Equality of Opportunity
Supporting Children with Special Educational Needs

Safeguarding and Welfare Requirement: Equal Opportunities:

Providers must have and implement a policy, and procedures,
to promote equality of opportunity for children in their care,
including support for children with special educational needs or disabilities.

Policy Statement

We are committed to providing an environment in which all children are accepted on equal terms and are
supported to reach their full potential. In order to achieve this we ensure that: -

• We have regard for the special educational needs and disability code of practice (2014)
• We ensure our provision is inclusive to all children with special educational needs;
• We support parents and children with special educational needs;
• We identify the specific needs of children with sen and meet those needs through a range of sen strategies;
• We work in partnership with parents and other agencies in meeting individual children’s needs;
• We monitor and review our policy, practice and provision and if necessary make adjustments.

Procedures

• We have a designated member of staff who is the Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCO). Her name is Danielle Holmes and Deputy SENCO Jade Barnett.
• The SENCO works closely with other colleagues and has responsibility for the day to day operation of our supporting children with special educational needs policy and for co coordinating provision for children with SEN
• We ensure that the provision for children with special educational needs is the responsibility of all members of the setting.
• We ensure that our inclusive admissions practice ensures equality of access and opportunity.
• We use the graduated response system for identifying, assessing and responding to children's special educational needs.
• We work closely with the parents of children with special educational needs to create and maintain a positive partnership.
• We ensure that parents are informed at all stages of the assessment, planning, provision and review of their children's education.
• We provide parents with information on sources of independent advice and support.
• We liaise with other professionals involved with children with special educational needs and their families, including in connection with transfer arrangements to other settings and schools.
• We provide a broad, balanced and differentiated curriculum for all children with special educational needs.
• Staff are sensitive to the needs and feelings of children with sen and their families and that individual needs are recognised and addressed and that privacy is respected in all children (particularly surrounding intimate care);
• The professionals we may work with are, area SENCO, Health Visitor, Speech and Language Therapist, Occupational Therapist, Paediatrician, Portage, Educational Psychologist, Physiotherapist, Child Psychiatrist.

Identifying and Assessing Children’s needs

• Our system of planning, implementing, monitoring, evaluating, reviewing and observation and record keeping, which operates in conjunction with parents/carers, enables us to monitor children’s needs and progress on an individual basis;
• Where there are concerns regarding development of an individual child, staff working with parents/carers may gather information surrounding these concerns, for example through observations, to give a clearer picture of the child’s needs;
• If a child is identified as, having specific needs then action will be taken, usually in the form of Individual Target Plans, which are drawn up, by the SENCO, parents and the child’s key worker. These set short term and long term goals, this is known as Assessment and Support
• If further action is needed then this will be discussed with the child’s parents/carers and we will request further support and advice known as Additional Assessment and Support this could be a specialist professional;
• If an Education, Health and Care Needs Assessment is required we will support this, this could lead to an EHC Plan.
• Assessment planning meeting will use the following person-centred tools:

1. What do we like and admire about…?
2. What is important to…?
3. What is important for…?
4. What is working well?
5. What is not working well?
6. What are the next actions?

• To gain views of parents we use ‘Preparing for the Assessment Process’ tool.
• We ensure that children with special educational needs are appropriately involved at all stages of the graduated response, taking into account their levels of ability.
• Children with special needs, like all other children, are admitted to the nursery after consultation between parents/carers, key worker and nursery manager;
• The individuality of all children is acknowledged, valued and respected and they are helped to feel positive about themselves whilst encouraging their confidence and independence;
• We raise awareness of any specialism the nursery has to offer e.g. Makaton trained staff;
• We ensure the effectiveness of our sen provision by collecting information from a range of resources e.g. Individual Target reviews, staff and management meetings, external agencies, inspections and complaints. This information is collated, evaluated and reviewed annually;
• We ensure all our staff are aware of our supporting children with educational needs policy and procedures for identifying, assessing and making provision for children with SEN. We provide in house training for parents, practitioners and volunteers
• We provide a complaints procedure. We monitor and review our policy annually