Special Education Needs at County Bridge
 

At County Bridge Primary School we are committed to delivering inclusive high quality teaching and learning that nurtures and enables all children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) to achieve the highest possible standards. Inclusion is a thread that runs through every area of the school and is a priority for every member of staff, placing the child at the core. All of our children are highly valued and respected and are supported by dedicated, skilled and motivated teachers.
 

Every single teacher in our school is a teacher of SEND. At the heart of our curriculum is a strong, in-depth knowledge of each and every child. We actively ‘get to know’ each child, getting to know their unique abilities, talents and interest. Our teachers and teaching assistants use their shared knowledge of each child, along with regular assessments to identify the children’s gaps and each child’s next steps to move their learning forward. The whole staff team work hard to ensure that children’s individual barriers to learning are identified and then support is put in place. Continual monitoring ensures that every child makes excellent progress, both academically and emotionally. An identified special educational need is not seen as a barrier for any of our children. All of our staff understand each child’s individual needs and plan accordingly, providing them with a full access to a broad and balanced curriculum, giving them and all children the opportunity to achieve their potential.
 

Pupil progress meetings are held half-termly involving the Headteacher, Assistant Headteacher, class teacher and teaching assistants. These meetings allow staff to discuss individual children’s progress and consider how to address next steps through carefully planned provision. Our expectation is that every child is able to achieve age related expectations, as a minimum, regardless of their special educational need or disability.
 

We are committed to fostering a love of learning. We want all of our children to be enthused and inspired in their learning and their interactions with each other. For our children with special educational needs, we deliver a curriculum that is personalised. Children benefit from our rich learning environment, they are supported through the use of additional resources to enhance their learning and develop independence. The range of resources include task slicers to break down tasks into small manageable chunks, word mats to enhance the use of good vocabulary, visual time lines to support their understanding of the school day, concrete resources and now and next boards.
 

Early identification of a child’s need is key in our school to ensure that children’s progress is accelerated and that opportunities are provided to maximise their learning. This begins before our children start school. We carry out home visits prior to our children starting nursery and identify any additional needs before the children even begin school in order to access the right services for support. We work closely with external agencies such as Speech and Language Therapy, Early Years SEN Team, North Star Inclusion Team, Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy to develop specific targets and programmes tailored to children’s needs.
 

We highly value parent partnership and work hard to utilise the unique knowledge parents have of their children to enhance our provision. Termly parent meetings for our children with SEND are held with the Assistant Headteacher (responsible for Inclusion). This is to celebrate the child’s achievements, discuss what support has been provided already, how effective this support has been and what progress has been made. We use this time to listen to parents’ views and opinions, offer support and discuss the children’s next steps.
 

Our SEND children leave County Bridge Primary with excellent outcomes, often above national. They are happy, confident, independent, and have a good development of our core values that enable them to contribute positively to the wider society.