Legislation on Special Educational Needs in the UK v2

8/8/2019 Legislation on Special Educational Needs in the UK v2

1/41

Beijing QiruiRehabilitation Centre

Legislation on Special Educational Needs

in the UK

An overview of key legislation and

guidanceFacilitated by : Mike Blamires:Beijing, November [email protected]


2/41


Beijing QiruiRehabilitation Centre 2

Brief historyof SEN/Inclusion 19th century: idiots, imbeciles and feeble

minded kept in hospitals

1970: Education (Handicapped Children)Act took severely subnormal children fromhealth care into education

1978: The Warnock Report changevocabulary special educational neednot handicap

1981: Education Act - integration andstatements

1994: Salamanca Statement on the rightsof children with SEN to a mainstreamschool place. Also first SEN Code ofPractice


3/41



Brief historyof SEN/Inclusion

1995: Disability Code of Practice set out therights of disabled pupils

2000: National Curriculum inclusion statement

2001: SEN Code of Practice set out proceduresfor assessing the needs and providing for pupils with SEN

2001: Inclusive Schoolings framework forinclusion

2004: Removing Barriers to Learning embedding inclusive practice into every schoolsetting

2009 Bercow, Salt and Lamb Reviews


4/41



Special educational needs

Children have special educational needs if they have a learningdifficulty which calls for special educational provision to be made forthem. Children have a learning difficulty if they have a significantlygreater difficulty in learning than the majority of children of the same

age or have a disability.

DfES, 2001, SEN Code of Practice

Students with SEN are said to require somethingadditional toor different from that offeredto other students

4


5/41


School Action:

When a class teacher identifies that a pupil has SEN they provide interventions thatare additional to or different from those provided as part of the schools usualdifferentiated curriculum. An IEP is usually devised.

Special Educational Needs: Code of Practice

School Action Plus:

When outside agencies are brought in to help withprovision for the pupil. A new IEP is usuallydevised.

Statement of SEN:

A document issued by the LEA to show whatprovision should be made for a child with SEN.


6/41


Individual Education Plan:

A planning, teaching and reviewing tool which should:

Raise achievement for pupils with SENBe a working document - simple format, jargon free

Detail provision additional to ordifferent from those generallyavailable for all pupils

Detail targets (max 3 or 4) which are extra ordifferent from those for

most pupils

Should result in

Good planning and intervention bystaff

Achievement of specific learning goals for pupils with SEN

(IEPs are developing into provision maps and qualityfirstteaching)


7/41

Beijing QiruiRehabilitation CentreBeijing QiruiRehabilitation Centre 7

Duties on local authorities (continued)

To publish the responsibilities of schoolsand the local authority for fundingprovision for SEN

To provide education for students withSEN in mainstream schools, except undercertain conditions


8/41


Duties on local authorities

To identify, assess and provide, wherenecessary

To provide and publicise a parentpartnership service

To have regard to the SEN Code ofPractice


9/41


The power of parents/carers involvement

Desforges and Abouchaar found that:

Parental involvement in a childs

schooling, for a child between the ages ofseven and 16, is a more powerful force thanfamily background, size of family and levelof parental education

DfES Research Report 433, 2003


10/41


Outside mainstream education

A local authority need not place a student witha statement in a mainstream school if it is:

against the parents/carers wishes, or

incompatible with the efficient education ofother pupils(and there are no reasonable steps to prevent

this)

Education Act 1996, Schedule 27


11/41


Planning duties

The DDA requires schools and local authorities toincrease access to education for disabled students

They have a duty to plan for improvements:

in access to the curriculum

to the physical environment of the school toincrease access to education and associatedservices

in providing information in a range of formats fordisabled students


12/41


Outside mainstream education

A local authority need not place a studentwith a

statement in a mainstream school if it is:

against the parents/carers wishes, or incompatible with the efficient education

of other pupils (and there are no

reasonable steps to prevent this)

Education Act 1996, Schedule 27


13/41


Parents/carers concerns at transition

When their children started secondary school, parentsworried about:

bullying 53 per cent

drinking/drugs/smoking 20 per cent

happiness 17 per cent making friends 15 per cent

peer pressure 13 per cent

getting in with the wrong crowd 13 per cent

doing well academically 11 per cent

Mori survey, 2006


14/41


15/41


Definition of disability

The DDA defines a disabled person assomeone who has a physical or mentalimpairment which has a substantial and long-

term adverse effect on his or her ability tocarry out normal day-to-day activities.

Physical or mental impairment includessensory impairments and hidden

impairments. In the DDA,substantial

means more than minor or trivial andlong-term means a year or more.


16/41


Planning duties

SEN and DisabilityAct 2001

SEN arrangements

Disabilitydiscrimination

duties


17/41


Disabled students and potential students Every school and every aspect of school life:

admissions, education and associatedservices,exclusions

The responsible body for the school

Who and what is covered?

Protection from

discrimination


18/41


Two keyduties

Responsible bodies:

must not treat disabled students less favourably must make reasonable adjustments for

disabled students

Protection from

discrimination


19/41



20/41

Beijing QiruiRehabilitation Centre PGCE Session 1 20

Activity 1

Which of the following might be a reasonable

adjustment?

a) choosing an accessible venue for a school trip

b) playing football with a sounding ballc) swapping round classroom accommodation

d) setting up a buddy system

e) planning lessons so that all pupils make progress

f) demolishing the school and rebuilding it as single storey building


21/41


DisabilityDiscrimination Acts 1995and 2005

Parents can:

take claims of discrimination to the

Special Educational Needs and DisabilityPanel (SENDISP), and

ask for mediation to resolve disputes


22/41


Role of the SENCO

Oversees the day-to-day operation of theschools SEN policy

Co-ordinates provision for pupils with SEN

Liaises with teachers Manages teaching assistants

Oversees the records of pupils with SEN

Liaises with parents/carers

Contributes to in-service training

Liaises with outside agencies


23/41

Beijing QiruiRehabilitation CentreBeijing QiruiRehabilitation Centre

Video: A dayin the life of a SENCO


24/41


Activity 2

After viewing the video about the SENCO.

Discuss in pairs:

What do you think the most important aspect

of the SENCO role is?


25/41


26/41


Waves of interventionWaves of intervention model

Wave 3Additional highly

personalised

interventions

Wave 2Additional interventions to enable

students to work at age-related

expectations or above

Wave 1Inclusive quality first teaching for all


27/41


Waves model behaviour

Additional highly

personalised

interventions

Small-group intervention for children

who need additional help in developing

skills and their families

Quality first teaching of social, emotional andbehavioural skills to all children; effective whole-

school or setting policies and frameworks for

promoting emotional health and well-being


28/41


Effective interventions

Not used as a substitute for quality firstteaching(wave 1)

Targeted at the right students through carefulassessment and monitoring of progress

Delivered by trained teaching assistants, who

receive ongoing support Time-limited with clear entry and exit criteria


29/41


Effective interventions (continued)

Evaluated for impact

Involve regular discussion between theteacher and teaching assistant

Monitored by the teacher

Linked, wherever possible, to the work ofthe rest of the class


30/41


31/41


Video: Teaching Assistants


32/41


Activity 3

Discuss in pairs

How can teachers work better with other

adults to meet special needs and support

inclusion?


33/41


34/41


Students and decision making

Children and young people with SEN have aunique knowledge of their own needs andcircumstances and their own views about whatsort of help they would like to help them make

the most of their education.

They should, where possible, participate in allthe decision-making processes that occur in

education.

DfES, 2001


35/41


Video: Pupil Voice in a Special School


36/41


The Achievement For All Projectin the NorthWest of England

Some of the findings so far are that;

Pupils with SEN do need an appropriate assessment of needs.

Some schools have found that transition is important.

There is a suggestion that the SEN service is separate from other services

There are benefits from improved communication with parents aboutlearning

A suggestion that there is an integration of different initiatives with a sharedresponsibility for SEN and outcomes.

The AFA project is about leadership with the SENCO role being concerned with

influencing senior leadership and in leading teaching and learning to raiseachievement, supporting strategies for inclusion, enabling pupil voice,collaboration across schools and working with parents and external agencies.


37/41


The Achievement For All Project in theNorthWest

This involved 450 schools in 10 Local Authorities in years one, five, sevenand ten. Fifteen thousand children are in the project now with anothercohort next year. It is lead by Manchester University and involves theNational Strategies, NCSL and TDA. The budget is 31 million pounds overtwo years and involved:

Assessment and tracking with interventions focused on stretching pupils Structured conversations with parents Schools can choose to develop wider outcomes than just academic

achievemente.g. a focus on reducing bullying.

The project claims a big impact that has been made quickly in that it has beenan eye opener for some professionals and teachers have learnt a lot about thechildren they teach. Participants have been positive as it is part of the schoolimprovement agenda and has interlinked with other guidance.


38/41


Findings from the Lamb Report of SEN andParents

We need better and early interventions with panels considering whether needs have been met.Further Challenges Statutorily required information is not published Information is often inaccessible There is poor communication with parents and not enough active listening The available support does not reach enough parents

A stronger voice for parents The needs to be a cultural change in the core offer SEN information should be mainstreamed Schools SEN policies should be simplified and parents consulted There information needs of parents in relation to SEN should be anticipated by schools and

services and this information should be accessible

There is a major problem with the deployment and standing of Parental PartnershipServices within the legislation. The concept of neutrality in the role has beenmisinterpreted. This does not mean being neutral hence Parental Partnership Services needto be retrained

A dedicated independent helpline is called for


39/41


2010 Green (consultation) Paper on SEN

The Green Paper will consider how we can achieve: better educational outcomes and life chances for children and young people

with special educational needs and disabilities - from the early yearsthrough to the transition into adult life and employment;

better early intervention to prevent problems later;

greater choice for parents in the schools their children attend and thesupport and services they receive, whether in a mainstream or specialschool setting;

public services centred on the needs of the family and child in the round,joining up support from education, social care and health, particularly for

those with the most severe and complex needs and at key transitions; and

streamlining assessment systems so that parents don't feel they have tostruggle with the system to get the support they need.


40/41


Acknowledgements

Some photos are taken from videos onwww.teachers.tv

Some slides are adapted from the TDA resource pack on SEN forundergraduate courses.

www.sen.ttrb.ac.uk


41/41


Questions and CommentsPlease...

Thank You

Documents

Legislation on Special Educational Needs in the UK v2