subjected to dirty looks and rude comments, among other things such as “shushing”; some people have even moved to different areas of the bus.

“Children should be seen and not heard” was one of my personal favourites.

Haydn has also been called a “noisy b****rd,” as one man got off the bus after spending 20mins in close proximity to him. We have even heard of an occasion where one lady in a similar situation to us was asked to leave the bus because she responded angrily in defence of her child to another member of the public who took it upon themselves to insult her child. Ultimately, and however you look at it, it's discrimination. As a paying customer, our son deserves just WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

as much respect as everyone else who uses public transport, whether he has additional needs or not.

It’s happening everywhere But the problem is not just on public transport. We've been subjected to similar behaviours with Haydn whilst out having lunch or dinner at local restaurants, where again people have moved seats to get alway from the “loud and naughty child” but not before muttering obscenities to themselves.

It's the same at play parks and soft play areas. At the end of the day, he is still just a five-year-old child and he's going to be loud, he's going to be boisterous and he's going to be playful.

Ultimately, and however you look at it, it's discrimination

Haydn does, however, sometimes struggle with not understanding when something isn't his; he will often go over to other children or adults and try to drink their drinks, eat their sweets or, sometimes, take their scooters and play with them. Obviously, this isn't acceptable behaviour and we try our hardest to make sure that he doesn't do this, but sometimes he's very quick and it's happened before we've had a chance to stop it. Just last month, Haydn tried to use another child's scooter and the mother of the child said something

along the lines of “I wouldn't mind but it's a £200 scooter”, seemingly implying that my child was going to break the scooter because he wasn't “normal” and was wearing “reins like a dog”.

It's all very frustrating as it shows just how little autism is acknowledged and accepted by some members of the public. You'd think that today people would be more aware and alert to conditions such as ASD and ADHD, but it seems they still carry a stigma and a lot of people are unable to recognise that it’s not “naughty child syndrome”.

Just because our child isn't in a wheelchair or doesn't have a visible disability, that doesn't mean that he isn't disabled. And it is this lack of education and knowledge that makes our journeys with Haydn so heartbreaking. I’d be so happy if, for a change, someone asked if he had autism or additional needs, but that's never going to happen, is it?

We love our son and will continue to use public transport because we will not be forced to keep him at home, contained like some animal, when all he is doing is trying to get through dayto-day life, the same as everybody else.

It's the public’s attitude that needs to change, not Haydn.

What’s your point of view?

Email: editor@senmagazine.co.uk

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SEN LAW

Education, health and care plans Douglas Silas concludes his series of articles on EHC plans by looking at forms of redress available to parents What can I do if the provision in an EHC plan is not sufficient?

There are a number of ways you can approach this question as it all depends upon the circumstances. For example, I am assuming that there is a finalised education, health and care (EHC) plan for a child/young person that is in a final form, but that does not reflect the level of SEN (in Section B) or special educational provision (SEP) (in Section F) that is needed.

Alternatively, it may name a school/ college or other placement (in Section I) that is considered inappropriate to meet those needs, or which cannot deliver the provision required.

The most straightforward answer is that it is possible to appeal against the contents of these sections of an EHC plan to an independent body called the Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal. This must be done within two months of the date of the decision letter, which should have been sent with the EHC plan (which could be different to the date on the decision letter). However, if the young person is over 16 years old, provided they are considered to have “mental capacity”, they need to bring the appeal themselves. Otherwise, an appeal concerning a child under 16 years old, or for a young person without mental capacity, usually has to be brought by their parent/s.

However, before any appeal can be lodged, a certificate of mediation must be obtained, which then extends the two-month appeal window by a month (counted from the date of the certificate, even if that date is later than the twomonths, provided that the mediation SENISSUE95

Parents have a range of legal options if they are unhappy with their child’s EHC plan.

service referred to on the decision letter has been contacted within the two-months itself), or whichever is the later. In addition, where the two-month or extra time deadline falls within August (the academic summer holidays), the deadline is extended until the first working day of September. In addition, there are alternative ways that should be considered too.

Other ways to challenge EHC plans The Children and Families Act 2014 and the SEN Code of Practice (CoP) talk about other ways to challenge EHC plans which are considered insufficient.

In fact, the CoP dedicates a whole chapter to “Resolving disagreements”.

The first set of principles it points out is that local authorities (LAs) “...must make known to parents and young people the possibility of resolving disagreements across education, health and social care through disagreement

Before any appeal can be lodged, a certificate of mediation must be obtained

resolution and mediation procedures…”

It also states that: “education, health and social care providers should have complaints procedures which, along with details about appealing to the Tribunal, should be made known to parents and young people through the LA’s information, advice and support service.” There is also a helpful table (at paragraph 11.2) which gives a summary of the people and bodies which can consider complaints about decisions and provision, in relation to children/ young people with education, health and care needs.

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There are a number of bodies that a parent or young person with SEN can complain to

What about mediation?

The CoP states that: “Any mediation provision by a mediation advisor (providing information) or mediator (conducting mediation) must be independent of LAs in England and/or relevant health commissioners (so noone who is directly employed by an LA in England can be a mediation advisor/ no-one who is directly employed by an LA in England/relevant health commissioner can act as a mediator).”

People often get a bit confused by the issue of mediation, the most common mistake being to think that the requirement to seek a mediation certificate before appealing is actually a requirement to mediate before being allowed to appeal. This is not correct as, provided an appeal is not only against the naming of a school (as opposed to also against the SEN/SEP), the actual requirement is only to show that you have considered the possibility of and benefits of mediation.

The CoP also says that the LA must ensure that any mediation session takes place within 30 days of the mediation advisor informing the LA that the parent/ young person wants to go to mediation and the LA must attend the mediation and also take part. If the LA is unable to arrange mediation in a case which involves a disagreement on a matter which can be appealed to the Tribunal within 30 days, it must tell the mediator and the mediation advisor must then issue a certificate within three days. It also adds that: “A mediation session/ sessions which arises out of these arrangements must be conducted by independent mediators. Once mediation is completed about a matter which can be appealed to the Tribunal, WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

the mediation advisor must issue a certificate to the parent or young person within three working days confirming that it has concluded and if the parent or young person still wants to appeal to the Tribunal following mediation they must send the certificate to the Tribunal when they register their appeal.”

Can you appeal about health and care needs/provision in an EHC plan?

Although the SEND Tribunal’s main jurisdiction has for many years been focused only on the educational provision in a statement of SEN and now an EHC plan, for LA decisions issued after 3 April 2018, there has been introduced a national trial, which gives the SEND Tribunal additional powers to allow them to make recommendations relating to health and social care, as well as educational decisions. There has already been a pilot for a few LAs (and associated clinical commissioning groups/health authorities) before this and the Tribunal has said that, based on this, the type of issues that they now expect are: Health: • need for cognitive behavioural therapy • identification/evidence from child and adolescent mental health services • provision of continence aids.

Social care: • lack of social care evidence (for example, no care assessment or the response from social care being “not known to this service”) • lack of specification in social care evidence regarding identified need or specification of support • need for residential case based on social care evidence.

Apparently, the initial learning from the previous recommendations pilot also found that there was more positive working between SEN and social care teams within LAs (which allowed

for a more holistic view of the child/ young person). I believe that health issues raised were not significant or clinical issues, but had been particularly relevant for post school/FE/residential school placements, where there seemed to be no educational need.

What if the SEP is not being delivered?

There are a number of bodies that a parent or young person with SEN can complain to, such as the education provider itself, the LA, the Secretary of State for Education, the Local Government Ombudsman (now known as the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman), or Parliamentary Health Ombudsman, depending on what the provision is that is not being made and by whom. Also, often seen as a remedy of last resort, it is sometimes possible to take court action known as “judicial review”, but this usually requires the child or young person to be eligible for and granted legal aid.

Further information

Specialist SEN solicitor Douglas Silas is the Principal of Douglas Silas Solicitors and runs the website: www.

SpecialEducationalNeeds.co.uk.

He is also the author of A Guide To The SEND Code of Practice (updated for 2017/18), which is available for all eBook readers: www.AGuideToTheSENDCode OfPractice.co.uk The advice provided here is of a general nature and Douglas Silas Solicitors cannot be held responsible for any loss caused by reliance placed upon it.

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What’s going on with SEN law?

Broken deadlines and spiralling complaints are not what the SEN reforms were meant to deliver, write Ed Duff and Laura Carr

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t is nearly four years since the Children and Families Act took over from the Education Act 1996.

During that time, the Department for Education (DfE) and numerous other agencies have suggested that the reforms, dubbed the most significant in a generation, require time to bed in.

It is worth recalling that the whole point of the SEN reforms within the Children and Families Act was to replace the system of statements of SEN which had been seen to be “combative”. The Lamb Inquiry into SEN provision at the time was concerned that the statement system required families to pit themselves “against” local authorities.

After four years, we had hoped that the reforms would have taken effect

and the new system would be up and running.

Trying times for SEND Tribunal One major issue that suggests that the reforms have not had the desired effect is that the Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal is experiencing its highest volume of appeals to date.

The latest figures show that between 1 September 2016 and 31 August 2017, 4,725 appeals were lodged. This is a large increase of 1,013 appeals from the previous year – around a 30 per cent increase in appeals in just one year.

I am noticing, to a far greater extent than ever before, how overwhelmed the Tribunal has become. Practically, it is becoming increasingly difficult to

The Tribunal has issued guidance on appealing the content of a statement of SEN that should not, in theory, exist pick up the telephone and speak with a clerk. In previous years, this was entirely possible. Now it is a rarity. This is no criticism of the Tribunal, it simply reflects the demand it is under.

Further, Tribunal orders following any requests to change timetable, or other directions, are taking longer to reach the parties and Tribunal timescales

Many schools and authorities are struggling to meet their obligations detailed in EHC plans.

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are being shortened, with the local authority response and evidence deadline sometimes scheduled to take place on the same day.

The Tribunal is struggling to find venues for the high levels of hearings which are required. Recently we have experienced Tribunals changing venues on the day before the hearing and even Tribunal hearings being cancelled due to the unavailability of a judge or the lack of a venue.

Data and first hand reports of the impact of the Children and Families Act 2014 reforms are mostly negative

Leaving statements behind

or no, updating professional advice or input. This is obviously unlawful and results in vague and almost unenforceable documents. It may be, at least partly, these poorly prepared documents that are forcing up the rate of appeals to SENDIST.

Beyond Tribunal appeals, another common issue at the moment is the delay in converting from a statement to an education, health and care (EHC) plan. It is worth again remembering that the original expectation was that all statements should be either ceased, or converted to EHC plans, by 31 March 2018. This has not happened.

Data released on 24 May 2018 confirms that between January 2017 and January 2018, there were 71,320 children and young people transferred from statements to EHC plans. This is equivalent to 63.6 per cent of the children and young people with statements that were in place as at January 2017. This means that 36.4 per cent of statements were left between January and 1 April 2018. This is quite obviously a massive short-fall.

This has meant that both the Tribunal and the DfE have had to revise the statutory documentation.

At short notice, the Tribunal has issued guidance on appealing the content of a statement of SEN that should not, in theory, exist. Further, the ability to “enforce” statements has been reimagined, meaning that the special educational provision in a statement of SEN is now to be treated “as if” it were in an EHC plan. Notably, there is no clear enforceability in respect of the placement named in a statement of SEN. There has also been a rush to complete the transfer from statements to EHC plans. Often, schools are asked to draft the EHC plan with very little, WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

Ofsted’s criticisms Recent Ofsted inspections of certain local authorities do provide some suggestions as to why so many appeals are being lodged with SENDIST. One local authority Ofsted report published in May 2018 concluded: “Currently, children and young people who have SEN and/or disabilities are not provided with the quality of support and service to which they are legally entitled.

“Too few education, health and care (EHC) plans have been issued within the statutory timeframes.

“The quality of EHC plans is poor.

Health and social care professionals are not actively involved in the assessment process and subsequent planning of support to meet children’s and young people’s needs. As a result, the child’s or young person’s health and social care needs are not being identified sufficiently well or met effectively”.

The impact of these findings can be found everyday right across the country. The parental view, as described by Ofsted in relation to one local authority, continues to be that: “Parents and carers are overwhelmingly negative about their experiences and involvement with the local area. Many feel that they are not

listened to by officers and frequently told inspectors that they had to ‘fight’ to get the right support for their child.

“The local offer is not fit for purpose. The overwhelming majority of parents, children and young people who have SEN and/or disabilities, and professionals were either not aware of the local offer or had little success when they tried to use it”.

Sadly, the data and first hand reports of the impact of the Children and Families Act 2014 reforms are mostly negative.

Signs of hope Whilst all of the above suggests significant difficulties, I remain optimistic. The DfE continues to invest in SEN support nationally. The Tribunal has started a national trial enabling parents to secure recommendations about the social care and health sections of an EHC plan, as well as orders requiring changes to the education sections. Further, whilst the system may not be perfect, parents, young people and families are clearly far more educated and informed about their rights. That may not be directly linked to the reforms, but it seems likely that news of the change of the system has prompted information sharing and education. That must, at least, be a positive.

Further information

Ed Duff is Senior Associate Solicitor, and Laura Carr a solicitor, in the Education Law Department at HCB Solicitors: www.hcbgroup.com

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HEALTHY EATING

Healthy eating for children Barbara Crowther looks at what needs to be done to ensure pupils eat healthily throughout the school day

“The obesity crisis is such a huge problem, it’s hard to know where to begin. But there’s one group that seems to be most at risk. Our kids. One-third of our children aged two to 15 are already overweight or obese. And things are getting worse.”

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hese were the opening lines of chef, writer and broadcaster Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall during the recent BBC threepart documentary “Britain’s Fat Fight”.

He’s right. According to the National Childhood Measurement Programme, 34.2 per cent of children aged ten to 11 are overweight or obese, as are around one in four of children aged four to five.

For children from more disadvantaged backgrounds the risk is doubled.

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17 per cent of children’s vegetable intake comes from just two sources: pizza and baked beans tooth extraction, to which excessive consumption of sugar, mixed with poor dental hygiene, is a major contributor.

Around 95 per cent of 11- to 16-yearolds are not eating enough vegetables, and 17 per cent of children’s vegetable intake comes from just two sources: pizza and baked beans.

What’s the problem?

With increasing expectations s u r ro u n d i n g the imminent announcement of “Chapter Two” of

the Government's Childhood Obesity Plan, it’s a good time to focus on some of the issues getting in the way of a healthy food environment for our kids.

How many of us know, without searching online, the level of sugar, salt or fat that it’s healthy for the average child to consume on a daily basis (recognising that some children may need additional calories or fat, if they have specific health conditions)? When we look at nutritional information on products, or the calories associated with food, are we really clear what are the healthy limits for kids?

The revised Government School Food Standards, introduced in 2015 under the auspices of the School Food Plan (www.schoolfoodplan.com), made a reasonable stab at laying out an approach to encouraging healthy eating habits in school. They set out the WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

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food and drink categories – from fruit and vegetables, to starchy foods, milk and dairy, meat, fish, eggs and other proteins like beans – and limits on the number of foods high in fat, sugar or salt (HFSS) to be served during school lunches. In some schools, there is no doubt that a healthier, more nutritious and varied food menu has emerged.

Children requiring specific diets are better catered for, including those with food intolerances, allergies and dietary preferences such as vegan and vegetarian. However, when the Children’s Food Campaign surveyed parents at the end of 2017, a very mixed and unreliable picture of school food across the UK emerged.

What do parents think?

“The school meals do not have enough portions of vegetables and no whole grains and therefore I feel are very poor value for money. I also would rather they did not buy a lunch as then they can choose and would be tempted by puddings, cakes and cookies as well as sugary drinks,” said one parent of two primary school age children who

had given up on school meals in favour of packed lunches.

“Schools teach about healthy eating but practice does not reflect the teaching. In my child’s primary school sweets and chocolate are often used as rewards, which I think should be banned.

Most children give out sweets on their birthdays. School regularly sells sweets and cakes as a way of fundraising for the school. There is a privately run breakfast club on the school site which serves sugary cereals...”, said another frustrated parent.

If the parents in the survey are in any way indicative, it appears adherence to School Food Standards is patchy at best. Whilst in some schools the main school lunches are acceptable, parents report that they still preferred packed lunches because their children were “picky eaters”, or the vegetarian/vegan offering was not good enough, or they don’t feel confident about how well the school catered for specific intolerances.

Where schools publish menu options up front, and allow parents to choose meals with their child, parents are much more inclined to buy into the

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Making schools healthy eating zones is an idea that extends much further than core school meals

system. However, a surprising number of parents report that a wider junk food culture in the school is undermining both the meals and any teaching or educational programmes about healthy eating. Adherence to the Standards is not being monitored closely enough, and Ofsted has taken some time to catch up with its role on monitoring school compliance with actions to tackle childhood obesity.

Clearly, for any parent of children with allergies, specific dietary needs or medical conditions, a poor food culture in school is a matter for concern.

School Food Standards are currently only mandatory for state-maintained schools; academies and free schools established between 2010 and 2014 are exempt, an estimated 4,000 schools at the time the Standards were introduced.

Whilst many have signed up to follow the standards voluntarily, the situation is basically a lottery for parents sending their children to school.

Junk food in and around school Making schools healthy eating zones is an idea that extends much further than core school meals; breakfast and after school clubs, tuck shops and vending, extending cookery and food education, food growing areas, and school fundraising initiatives all need to contribute to an overall healthy eating culture. The environs of schools also come into focus, with increasing >> WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

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prevalence of fast food hot takeaways near schools, many of them offering socalled “uniform meal deals” targeting kids with cheap meal deals at lunchtime and at the end of the day. In the recent consultation on a new London Plan, Mayor Sadiq Khan proposed planning restrictions on new hot food takeaways within 400m of schools, encouraging boroughs to review existing concentrations of outlets, and working with owners to improve the meals on offer. Secondary school stayon-site policies, the norm in primaries, could also be a solution, but only if the school catering and vending operations and mealtimes reflect a healthy eating culture, including packed lunch policies.

Opinion is split on whether the latter should be voluntary or mandatory, and no-one likes the “packed lunch police”.

Cultural pressure Outside school, kids are relentlessly bombarded by junk food companies, from the confectionery chicanes in some newsagents, to games and apps linked to unhealthy food options. Only 1.2 per cent of all money spent on food advertising is for vegetables. When the Obesity Health Alliance studied TV advertising during popular family TV shows watched by millions of children, 59 per cent of the ads were for HFSS products and the companies selling

them (A Watershed Moment, Obesity Health Alliance, 2017). A recent Cancer Research UK study (10 Years On, 2018) showed that teenagers who were more exposed to commercial TV and able to recall junk food advertising were also more likely to drink more sugary drinks, eat more confectionery and snacks, and were potentially at risk of consuming up to an additional 50,000 calories per year.

Meanwhile, on shop shelves, film and TV characters from some of the most popular films and programmes of recent times are constantly associated with junk food rather than healthy food, with associated toys and competitions to win extra branded treats. It’s no wonder that junk food has become overwhelmingly associated in all our minds with treats and special celebrations.

Improving diets So what can we do in our schools to ensure the most vulnerable children are protected and nurtured in a healthy food environment? Let’s make sure our schools don’t just adhere to the School Food Standards to the letter, but go beyond them and aim for a whole-school food policy covering the full school day, events and stay-onsite policies. Crucially, parents need to be enrolled into co-creating and implementing a vision of the school as a healthy food zone. Rolling out cookery

Junk food has become overwhelmingly associated in all our minds with treats and special celebrations lessons, healthy eating education and food growing clubs can play a big role in helping to reconnect children with food that is good for them.

There’s a clear argument for School Food Standards to be even more robust, and to close the loopholes that still allow very sugary puddings to be on the menu twice a week. These improved Standards would also need to be enforced universally within the state funded system, including academies and free schools.

Many educational organisations have backed a 9pm watershed on junk food advertising, and the use of children’s film and TV characters in the marketing of unhealthy foods is starting to come under the spotlight.

The Government could build on the voluntary commitments by 50 per cent of retailers to removing junk food from checkouts (keeping sweets and snacks in their own aisles) and regulate to create a level playing field.

With childhood obesity rising, there is both a challenge and an opportunity to transform our schools into nutritious food zones, putting good food at the centre of ensuring our kids have a healthy environment in which to learn.

Further information

Barbara Crowther is the Coordinator of the Children’s Food Campaign, which campaigns to promote children's rights, parent power and government action in relation to healthy eating for children: http://childrensfood.org.uk

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DYSLEXIA

A culture of success for dyslexics Schools must create an ethos which enables learners with dyslexia to achieve, writes Jules Daulby

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any learners with dyslexia are quite aware of their strengths and the needs they have to meet to ensure success. Ownership of their learning is particularly evident when specialist teachers have been involved; this is because part of the role is to ensure a child knows why they may not be reading and writing like their peers and what strategies can be used effectively. There is also value in teaching metacognition. How do I learn? What helps me make it stick?

How can I help myself? Such selfawareness will help all children but it can be even more valuable if a child has a specific learning difficulty (SpLD) such as dyslexia.

Issues which make academic life harder include having a poor verbal memory, meaning they may only remember the last thing you say, and slow processing of information which can make it feel like the lesson is on fast forward, leaving students struggling to keep up. These same learners are then often taken out of class for interventions, making it even harder for them to catch up on subject knowledge. It's no wonder many children with literacy difficulties become frustrated and marginalised in a system which rewards things they can't do and doesn’t enable them to show what they can do.

Teaching children to read and write is important, yet if school segregates students with literacy difficulties too often, this will disempower them.

Boosters are fine if used sparingly and rigorously, but leaving students languishing in eternal interventions

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Children should be helped to understand how best they learn as individuals.

with no plan for how a pupil can independently access a curriculum in mainstream lessons is problematic.

The student will feel less and less part of the school community and lose any belief they had in their abilities, focusing instead on their lack of literacy skills, believing they are “lazy” and/or “stupid”. Other schools may not use any interventions, but neither will they provide technology or readers and scribes to allow someone who can't read and write to achieve in class.

Ultimately, a student can be left in literacy-based lessons with no barriers removed and set up to fail.

Whole-school approach When things go wrong for a child with literacy difficulties, it is likely to be due to a lack of whole school systems in place to support them. If a learner cannot access text and struggles to record their knowledge in a way which is commensurate with their understanding, they require reasonable

A culture in which students have ownership of their learning is key

adjustments in the classroom to remove this barrier and allow success in another way.

Students I have taught and assessed with dyslexia often name individual teachers who “believed in them”, ones who asked what they could do to help and others who made them feel valued in the classroom rather than a hindrance to their performance data. Many pupils I speak to describe teachers as either liking or disliking them, though usually this is not the case, it’s just how they are made to feel; perception is an interesting concept in education but whether it is in tune with reality or not, if a student feels like no-one cares, it can make or

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break their academic development.

Individual teachers can therefore make a difference to a child but without a whole school ethos which is designed to enable children with dyslexia to succeed, many will fall through the net and, at worst, end up in a local pupil referral unit, despite not needing to be there. Students with SEN and disabilities are seven times more likely to be excluded from school and the majority of them will have literacy difficulties; it’s a serious problem in England and one which, where leadership embraces adjustments and inclusive strategies, can be improved dramatically.

A culture in which students have ownership of their learning is key.

When a teacher asks, “How can I help you learn?”, a confident answer with knowledge of their difficulties and strengths should be expected. The solution may involve extra time, a laptop, being able to take a photograph of homework on the board, small changes to enable access to the curriculum and an ability to record their knowledge.

Reasonable adjustments for students with dyslexia should be ubiquitous in the school and celebrated when a child can ask for them independently.

Top tips for creating confident dyslexic learners: • ensure students have ownership of their difficulties and strengths and are able to communicate them to others; the school also has to listen and act • teachers should constantly explore with the student their knowledge of what helps them learn • metacognitive strategies, including those linked to dyslexia, can empower a student to know how to learn independently; regular staff training on literacy difficulties and dyslexia is essential • make learning relevant to help students make links and transfer knowledge; teachers generally know how well this can help WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

•

•

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children with SEN and finding “ways in” to subjects should be part of the planning process repetition is important; there’s often a belief that children with dyslexia and other SEN need lessons jam-packed with excitement; though relevance and interest are great learning motivators, what is often required is repetition to build knowledge and confidence over learning until something becomes automatic can be very useful modelling is crucial; teachers should ask what they are working towards and they should model answers in class and give accessible examples of work for students with dyslexia to access develop a student’s motivation by helping them to build on small but regular successes challenging tasks should be presented “little and often” multi-sensory techniques can be very engaging; see it, hear it, speak it and write it building a narrative around the subject aids memory technology can remove many literacy barriers; top tech aids include text to speech, dictation, word prediction, electronic graphic organisers and contextual spelling/grammar checkers.

Develop a student’s motivation by helping them to build on small but regular successes communicated to teachers, so they can employ similar strategies at school.

Enabling children with dyslexia to learn despite them having a non typical approach to literacy does not mean having low expectations; in fact, it’s quite the opposite. These students spend most of the time in mainstream classes and until (or if) their reading and writing abilities are comparable with their peers, adjustments must be put in place. The key thing reported to me by children who struggle with literacy, though, is how they are made to feel.

Perhaps the single most important question from a school and its teachers for these learners is “How can we help you to learn?” Listening and acting on their advice communicates to the learner that they’re valued and that their success in education is important.

Working with parents An essential part of a school culture which supports a learner with dyslexia to succeed is partnership with parents.

It is likely that a literacy difficulty is genetic and therefore other members of the family may have similar issues with learning. Involving parents in what helps the child is vital; they may see how their son or daughter copes with homework, using technology, for example, or finding other ways which help them. These methods might be transferable into the classroom or

Further information

Jules Daulby is Director of Education for The Driver Youth Trust, a charity campaigning for better outcomes for those with SEN and literacy difficulties: www.driveryouthtrust.com

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Young readers top 100 million minutes in UK reading challenge Children and young people across the UK read for more than 100 million minutes as part of a month-long reading competition, which saw international businessman and supermodel David Gandy, actor Lennie James and a host of authors and sports teams help to inspire children to read more regularly and understand the possibilities it unlocks.

The 100 Million Minutes Reading Challenge, organised by Achievement for All and bookseller Book People, engaged more than 200,000 children with reading while they collectively read for 100,019,560 minutes in schools, early years settings, homes, libraries and community groups throughout the month of March.

Pupils at Rosh Pinah Primary came out on top after reading a remarkable nine million minutes during the course of the month, placing them ahead of any other participating school.

For more information about the Challenge, visit: www.100millionminutes.org SENISSUE95

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Improving AAC provision The I-ASC research team outline an ongoing study into providing appropriate communication aids for children who are non speaking Janice Murray¹, Yvonne Lynch¹, Liz Moulam¹, Stuart Meredith¹, Juliet Goldbart¹, Simon Judge², Nicola Randall², David Meads³, Edward Webb³, Stephane Hess³ and Helen Whittle¹. ¹Manchester Metropolitan University, ²Barnsley Assistive Technology Service – Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, ³University of Leeds.

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he Identifying Appropriate Symbol Communication (I-ASC) research project is a three-year study funded by the NIHR*. Children who are non speaking or have reduced speech intelligibility may benefit from using an augmentative or alternative communication system (AAC).

AAC aids may take the form of a communication book with picturesymbols, or a high tech device with picture-symbols and voice output. Little is known about the process of learning to use a communication aid at the same time as learning the spoken language in the environment and acquiring skills and knowledge through the educational curriculum. Furthermore, there seems to be a high level of abandonment of communication aids (between 30 to 50 per cent) recommended for use. The consequences of abandonment may have negative impact on a child’s communication and educational attainment. In addition, the financial consequences cannot be underestimated, both in provision of

expensive equipment and the longer term. The I-ASC research project set out to better understand the influencers on communication aid recommendation, with a view to enhancing the assessment and recommendation process and consequently reducing the abandonment of communication aid technology. The potential longterm objective of I-ASC is to enable children who are non speaking to fulfil their communication, educational and employment potential.

How was the research conducted?

The research was a large scale project involving participants from across the UK. We adopted a mixed method design which included a review of available literature on communication aid design, the characteristics of children who benefit from AAC and a description of the team around the child who might be involved in aid recommendation. Specialist practitioners, including education and health service staff, as well as

The input of children and families is key in understanding communication aid use.

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There seems to be a high level of abandonment of communication aids family members and children who use AAC, were interviewed for their views on the process of assessment and recommendation of communication aids. Finally, we delivered two surveys to practitioners to look at choices made when forced to choose from a specified range of device or child characteristics.

Together, these sources of information are being collated and synthesised to inform the structure and content of a decision making guidance tool with bespoke resources for practitioners, families and children to use in supporting future AAC decision making. This final element is currently in production and we are seeking all interested parties to evaluate the resource over the next few months.

We are keen to include all stakeholders in this aspect of the research. So far we have been able to include the voices and opinions of speech and language therapists, occupational therapists, teachers, therapy and teaching assistants, psychologists, clinical scientists, physiotherapists and most importantly family members and children and young adults who use AAC.

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AAC

Preview of findings There are many results and findings from the I-ASC research project, and some are still being evaluated and synthesised; however, there are a few findings that we can share already.

Assessment models, structures and processes vary widely

General finding More UK studies are needed and need to be published. In the literature reviewed it was clear that most studies were North American and there may be cultural factors that mean these findings may not fully apply to children and adults growing up in the UK.

Language and communication To reach their potential, children need to be given both language and communication instruction. For example, intervention may need to include language targets such as comprehension and use of grammatical markers in structured tasks alongside communication skill work where the focus may be on producing clear messages as quickly as possible (and therefore grammatical markers may be omitted for communication efficiency purposes, for instance, “He pulled the cushion off the chair" compared to “cushion off chair").

Communication aids Currently, the literature suggests that there are a small number of language or communication attributes of symbol communication aids that practitioners may carefully review in order to inform decisions. These include vocabulary design and organisation, choice of symbol system and encoding method both for now and for the future, plus the choice of vocabulary selection and access method.

The I-ASC research extends this focus. The child and aid characteristics are reinforced by the survey findings in terms of practitioner device preferences and child characteristics influencing choices. Important insight has been gained, showing that physical traits of children are perceived to be relatively less important in AAC professionals’

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decision making than cognitive, learning and personality traits, and that the interface, content and language features of devices are relatively more important than hardware features.

Contextual influencers The decision making context is very complex as evidenced by the emergence in our findings of multiple cultural and contextual factors that may in the end have greater impact on decisions made than the characteristics of child or aid. These are summarised as contextual influencers; these include ways of working as influenced by available skill and knowledge in team members as well as constraints and opportunities offered across service delivery models. The literature suggests that families and children who need AAC should be central to decision making; whilst our findings suggest that they are often peripheral. This finding reinforces the principles enshrined in the SEN and Disability Code of Practice (CoP) for collaborative working across services.

However, it highlights that families and clients may remain peripheral to such working practices. This may impact on later abandonment. Also, available resources and recognition of transition factors are key, for example new locations and new staff teams, and post recommendation implications include on-going support and knowledge to enable everyone including the child and the team around the child to support communication aid use. Assessment models, structures and processes vary widely. Children who use AAC constitute a diverse group and assessment processes may need to be tailored to individual need, supporting the need for diverse applications of assessment

models. The impact of all of these factors are meshed within the final clinical decision and recommendation process. The development of the I-ASC decision making resource is currently in production. It will offer resources for professionals from health, education and social care. The research team will hold a series of dissemination events in late Autumn 2018 and early 2019 to showcase the decision making resources.

So far, most studies have not examined the outcomes of clinical assessments undertaken through assessment and recommendation review. Looking forward, this suggests that outcome focused research may help identify processes and practices that facilitate appropriate symbol communication aid prescription and inhibit device abandonment.

Further information

This article was produced by The Identifying Appropriate Symbol Communication (I-ASC) research project, with the assistance of Robert McLaren, Manager for the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Assistive Technology (APPGAT).

APPGAT is seeking to ensure Parliament is informed by the new research into augmentative or alternative communication.

The researchers would like to thank the children and young people, their families and associated practitioners who have already contributed to this research.

Anyone wishing to contribute to on-going evaluations of resources should contact the I-ASC research team via their website: www.i-asc.org.uk * This project was funded by the NIHR Health Services and Delivery Program (project 14/70/153). The views expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the NHS, the NIHR or the Department of Health.

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AAC

People’s Award in the AbilityNet Tech4Good Awards Voting is now open for the People’s Award in the AbilityNet Tech4Good Awards 2018. This Award is chosen by the general public and nominations close at 5pm on Monday 9 July.

The Awards are an annual showcase of the people who use digital technology to make the world a better place. Sponsored by BT, they seek to highlight the wealth of charities, businesses and volunteers across the UK who use the power of technology to improve other people’s lives.

This is the eighth year of the Awards, which are organised by national digital inclusion charity AbilityNet, and entry was open to any business, charity, individual or public body in the UK. The finalists in the other Awards categories have been announced.

For information about the finalists and to vote for the People’s Ward, go to: www.tech4goodawards.com/finalists WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

Advertisement feature

Introduction of speaks4me® produces encouraging results Difficulty in being understood can be very frustrating, but help may be at hand following the release of speaks4me®. speaks4me® is a unique “hi-tech” communication aid that was developed by Steve Lodge for his son Callum, who cannot speak and used a physical picture exchange communication system. Steve searched for something that would enable Callum to have easy access to more words and phrases and included voice output. As nothing existed that specifically addressed Callum’s needs, Steve created speaks4me®.

Using a patent-protected “drag and drop” touchscreen access in Windows, speaks4me® is designed to emulate physical picture exchange systems by promoting communication through intentional movement. With access to full symbol sets and photographs, users quickly learn to navigate between the pages, start constructing short sentences, then use voice output to “speak” them.

For more information, call: 0330 555 0220, email: info@speaks4me.com or visit: www.speaks4me.com SENISSUE95

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LITERACY/ PHONICS

Literacy in the early years Ofsted’s Bold Beginnings report on Reception teaching was controversial, but it may ultimately serve to open some eyes and minds, writes Debbie Hepplewhite “The Reception curriculum in a sample of good and outstanding primary schools”, commissioned by her Majesty’s Chief Inspector, “shines a spotlight on the Reception Year and the extent to which a school’s curriculum for four- and five-year-olds prepares them for the rest of their education and beyond” (Ofsted, Bold Beginnings: The Reception curriculum in a sample of good and outstanding primary schools, November 2017).

There are different views of what constitutes good and appropriate early years provision. The experiences and preferred approaches of some people are not entirely in line with the early years sector’s advisors who hold sway and, generally speaking, any alternative perspective may not get as much, or any, positive publicity through early years magazines and conferences.

The dominant philosophy in the early years is noted in the Bold Beginnings report with reference to initial teacher education: “Some headteachers said that early years tutors in initial teacher

education (ITE) promoted only one view of early years practice. They felt this downplayed the importance of reading, writing and mathematics for the under-fives in favour of play-based pedagogy and child-initiated learning.

This prevented effective progression into Year 1.”

I urge everyone to read in full the Bold Beginnings report to form their own opinion about the points raised, but please bear in mind the aspiration “fulfilling children’s potential” as this might have been a better premise for the case for explicit teaching rather than preparedness for the Year 1 curriculum.

Different opinions The publication of the report seemed to stir up a hornet’s nest of competing opinions and activity. Here is a small selection of responses to the report to illustrate some of the contrasting views expressed: “Ofsted’s Bold Beginnings report is ‘flawed’ and should be scrapped” (Helen Ward, TES, January 2018).

Ofsted’s report says that young children need direct teaching in reading.

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Some people expressed horror that preschoolers should sit at tables to write “Ofsted want to introduce more formal teaching practices – this is a potential disaster for children’s learning” (The Conversation, February 2018).

In contrast, however, Tom Bennett, founder of the popular researchED movement, had this to say: “this report is as controversial as custard, and the severity of its backlash indicates how difficult some of its critics find any criticism – however gentle – of the status quo”.

The headteacher-blogger Michael Tidd said: “Where can I sign the open letter that says Early Years people shouldn’t be allowed to let their own wilful misreading of Bold Beginnings stop education being improved for millions of children?”

The report kick-started several early years conferences to discuss the issues raised within it more deeply. Gill Jones of Ofsted is working hard to put the report’s findings into perspective, regardless of whether people liked the form of reporting or not; this includes Gill’s clarification that the schools observed were fairly selected and representative of a range of successful early years settings.

The controversy centres on Ofsted’s key findings with regard to provision for maths, language and literacy, and on some specific criticism regarding

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the “burdensome” requirements of the early years foundation stage profiles (EYFSP). One of the key findings, for example, stated: “In schools visited where writing was of a high standard, the children were able to write simple sentences and more by the end of Reception. They were mastering the spelling of phonically regular words and common exception words.

These schools paid good attention to children’s posture and pencil grip when children were writing. They used pencils and exercise books, while children sat at tables, to support good, controlled letter formation.”

Some people expressed horror that pre-schoolers should sit at tables to write; others denied that Reception teachers have often been instructed by early years advisors to get rid of their desks, while some teachers chipped in to say that they had indeed been instructed to get rid of desks in their early years settings. This example typifies the debate in the early years.

At its heart is the fact that there is a dominant and pedantic pedagogy in the early years sector, and early years practitioners and the teaching profession generally have been persuaded that there is a prevailing acceptable way of providing for all pre-schoolers, regardless of needs, context and curriculum – notions expressed with this kind of terminology: “free-flow indoor-outdoor” provision, “child-initiated” activities, “following the children’s interests”, “play-based learning”, “discovery learning”, and waiting for “developmental readiness”.

Observations described in the Bold Beginnings report, however, indicate that Ofsted wish to inform the readership that not everyone agrees with this type of early years learning as the only appropriate approach: “Leaders and staff knew that most learning could not be self-discovered or left to chance through each child’s choices. Teachers appreciated that most knowledge, skills and processes WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

The phrase “formal teaching” is commonly used in a derogatory sense, but is this fair?

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– for at least phonics, reading and writing – are much more effective when provided through truly fit-for-purpose, direct and content-rich activities (of the kind considered inappropriate by many) rather than through play.

Common features of early years provision needed to be taught directly, especially processes such as learning to read or write or understanding and using numbers.”

Negative connotations of “formal” provision Many in the teaching profession have the deeply held belief that young children must learn through play and be entertained by the teaching and learning process, and that the children are turned off by anything that resembles “formal” teaching and learning.

I am going to suggest, however, that in many cases this could not be further from the truth. I have to work hard to demonstrate the kind of teaching and learning activities that surprise teachers – activities with which children deeply engage, enjoy and experience great, tangible success. I am constantly having to open providers’ eyes and minds about what can be “appropriate” or “fit for purpose” for children’s growth (according to the subject and learning intention) and what young children will enjoy that challenges many current beliefs.

The phrase “formal teaching” is commonly used in a derogatory sense, but is this fair? And is it an accurate interpretation of systematic and explicit teaching and learning in modern times?

A very significant point about the “gap” between advantaged and disadvantaged children is that the latter may not have much spoken language, interests, knowledge or skills to bring to the setting. Explicit and systematic teaching and learning activities particularly in foundational literacy

The Bold Beginnings report does note the importance of play, and the importance of language experiences and reading stories to children. Does anyone at all argue with children playing and book-sharing, and having handson experience, or with children making choices and having plenty of access to outdoor activities for some of the time?

Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector Amanda Spielman was interviewed by the parliamentary Education Committee about the Bold Beginnings report (7 March 2018). She emphasised the point that disadvantaged children need to be taught very explicitly and well to transcend their disadvantage. James Frith, committee member, commented that, as a parent, he had actually been very pleased to read the report and welcomed its key findings.

Food for thought The Bold Beginnings report raises many important issues and suggests possible changes to some provision and assessment in the early years. The following are, I believe, important topics that should be openly discussed in all early years settings: • the frequently emotive usage and implications of the word “formal” and what this means to staff in the setting; consider whether the criticism of socalled “formal” teaching and learning in the early years (and beyond) warrants the current negativity • the possible reasons why some children are more language-rich, >> SENISSUE95

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with a wider range of interests and skills, than others; how can early years settings most effectively provide for some children, matching the level of input of language, literature, experience-rich homes or for some children, making up for the lack of rich input at home? How best can this be achieved?

• the main areas identified for pre-school education, focusing on what could be the most fit-for-purpose and content-rich provision for each specific area; consider the nature of the areas/ subjects themselves and what provision would be most fit-forpurpose • the concept of “developmental readiness”; what are the most likely experiences and practices to increase children’s capabilities, including in the contexts of large numbers of children to provide for; for example, if children have few interests and impoverished experiences, is “following the children’s interests” and “waiting for them to develop” necessarily the best way forwards to address all the areas of learning and the children’s individuality?

Is it possible that, inadvertently, with the current prevailing ethos in the early years that this may well lead to low expectations and putting a ceiling on at least some children’s learning (that is, waiting for every individual’s apparent “readiness” and what comes “naturally” to each child)?

• whether children from different socio-economic backgrounds, attending both smaller and larger settings, may warrant adjustments of mind-set, planning and provision under the circumstances; what are the factors that could be considered relevant in a range of different contexts? Whilst much emphasis has been SENISSUE95

If given a blank slate, what would staff consider really needs assessing for national purposes?

“… the majority of teachers did not agree that observational assessment was the most reliable form of assessment as stated in the EYFSP handbook. They felt that statements such as the one above lessened the importance of assessment as part of teaching.”

Comparing types of provision placed on the “unique child”, with planning, preparation and organisation in mind, is it always necessary to plan and provide for the individual? Can we care for and treat children as unique individuals on the one hand, but provide for them in simpler ways as children in collective scenarios • with regard to assessment, if given a blank slate, what would staff consider really needs assessing for national purposes?

How would this differ for local and parental purposes? With each area of learning in mind, what would be the best method, materials and opportunities to assess the children – and how would this best be recorded bearing in mind the numbers of children that staff are accountable to provide for?

With regard to assessment and the early years foundation stage profile, the Ofsted report flagged up the guidance in the EYFSP handbook which promotes “observational assessment”, followed by descriptions of teachers preferring different forms of assessment: “Although the EYFSP handbook says: ‘Observational assessment is the most reliable way of building up an accurate picture of children’s development and learning. This is especially true where the attainment demonstrated is not dependent on overt adult support. Practitioners need to observe learning which children have initiated rather than only focusing on what children do when prompted’ (EYFSP 2017 handbook).

What does the body of international research show in the field of reading instruction about how best to achieve the highest levels of literacy across the ability range and regardless of the socio-economic circumstances?

In the next issue of SEN Magazine, I will address how early years providers and infant teachers can reflect on their phonics and foundational literacy to evaluate and compare possible variations of provision – and what implications this raises for changes in practice, keeping in mind the more explicit teaching and learning alluded to in the Bold Beginnings report.

Whilst this article aims to encourage professional reflection, the next one will seek to be highly practical and specific, to support evaluation of the nuts and bolts of provision.

Further information

Debbie Hepplewhite MBE campaigned over many years for national, evidence-based, systematic synthetic phonics teaching in primary schools. As a representative of the UK Reading Reform Foundation, she advised the Government for the parliamentary inquiry Teaching Children to Read (March 2005) and she helped to inform Sir Jim Rose’s’ independent review of the teaching of early reading (2006). Debbie is the author of the Phonics International programme: www.syntheticphonics.com

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BULLYING

Bullying: rethinking policy and practice Schools need a bespoke approach to combating bullying involving pupils with SEN, writes Simon Pearse

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tanding outside the school gates of any school you are likely to hear the term “bullying” being bandied about by parents. Often the conversations centre on just how poorly those involved think the school has dealt with a particular issue that they believe constituted bullying. Whilst in some instances the parents will have just cause to question the school, there will also be many cases where the school has gone above and beyond in its response. Of course, you will very rarely overhear the latter discussed, as positive news doesn’t generally make for interesting conversation.

The word “bullying” has arguably become the umbrella term for all forms of unpleasant behaviour purposely directed towards a particular individual or group. A one-off incident of unpleasant behaviour which would previously have been dealt with swiftly by the class teacher is often now seen as an incidence of bullying, needing immediate and often wide reaching action. Reporting in both the local and national press of tragic bullyingSENISSUE95

Some of the most serious incidences of bullying, which are often hidden and difficult to spot, are overlooked

the level of support and intervention they are able to give to each individual concern is greatly watered down. This heightens the chance that some of the most serious incidences of bullying, which are often hidden and difficult to spot, are overlooked. Ultimately, this means that some of the most vulnerable students are not getting the support and protection they need.

related incidents where, for example, a young person has taken their own life, has led to both parents and schools becoming hyper vigilant regarding even the smallest indications of bullying-type behaviour. This in turn has led to the term “bullying” becoming overused and arguably normalised as part and parcel of school life. The impact of bullying, however, can be long lasting and in some cases it can cause irreparable psychological damage.

Schools are acutely aware of this, as they are of the impact of a negative public perception of their organisation.

The danger is that due to schools dealing with any number of reported and perceived bullying incidences,

Bullying and SEN Unpicking issues of bullying with students with additional and complex needs can be difficult. Children with certain types of SEN may not recognise that they are being bullied, or they may not be able to retain information relating to specific incidences of when and where they have been targeted in order to report them. For some children, the process of interpreting and understanding social situations can be an on-going challenge. For example, for children with an autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) the social world is littered with ambiguity and confusion and this can lead to them being particularly susceptible to bullying.

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Combatting bullying when it relates to pupils with SEN requires an even more holistic and flexible approach than usual. However, schools still have a duty to teach students with additional needs that bullying is not acceptable.

In many cases, a bespoke approach, specific to the particular incident and the specific needs of all the children involved, will need to be adopted.

The level of understanding and support on offer from schools differs greatly. For instance, in mainstream secondary schools general student understanding of ASD will vary a lot.

In some settings, where little work has been undertaken to raise awareness of the potential idiosyncrasies a student with ASD may present, there is a greater potential for a student with ASD to be targeted. Gone are the days when social skills and other vitally important so called “soft skills” could be developed and practiced within SEAL lessons. The recent decline of PHSE, where issues around relationships and bullying could have been explored on a regular basis, means schools are increasingly less likely to explore issues around bullying, SEN and relationships.

As a result, mainstream students may be less likely to be understanding and supportive of their peers with SEN.

Reporting bullying During my time inspecting and reviewing schools linked to their personal development, behaviour and welfare provision, I generally began by exploring their anti-bullying provision.

I often found that the extent of a school’s anti-bullying provision gave me a good indication as to the quality of the wider pastoral provision. I am continually surprised and saddened that many schools have yet to fully develop their anti-bullying practice. Of course all schools have the statutory anti-bullying policy, but the extent to which schools have developed practice which is bespoke to their setting and overcomes the specific challenges they face is limited. For example the majority of schools, despite modern technology, WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

A carefully constructed social story can support the child to make sense of a particular incident

still rely upon either the child or parent verbally reporting concerns around bullying to the school. This creates numerous issues for students with SEN. For example, for students with speech and language needs or those with high levels of anxiety, the processes of reporting that they feel they are being bullied may be extremely difficult or even impossible.

Schools have a responsibility to be far more creative and, where they can, allow the student the opportunity to raise concerns themselves, and in their own way. More forward thinking schools have set up specific email addresses managed by school staff, alongside text message systems, to provide other platforms for students to report bullying. Anti-bullying post boxes, break/lunch and after school drop in sessions where students can discuss concerns during designated time slots, can also be useful. As well as developing their reporting mechanisms, many forward thinking schools are beginning to harness the power of social stories to support children with ASD to understand social situations from different angles. Long used in SEN settings, a carefully constructed social story can support the child to make sense of a particular incident and work with the staff member to see how a future similar event could be responded to differently.

Rewarding positive behaviour Some schools are also initiating a very progressive approach to combatting bullying by taking a conscious decision to pay more attention to, and actively

focus on, the positive behaviours and interactions shown by students, both in the classroom and around the school site. This approach can help schools to develop more caring environments.

One school scheme, known as “caught doing something good”, allows teachers to award “supportive points” when a student is seen displaying behaviour which is caring and supportive of others. These supportive points are given double weighting when it comes to merging all points within their class/ house competition. Giving supportive points double weighting demonstrates to pupils that character traits such as kindness and supportiveness are not just highly valuable, they are core values of the school.

Unpicking issues of bullying, in both special and mainstream schools, where the person being bullied or the perpetrator has SEN requires additional time, space and expertise. Without these three components there is a danger that, at best, students receive piecemeal support, or at worst, the instances of bullying may be compounded, causing further damage.

Schools should work to create an environment which is not only caring and supportive but also understanding and tolerant of difference. Building on this firm foundation, anti-bullying policy and practice should be bespoke, reflecting the needs and challenges of the particular setting and its pupils.

Further information

Simon Pearse is a qualified teacher who specialises in behaviour and inclusion. Simon has managed a number of pastoral and inclusion teams as well as working as an advisor for a large multi-academy trust. Simon currently works as an educational consultant.

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CHALLENGE IN LEARNING

The challenge of learning Children need the right level of challenge to stimulate brain development, writes Warren Honey

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s a biologist, I have always had a huge fascination for the brain, but I used to feel that its complexity made understanding it an unachievable hope.

I remember being genuinely pleased when a student friend came home from his medicine degree studies and freely admitted, “The brain is something of a mystery to doctors”.

Move forwards 27 years and our understanding of the brain has moved on a great deal. As educationalists, this has become increasingly important as we recognise more ways to harness the brain’s power, its ability to build memories and to develop new skills. In the future, new discoveries will no doubt make us question whether schooling needs to change its methodology to better suit maximal working times and styles of learning, and how we can best secure knowledge in the deep centres of the mind. For parents, this information might challenge us to think about the environment in which we raise our children, and how best to stimulate creativity and imagination, or reasoning and evaluation. We may be some way off “uploading” information into minds, but what seems science fiction today will likely be science fact in not too many tomorrows.

Neuroscientists often refer to the brain as being “plastic”. This highlights its ability to create new neural pathways and hence, is the basis of all learning.

Not too long ago, it was believed that children’s brains were exceedingly plastic, whilst adults had lost all hope: after all, you can’t teach an old dog new tricks. At its child stage, the brain is at its most heightened plastic state, but increasingly evidence is revealing that brain development can SENISSUE95

What seems science fiction today will likely be science fact in not too many tomorrows continue throughout adulthood. We are all learners.

Making connections Connections between nerve cells are called synapses and these are created whenever a person experiences a new phenomenon. Observing a lesson in nursery recently illustrated this perfectly for me, with some children having already formed strong connections for certain phonic sounds, whilst others were in the early stages of making those neural pathways. The adult created a series of fun and varied activities that allowed the children to keep trying these phonics problems in a series of low-stakes tests. No-one felt they were being tested, but an expertly applied level of challenge ensured the pupils were always being stimulated to make more neural connections, and ever-stronger ones. Two days later, I saw one of those children who had been uncertain of his phonic sounds; I pointed at a letter on the wall and was delighted by the immediacy of the hissing snake stood before me!

For some people, the word “challenge” conjures up images of stress. Stress is something that negatively impacts learning, with the release of the hormone cortisol triggering a primitive survival instinct: it is hard to learn if your brain is scanning for the impending attack of a predator or panicking about whether sufficient

food will be found. Thus, we need to tread a careful path as educators. We must provide enough challenge for children to move out of the comfortable state and open up the pathways for new synaptic connections in their brain; if we provide too much challenge or increase anxiety around the process though, we risk the stress freezing them and negating the benefits.

Lev Vygotsky, the Soviet psychologist, referred to the zone of proximal development (ZPD): an adult can give the child something they can achieve with guidance, and they can then develop the skills and strategic approaches that enable them to do this independently. School staff need to be adept at setting tasks within the ZPD of the pupils to stretch them and challenge their learning.

Together, home and school play a huge role in helping children develop to the full. Their progress is best assured by a combination of challenge and support. Making mistakes and “failing” are not problems in themselves, provided the child is reassured that they are nearly there, even if “not yet”. Motivating the child to keep applying themselves and not give up is a key part of this process. Helping children to improve and develop their understanding and abilities is, in turn, one of the most satisfying motivators for educators.

Further information Warren Honey is Headmaster at Hydesville Tower School, an independent school in Walsall: www.hydesville.com

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PSHE

A time and place for sexual activity Catherine Tissot, Sue Piper and Sarah Butcher look at how to support young people with autism through puberty

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ne of the most challenging times for any young person is adolescence and the changes that occur during puberty. When you combine this with the social and communication differences seen in adolescents with autism, this transition becomes even more complex. Add a learning difficulty to this mix and you have a potentially difficult combination. Physical changes and processes occur in line with age, not necessarily the maturity of the individual, which makes adolescence often one of the most problematic times for families (second only to receiving a diagnosis).

Understanding desires There are a couple of key challenges that families and staff teams face.

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Most adolescents demonstrate sexual behaviours and this is not unnatural The first of these is to recognise the autistic adolescent as a maturing individual with the same urges and sensations of other adolescents. It can be very hard for families to see their child as a young adult when they still have a lot of childlike preferences – for example, if their preferred video is Thomas the Tank Engine or Disney films. Families are used to providing quite a bit of guidance and direction to their adolescent and the very private nature of sexualised activity can leave

families at a loss on how to manage this in a socially acceptable manner. Many are quite rightly embarrassed to even discuss it with professionals.

The second key challenge is to recognise that the autistic adolescent is no different in this respect to other adolescents who will have the same urges and desires with one exception – awareness of social norms. Those supporting autistic adolescents should separate these two concepts. There is a basic need for all physically mature individuals to find socially appropriate ways to satisfy bodily sensations.

This understanding can sometimes be clouded by our own personal (sometimes squeamish) feelings towards witnessing this sexualised behaviour when demonstrated in inappropriate places (keeping in WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

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mind at all times responsibilities for appropriate child protection duties).

Most adolescents demonstrate sexual behaviours and this is not unnatural.

For many autistic adolescents this is simply a behaviour in the wrong setting.

Describing it this way can help families work through their emotional reluctance to enable a discussion on how to address their adolescent’s behaviours.

A sensory issue Once the team (staff and family) supporting the autistic adolescent agree to discuss this issue, the next step is to challenge assumptions by trying to focus on this from a sensory perspective. The physical act of seeking satisfaction is not the issue, but one of finding an appropriate time and place and keeping the individual (and others) safe. The team cannot stop the physical need from happening, so the focus is more on planning ahead for the inevitable. Solo sexual activity may be the only outlet an individual with a severe learning impairment will ever experience if they live in sheltered accommodation. The team need to work together to support both staff and families to accept and respect this form of sexual identity.

So, this all sounds great in theory but how does it transfer to practice? Below is a case study which demonstrates the unique challenges of teaching this.

Robin’s story Robin (not his real name) was a 13-yearold young man entering puberty; there were signs that his body was developing, such as the emergence of facial and underarm hair. He had a strong physical urge to touch his genitals and to press and rub against tables, chairs or any firm surface. He had started to do this in his classroom, home and when out in the community.

Due to his autism, Robin did not understand the social rules around public and private spaces and what eventually happened is that staff and family did not want to take him into the community to do any of the activities he WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

normally was quite good at and enjoyed (such as going to the park or going grocery shopping). If someone tried to prevent or redirect Robin, this generally resulted in aggressive behaviour, as he became physically frustrated and didn’t understand when and where he could masturbate and why people were trying to stop him.

So, rather than saying “no”, the team agreed to implemented a programme that everyone could follow to teach Robin where and when could masturbate. As Robin had limited verbal understanding, a “private time” symbol was introduced (see Figure 1 below).

Robin was taught this by showing him the symbol every time he touched his genitals or rubbed against surfaces.

Once he understood the meaning of this symbol, the next step was to teach him where and when it was appropriate to masturbate. The most effective method for Robin to understand this was through a visual timetable. To start with, the team concentrated on the short-term goal of allowing him privacy to masturbate in his bedroom, and he could leave an activity when he needed to. The long-term aim was for Robin to eventually learn to control the urges and understand that there were more appropriate times for this activity, as well as appropriate places for it. The underlying goal throughout this process was to allow Robin to have his own sexual identity, whilst also ensuring that this vulnerable young man was kept safe.

The underlying goal throughout this process was to allow Robin to have his own sexual identity Private time Adolescence is a challenging time for all families. The addition of a severe learning disability and limited social awareness makes this a particularly difficult concept to teach adolescents with autism. The team supporting the young person need to work together to discuss concerns and agree a strategy to help the young person manage their sexual urges in a way that enables them to have a good quality of life as well as a sexual identity.

Further information

Professor Catherine Tissot is Head of the Institute of Education at the University of Reading and a governor at a school for children with an autistic spectrum disorder (ASD): www.reading.ac.uk/education Sue Piper is Director of Education, and Sarah Butcher Director of Care, at Prior’s Court School, a special school for pupils with autism: www.priorscourt.org.uk

Figure 1: visual information used to teach “private time”.

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PSHE Advertisement feature

Why PSHE is crucial to student development

By Sarah Sherwood, Director of SEN at LVS Hassocks and LVS Oxford Personal, social and health education (PSHE) is a key element of the curriculum when working with young people with an autism diagnosis. Through the delivery of PSHE, students can develop the knowledge and skills to support a healthy, safe lifestyle and be prepared to live and work in modern Britain. PSHE sessions can focus on building resilience, self-esteem, teamwork and critical thinking, and can have an impact on outcomes across all areas of education.

Delivering PSHE At LVS Hassocks and LVS Oxford, our therapy and medical professionals work closely with education staff to ensure they support the delivery of PSHE. The school nurse at LVS Hassocks has run sessions for students to practice CPR on a resuscitation dummy, delivered sessions on healthy eating, emergency first aid, and sex and relationships. For some students, talking about sensitive issues as part of a group can cause elevated levels of anxiety, and the staff are knowledgeable about which students may need additional support at these times.

Building social skills The therapists at both schools support the PSHE curriculum by delivering social skills training, working with students on managing their emotional regulation, agreeing calming strategies with students and being available at break and lunch times for students to talk to. At LVS Oxford, the therapists ran a “restaurant group” to help support the development of life skills and promote independence. Students who attended the restaurant group learnt how to order a meal, solve problems, use cutlery appropriately, pay a bill and use social skills that are needed when dining out.

The mental health and wellbeing of students at both LVS Hassocks and LVS Oxford is paramount. Just like the rest of the population, young people with a diagnosis on the autism spectrum may suffer from mental health problems, although this is not an inevitable part of autism. The schools’ aim is to

provide a supportive environment where students with autism and mental health difficulties are able to reach their academic and social potential, which includes working with external agencies such as child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS).

Encouraging self-advocacy Key skill for students to learn through PSHE are self-confidence and the ability to self-advocate. At LVS Hassocks, one student with a passion for Warhammer asked if he could set up a lunchtime Warhammer club, which he wanted to run for other students. He was supported and encouraged to create a business plan for this, present it to senior staff, and recruit members from his peers.

At both schools, older students “buddy" younger students, which the younger students value. The older students are able to support younger students and give examples of strategies that they have successfully adopted to help them through difficult situations. This peer support is extremely successful and often leads to team-working across age groups.

Drop down days focus the mind PSHE is also delivered in the form of “drop down” days. These are days when the timetable is collapsed and the focus is on a key area of the curriculum. At LVS Hassocks, a PSHE drop down day with a focus on health and emotional wellbeing included yoga, relaxation techniques and making dream catchers and wind chimes. Further events included a Citizenship Day with workshops from magistrates, the police and RNLI amongst others to integrate students more into the local community – a key part of helping students build towards independent futures.

For more information, go to: www.lvs-oxford.org.uk or www.lvs-hassocks.org.uk

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EMOTIONAL WELLBEING

Parents need support too Jo Griffin looks at ways to help manage the stress of parenting a child with SEN and disabilities

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ecoming a parent can be a demanding as well as a rewarding experience.

For parents of a disabled child, the additional uncertainty and challenges they face can make them more vulnerable to increased stress and reduced emotional wellbeing.

A child comes with many associated dreams and aspirations in the minds of parents. The reality of having a disabled child may mean that some of those hopes and expectations are not realised, and a period of adaption and even mourning may be necessary.

The emotional journey to a place of acceptance is possible and many parents report positives in relation to bringing up a disabled child, but it is not always an easy road and help may be necessary along the way. Additional pressures, such as fighting for support and limited resources, can exacerbate the feeling of being overwhelmed by a “pile-up of demands”¹.

Through my own experience of having a son with complex needs, and my professional roles with a number of disability charities, I have spoken to many other parents who report the same challenges, stressors and sense

Depression and anxiety can make us more likely to withdraw at a time when we most need our social networks of being alone. Often, what parentcarers need isn’t necessarily an answer (and there may be no easy answer) but an acknowledgement that the situation is difficult, and compassion and understanding from the professionals with whom they come into contact.

Common emotions Over the last two years, I have been surveying parents online about the emotional impact of having a disabled child. I circulated the information via social media, Hemihelp conferences and parent contacts, as well as writing articles in journals. I have received 98 responses so far.

Some findings from the survey’s respondents to date are: • 98 per cent said they had experienced anxiety, stress or

worry in relation to their child's disability or special needs • 70 per cent said they felt anger regarding their child's disability • 73 per cent said they felt down or depressed with regards to their child's special needs • 66 per cent reported feeling guilty about their child's disability.

Some parents reported positive themes, such as those listed below, that correspond with the idea of post traumatic growth, although “it is important to bear in mind that the experience of growth is not the same as the absence of personal distress”²: • 70 per cent reported feeling a fighting spirit on behalf of their disabled child • 75 per cent reported feeling pride when they thought of their child with special needs • 57 per cent reported an inner strength or resilience with regards to their child's disability.

To get to a place of acceptance and growth, however, is more challenging when you are caught up in practical and financial difficulties. It is already well documented that having a disabled child can have a detrimental effect on a parent’s ability and flexibility to work, find appropriate childcare and access leisure activities. There can also be heightened stressors with partners, wider family and social networks.

What helps?

Parents can neglect their own wellbeing when caring for a child with SEN.

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There are some key factors which can have a supportive influence on parents and nurture resilience. Finding other families in a similar situation can provide a shared understanding of their lived experience, which often feels slightly outside the mainstream world. This WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

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might be something that local charities provide, or sometimes schools may be able to organise coffee mornings.

Unfortunately, depression and anxiety can make us more likely to withdraw at a time when we most need our social networks. There are many national charities, with expertise in different diagnoses, which can usually be found by searching online, as well as local charities listed in the local authority’s Local Offer. In my experience, there is still much confusion about the Local Offer and what it entails, so parents may benefit from someone sitting down with them and showing them where to look online and what might be appropriate to their needs.

My survey highlighted how useful many parents find online support, either through social media groups, blogs or forums. As with much of the online world, though, there can be pros and cons. The facility to find information needs to be balanced with the ability to discern what advice is relevant to your child. As parents become more confident and gain greater expertise in their own child’s needs, they can decide what information is applicable to their family. In the early days though, it can be a minefield.

Re-connecting with the things they enjoyed before parenthood is a useful tip for all parents. Making time for ourselves and acknowledging that this is important and valid can sometimes feel difficult without permission from someone else. Some parents reported a renewed connection to their faith or the support they receive via their church, although for some there can be a negative impact on their religious beliefs.

Many parents commented on what a difference it made to their lives when they were treated with compassion and thoughtfulness by the professionals with whom they had been in contact, be they school staff, medical staff or therapists. These caring qualities don’t cost money and they can be easily employed by everyone working in the special needs field. Good WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

Good mental health is supported by the basics, such as eating well, getting enough sleep and taking exercise relationships increase the likelihood that joint strategies are consistently applied across settings and the home, making it clearer to the child what is expected of them.

Looking after yourself Good mental health is supported by the basics, such as eating well, getting enough sleep and taking exercise, as well as access to regular breaks, including planned short breaks³.

Other studies highlight the benefits of various relaxation techniques.

Approaches such as acceptance and commitment therapy – which involves helping individuals accept “undesirable feelings and intense emotions” and building “awareness of their continuous stream of thoughts without judgmental reaction” – and expressive writing can be helpful4.

It can take time to implement selfcare activities though, and that is one thing that is often in short supply for parent-carers. There are also different stages along the way of caring for yourself, dependent on age, behaviour, transitions and other factors. Choosing the right type of support may depend on where the family is in their journey and support should always be tailored to the family’s individual needs. For example, a parent who is sleepdeprived and fighting a local authority may need respite and advice on good sleep hygiene before they can fully access any self-help activities.

If parents are really struggling, they can speak to their GP and may benefit from a carer’s assessment from social services. Schools can either make referrals or assist with referrals to a

whole range of services, such as child and adolescent mental health services (CAHMS), occupational therapy, speech and language therapy, and physiotherapy, as well as specialist advisory teachers. Some schools may also have provision such as learning mentors who can offer support within school to parent-carers as well as children.

Being aware of the additional pressures parent-carers are under can help others to understand where they are coming from. Many parents will be under increased stress when they come to school and seeing things from their perspective can be invaluable. Even a simple acknowledgment that “this must be difficult for you” can go a long way towards heading off potential issues before they become problems.

Footnotes 1. Pakenham, K.I., Sofronoff, K., Samios, C. (2004) Finding meaning in parenting a child with Asperger syndrome: Correlates of sense making and benefit finding. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 25.

2. Calhoun, L. and Tedeschi, R. (2010) Facilitating Posttraumatic Growth: A Clinician’s Guide, Routledge, Oxfordshire.

3. www.cerebra.org.uk/help-andinformation/guides-for-parents/ factsheet-emotional-well/ (accessed 8/6/18).

4. Da Paz, N. S. and Wallander, J. L. (2017) Interventions that target improvements in mental health for parents of children with autism spectrum disorders: A narrative review, Clinical Psychology Review, 51, 1-14.

Further information

Jo Griffin is a Chartered Counselling Psychologist and the Founder of Affinity Hub which provides emotional support to parents of children with special needs. She is currently researching the emotional impact of parenting a disabled child at Metanoia Institute: www.affinityhub.uk

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VISUAL IMPAIRMENT

Seeing the future Mandie Wright discusses how the right support is helping one blind young learner to adapt to changes in his life

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lind and vision impaired (VI) children are routinely offered access to practical school support in the form of specialist teaching staff. But is this enough? In this article, I will argue that adding social and emotional support into the mix can make a big difference to positive educational outcomes for VI children.

Support in school Due to a lack of awareness around the various ways that sight loss affects different people in different ways, visually impaired children’s needs and abilities can often be misinterpreted or overlooked in a school setting. This can lead to children being neglected or left behind both academically and socially – in classrooms, the lunch queue and the playground.

Children and young people like Jay who lose their sight, as well as those who have lived with a vision impairment since birth, can access a range of services to help with their education and development, and ensure they are not left behind.

With most teachers being unlikely to have worked with a child with VI before one arrives in their classroom, support is not always immediately

Jay’s story It was an ordinary Friday night when 14-year-old Jay lost his sight completely. Sitting down to watch TV with his mum, he realised that he couldn’t see the screen at all.

Diagnosed at just four years old with the degenerative condition retinitis pigmentosa (RP), Jay had been gradually losing his eyesight for ten years.

With his confidence hugely affected, he faced a big challenge when it came to coping at school “We knew he was going to lose his sight eventually,” says his mum Heather, “but it happened a lot quicker than anyone was expecting.”

At a time when most kids his age were gaining independence, Jay was adapting to a life without vision. He had to re-learn how to do even the most basic of tasks, and with his confidence hugely affected, he faced a big challenge when it came to coping at school.

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Jay with his mum Heather.

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available within the school. However, every local authority has a statutory obligation to provide support in the form of a QTVI: a Qualified Teacher of the Vision Impaired.

The QTVI is central to the education of children and young people with VI, and they can be involved from the early years foundation stage through to HE and other post-16 settings. Their role is broad and varied, with responsibilities ranging from advising on strategies for curriculum access and independent learning, and teaching specialist skills such as Braille, to assessing learning environments, reviewing access plans and working with specialists on mobility and independence skills.

Children with a vision impairment may also have access to a specialist teaching assistant (TA), who can assist the QTVI in education settings by working directly with the child.

Their role involves understanding how a child’s condition affects their learning and modifying and adapting learning materials accordingly, as well as identifying learning opportunities that complement the child’s abilities and interests.

By ensuring each child with VI is given access to a QTVI and TA, schools can ensure they are doing their best to

Some authorities are able to provide a much higher level of support than others understand the child’s individual needs, and use this knowledge to allow them the same opportunity to take part as their sighted peers.

While some TAs are experienced and knowledgeable about vision impairment and relevant assistive technology, and in some cases, the ability to read Braille, their level of knowledge can vary.

Some TAs are employed directly by schools, while others are employed by the local authority’s visual or sensory impairment service. The support available varies and some authorities are able to provide a much higher level of support than others.

The missing link In Jay’s case, he had been receiving support at school from both a QTVI and a specialist TA throughout the time during which his sight was deteriorating. But when his sight went

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completely, it was much harder to cope, even with the support he had at school.

Both he and his mum found it difficult to come to terms with his sight loss, and they lacked the emotional support they needed during this difficult time. “It was really, really hard,” says Heather.

“I got upset even thinking about it, so I didn’t talk about it, and because Jay didn’t want to upset me, he had no-one to talk to either.”

No child learns in a vacuum and their emotional health, and that of their family, plays a huge role in how well they are able to engage with education.

With both Jay and his mum struggling to adapt to his condition, Jay became withdrawn and increasingly anxious about his school work.

Jay’s QTVI had noticed the change in his behaviour, and his apparent lack of confidence compared to his sighted peers, so she sought assistance from an outside service in the form of RSBC’s Family Support Service. The one-to-one support provided helped both Jay and his family to understand his condition and prognosis, adapt to its challenges, and build the confidence necessary for a happy and fulfilled life.

Jay’s QTVI, Linda Webb, explains why this support is so important: “Even though there is a lot of practical >>

Qualified staff can be crucial in assessing the best learning environments for students.

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A huge part of working with a young person like Jay is confidencebuilding

Technology can help pupils with VI to learn more independently.

support available to a VI child in school, sometimes the child’s mental and emotional health can get left behind.

Especially in a situation where the family is also not in the best place emotionally, this can have a significant negative impact on the child and his ability to keep up with the demands of his education.”

Supporting families I met Jay, along with his existing support staff, at the start of 2018 in an introductory meeting at his school.

Gradually, over the next few weeks, we got to know each other through a series of home visits. These home visits also gave me an opportunity to sit down with Heather, and to listen to the concerns and difficulties she had.

It was the first time that anyone had been able to give her that time, so for her to feel like someone was “on her side” was very important.

This whole-family support can make a big difference to educational outcomes, as the happier and more resilient the parents and rest of the family are, the better chance a child with VI will have to flourish. Parents and educational support staff are at the centre of the solution. If parents, SENISSUE95

TAs and QTVIs are all equipped with the tools to cope with and understand a child’s VI diagnosis, they can ensure sight loss does not get in the way of the child’s future.

Support workers can also be of great assistance to the child with VI, enabling them to discuss issues in confidence that they might otherwise not feel comfortable discussing with the people they interact with on a daily basis. “I think he doesn’t tell me about his problems because he knows that I’ll get upset”, says Heather, “but it’s different with [the support worker]. It’s taken the pressure off both of us now that he’s got someone he can talk to about things.”

Expanding horizons A huge part of working with a young person like Jay is confidence-building; when he has a problem or an issue, rather than fixing it for him, I help him work out solutions for himself. He won’t always have me sitting on his shoulder telling him what to do, so he needs to be able to work out how to overcome his own challenges.

Ultimately, the aim is to get a child and their family to the point where they don’t need a support worker anymore,

by gradually reducing the level of intervention to allow them to become self-reliant.

With the right support, the change in Jay’s outlook and his confidence has been remarkable. He has learned how to use several different kinds of assistive technology, as well as learning to read and write Braille. He’s even writing a Braille book for kids with VI, complete with raised illustrations.

“I miss playing games on my X-box, but I can still use my laptop and my phone,” he says. “I’m not sure what I want to do when I leave school, maybe something with computers.”

It’s easy to think that this early success means that the hard part is over, but of course this is far from the case. Children like Jay will still face hardship and disappointment – after all, despite their vision impairment, they’re still kids or teenagers, and they have all the issues and problems that their peers do too. But as Heather says, there’s no reason why Jay’s horizons need to be any less ambitious than those of his friends. “I’ve always told him that he can do anything anyone else can, and that he doesn’t need to let his sight loss stop him doing things,” she says. “But I think he believes it now.”

Further information

Mandie Wright is a Family Engagement Worker with the Family Support Service at the Royal Society for Blind Children (RSBC).

The Service operates across England and Wales, and is available to blind and partially sighted children and young people from birth to 25 years old: www.rsbc.org.uk

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VISUAL IMPAIRMENT Advertisement feature

Eyelander: the fun and engaging vision training game WESC Foundation, the specialist centre for visual impairment based in Exeter, Devon, is excited to launch a new therapeutic computer game called Eyelander. Eyelander is a browser game designed specifically to help young people with visual field loss caused by cerebral visual impairment (CVI) to use their vision more effectively.

Eyelander was designed by scientists from WESC Foundation and the University of Lincoln who were motivated by the desire to take existing therapies used to rehabilitate adults with visual field loss and make them more engaging for younger participants.

The behavioural therapy that Eyelander is based on trains players to move their eyes more efficiently and through regular practice this exercise can improve performance on daily activities that require good vision, such as walking more safely in a crowded environment.

WESC Foundation wants to raise awareness of this potentially life-changing project with the ultimate goal of improving access to effective vision therapy for visually impaired young people, but they need your help.

WESC Foundation would like visually impaired young people to play the game and take part in a research study to gather data that will advance their understanding of the complex challenges faced by young people with visual field loss.

If you have visual field loss, are a parent with a child who has visual field loss, or know anyone who might be interested

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in taking part in this research project, then please visit: www.eyelander.co.uk to register and play the game.

Eyelander does require a laptop or desktop computer with a modern browser installed to play. For more information, please contact Jonathan Waddington, WESC’s Research Scientist, by email: eyelander@wescfoundation.ac.uk or call: 01392 454349.

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Safety, comfort and dignity Bob Oliver looks at some of the key challenges of hoisting children in special school environments

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anual handling is a big issue for many special schools, where pupils often have varied and complex needs that require appropriate support from staff and necessitate the use of the right equipment. Staff need to understand the different types of hoist systems and which will provide the best experience for users and carers.

It is imperative to ensure students have everything they need within their grasp, making life as easy as possible, while enriching care and students’ learning experience.

This article will look at some of the main considerations that should be taken into account when specifying hoist systems, including ceiling track hoists and mobile hoists, in special school settings, as well as important issues when using hoists with children.

with you touching them; you should also make sure that their health and wellbeing is always considered during transfers. It is generally recommended that there should be two people present whenever hoisting a child, though hoisting systems for one carer are also available.

Specifying overhead hoists for schools Special schools can be laid out a little differently to mainstream schools, and they may contain areas and

Children have the right to feel secure and to maintain their privacy and dignity environments not found in most schools. For example, while a special school may have all the expected rooms – like classrooms, a library and a hall – it may also include areas like hygiene rooms, wheelchair stores >>

Safe manual handling Before engaging in manual handling, it’s essential to: • identify any possible hazards • think about who could be harmed and how • evaluate the risks involved.

By addressing these concerns in advance, you should be able to avoid injury to the pupil who is being moved and the carer involved in the process.

Always be aware of how much weight you can lift safely and comfortably; if you hurt yourself, this will affect the level of care you can provide to the student.

There are also key factors to consider in terms of how to handle children. Children have the right to feel secure and to maintain their privacy and dignity in what can feel like a very vulnerable situation for them. With this in mind, it is essential to ensure the child you are handling is comfortable WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

Overhead hoists should ideally offer full room coverage.

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MANUAL HANDLING

When specifying an overhead hoist, it is important to aim for full room coverage

Tracking systems can be used to enable transfers from room to room.

and sensory rooms. These differences may require a change in the way we should approach the specification of equipment for these settings.

When specifying an overhead hoist for a special school, it is important, whenever possible, to aim for full room coverage. This gives staff total flexibility over where they can move students to and the ability to change layouts and processes over time. An H-frame/X-Y hoist system gives full room coverage and is incredibly easy-to-use. This consists of two fixed rails running parallel to each other across the room, and one moveable rail spanning the width between them. The hoist unit is then attached to this rail, giving staff the ability to transfer to and from anywhere in the room.

If there is a hygiene room next to the classroom which will also require overhead hoisting capabilities, it is a good idea to install another X-Y system and connect it to the one in the classroom. This is a fairly standard layout for special schools and provides the best overall coverage from the classroom through to the hygiene room.

Mobile hoists If a ceiling track hoist cannot be installed for whatever reason, staff may prefer to use a mobile hoist. These are flexible in that they can be moved around from room to room, but they also tend to be a little more difficult to manoeuvre and position.

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In general, mobile hoists tend to be cheaper and quicker to supply than a fully fitted ceiling hoist system. Special schools will mostly use mobile hoists for transfers in and out of wheelchairs and they can be used in areas that overhead hoists do not cover, such as corridors or outdoor spaces. Essentially, mobile hoists are a great quick-fix solution.

However, mobile hoists do also have their drawbacks. They can be quite clunky and hard to move around, even though they are mobile. They also take up more floor space and can get in the way if you are in a confined space.

More often than not it takes two people to operate a mobile hoist: one to manoeuvre it and one to operate it.

Ceiling track hoists are much easier to move around and use and they involve far less physical exertion for the staff.

Special considerations when hoisting children When you are transferring or moving a child with a hoist (ceiling mounted or mobile), there are a number of other things that need to be considered.

I would always suggest that a smaller spreader bar is used when hoisting children, whether with a ceiling track hoist or a mobile hoist. This helps to keep the sling closer to the child’s body and therefore secures them and avoids the possibly of them sliding out of the sling altogether.

In terms of standing and walking transfers, users may prefer to use

a walking harness to help the pupil remain stable and supported. A walking harness can be attached to an overhead hoist system and adjusted to the perfect height with the hoist tapes.

This will provide excellent stability to the user whilst reducing the amount of physical work the carer must do.

There are so many things to consider when it comes to hoisting kids in SEN schools, whether it is which kind of hoist you use, how fixed systems are laid out or even how you need to use different types of equipment with children.

If you are looking for a new hoist, it’s worth considering a ceiling track system. They take a little more time to install but they offer superior coverage and flexibility to students. Even better, they take the strain off carers who might usually rely on mobile hoists to carry out transfers. Many settings find that both overhead and mobile hoists have a useful role in their manual handling practice. Whatever the equipment, though, it is essential that it can facilitate transfers with ease and dignity, whilst ensuring the safety and comfort of carers and the person being moved.

Further information

Bob Oliver is Hoist Specialist at care equipment manufacturer and supplier Innova: www.innovacareconcepts.com

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The all new SEN Magazine website www.senmagazine.co.uk With more content, a sleek new design and an intuitive feel, it’s easy to find what you’re looking for.

Enjoy instant access to thousands of articles, the latest news and insightful comment on all aspects of special educational needs.

Browse forthcoming SEN-related events, useful resources and career opportunities.

Exciting new sponsorship and advertising opportunities Call Denise on: 01200 409808, email: denise@senmagazine.co.uk or Charlotte on: 01200 409805, email: charlotte@senmagazine.co.uk

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CEREBRAL PALSY

Early support for cerebral palsy Amanda Richardson looks at the role recent NICE guidelines can play in early diagnosis and intervention for CP

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t is estimated that three babies in every 1,000 is born with cerebral palsy, making it the most common motor disability in childhood, but is enough being done to enable the full potential of these children in their later lives?

Cerebral palsy is an umbrella term for a group of motor disorders which make up the most common type of motor disability in childhood. The condition is thought to be caused by damage to the developing brain occurring before, during or immediately after birth. Whilst the initial damage to the brain will not get worse, the effect of this damage – depending on which part of the brain has been affected and the severity of the damage – will cause difficulties primarily with the control

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of movement and posture, mobility and sensory processing, as well as communication, learning, social and self-care skills. The condition can also change as a child progresses into adulthood; for example, 25 per cent of people with cerebral palsy who can walk as children will lose this ability as they get older – a lesser known fact about the condition that brings to life what it means.

So it comes as no surprise that NICE has introduced two key documents for people with cerebral palsy over the last year – the guideline Cerebral palsy in under 25s: assessment and management and the Quality Standard Cerebral palsy in children and young people – the aims of which are to provide guidance on best practice

NICE has introduced two key documents for people with cerebral palsy over the last year

around diagnosis, assessment and management of cerebral palsy in children and young people, and highlight key areas of improvement for the NHS.

Indicators of cerebral palsy Health and social care professionals and parents and carers of children and young people with cerebral palsy

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must all be well-versed on the risk factors for a child developing cerebral palsy – prematurity, low birth weight and maternal infection to name a few – and some of the red flags for the condition, such as not sitting by eight months, not walking by 18 months and early asymmetry of hand function.

The guideline does an excellent job of emphasising the possibility for these to be some of the key points at the centre of education on cerebral palsy for health and education professionals.

Both documents are critical and have the potential to trigger a fundamental and much-needed change in how we approach the diagnosis and management of cerebral palsy. But the Quality Standard highlighting priority areas of improvement is where I hope to see some of the most impactful change.

Too little support Let’s start with a bit of background on the current state of play: currently, there is too much local variation in levels of care available to children with cerebral palsy and their families. In fact, a report issued by UK charity Action Cerebral Palsy in 2016, Variations in Care: An analysis of cerebral palsy provision, revealed that much more needs to be done to support children and young people with cerebral palsy, particularly during their first 24 months when intervention is most effective but also most likely to be lacking.

The biggest recurring issue was said to be “insufficient specialist support and a lack of awareness from health professionals as to how to access it.”

To put this into context, only 16.7 per cent of clinical commissioning groups contacted by the charity were able to provide a specific timescale for referral for a diagnosis of cerebral palsy from the point of the formal identification of symptoms. This is a concerning statistic, to say the least.

Pathways to care The NICE Quality Standard emphasises one of the key components in WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

Early identification followed by appropriate and timely intervention is essential to ensure the best outcomes

establishing a national standard of care pathways for children – to create a clear pathway of screening and enhanced surveillance programme, to be carried out by neonatal and developmental services for children displaying any of the major risk factors of cerebral palsy. This will ensure early diagnosis and consequently early, effective intervention, both of which hugely inform prognosis and a child’s future.

Moreover, a monitoring and resource booklet, or as the Quality Standard refers to it, a “personal folder”, should be issued to all children and young people with cerebral palsy.

This personal folder should provide information on the child or young person with cerebral palsy, to enable health, social care and education providers to understand more about them and enhance their care. It would also facilitate a detailed record of progress and development maintained by parents and professionals to inform and monitor further assessment and intervention.

During the process of and after diagnosis, the booklet would provide a record of the child’s history and medical interventions, minimising the need for parents to repeat information for multiple audiences and facilitating effective inter-agency communication.

It would be used to record the strategies and goals which have been developed in partnership with parents and children for the various interventions to improve their quality of life, and record and monitor the management plan.

This is a key component to ensuring that children at risk of developing

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cerebral palsy are appropriately monitored at the earliest possible point and at all stages of their development.

The Quality Standard more broadly establishes clear recommendations for sufficient training to ensure that education and healthcare workers who encounter children at risk of cerebral palsy have increased awareness of the signs of the condition, and have the ability to implement best practice guidance by way of integrated health and educational pathways. But why is early identification and intervention so important?

Quite simply, early identification followed by appropriate and timely intervention is essential to ensure the best outcomes for children with cerebral palsy, as their brains are at their most malleable during their first two to three years of life and so can benefit most from intervention. Therapies such as physiotherapy, speech and language therapy and occupational therapy undertaken in the early years have been shown to contribute significantly to infants’ physical, cognitive, social and emotional development.

Hana’s story The story of Hana, who was born three weeks early, is testament to this. Despite being given the all clear at birth, by eight months old Hana still wasn’t sitting up unsupported, and her concerned parents took her to the GP, expecting a dismissal and instructions to “stop being over anxious” because children develop at different rates.

However, Hana’s GP was experienced with symptoms of cerebral palsy and immediately referred her to a specialist centre, following which a range of tests were carried out. Although brain damage couldn’t be identified, Hana’s parents were told her symptoms were parallel to those of cerebral palsy, and the parents immediately set to securing Hana the therapies she needed. They spent months on various waiting lists, travelling across the country to navigate >> SENISSUE95

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what they described as the “daunting processes involved with having a child with special needs”, but they never felt they received the support they needed.

It was only after identifying a special school in their local area which specialised in helping children with sensory and motor issues that they felt they were finally receiving the attention and intervention Hana needed. The school was described as a “one-stop shop” where all of Hana’s needs were being addressed in one place in immense detail, including communication, sensory, OT and physiotherapy needs. A programme tailored to her specific needs was developed. Hana’s parents said: “When she started at school she was barely able to pick anything up, she could just about roll over. She was immobile. She had some eye contact.

With all the intensive therapies Hana has now undergone, she is a different child. Although still nonverbal, she is able to vocalise and makes herself heard. She loves human interactions and recognises familiar people. She has started to use a tactile on-body signing system for communication and she is able to use a walker with support. She

With all the intensive therapies Hana has now undergone, she is a different child

is able to feed herself finger food and can drink water independently using a beaker. She can pick up her toys and play with them and also sit unsupported on a stool for hours. She has a cheeky and stubborn personality and it shines through. She has an infectious giggle that can cheer up anyone in the room.

Without all this input we have no doubt in our minds that Hana would not have progressed to the level she has. She truly is working towards fulfilling her potential. If Hana carries on making the progress that she has done for the last ten years, we are so very hopeful and excited for the future.”

evidence as to why we need to remove the current barriers that hinder local services from identifying cerebral palsy and intervening quickly. The NICE guideline and Quality Standard can go a long way in kickstarting this process.

But there is, of course, a catch, and we mustn’t forget that there is no legal obligation for health organisations to adhere to NICE standards. The benefits that they can bring for children and young people with cerebral palsy are evident, but these are unfortunately wholly dependent on clinical commissioning groups, trusts and local authorities’ willingness to implement them. I urge health organisations to follow these recommendations and help improve the lives and enable the full potential of children and young people with cerebral palsy in the UK.

Changing practice Hana’s story should be the story of every single child and young person with cerebral palsy, and is clear

Further information

Amanda Richardson MBE is the Chief Executive of UK cerebral palsy charity Action Cerebral Palsy: www.actioncp.org The recent NICE publications on cerebral palsy, discussed in this article, can be found at the following links.

Cerebral palsy in under 25s: assessment and management (guideline): www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng62 Cerebral palsy in children and young people (Quality Standard): www.nice.org.uk/guidance/QS162

Communication systems can be personalised to make them more engaging.

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BBC’s Nikki Fox to host Sense Awards 2018 The national disability charity, Sense, has announced that BBC TV presenter Nikki Fox will host its annual Sense Awards on Thursday 20 September.

Nominations are now open for the awards that celebrate the achievements of disabled people with complex needs.

The awards also champion the work of the people that provide support.

The awards, now in their fifteenth year, recognise the outstanding achievements of disabled people with complex needs, as well as the staff, carers, family members, volunteers and fundraisers that support them.

Past hosts include Paralympic gold-medallist Steve Bate, Dr Dawn Harper and BBC Breakfast presenter Louise Minchin.

The public are invited to submit their nominations for categories that include person of the year, sibling of the year, carer of the year and volunteer of the year.

“It’s a pleasure to have Nikki host the 2018 Sense Awards”, says Sense Chief Executive Gillian Morbey. “The awards recognise the people we work with who overcome great challenges to achieve remarkable things. It’s also an opportunity to celebrate the important family members, carers, volunteers and fundraisers that support them. We’re now delighted to invite nominations for this year’s Sense Awards.”

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Left to right: Sense supporters Noreen and Inge Ahmad, TV presenter Nikki Fox and Sense Deputy CEO Richard Kramer.

Nikki Fox is an award-winning TV presenter, broadcaster and documentary maker.

The Sense Awards will take place at TouchBase Pears in Birmingham. Developed by Sense, TouchBase Pears is a pioneering new centre that provides specialist provision for people with disabilities and facilities for the whole community.

The public have until Sunday 22 July to submit their nominations.

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LOCAL AREA INSPECTIONS

Joint area inspections Pearl Barnes explains what inspectors are looking for when they assess a local authority’s SEN provision

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n 2015, alongside the revised SEN Code of Practice (CoP) and the Children and Families Act (2014), the Joint Area Regulations (2015) introduced the implementation of joint area SEN and disability inspections.

These inspections are unique in that they are specifically targeted at evaluating the quality of provision for children and young people with SEN and disabilities in addition to the effectiveness of the SEN reforms in the local area.

The inspections are conducted at local authority level by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and Ofsted.

Although they do not use the four key judgements as outlined by Ofsted, local authorities can be deemed to require improvement as a result of the inspections. The inspections encompass the views of parents, pupils, school leaders, local authority personnel and other professionals across both health and education.

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What is evaluated?

The inspections are thorough and holistic, evaluating a range of educational provision and support for children and young people with SEN as well as the support afforded to their families.

Of particular focus is how well the SEN reforms are being implemented, including the meeting of education, health and care (EHC) plan targets, complaints and appeals and the process of identification of children with SEN.

The main areas of focus include: • the outcomes for children and young people with SEN and disabilities in national assessments, including SATs results, GCSE attainment and SENISSUE95

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other performance indicators; are these consistent with national data? Are attainment results consistent with other similar starting points? What are the reasons for underperformance and are they being addressed? attendance and exclusion information specifically relating to children and young people with SEN and disabilities; are these figures higher than average? Is there a disproportionate number of pupils with SEND not attending education, or being excluded from education? What is taking place to mitigate this? data relating to the identification of SEN and disabilities at SEN Support and EHC plan levels; is there a fair and equitable process of identification? Are parents aware of how to access services? information about destinations after leaving school, including young people not in education, employment or training (NEET); what is being done to ensure children and young people with SEN and disabilities are able to access further education, employment or training? Is there a disproportionate number of individuals with SEN not able to access education, training or employment? performance towards meeting expected timescales for statutory assessment; are assessments conducted within the statutory timeframes? inspection reports for the local area, its services and providers: what are the concerns? Are there any trends? Is the LA being proactive to alleviate these concerns? the published local offer; there is a statutory obligation upon LAs to

Of particular focus is how well the SEN reforms are being implemented

produce (and update annually) a report which provides an outline of the services on offer across the region; its purpose is for parents to be able to know exactly what support is available for their child with SEN or disabilities, and it is designed to alleviate the bureaucratic process which often adds a layer of stress upon parents when deciding upon the most appropriate provision; is the local offer accessible to parents? Are they involved in its development?

• schools’ and nurseries’ published SEN information reports; are they fit for purpose? Do they meet the required standard? Are parents involved?

The inspections look at outcomes for pupils with SEN.

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Other areas which are evaluated: • complaints to Ofsted and CQC • any relevant serious case reviews and their outcomes • performance information published by the Department for Education and Department of Health • the local authority short break statement • joint strategic needs assessment • joint health and wellbeing strategy • SEN and disability strategic plans devised and used by the local area • level of appeals to the First-tier Tribunal, including cases resolved prior to tribunal hearing • commissioning and performance data on delivery of healthy child programme (previous 12 months), of school nursing service (previous 12 months) and on neonatal screening programme.

What is reported?

• There are three specific components of the report: • the effectiveness of the local area in identifying children and young people’s special educational needs and/or disabilities • the effectiveness of the local area in meeting the needs of children and young people with SEN and disabilities • the effectiveness of the local area in improving outcomes for children and young people with SEN and disabilities.

• The report also highlights strengths and areas to develop.

What are the outcomes to date?

Of the regions which have been inspected to date, there are a number of outcomes: • there is a vast range and variability between LA areas in the level of information, provision, cut-off points for provision and support and approach to identification; this lack of consistency could be viewed as a post-code lottery for SEN provision WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

Training and qualifications of staff varied substantially across regions

• there are differences in levels of compliancy across types of settings • it was found that the core offer can often be confusing for parents, who might even be unaware of its existence • differences in waiting times for assessment and diagnosis lead to frustration and exacerbate the stress upon families • training and qualifications of staff involved with supporting children and young people with SEN and disabilities varied substantially across regions.

Essentially, the inspections evaluate the impact that SEN provision makes upon the lives of children, young people and their families and, to date, the impact and the quality of provision has been found to be hugely variable.

What are the Implications for schools and colleges?

Although schools and colleges are not directly evaluated, they are indirectly involved in the process of inspection through an evaluation of their documentation. They may be called upon to be interviewed and parents or pupils of any setting may be interviewed. Preparation for the joint area inspection should involve the following: • schools and colleges need to provide up-to-date information to the LA regarding their core offer of provision through their Information Report (see CoP p.106) • All documentation needs to be in place regarding identification and referral processes, the range of support provided by each setting, the categories of need

supported within each setting, what is taking place to mitigate any underperformance and how are parents involved in the development of SEN provision across the setting • All data needs to be rigorously analysed and evaluated, with action points for how to ensure children and young people with SEN are making appropriate progress and perform in line with their capabilities; in particular, settings need to evidence identification of pupils with SEN (is this equitable, timely and consistent?), progress of pupils with SEN, and outcomes for pupils with SEN. Of the 48 reports reviewed, only 28 areas appeared to be satisfactory in the level of support on offer for children and young people with SEN and disabilities. There was a diversity of strengths identified and an equally disparate range of areas to develop (too many to include here). Essentially, there appears to be no consistency in provision across the country in any aspect of SEN and disability support.

It remains to be seen what the outcome will be following the implementation of the joint inspections.

What is important, however, is their effectiveness and success in improving the quality of provision and support, and ultimately, outcomes for all children and young people with SEN and disabilities.

Further information

Pearl Barnes is an SEN consultant and specialist assessor and a former president of nasen: www.sendiss.co.uk

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Is Pupil Premium Plus working?

Julie Johnson assesses the impact of schools’ spending on looked-after children

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ohn was adopted six months ago and each school day he struggles to leave his parents.

He has a history of neglect, of being left unattended for long periods of time. As a baby he learnt that crying was of no use as adults did not come to help him and did not meet his needs. He was fostered at the age of three and moved to three further foster placements before being placed with his new family, now aged seven. He is settling well at home but separation at the school door each day is incredibly difficult. He likes his new teacher but shows little emotion in the classroom throughout the day. He spends his school day in a shutdown, “hold-it-all-together, adults-cannot-betrusted” survival state.

Relationship trauma As of 31 March 2017, there were 72,670 looked-after children, and the number of looked-after children adopted in the year to that date was 4,350 (DfE SFR 50/2017, 28 September 2017). Many of these children have endured neglect and abuse most of us cannot imagine, and all have experienced the loss of their birth family. They are traumatised from their early life experiences and their brains have been wired to respond in a survival state. Whilst these strategies served them well in the past, they now need support from home and school to rewire their brain to flourish in a safe environment. They have experienced relationship trauma and the way to healing is through safe, consistent

They now need support from home and school to rewire their brain to flourish in a safe environment

and caring relationships. This can be exhausting for many families taking part in adoption, special guardianship orders (SGOs) and foster families, and education staff have a part to play in supporting these children at school.

“Children’s experiences prior to entering care have a long-lasting effect on their educational attainment.

When children leave care, through for example adoption, it is unlikely that their educational needs will change significantly simply because their care status has changed. Recent school performance data shows that children who have left care significantly underperform compared to children who have never been in care. We believe the funding system should treat both children in care and those who have left care equally” (DfE, Schools national funding formula: Government consultation – stage one, March 2016).

Where does the money go?

Looked-after children have generally experienced relationship trauma.

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Is Pupil Premium Plus funding simply added to the Pupil Premium pot?

Gauging success

Pupil Premium Plus funding should be used to support the specific looked-after child.

for one day or more. Whilst under local authority care, the funding goes to the virtual school head for the authority, but once the orders have been made the funding goes direct to schools in quarterly instalments, beginning in the April following declaration in the January school census.

The question therefore is, what are schools spending this funding on and what impact is it having?

Consider Sarah who always struggles in phonics before lunch.

Given her background of neglect and her concern over whether she will be fed again, does she need more phonics teaching? Does she need another school jumper or subsidised school trips? Or does she need someone to do some work with her on how the cook knows how much food they will need in order for everyone to have something to eat at lunchtime? Does Sarah need to be at the front of the line for lunch, and then gradually move further back over time as she learns that there will be enough for everyone?

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an intervention like breakfast club has met the attachment needs of a traumatised child?

Training staff Children with a background of trauma may have many barriers to learning; the funding is designed to break these down so they can learn. The first priority has to be quality training on the long lasting effects of developmental trauma and attachment difficulties. The NICE report of Nov 2015 on children’s attachment (NICE guideline [NG26]) states that “Schools and other education providers should ensure that all staff who may come into contact with children and young people with attachment difficulties receive appropriate training on attachment difficulties.”

Medical needs are quite rightly met through training before a child starts in a class, but mental health concerns are not often considered as vital. The consequences of schools not understanding how the brain changes in traumatic circumstances and using this information to better support these children will be far reaching. Once staff have a good understanding of the needs of these pupils they are better placed to make wise choices on the underlying needs they will have, and outcomes will be improved.

Pupil Premium Plus funding is not ring-fenced, so how can a school prove the intervention provided a positive impact. If the Pupil Premium Plus funding was used to provide, for instance, equipment for a sensory room, can we show that this was beneficial to the child if the child did not need it or indeed use the space – for example if light bubble tubes were provided through this funding when the child in question was judged to be more in need of vestibular and proprioception input.

The rationale behind Pupil Premium Plus is to improve outcomes for “disadvantaged” children. Instead of trying to provide blanket solutions, maybe the child needs a quieter place to eat their lunch as the hall is too noisy and overstimulating for a child on high alert. Maybe the child struggles with transitions and needs a key worker to support them and help them understand that their parents will return to collect them later. They might struggle to regulate, as their birth parent(s) was unable to do that for them as a baby, and they need a key worker to help them regulate until they develop those skills, which may need to be taught explicitly. Perhaps they view the world as unsafe and need a key worker to express all the ways they are now safe and what schools and adults do to ensure that. Perhaps they have sensory difficulties and need to have regular sensory input to calm their vestibular and proprioception senses; could the school provide equipment to meet these needs?

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Many schools offer a range of therapies, such as play therapy, but are they ensuring the therapist is trained in developmental trauma? Is the child accessing other therapies outside of school through the Adoption Support Fund? Schools are advised to liaise with parents as to the child’s needs and discuss various interventions and it is good practise to review the effectiveness of these interventions and then consider next steps.

Addressing needs The Pupil Premium is intended to improve outcomes for disadvantaged children; schools should focus clearly on the child’s needs and consider the impact of the interventions they put in place. All too often, when Pupil Premium Plus is used in the same way as Pupil Premium, the real needs of the child are not being met, as the following two examples illustrate.

Amelia was adopted as a baby seven years ago. She is a “busy” girl, always on the go, always talking and into everything and everyone.

She cannot sit still and always calls out in lesson. She is making good progress academically in most areas but struggles with friendships. She has a history of neglect; sometimes she was cared for well, sometimes not, and she was the main carer for her younger brother. What impact will reduced price school trips and school uniform have

Schools should focus clearly on the child’s needs and consider the impact of the interventions they put in place on her development? Would she benefit more from support from staff in making and keeping friends? Does she need help to regulate her body, and to be taught how to wait to answer? Does she need a sensory diet to calm her system so she can be still for longer and focus on the lesson?

Tom is now living with his extended family in a county far from his birth parents on a special guardianship order.

When he was younger, he witnessed domestic abuse and was admitted to hospital on a number of occasions with injuries. He is delayed in many areas of the curriculum. His teacher is most concerned though by his level of violence: one minute he is fine, the next he is punching and kicking whoever is nearest to him.

The school has decided he needs a reduced school timetable, so he attends from 9am to 11am each day.

Will offering him free after school clubs help him progress with his academic

abilities or indeed understand and control his anger? Perhaps Tom would benefit more from staff explicitly teaching him all the ways they keep him safe: for example, “We sit to eat as I would not want you to choke; I care about you; I am keeping you safe.”

Does Tom need a quieter place to play so he does not get overstimulated at playtime, and a small group of peers with experienced staff supporting appropriate play? Should Tom have an occupational therapy assessment of his sensory need to crash and bump, and perhaps have a sensory diet incorporated into his school day?

Moving forwards Schools need to produce a Pupil Premium strategy. School improvement partners, Ofsted and governors need to ask questions about how Pupil Premium Plus interventions differ from those under the Pupil Premium, and what impact they are having. Millions of pounds of public money are being spent under the auspices of Pupil Premium Plus, but where is the evidence that it is making a real difference to these children? This money is essential, but we need to ensure it is being used to best effect on those for whom it is intended.

Further information

Julie Johnson is the mother of two adopted children. She taught primary age children for twenty years and now advises schools on how to support children with developmental trauma and attachment difficulties, and delivers training to school staff: http://squareoneattachment.co.uk

Schools need to be able to assess the impact of interventions they provide.

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Advertisement feature

Kedleston Group – supporting looked-after children Last year it was reported that more than 70,000 children were in care across the UK. Kimberley Taylor, Care Quality Assurance and Development Lead at Kedleston Group explains how the organisation supports looked-after children.

Much concern has been expressed about poor outcomes for children living away from home and in care, especially their educational attainment. Research conducted in 2015* showed that children who felt safe and secure, where someone genuinely cared about them were more likely to choose to engage in learning. The same research found that children in care make better educational progress than children in need.

It’s clear that appropriately supporting a young person who is within the care system to engage in their education and maximise their chances of success in learning is absolutely vital.

We have found that often looked-after young people have been out of an educational setting for many months – sometimes years. Placement breakdowns, lack of consistency, anxiety around failure and many other factors may all contribute to a lack of learning engagement.

Within Kedleston’s provisions we support looked-after children to get them back into education. Our children’s homes, three specialist residential schools where children receive their education whilst living in on-site care provisions and our day schools all support looked-after children.

For each of these, our ethos remains the same. We provide stability, safety and security and build trust – all those things needed to help young people engage in their education.

It begins with a good transition. Often the young people within our residential schools have been out of education for some time and we work very carefully to reintroduce learning to their lives. This transition period is carefully managed between the child, their local authority and the school.

Children are invited to visit the school or home in advance and see how the other children engage. They can ask questions, meet the teams who will support them and give their views.

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vitally, give them the best chance of progress. That may involve periods of time outside of the classroom, with physical, learning outside the classroom or other educational activities on or off site forming larger parts of the curriculum while being in school and a learning environment is slowly re-introduced. Additional therapeutic support is provided where needed and there is a focus on life skills and being prepared for life outside school.

Our aim is always to prepare young people for their lives away from school, to get them ready to live, work and thrive as adults in their communities.

Achievements and progress, whatever they may be, are celebrated by all and there is usually plenty to celebrate. Young people make superb progress within our schools from their starting points and go on to successfully secure further education placements, training or employment in almost all cases.

David**, a looked-after child supported at Wings School Cumbria, describes his achievements like this: “I’m in post-16 and am aiming to achieve many new life skills. I’ve passed my GCSEs, started my course at college and started my Independence Pathway Plan.

“I can budget my own money, independently go to college and travel independently by train. I’ve registered for my own home with the local council, do work experience and have organised my own driving lessons.

“When I leave, I am aiming to move locally and find a job so I can stay in the area as I have made a lot of friends at college and feel at home here.”

Developing skills for life

Kedleston Group schools and homes provide support for young people affected by social, emotional and mental health difficulties at locations across England. If you want to know more about what makes Kedleston different, get in touch. Contact Veronica Kitton on 0800 024 6985 or email referrals@kedlestongroup.com

Once with us, care plans and curriculums are individually developed alongside the child to meet their wants and needs and

* The Educational Progress of Looked After Children in England: Linking Care and Educational Data. ** Name has been changed to protect confidentiality.

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ADVERTISE WITH In print 36,000 readers per issue*

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To book your space, contact Denise: 01200 409808 denise@senmagazine.co.uk or Charlotte: 01200 409805 charlotte@senmagazine.co.uk

* SEN Magazines are typically circulated to four or more readers.

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Next issue features include: TES SEN Show preview • SEN law choosing the right school • adoption SEN publishing • SEBD • dyspraxia school trips • literacy/phonics autism • dyslexia • recruitment CPD and more…

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BOOK REVIEWS

Book reviews

by Mary Mountstephen

When the Adults Change, Everything Changes P. Dix

The Ultimate Guide to Differentiation: Achieving Excellence for All

Independent Thinking Press £16.99 ISBN: 978-1-1781-35273-1

S. Cowley

This is an excellent book that is based on the author’s extensive expertise and experience in supporting schools with behaviour management.

Written in an accessible, practical format, it provides clear strategies that recognise the stresses that schools are under on a daily basis.

Dix is a well-respected speaker and teacher trainer and is the founder of Pivotal Education.

The book covers key themes including: the concept of visible kindness, certainty in adult behaviour, classroom routines, managing the most difficult behaviours, and the behaviour blueprint.

Dix’s key point relates to the need for schools to develop strategies that are manageable and implemented by all staff consistently. These can be as deceptively simple as all staff waiting at the classroom door to greet pupils with a handshake on arrival and by being “relentlessly bothered” about sustaining and maintaining rapport with students.

He recognises that this approach requires careful planning and provides examples drawn from his own work.

The book provides useful and relevant resources to help schools audit their practice, and information about shifts in adult behaviour that make the greatest impact.

Chapters follow a consistent format, including “nuggets” summarising content and excerpts from Dix’s own school reports that reveal him as “a challenging pupil”.

This book shifts the focus away from children’s behaviour towards developing schools staffed by emotionally mature adults, in a supportive, inclusive community.

Sue Cowley is a recognised educational expert and author of many publications, including the Getting the Buggers to Behave series. An international presenter and trainer, she is well known for her practical and accessible style, and for providing strategies to support educators in meeting the needs of every learner.

The book opens with an introduction to differentiation and explains how to plan and prepare with flexibility, recognising individual differences such as speed of working, learning differences and medical backgrounds.

The author explains how worksheets and projects can be used to differentiate teaching and ways that pupils can be grouped to address different purposes. Subsequent chapters address topics including: technological resources, learner profiles, routines for learning and linking assessments to learning.

Cowley writes as though speaking directly to the reader, offering advice and providing useful guidelines that support teachers in reflecting on their daily practice. She explains how to vary vocabulary in ways that make content accessible to all learners, and provide supportive routines to help them become more independent and move beyond the need for teacher-led routines.

She provides references to support teachers in understanding the needs of students with more specific needs, such as the use of visual organisers and the development of stories to make learning more memorable.

This book would be of value to student teachers seeking to improve their classroom techniques.

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Bloomsbury Education £19.99 ISBN: 978-1-4729-4896-0

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BOOK REVIEWS

Narrowing the Attainment Gap: A Handbook for Schools D. Sobel Bloomsbury Education £24.99 ISBN: 978-1-4729-4637-9

Daniel Sobel runs an educational consultancy that provides training and resources internationally in the field of inclusion. He holds an MA in Education Psychology, has experience as a SENCO and assistant headteacher and has acted as a consultant at national level. He also writes regularly for a number of publications.

His own educational achievements in school were limited to reading his first book at the age of eighteen and he acknowledges his educational journey in the context of his work in developing inclusion programmes for schools.

His approach is based on three key assumptions: the key barriers to inclusion are time, money and attitudes; inclusion and the attainment gaps are mostly to do with soft data; and the challenges of classroom teaching and whole-school systems need addressing together and can be transformational when this is carried out strategically.

Chapters in the book follow a common format, providing “key takeaway” summaries of significant points and short case studies. Sobel also provides examples of forms to illustrate aspects such as tracking the impact of interventions and action timetables. He stresses a need to focus on the “quality not quantity” of interventions, based on an understanding of how to effectively meet the specific needs of students, with a focus on impact.

This is a text that would be of great value to leadership teams and SENCOs faced with barriers to reducing attainment gaps.

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Transforming the Role of the SENCO: Achieving the National Award for SEN Coordination (2nd Edition) F. Hallett and G. Hallett Open University Press (McGraw-Hill Education) £27.99 ISBN: 978-0-3352-6360-8

The

authors

of

this

publication are joint editors of the British Journal of Special Education and researchers in the field of SEN. In this updated version of their text, they provide a comprehensive guide to the role of the SENCO, with an evaluation and analysis of characteristics and practice in relation to the latest national framework for the National Award for SEN Coordination (NASC).

With additional contributions from academic experts, this book provides an essential guide for practitioners and students aspiring to the role of SENCO. It is organized into two parts, with the first focusing on achieving the National Award and the second covering areas such as: perspectives on inclusion, disability and SEN; inclusive pedagogy; and reflecting on the role of the SENCO. The book links directly to the NASC learning outcomes in a way that is both accessible and supportive. It captures the voice of practitioners to illustrate how daily practice reflects professional knowledge, and an understanding of the SENCO position in the context of recent legislation.

This is a key text that is essential reading for those seeking to update their knowledge of best practice, and reflect on the role of SENCO as a key professional.

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Don’t panic, it’s only a neurodevelopmental difference!

The remedy for autism’s seeming invisibility in our schools may be simpler than we think, writes Clare Lawrence

There’s nothing “odd” about having autism.

It is a little unusual, in that only about one per cent of pupils is autistic, but that is OK. It’s about half as many (according to my favourite search engine) as have green eyes (two per cent), a little fewer than have red hair (one to two per cent) and about the same as the population over 15 who are vegan (one per cent).

Like each of these groups, it is a little special, in that it is not the norm.

We identify vegan restaurants where we don’t bother to label ones that serve meat. Similarly, we recognise the educational needs of pupils with autism as “special” which, again according to my search engine, means “better, greater, or otherwise different from what is usual”.

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There are plenty of blogs dedicated to the question of whether it is helpful to “come out” as autistic familiar. Estimating personal network size is a complicated business (for example, McCormick, Salganik and Zheng, 2010), but even conservative estimates on the amount of people the average person “knows” put it at over 400. Statistically, then – even if this is an unscientific way of approaching this – we should all know some people who are autistic as part of our “personal networks”.

Yet this doesn’t seem to be the case.

Recently, I asked a group of some 80+ second year undergraduates to

self-categorise themselves as either “knowing” or “not knowing” someone with autism. Worryingly, 64 per cent of the students self-identified as “not knowing”.

An unseen condition It seems we are continuing to hide autism away. There are plenty of blogs dedicated to the question of whether it is helpful to “come out” as autistic, and I have had many conversations with parents who resist seeking a diagnosis for their child because of a fear of “labelling”. It seems that we fear to identify, or to have our children identified, as being part of a group that is perceived as different.

Yet although they are a minority, people with autism are also ordinary – almost as ordinary as people with red hair. Autism is one way of being a human being and is a way of being so WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

AUTISM

which is certainly normal to that person.

We need, I believe, to take a close look at our positioning of autism as “other”.

Perhaps we could work to establish a societal attitude where having autism is both visible and accepted, starting with our attitude in schools. Once upon a time, having a neurodevelopmental difference that meant that you favoured the use of your left hand over your right meant that you were condemned as “sinister”. Strenuous efforts were made to correct your impairment. Now, being left-handed is so accepted as to be invisible; you do not have to declare it as a special need and it is seldom used as the primary identifier for a person.

Yet with the acceptance of this particular neurodevelopmental difference has come a lack of support for pupils with it in schools. In classroom seating plans, positioning of left-handed pupils so that shared table space with right-handed peers is managed effectively is seldom considered, and we know that being taught handwriting by a right-handed teacher can have a serious impact on left-handed pupils’ progress.

The answer, of course, is both greater awareness and a lessening of what might be described as Great British embarrassment. “Erin, you’re left handed so you might find it easier if you swap with Rohan and sit where there’s more space” is unlikely to be a phrase to send anyone into a spin, yet the same sort of relaxed accommodation of need for a pupil with autism is seen as far more problematic. “Rohan, you’re autistic so you might find it easier if you swap with Erin and sit where there’s more space” is somehow seen as a less inclusive and less acceptable remark.

Familiarity breeds understanding The answer to the problem of lefthanded learners being taught handwriting by a right-handed teacher seems to me to be obvious: use positive selection to ensure the presence of a teaching assistant (TA) who is lefthanded. This gives that assistant WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

Could or should we actively recruit TAs with autism to support our children?

the neuro-similarity with the minority learners in that class that is necessary to accommodate their different need.

So, is this something that could be adapted for inclusion regarding autism?

Could or should we actively recruit TAs with autism to support our children?

Or, taking this idea further, could we not ensure that a fair percentage (at least one per cent minimum according to the population) of our teachers are autistic and are open about the fact, in which case they could be supported by a non-autistic TA? The “mere-exposure effect” (Zajonc, 1968) suggests that familiarity with an object will tend to increase a subject’s preference for that object.

This theory has been used to explore racial prejudice (Zebrowitz, White and Wieneke, 2008), attitudes towards people with intellectual disabilities (Li and Wang, 2013; Rillotta, 2007) and peer attitudes on first meeting with adults with autism (Sasson and Morrison, 2017). Each of these studies suggests that exposure to members of the targeted group may result in a positive response from the participants.

Perhaps it really is as simple as that. We tie ourselves in knots about how we can better meet the needs of the autistic pupils in our class when at least one answer is there to be had. It seems that one of the best ways for teachers to better understand the needs of pupils with autism in their classes might be simply to get out there and get to know more autistic people.

References Li, C., and Wang, C. K. J. (2013). Effect of exposure to Special Olympic Games on attitudes of volunteers towards inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities. Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 26(6), 515-521.

McCormick, T. H., Salganik, M. J., and Zheng, T. (2010). How many people do you know?: Efficiently estimating personal network size. Journal of the American Statistical Association, 105(489), 59-70.

Rillotta, F. A. (2007). Effects of an awareness program on attitudes of students without an intellectual disability towards persons with an intellectual disability. Journal of Intellectual and Developmental Disability, 19-27.

Sasson, N. J, and Morrison, K. E. (2017). First impressions of adults with autism improve with diagnostic disclosure and increased autism knowledg of peers. Autism.

Zajonc, R. B. (1968). Attitudinal Effects Of Mere Exposure. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. 9 (2, Pt.2), 1–27.

Zebrowitz, L. A., White, B., and Wieneke, K. (2008). Mere exposure and racial prejudice: Exposure to other-race faces increases liking for strangers of that race. Social cognition, 26(3),, 259-275.

Further information

Dr Clare Lawrence is Senior Lecturer in Teacher Development (and English secondary lead with a special interest in autism education) at Bishop Grosseteste University in Lincoln. She is the author of a number of books on autism, including her most recent work Explaining Autism. She has two children and her son has autism. www.clarelawrenceautism.com

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AUTISM Advertisement feature

The Thrive Approach: an essential part of the SENDCo toolkit Thrive is a specific way of working with all children and young people that supports emotional and social wellbeing. The Thrive Approach teaches you how to be, and what to do, in response to young people’s differing and sometimes challenging behaviour, providing targeted strategies and activities to help them reengage with life and learning.

Developed over a 20-year period, Thrive draws on the collective experience of more than 160 years in teaching, education, social work, family therapy, psychotherapy, education advisory and inspection work and child psychology.

Central to the effectiveness of Thrive is Thrive-Online – an online assessment, action planning and measurement tool. ThriveOnline enables you to clearly and systematically identify the social and emotional needs of the children and young people you are working with and to select targeted actions from a wealth of strategies and activities. The action planning resource allows you to tailor interventions to meet groups and individual needs, giving you suggestions on how to be and what to do in order to support every child effectively.

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Thrive offers inductions and introductory training for staff plus core training for SENDCos and others wishing to become Licensed Practitioners. If your school is not already a Thrive School, we can help you to get started on the journey.

To find out more, please visit: thriveapproach.com or contact us for more information. Email: enquiries@thriveapproach.com or call: 01392 797555.

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Rescare is a small national charity, established and run by families for families. It has a helpline open MondayFriday 09:00 am-12:30 pm, and can offer help and support with problems your autistic child may be experiencing.

Rescare can offer advice on EHCPs, DLA applications for under 16’s or PIP for over 16’s. Its staff are fully trained in all aspects of the Care Act and the SEND regulations. It also produces a magazine for its members which is full of advice on all aspects of learning disability and SEN. Requests for help will receive Rescare’s prompt attention.

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Helpline 0161 474 7323 Email: helpline@rescare.org.uk Website: www.rescare.org.uk @rescare_charity Rescare UK Registered Charity No. 1112766 Registered Office: 19 Buxton Road, Stockport, SK2 6LS

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AUTISM Advertisement feature

Supporting best autism practice It is estimated that approximately one in 100 people are on the autism spectrum. The number of people receiving an autism diagnosis is rising mostly because of early identification and more effective systems of assessment. The increasing number of children and young people with autism in all types of educational settings presents challenges to staff at a time when resources are stretched and school leaders face many competing demands.

It also creates a massive challenge for local authorities in promoting appropriate local provision for pupils with autism identified as needing SEN support and who may have a statement or EHC plan.

Ten years ago, the Department for Education responded to these challenges and funded the Autism Education Trust (AET) to provide effective support to the education community, including special and specialist schools.

Leading the way in autism education Founded on research into best autism education practice with the direct involvement of people with autism, the AET developed a support programme with four key elements: • A national set of autism standards against which schools, early years and post 16 settings can audit their practice and plan improvement • A competency framework for practitioners – to support self-reflection and to plan CPD • A modular, face-to-face training programme – basic awareness for all staff; good autism practice for practitioners who work directly with children and young people with autism; and leading good practice for SENCOs, managers and strategic leads who can affect change within a setting • A community of practice where schools, early years and post-16 settings and their practitioners can secure ongoing and local support.

Fully supporting all educational settings 0-25 The AET programme is much more than a modular training programme. It offers a wealth of resources and all the necessary tools supporting practitioners in all aspects of their work. One of the most popular resources, the AET progression framework, is an assessment tool supporting staff in identifying learning priorities and measuring progress in areas that fall outside the national curriculum, and is free to download from

AET’s website. The programme also addresses the needs of special and specialist schools too in supporting children with complex needs.

National programme, local knowledge The AET programme is delivered though licensed local training partners or “hubs” supported by regional strategic partners. This ensures that the benefits of the expert-led national programme is complemented with the understanding of the local context and the specific needs of each educational setting. AET training hubs operate in local authority areas and are typically existing local authority outreach services, voluntary sector organisations, commercial training providers and teaching schools. Through its DfE funding support, AET ensures its partners have access to high-quality, evidence informed, nationally recognised and systematically reviewed resources.

Case study: Birmingham Communication and Autism Team Birmingham CAT became a training hub for the schools programme in 2011.

“The AET programme focuses on autism as a difference not a deficit. It puts the child and young person at the heart of the process. It is their voice that is heard through the training. The programme is evidence-based and offers a framework for schools to include in their SEN Information Report. Evaluations indicate that 98 per cent of those attending strongly agree that the training will have a positive impact on practice and their ability to support children with autism. Demand for the training continues to be high.” Pamela Simpson, assistant team manager at CAT “I like the way the different elements of the programme support each other. The framework gives you a follow up after the training has finished to ensure that the lessons learned have an impact on practice. We intend to use the framework regularly so the best practice becomes embedded.” Feed-back from a training delegate.

Get in contact For more information about our training and for a wealth of free resources, please visit: www.autismeducationtrust.org.uk or contact: info@autismeducationtrust.org.uk If you are interested in joining our community of delivery partners, please contact: info@autismeducationtrust.org.uk

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AUTISM Advertisement feature

Life at Wilsic Hall School‌ Based in a beautiful rural setting, with ready community access, young people at Wilsic Hall School live in high-quality accommodation within the 14 acres of school grounds. We offer a range of homely flats, semi-detached and detached houses where young people have their own space to relax and have fun.

When a young person comes to Wilsic Hall School, an individual education plan (IEP) is created with step-by-step targets to enable successes to be celebrated early and often. This plan is used to carefully tailor lessons to suit each young person and encourage enhanced thinking skills and an enjoyment of the learning experience. Students follow the National Curriculum at Key Stages 3 and 4. At Key Stage 4, they have the opportunity to participate in work-related learning and citizenship.

Key skills are also built into the curriculum and form the basis of our students’ development. These key skills are: communication, application of number, information communication technology, working with others, problem solving and improving own learning and performance. Wilsic Hall School also provides a range of externally accredited, nationally recognised qualifications.

Educational visits Young people will, from time to time, be offered the opportunity to take part in educational visits. A successful educational visit can greatly enhance the school curriculum and help motivate everyone. Wilsic Hall School provides informative, exciting and stimulating educational visits, in the context of positive and supportive risk management which follows Department for Education guidance and complies with regulations. We undertake thorough risk assessments in relation to each young person and their specific needs.

Waking day curriculum At Wilsic Hall School young people benefit from a waking day curriculum. We aim to equip everybody with the confidence and general relationship skills they may need when they come to transition to the next stage of their life. These skills, including cooking, cleaning and socialising, are taught both in school and in the home setting. Everyone has a transition plan written to suit their needs and this is followed by both the education and care teams jointly.

Out of school Wilsic Hall School has an Activity Programme Co-ordinator who liaises closely with care managers, care staff and young people to develop activities for evenings, weekends and school holidays. Young people have access to a wide choice of clubs, activities and outings.

Throughout the year they can participate in both structured and informal activities including visits to the swimming pool, bowling alley, ice skating, cinema, local parks and walks, as well as joining a range of clubs. These have included: ICT, gym, sensory massage, sports clubs, trampolining and rebound therapy, music club, fitness, art and crafts, baking, youth club discos and karaoke evenings, jackanory story time in the fun zone area, all on individual choices and interests.

At weekends and during the school holidays there is a programme of exciting trips that are enjoyed by both the individuals and staff.

For example, recent trips have included visits to Xscape, The Yorkshire Wildlife Park and three day residentials at Kingswood, The Thomas Centre and on board the Ethel Barge.

Wilsic Hall School is a specialist residential school offering education and care for young people aged 11 to 19, all of whom have complex needs including behaviour that may challenge and a learning disability, often in association with autism. If you would like to arrange a visit or speak to us regarding a potential referral, please call us on our dedicated freephone number: 0800 055 6789 or contact us through our website at: www.hesleygroup.co.uk

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PDA

Pathological demand avoidance If you have a young person whose behaviour you find hard to understand, you might want to consider PDA, writes Sally Russel

A

utism and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are widely recognised terms, but our understanding of what the conditions mean in practice is still very much evolving.

Those with relatively unusual and complex presentations of autism, such as pathological demand avoidance (PDA), are at particular risk of being misunderstood. This is leading to extremely poor outcomes for this group of autistic people.

For outcomes to improve, PDA needs to be on everyone’s radar and taken into consideration, especially with children and young adults whose behaviour may be hard to understand.

What is PDA? PDA is a profile on the autism spectrum.

Whilst individuals with a PDA profile share similar difficulties to others with ASD – social communications and interaction difficulties, sensory challenges and some restrictive/ repetitive behaviours – their central difficulty is an anxiety-driven need to be in control and avoid everyday demands and expectations to an extreme extent.

The National Autistic Society describes the distinctive features of a demand avoidant profile as: • resisting and avoiding the ordinary demands of life • using social strategies as part of avoidance (for example, distracting or giving excuses) • appearing sociable, but lacking understanding • experiencing excessive mood swings and impulsivity SENISSUE95

It is the everyday tasks that those with PDA struggle with

• displaying obsessive behaviour that is often focused on other people.

•

Misunderstood People with a PDA profile are at particular risk of being misunderstood, as a recent survey by the PDA Society (Being Misunderstood, 2018), the largest on the topic to date, highlighted: • 70 per cent are not in school or regularly struggle to attend – this is school refusal at much higher levels than you would expect to see in the ASD population as a whole; the school environment is especially problematic for children with PDA, with even specialist ASD schools unable to help; some examples of best practice were identified and once there was proper understanding of need and suitable adjustments were made, outcomes improved • 70 per cent have found a lack of understanding/acceptance a barrier to getting support – the validity of PDA as a condition is still debated and so the usual lack of resources and professional training are exacerbated by feelings of

•

professional challenge and unwillingness to engage; because PDA is uncommon, there is little experience amongst front-line professionals and because similar behaviours can be seen in other conditions, the exact nature of the presentation can be hard to tease out 78 per cent have difficulties with daily tasks – unlike oppositional defiance disorder (ODD), a condition PDA can sometimes be mistaken for, it is the everyday tasks that those with PDA struggle with, from packing a bag to washing, dressing and eating; demands are ever-present and can take many forms; as well as the more obvious demands (like being asked or told to do something) there are things like expectations, thoughts, desires, peer pressure, uncertainty, transitions, special occasions and praise 49 per cent of the young people whose experiences were covered in this survey and who had a diagnosis had one that includes mention of a PDA profile – terminology that includes a demand avoidant profile is being widely used in some parts of the country, although accessing an assessment for the PDA aspects of ASD is not only a postcode lottery but can vary from one clinician to another within the same local authority;

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PDA

the Being Misunderstood report calls for local leaders to adopt a position statement on the PDA profile to clear up the confusion over assessments and service availability that currently exists • conventional ASD approaches hinder rather than help – this is the single most important point about living and working with people who have a PDA profile; the support strategies are completely different; using the incorrect strategies, including those recommended for other profiles on the autism spectrum, is not only ineffective but also counter-productive and even harmful.

These stark statistics should be a wake-up call to everyone working in the SEN sector, and cause everyone to ask themselves whether PDA might be the answer to children whose behaviour may be hard to understand or pigeon hole.

The PDA profile turns all teaching, parenting and caring norms upside down

Helpful strategies Once the underlying cause of behaviours is understood, it becomes easier to think about how best to help.

The PDA profile turns all teaching, parenting and caring norms upside down; conventional techniques such as praise, boundaries and rewards and consequences fail, whereas negotiation, collaboration, minimal ground rules and careful use of language help.

People with a PDA profile are highly anxious and unable to tolerate uncertainty, so strategies that keep anxiety to a minimum and provide

A school for Finley

Finley has a recent autism diagnosis and both his family and school believe he fits the PDA profile perfectly. He responds to PDA strategies and “typical” autism strategies often result in severe difficulties.

a sense of control are good starting points. Always plan ahead, allow plenty of time, pick battles carefully, remain calm and have a plan B up your sleeve.

Constant fine-tuning of the balance between the demands being placed on the person with PDA and their ability to tolerate demands is required; there are times when demands need to be minimised and others where they can be increased. Techniques for making demands more indirect – including rephrasing requests, providing choices, depersonalising, distracting, using humour and role play – are invaluable.

It’s also very important not to lose sight of the positives. The PDA Society’s survey asked what the greatest rewards of living and working with a person with PDA were. The vast majority of respondents shared details of the many positive personal qualities their child exhibited, including intelligence, humour, creativity, talents, individuality, resilience and determination.

With greater awareness and acceptance of PDA it is to be hoped that a “needs-based and outcomesfocussed” approach will become the norm for this most misunderstood group of autistic people, and not the exception as it so often is today.

Finley struggled with school from the outset and was first excluded in January of Year 1. Attempts to reintroduce Finley to school, even on a part-time timetable, failed and he was taught at home for two hours a day by a teacher from a pupil referral unit.

Following multi-agency meetings and a lengthy, bespoke transition process, Finley started at a special school in Year 4. Some of the approaches that work well (though none are guaranteed and Finley still struggles at some point every day) include: • providing a safe base to be in when he choses • using his current special interests to build relationships • play-based learning • humour • distraction • using surprises or novel experiences to gain interest • having trusted adults around or nearby at all times • indirect questions or requests • providing Finley with a way out of difficult situations • adults who can think quickly and adapt on the go.

Further information

Sally Russell OBE was a CoFounder of Netmums and Founding Chair of the Institute of Health Visiting. She is a trustee of the PDA Society and the author of the report discussed in this article, Being Misunderstood: Experiences of the Pathological Demand Avoidance Profile of ASD: www.pdasociety.org.uk

His school says that the most crucial aspects of the journey were a commitment to open and honest dialogue with Finley’s family and the full support of the school’s senior leadership team.

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RECRUITMENT

A bright future in SEN teaching Sarah Keating looks at what SEN settings are doing to meet their recruitment needs

W

hile many UK schools are struggling to recruit, in SEN teaching I believe the passion for, and interest in, the sector is as strong as ever. Challenge is high and resources may be tight, but every day I meet people interested in working or progressing in this rewarding sector, and inspirational leaders looking to make the right appointment.

The ability to deliver bespoke, childcentred teaching, to up-skill and to specialise is an enormous draw for teachers. Specialist work, though, requires specialist skills, as well as motivated staff who are keen to be the change they want to see, and are equipped to deliver it.

Recruiting school staff can be difficult, and holding onto staff, developing them and staying relevant as an employer, even more so. Schools need to attract the right candidates in the first place, train them effectively and retain them.

Good schools are always keen to evaluate the career paths they provide candidates to identify the best fit. It’s important to consider a candidate’s “lived experience”, as well as their skills and qualifications. The right employee will be able to separate the personal and professional, drawing upon their experience without being driven by personal views.

Training Some schools are developing their own internal “academy”, by growing and then harvesting talent from within. The success of school-based teacher training transfers from other internal roles is also in evidence, with organisations looking to develop raw talent through apprenticeships and career paths for non-teaching posts.

Education leavers, graduates and

Attracting staff As schools grapple with ever smaller budgets, there is a need to be more creative, while still attracting the best quality they can; it’s a balancing act.

The school needs to ensure it is promoting itself in ways which will attract the right personalities and professionals. Some schools may need help with this, especially through periods of change or instability.

An effective online presence and appropriate national advertising can be used to good effect to promote the school and the vacancy.

Schools can’t afford to get it wrong, so painstaking precision is called for in trialling and assessing job roles and SENISSUE95

teaching assistants may be inspired to complete teacher training or further study, with the benefit of the insight they have gained on what is really needed for the role and how the school operates.

However, up-skilled and jobready candidates are still very much in demand. Stand-out candidates never stop developing themselves; they enthusiastically take up offers of continuing professional development (CPD) and continually raise the bar for themselves.

Good schools are always keen to evaluate the career paths they provide, to look at what they can offer staff in terms of progression and development: Can they identify more lead roles in SEN and other areas? Can they create pathways for additional responsibility?

Many schools are establishing partnerships for sourcing staff who are pre-trained or re-trained in key areas, such as moving and handling, and autism awareness, to effectively meet unexpected or last minute demands, expanding pupil numbers and new referrals.

Recruiting the right staff to work with pupils with SEN takes time and good planning, but the rewards can be great: better outcomes and opportunities for staff, schools and, crucially, students.

Further information

Sarah Keating is the SEND team lead at Vision For Education’s Huddersfield branch: www.visionforeducation.co.uk A candidate’s life experiences are important to schools.

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RECRUITMENT

Principal Resourcing was established in 2004 and is now recognised as a leading provider of quality supply & permanent SEN staff throughout the entire region.

Principal Resourcing is committed to providing experienced teachers and support staff to work with children with ‘Special Education Needs’ and have created a specialist team to work in this field.

We provide schools, local authorities, pupil referral units, alternative providers, and other educational establishments with specific pupil interventions with qualified teachers and specialist learning support staff for a range of intervention tactics including: • • • •

One-to-one tuition Small group/peer group tuition Booster sessions Revision classes

• Holiday programmes • Additional support for looked after children

The ‘Principal Resourcing Permanent Solution’ is a robust, cost-effective package which captures all of the recruitment needs of your school.

The package available offers a comprehensive range of options which is bespoke to your needs. We found that schools were looking for a package that was flexible enough to meet their changing needs, as the level of support they require varies from vacancy to vacancy.

Contact Principal Resourcing today and speak to your local consultant about how we can work together supporting you with any staffing solutions you might need.

Hull: 01482 580409 Leeds: 0113 8874380 Doncaster: 01302 910474 Grimsby: 01472 483121 Scarborough: 01723 384559 York: 01904 202296 Lincoln: 01522 243134

www.principalresourcing.co.uk

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CPD, training and events Keep up to date with the latest developments in special educational needs, with SEN Magazine's essential guide to the best courses, workshops, conferences and exhibitions We take every care when compiling the information on the following pages. However, details may change, and we recommend that you contact the event organisers before you make arrangements to attend.

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CPD, TRAINING AND EVENTS

Rebound Therapy Training Courses ‘ReboundTherapy.org’ – the official UK body and international consultancy for Rebound Therapy.

Responsible for the development and delivery of the genuine ‘Eddy Anderson model’ accredited and approved training courses.

Founded 1972

01342 870543

www.reboundtherapy.org

New Skills Academy New Skills Academy pride themselves on providing the best online education courses to further your career. Their experienced tutors have meticulously created some incredibly well received diplomas. Their diverse portfolio includes courses in the following areas: Autism Awareness Diploma; ADHD Diploma; Asperger Syndrome Awareness Diploma. newskillsacademy.co.uk

Special Needs and Disability (postgraduate course) Anglia Ruskin University

ARU offers an innovative postgraduate course in Special Educational Needs and Disability.

It is offered from their Chelmsford campus with start dates of January and September. To find out more, visit: www.anglia.ac.uk

MA in Education (Early Years) modules Centre for Research in Early Childhood

CREC offers a flexible way for trainees and early years practitioners to gain a post graduate Masters degree in Early Years Education. All modules are designed specifically for early years practitioners and leaders in the early years. They are offered as part-time courses which can be fitted around a busy, full-time working life. http://www.crec.co.uk/ma-in-education

We take every care when compiling the information on these pages. However, details may change, and we recommend that you contact the event organisers for up-to-date information before you make arrangements to attend.

MsC Speech and Language Sciences MSc University College London

This MSc is an accredited professional programme leading to qualification as a speech and language therapist (SLT). A clinical training programme as well as a challenging academic degree, the core subject is speech and language pathology and therapy.

Students consider approaches to the investigation and management of clients with communication and swallowing problems. www.ucl.ac.uk

University of Aberdeen

The programme aims to give practitioners an in-depth understanding of the condition and the working of the autistic mind. It seeks to equip participants with a range of practical approaches and interventions that will enable children and young people on the spectrum to access learning, participate actively, experience success, gain independence, and fulfil their potential. www.abdn.ac.uk

MA in Education (Early Years) Centre for Research in Early Childhood

Severe, Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulties MEd/Postgraduate Diploma/ Postgraduate Certificate/ BPhil/Advanced Certificate University of Birmingham

This blended learning programme has been developed for a range of professionals/practitioners who work with children and adults with learning difficulties in educational settings across the severe and profound range (SLD/ PMLD) including autism (where it overlaps with SLD/ PMLD). www.birmingham.ac.uk

WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

MEd Autism and Learning

All Modules are designed specifically for early years practitioners and leaders in the early years. As such, they are offered as part-time courses which can be fitted around a busy, full-time working life. www.crec.co.uk

MA in Professional Practice for Dyslexia and Literacy

Dyslexia Action’s Master’s Degree in Dyslexia credits are undertaken with Middlesex University London.

This part of the programme is applied for directly with the University. dyslexiaaction.org.uk

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CPD, TRAINING AND EVENTS MA Leading Inclusive Education Middlesex University

Developing inclusive education practice to support the needs of all learners is one of the most important challenges facing education professionals today. The MA Leading Inclusive Education is a distance-learning pathway for education professionals seeking to develop their leadership careers, offering alternatives to, and routes on from, current NCTL leadership qualifications and the National Award for SEN Coordination. www.mdx.ac.uk

Enrol to suit CACHE Level 3 Qualification: Supporting Children and Young People’s Speech, Language and Communication via The Communication Trust’s Platform 3.

Up to ten credits; achieve within four months. £450. https://coursebeetle.co.uk/platform-3

Various Dates

Pathological Demand Avoidance Syndrome (PDA) Workshop A course that focuses particularly on the understanding that individuals with these conditions may communicate/present differently to neurotypical learners but can still achieve their potential with the implementation of appropriate interventions. Various dates and times see website for more details: www.peoplefirsteducation.co.uk

Throughout 2018

The Education and Academies Show Manchester, Newmarket, Farnborough, Birmingham

Major UK education shows – attracting 300+ school decisionmakers and over 100 key exhibitors. http://eashows.uk

July 2018

Online – live now Autism in Women and Girls This online module explores how autism can differ in women and girls, and how best to recognise and support these autistic women and girls. www.autism.org.uk/training

Various Dates

Visual Interventions and Social Stories A visual and auditory social and behavioural strategy for teaching and support staff working with learners with autism, Asperger syndrome, ADHD and related conditions. Various dates see website for more details: www.peoplefirsteducation.co.uk

Various Dates

5 July

Kidz to Adultz Wales and West Thornbury Leisure Centre, Bristol

One of the largest free UK exhibitions dedicated to children and young adults with a disability or additional needs, their families, carers and the professionals who support them. 120+ exhibitors offering advice and information on funding, mobility, seating, beds, communication, access, education, toys, transport, style, sensory, sports, leisure and more. www.kidzexhibitions.co.uk

5 and 6 July

SEMH: From Theory Into Practice

Postgraduate Open Days University of Derby

Join University of Derby at their free Postgraduate Open Day to find out more about their current, topical and relevant courses, designed to help you progress in your career. They offer teacher training degrees in Early Years, Primary, Secondary and Post-14 and masters courses in Education, Childhood, Careers Education and Coaching, Inclusion and SEND, and Educational Leadership.

Find out more by visiting: www.derby.ac.uk/open-days

9 to 13 July

Innovation Festival 2018 The festival will consider what can be done through innovation and tech to help those with a visual impairment at home and at work. https://innovationfestival.org

13 July

Intensive Interaction for People with Autism Niland Conference Centre, Bushey, WD23 4EE

A one-day course which will be of interest to those involved in the care, support or education of children or adults with autism.

Lunch and refreshments included. www.intensiveinteraction.org/training/ courses

28 and 29 July

Therapeutic Work with Teenagers: Offering a Wealth of Tools, Techniques and Ways of Being Alongside Troubled Teenagers Weekend Training: 10.00 - 17.00 Cost: £330 The Centre for Child Mental Health

020 7354 2913

Coldra Court Hotel, Newport

info@childmentalhealthcentre.org www.childmentalhealthcentre.org

Designed to enable successful inclusion of a broad range of individuals and groups of learners including those with neurological conditions such as autism, Asperger syndrome, ADHD, ADD and related disorders whilst fully meeting the needs of their peers.

Various dates and times see website for more details:

engage in their future and SEBDA are staging a joint conference for 2018 around the theme “SEMH: From Theory Into Practice”. The programme includes keynote talks from Lemn Sissay, Harry Daniels and Sharon Gray, plus a choice of workshops, TeachMeet and networking opportunities.

For further information and to book your place, v​ isit:

www.peoplefirsteducation.co.uk

www.engageinsebda.co.uk

Promoting Positive Behaviour

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7 July and 6 Sept

We take every care when compiling the information on these pages. However, details may change, and we recommend that you contact the event organisers for up-to-date information before you make arrangements to attend.

23 and 24 August

PECS Level 1 Training Workshop Brighton

PECS is an approach that teaches functional communication skills using pictures. This workshop will give you all the practical details you need to start implementing PECS immediately, including: demonstrations, videos and opportunities to practice.

01273 609 555 www.pecs-unitedkingdom.com

30 and 31 August

PECS Level 1 Training Workshop Aberdeen

PECS is an approach that teaches functional communication skills using pictures. This workshop will give you all the practical details you need to start implementing PECS immediately, including: demonstrations, videos and opportunities to practice.

01273 609 555 www.pecs-unitedkingdom.com

September 2018 12 September

Autism and Mental Health Conference Leeds

This conference will give you tools and strategies to identify and provide targeted support for autistic children and adults who have mental health difficulties. www.autism.org.uk/conferences

19 September

SoSAFE! Social and Sexual Safety/ Safeguarding Workshop London

How safe are your students in their relationships? The need to educate children and young people about relationships and social safety is not being met at the moment. SoSAFE! is a visual teaching tool which enables learners to develop their abilities in managing and communicating about their relationships.

01273 609 555 www.pecs-unitedkingdom.com

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CPD, TRAINING AND EVENTS 20 September

Autism and Technology Conference London

This free one-day conference will feature the latest research and developments in technology for autistic individuals and the professionals who support them. www.autism.org.uk/conferences

Starts 28 September

Intensive Interaction Good Practice Course Mount Pleasant Hotel,Great Malvern, WR14 4PZ

A six-month mentored course to develop good Intensive Interaction practices using a combination of tutoring methods. www.intensiveinteraction.org/training/ courses

26 September

Understanding stress and anxiety in autism and their impact on behaviour Manchester

A one-day course that explores how you can help autistic children and adults to reduce stress and anxiety, how to understand their behaviour and how to support them during difficult times. www.autism.org.uk/training

29 September

The Promise and the Pain of Social Media, Self Harm and Other Health-Harming Behaviours. Building resilience and healthhealing alternatives 10.00 - 17.00 Cost: £183 The Centre for Child Mental Health

020 7354 2913 info@childmentalhealthcentre.org www.childmentalhealthcentre.org

October 2018

2 October

6 October

9 October

A Practical Guide to the Schools’ Single Central Record (SCR)

Therapeutic Stories for Troubled Children: How to Write One and Get Published

A Practical Guide to the Schools’ Single Central Record (SCR)

London

Afternoon Conference 14.00 - 17.00 Cost: £80 The Centre for Child Mental Health

Birmingham

This practical workshop considers the issues around setting up and maintaining the data on the Schools’ Single Central Record (SCR) in the context of the regulations, guidance and best practice. This course is also available as an INSET. www.nsmtc.co.uk

3 October

Autism and eating challenges London

This course will examine and explore the common patterns of eating in autistic children and evidence and practice-based strategies for intervention. www.autism.org.uk/training

3 October

Supporting Students with a visual impairment (including preparation for exams) A practical introduction to supporting students with a visual impairment in mainstream classes. £80 with lunch and refreshments included.

01905 763933 www.ncw.co.uk

4 October

A Practical Guide to the Schools’ Single Central Record (SCR) Leeds

This practical workshop considers the issues around setting up and maintaining the data on the Schools’ Single Central Record (SCR) in the context of the regulations, guidance and best practice. This course is also available as an INSET.

020 7354 2913 info@childmentalhealthcentre.org www.childmentalhealthcentre.org

9 October

This practical workshop considers the issues around setting up and maintaining the data on the Schools’ Single Central Record (SCR) in the context of the regulations, guidance and best practice. This course is also available as an INSET. www.nsmtc.co.uk

Understanding stress and anxiety in autism and their impact on behaviour

EduTECH Asia 2018

London

Suntec, Singapore

A one-day course that explores how you can help autistic children and adults to reduce stress and anxiety, how to understand their behaviour and how to support them during difficult times.

EduTECH Asia this October will address key pedagogies, technologies and innovation transforming K-12, Tertiary, SEN, ECE and VET education in Asia.

9 and 10 October

www.terrapinn.com/edutechasia2018

www.autism.org.uk/training

9 October

ERIC Paediatric Continence Care Conference – Broadening Horizons: Challenging our Continence Comfort Zone Hilton Birmingham Metropole

Starts 16 October 2018

Intensive Interaction Good Practice Course Cambridge Hotel, Huddersfield, HD1 5BS

A six-month mentored course to develop good Intensive Interaction practices using a combination of tutoring methods.

The conference will: showcase new research; highlight the impact of continence problems on the everyday lives of children and teenagers; discuss innovative and practical management approaches; present resources to support delivery of continence care; and provide opportunities to learn about all stages of the continence journey

www.intensiveinteraction.org/training/

www.eric.org.uk/conference2018

www.autism.org.uk/training

courses

11 October

PDA – strategies for school London

This one-day course, delivered by Jilly Davis, is for school staff who are supporting children with PDA (pathological demand avoidance).

www.nsmtc.co.uk

5 and 6 October Starts 2 October

Intensive Interaction Coordinator Course

The Tes SEN Show Business Design Centre, London

www.intensiveinteraction.org/training/

The Tes SEN Show provides SEN professionals with direct access to expert speakers, unrivalled CPD opportunities and the latest resources available to the sector.

Find out more at:

courses

www.tessenshow.co.uk

Mount Pleasant Hotel, Great Malvern, WR14 4PZ

For all practitioners who work in the field

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CPD, TRAINING AND EVENTS

Every Child Included in Education conference The conference will be held on Wednesday 17 October at Newbury Racecourse and will feature a wide range of speakers who will take delegates through the journey of a child’s education from early years to post-16 and beyond.

Organisers say schools, colleges, early years settings, parents, carers, businesses and sector leaders will share what an education system that leaves no child behind can look like in practice, and the life-changing affect that a fresh approach to exclusions, parental engagement and wellbeing can have on today’s children, young people and their families.

Speakers will include: Joan Deslandes, Headteacher of Kingsford Community School; Brian Lamb OBE, SEN adviser and Chair of the Lamb Inquiry; Thelma Walker MP, Member of the Education Select Committee; and representatives from the Department for Education and Education Endowment Trust.

For further information, visit: www.afaeducation.org/2018-conference

WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

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16 to 18 October

Music & Drama Education Expo | Manchester

Advanced Applications of TEACCH: “Beyond the Basics”

Europe’s leading conference

Next step for TEACCH practitioners in pathway to Certified Practitioner accreditation.

Stimulating and motivational three-day course to extend skills to consult, mentor and train other professionals in the TEACCH philosophy and strategies. Not available elsewhere outside the US TEACCH – early booking

for music and drama teachers returns to Manchester. The day features 20 CPD workshops and exhibition stands from leading arts organisations. Book free tickets at: www.mdexpo.co.uk/manchester

11 October

A Practical Guide to the Schools’ Single Central Record (SCR)

recommended.

Bristol

Development Centre, Newbury,

This practical workshop considers the issues around setting up and maintaining the data on the Schools’ Single Central Record (SCR) in the context of the regulations, guidance and best practice. This course is also

Berkshire

available as an INSET. www.nsmtc.co.uk

£795 professional/parent Prior’s Court Training and

Effective Intervention – Creating an Outstanding Nurture Group London

This course is designed to help delegates set up and/or develop a nurture group, using the Boxall Profile to identify pupils who will benefit from nurture groups as well as looking at ways to encourage children to build their confidence and learn good behaviour. The course will also examine what makes an outstanding nurture group and how to prepare for inspection. www.nsmtc.co.uk

15 and 16 October

PECS Level 1 Training Workshop

Five-Day TEACCH Course Inspirational, intensive course combining active learning sessions with direct experience working with students with autism. Led by trainers from Division TEACCH, University of North Carolina and experienced practitioners and TEACCH trainers from Prior's Court. Course runs twice a year in February and October. Places limited so early booking advised. £1295 professionals/parents.

Prior’s Court Training and Development Centre, Newbury, Berkshire

01635 245911

training@priorscourt.org.uk

training@priorscourt.org.uk www.priorscourt.org.uk

17 October

Every Child Included in Education The Achievement for All Every Child Included in Education conference will involve schools, colleges, early years settings, parents, carers, businesses and sector leaders in sharing what an education system that leaves no child behind can look like in practice. It will also look at the life-changing affect that a fresh approach to exclusions, parental engagement and wellbeing can have on children, young people and their families. www.afaeducation.org/2018-conference

22 October

Effective Intervention – Creating an Outstanding Nurture Group Birmingham

Effective Intervention – Creating an Outstanding Nurture Group Leeds

This course is designed to help delegates set up and/or develop a nurture group, using the Boxall Profile to identify pupils who will benefit from nurture groups as well as looking at ways to encourage children to build their confidence and learn good behaviour. The course will also examine what makes an outstanding nurture group and how to prepare for inspection. www.nsmtc.co.uk

25 to 27 October

GESS Turkey Wow Istanbul Convention Centre

Visitors can meet the full sphere of educational establishments from early years, K-12 private and public schools, vocational colleges and universities. They will also find ministerial delegates, private school owners, directors, principals, heads of department, procurement and purchasing managers. www.gess-turkey.com

opportunities to practice.

01273 609 555

how to prepare for inspection.

This popular postgraduate certificate in autism and Asperger syndrome is run with Sheffield Hallam University.

www.pecs-unitedkingdom.com

www.nsmtc.co.uk

www.autism.org.uk/training

PECS is an approach that teaches functional communication skills using pictures. This workshop will give you all the practical details you need to start implementing PECS immediately, including: demonstrations, videos and

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Effective Intervention – Creating an Outstanding Nurture Group Cardiff

This course is designed to help delegates set up and/or develop a nurture group, using the Boxall Profile to identify pupils who will benefit from nurture groups as well as looking at ways to encourage children to build their confidence and learn good behaviour. The course will also examine what makes an outstanding nurture group and how to prepare for inspection. www.nsmtc.co.uk

8 November 24 October

This course is designed to help delegates set up and/or develop a nurture group, using the Boxall Profile to identify pupils who will benefit from nurture groups as well as looking at ways to encourage children to build their confidence and learn good behaviour. The course will also examine what makes an outstanding nurture group and

Newcastle

8 November

www.priorscourt.org.uk

01635 245911

Newbury Racecourse

11 October

22 to 26 October

November 2018 November 2018

Postgraduate certificate in autism and Asperger syndrome Manchester

Kidz to Adultz North EventCity, Manchester

One of the largest free UK exhibitions dedicated to children and young adults with a disability or additional needs, their families, carers and the professionals who support them. 180+ exhibitors offering advice and information on funding, mobility, seating, beds, communication, access, education, toys, transport, style, sensory, sports, leisure and more. www.kidzexhibitions.co.uk

9 November

New College Worcester Outreach Open Day Practical support and advice on teaching young people who are visually impaired. Specific curriculum areas such as maths, PE, music, science and Braille. £80 with lunch and refreshments included.

01905 763933 www.ncw.co.uk

20 November 2018

Additional Learning Needs in Wales: priorities for shaping, implementing and monitoring the ALN Code Central Cardiff Morning

This seminar is bringing together key policymakers and stakeholders to discuss the development and implementation of the Additional Learning Needs Code – focusing on governance, funding and regulation. www.westminsterforumprojects.co.uk

WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

CPD, TRAINING AND EVENTS 22 and 23 November

PECS Level 1 Training Workshop Manchester

PECS is an approach that teaches functional communication skills using pictures. This workshop will give you all the practical details you need to start implementing PECS immediately, including: demonstrations, videos and opportunities to practice.

01273 609 555 www.pecs-unitedkingdom.com

December 2018

2-Day SCERTS Training 6 December 2018

The next steps for SEND education – high needs funding, local SEND service provision and improving outcomes This timely seminar will consider next steps for special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) policy – focusing on high needs funding, local SEND provision and opportunities for improving outcomes.

29 November

Preparing Tactile Diagrams This course will provide hints and

www.westminsterforumprojects.co.uk

and geography, using CorelDRAW

January 2019 January 2019

and formatting documents. £80

3-Day TEACCH Training Course

with lunch and refreshments

Led By Professor Gary Mesibov

included.

former Dir. of Div TEACCH.

01905 763933

Cost: £398.

www.ncw.co.uk

www.autismuk.com

WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

Training course led by Emily Rubin, MS, CCC-SLP Director, Communication Crossroads.

Cost: £265. www.autismuk.com

22 January

Outreach Open Day Practical support and advice on teaching young people who are visually impaired. Specific curriculum areas such as maths, PE, music, science and Braille. £80 with lunch and refreshments included.

01905 763933 www.ncw.co.uk

February 2019

11 to 15 February 2019

Five-Day TEACCH Course Inspirational, intensive course combining active learning sessions with direct experience working with students with autism. Led by trainers from Division TEACCH, University of North Carolina and experienced practitioners and TEACCH trainers from Prior's Court. Course runs twice a year in February and October. Places limited so early booking advised.

Prior’s Court Training and Development Centre, Newbury, Berkshire £1295 professionals/parents

01635 245911

training@priorscourt.org.uk www.priorscourt.org.uk

tips on how to produce a tactile diagram for science, mathematics

January 2019

6 February

Professionals Welcome Day (including monitoring visit opportunity)

New College Worcester opens its doors to professionals from support agencies, charities and local authorities to take a closer look. Includes the NCW offer, tour and lesson observations. Free.

01905 763933

We take every care when compiling the information on these pages. However, details may change, and we recommend that you contact the event organisers for up-to-date information before you make arrangements to attend.

www.ncw.co.uk

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SEN RESOURCES DIRECTORY

SEN resources directory Information, advice and support for all things SEN...

ADHD

Bullying

Epilepsy Epilepsy Action

ADDers.org

Bullying UK

Information and support forum for those

Support and advice on bullying:

affected by ADD/ADHD:

www.bullying.co.uk

www.epilepsy.org.uk

Childline

Young Epilepsy

www.adders.org

National Attention Deficit Disorder from bullying: Information and Support Service www.childline.org.uk (ADDISS)

Advice and support for those suffering

Resources and information for ADHD:

Support for children and young people with epilepsy plus training for professionals:

www.youngepilepsy.org.uk

Cerebral palsy

www.addiss.co.uk

Autism/ASD

Advice and information on epilepsy:

Scope UK

FASD The FASD Trust

Help, advice and support for children

Asperger Foundation UK (ASF)

Foetal alcohol spectrum disorder charity.

and adults affected by cerebral palsy:

www.fasdtrust.co.uk

Support for people with Asperger’s syndrome:

www.scope.org.uk

www.aspergerfoundation.org.uk

Autism Awareness Forum for sharing experience/advice for those affected by ASD:

www.autism-awareness.org.uk

Down syndrome Down’s Syndrome Association (DSA)

Charity raising funds for medical research into autism:

www.autistica.org.uk

National Autistic Society (NAS) Help and information for those affected

by ASD:

www.autism.org.uk

Research Autism Charity focused on researching interventions in autism:

www.researchautism.net

Bullying Anti-Bullying Alliance (ABA) Charity dedicated to reforming attitudes and policy towards bullying:

www.anti-bullyingalliance.org.uk

Beat Bullying

Support for those affected by foetal alcohol spectrum disorder:

www.nofas-uk.org

Information, support and training for

General SEN

those affected by Down syndrome:

www.downs-syndrome.org.uk

Autistica

The National Organisation for Foetal Alcohol Syndrome UK

The Down’s Syndrome Research Foundation UK (DSRF) Charity focussing on medical research into Down syndrome:

www.dsrf-uk.org

Dyslexia British Dyslexia Association (BDA) Information and support for people affected by dyslexia:

www.bdadyslexia.org.uk

Driver Youth Trust Charity offering free information and resources on dyslexia.

www.driveryouthtrust.com

Dyspraxia Dyspraxia Foundation UK

British Institute for Learning Disabilities Charity for learning disabilities:

www.bild.org.uk

Cerebra UK Charity for children with brain related conditions:

www.cerebra.org.uk

Child Brain Injury Trust Charity supporting children, young people, families and professionals.

www.childbraininjurytrust.org.uk

Department for Education (DfE) UK Government department.

www.education.gov.uk

Mencap Learning disabilities charity:

www.mencap.org.uk

National Association for Special Educational Needs (NASEN)

UK bullying prevention charity:

Dyspraxia advice and support:

Organisation for the education, training, advancement of those with SEN:

www.beatbullying.org

www.dyspraxiafoundation.org.uk

www.nasen.org.uk

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SEN RESOURCES DIRECTORY

General SEN

PMLD

SEN.fyi (App)

PMLD Network

Everything You Wanted to Know About SEN – all in one place! Download this app free to your Smartphone or Tablet for iOS (on Apple App store) or Android (on Google Play store):

Information and support for PMLD:

www.specialeducationalneeds.co.uk/ senfyi-app.html

www.pmldnetwork.org

Rebound Therapy ReboundTherapy.org

SEN law Douglas Silas Solicitors

Action on Hearing Loss Hearing impairment charity:

www.actiononhearingloss.org.uk

Deafness Research UK Charity promoting medical research into hearing impairment:

www.deafnessresearch.org.uk

National Deaf Children’s Society Charity to help deaf children and young people:

www.ndcs.org.uk

Douglas Silas Solicitors are the legal experts specialising exclusively in SEN, helping parents successfully throughout the SEN process:

www.SpecialEducationalNeeds.co.uk

Independent Parental Special Education Advice

Education Lawyers specialise in helping families with children who have SEN through the EHC needs assessment process and with appeals to the SEND Tribunal.

www.educationlawyers.co.uk

Spina bifida Shine

www.thenuk.com

www.shinecharity.org.uk

Literacy National Literacy Trust (NLT)

National Blind Children’s Society

Support and services for parents and carers of blind children:

www.nbcs.org.uk

Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB)

Support and advice to those affected by visual impairment:

www.rnib.org.uk

For the latest news, articles, resources, cpd and events listings, visit: www.senmagazine.co.uk

ACE Centre Advice on communication aids:

www.ace-centre.org.uk

Afasic Help and advice on SLCN:

www.afasicengland.org.uk

Communication Matters

Literacy charity for adults and children:

Support for people with little or no clear speech:

www.literacytrust.org.uk

www.communicationmatters.org.uk

WWW.SENMAGAZINE.CO.UK

Visual impairment

SLCN

Learning outside the classroom

www.lotc.org.uk

Tourette's Action

Langley Wellington LLP Solicitors

Information and support relating to spina bifida and hydrocephalus:

Awarding body for the LOtC quality badge:

Tourette’s syndrome

www.ipsea.org.uk

National organisation for home educators:

Council for Learning Outside the classroom (CLOtC)

www.thecommunicationtrust.org.uk

Legal advice and support for parents:

Home education The Home Education Network UK

The Communication Trust Raising awareness of SLCN:

The UK governing body and international Information and advice on Tourette’s: www.tourettes-action.org.uk consultancy for Rebound Therapy:

www.reboundtherapy.org

Hearing impairment

SLCN

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