SEND Provision

Special Educational Needs & Disabilities (SENDCo)

SEND Co-ordinator: Mrs Maria Walker

SEND HLTA: Mrs Sarah Parker

If you would like to discuss SEND provision in detail, please contact the school office to arrange an appointment with the SEND Team.
Email: office@stmarysjarrow.co.uk
Telephone: 0191 489 8336

Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND)

Full details of our SEND provision can be found below.

Transition

How will the school prepare and support my child when joining St. Mary’s Catholic Primary School or transferring to a new school?

As a school, we know that transition periods can be significant for all of our pupils, but that these transitions can pose unique and complex challenges for children with SEND. We implement a number of different strategies to enable your child’s transition to be as smooth as possible. These include:

  • Prior to enrolment, discussions between the previous setting and staff from St. Mary’s will occur to share information which will support your child in their move.
  • All pupils attend a transition session where they spend some time with their new class teacher and have the chance to become familiar with their new learning environment.
  • When required, additional visits can also be arranged for pupils who need extra time to adapt to their new setting. Transition booklets can be provided / sent home to prepare children with photos of what to expect which they can revisit and discuss before enrolment.
  • Mrs. Colley (Head of school) and Mrs. Walker (SENCo) are always willing to meet parents/ carers prior to their child joining the school to discuss their concerns and make the relevant preparations. This can be organised via the school office.
  • Secondary school staff will visit Year 6 pupils prior to them joining their new school. Two transition days are organised in the Summer term, where pupils can have the opportunity to become acquainted with their new staff and environment.
  • Mrs. Colley and Mrs. Walker will liaise with the SENCOs from secondary schools to pass on information regarding all children, including SEN pupils.
  • Where a pupil may have more specialised needs, an individual approach is offered and separate meetings may be arranged with key staff and (where appropriate) the pupil. Additional transition sessions can be arranged to support individual pupils. Our Year 6 team work closely to identify any pupils who may find transition challenging and will share information to give each child the best chance to succeed in their new setting.

If you would like to discuss your SEND requirements in detail please contact the school to arrange an appointment.

Local Offer

What is the local offer?

The Local Offer provides information for children and young people with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and their parents or carers in a single place.

It gives information on what services children, young people and their families can expect from a range of local agencies, including education, health and social care. Knowing what is out there gives you more choice and more control over what support is right for your child.

The Local Offer provides information on a number of areas, including:

  • Special educational provision
  • Health provision
  • Social care provision
  • Other educational provision
  • Training provision
  • Travel arrangements for children and young people to schools, colleges and early years education
  • Preparing for adulthood, including housing, employment and leisure opportunities

The Local Offer has been produced jointly by South Tyneside Council, Social Care and Health Services in partnership with parents and carers. It aims to help us to make sure that we are providing the sort of services that families have told us they need.

Agencies and Partnerships

What specialist services and expertise are available at or can be accessed by the school?

At times it may be necessary to consult with outside agencies and partnerships to access their more specialised expertise and ensure the pastoral, medical and social needs of SEND children are met.

The agencies used by the school include:

  • Portage and preschool service (Nursery aged children)
  • Health visitors support
  • Inclusion services
  • Speech and Language team
  • Social Services
  • Educational Psychologist
  • CYPS (Child & Young People’s Service)
  • Lifecycles
  • Occupational Therapy
  • School Nursing Team
  • AO (Attendance Officer previously known as Educational Welfare Officers)
  • Sensory Support to support pupils with hearing/visual Impairment

At St. Mary’s, we work closely with the Educational Psychologist (EP). The EP normally only works directly with pupils whose needs are felt to be complex and have not previously responded to the specialist interventions put in place for them. This involvement is generally planned at an in school review meeting and there is a waiting list for this type of assessment.

An EP assessment should help parent/ carers / staff to understand the pupil’s educational needs better and the EP will offer advice to the school about how to best support the pupil in their future learning. The psychologist will generally meet with parents /staff to share information after an assessment has been completed.

If you would like to discuss your SEND requirements in detail please contact the school to arrange an appointment.

Supporting Parents

Below are some additional links that may assist you in supporting your child:

Parent/Carer/Family Coffee Mornings

We host regular coffee mornings on the last Thursday of each month. This is an informal session where you can meet with the School SEND team. The sessions may involve guest visitors, work sharing, sessions with the children or looking at school resources that support your child. An email will be sent via Arbor in advance of these meetings or to give alerts regarding changes to dates or times.

Key SEND Documents

Full details are provided in our SEND Policy, found on the policies page.

Additional information, guidance and documents related to SEND can be accessed below:

Accessibility Plan can be found on the policies page.

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Further Information & Support

Useful Links