Welcome to The Levett School's SEND page

Mrs Claire Robert - Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Coordinator and Designated Teacher for Children in Care

Miss Emma Place - Deputy Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Coordinator

Mrs Jane Bainbridge - Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Management Committee Representative

Special Educational Needs / Disabilities

The Special Education Needs Coordinator (SENCo) at The Levett School is Claire Robert.  There is also a deputy SENCo; Emma Place. The Levett School’s SEND Policy can be found under the policies section of the school website and on the staff shared drive/point.

The term 'special educational needs and disabilities' (SEN) is a legal definition, referring to children who have learning needs or disabilities that make it harder for them to learn than most children of the same age. Many children will have special needs of some kind at some time during their education.  There are two stages of SEND; SEND Support and Education Health and Care Plan. 

You can find out more information about special education needs and disabilities on Doncaster councils local offer website; https://www.doncaster.gov.uk/services/schools/local-offer-send

SEN Support

'SEN Support' is the first level of additional support provided for pupils with SEN.  If there is evidence to show that a pupil with SEN is not making as much progress as they could be, then the Special Education Needs Co-coordinator will put the pupil on the SEN register for 'SEN Support’. 

At The Levett School we adopt a graduated approach with four stages of action: assess, plan, do and review. This will aim to address a pupil who is struggling compared to their peers by providing them with additional support in school.

This could include:

• Involvement of extra staff

• The use of different learning materials or special equipment 

• A different teaching strategy

• Personalised activities.

At The Levett School the process of SEN Support is documented within a pupil’s SEN Plan or “Working Copy EHCP”.

The SENCo will work alongside a pupil’s teacher to help find ways of supporting and improving the pupil’s learning whilst they’re receiving support on 'SEN Support’.

If a child is shown not to have made adequate progress on ‘SEN Support’ then the SENCo will explore the option of soucing additional educational support for the child via external specialists/agencies. 

The school will ask for advice from the local authorities (LA) support services, usually the school's allocated Educational Psychologist, but may seek help from the local Health Authority. This could also include advice from a Speech & Language Therapist (SaLT), an Occupational Therapist (OT) or a Physiotherapist (PT).

Education Health and Care Plan

If a child with SEN has received support under ’SEN support’ with little or no success, it is then the responsibility of the SENCO to see if the child should be formally assessed for an Education Health and Care Plan. 

An Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan is for children and young people aged up to 25 who need more support than is available through special educational needs support.  An EHCP is a formal legal document that evidences a pupil’s strengths, needs, outcomes and provisions.  It is a legal requirement to review an EHCP annually or sooner if requested by parents or school.

A request for a statutory assessment of education, health and care can be made by school or parent if they think a pupil needs an EHCP.  A panel of professionals at the local authority (LA) decide whether or not to begin the statutory assessment process which could lead to the creation of an EHCP.  The LA will then ask other professionals for statutory advice (information) and write the EHCP.

You can find more information about SEN Support, EHCP and requests for EHC assessments on this webpage on Doncaster Council’s Local Offer website; https://www.doncaster.gov.uk/services/schools/local-offer-forms-and-guidance#1