Our APDR Process

SEND Information Summary:

Assess: We will assess each student’s current skills and levels of attainment on entry, which will build on previous settings and Key Stages, where appropriate. Class teachers will make regular assessments of progress for all students and identify those whose progress:

Is significantly slower than that of their peers starting from the same baseline
Does not match or improve the student's previous rate of progress
Does not close the attainment gap between the child and their peers
Widens the attainment gap

This may include progress in areas other than attainment, for example, social needs. When deciding whether further provision or enhanced support is required, we will start with the desired outcomes, including the expected progress and attainment, and the views and the wishes of the student and their family. We will use this to determine the support that is needed and whether we can provide it by adapting our core offer, or whether something different or additional is needed.

Plan: Our transition process mirrors our significant engagement with families throughout students’ time at ACE Tiverton. We will have an early discussion with the student and their parents/family when identifying whether they are well suited to a place with us, and regularly as progress is made or further enhanced support is required. These conversations will make sure that:

Everyone develops a good understanding of the student’s areas of strength and difficulty.
We take into account the family concerns.
Everyone understands the agreed outcomes sought for the student.
Everyone is clear on what the next steps are.
Notes of these early discussions will be added to the student’s record and given to their family.

Do: Our approach to teaching:

Teachers are responsible and accountable for the progress and development of all the students in their class. High quality teaching is our first step in responding to students who have SEN. This will be differentiated for individual students. Each student’s EHCP is the foundation on which the personalised teaching and learning approach is taken for each student. We weave together the best strategies to suit the individual, these include but are not limited to specific ASC approaches e.g TEACHH or Task Boxes/Lists. We also embed attachment and trauma informed strategies in our pedagogy as well as threading the nurture principles into our relational approach.

Supporting students moving between phases and preparing for adulthood

We will share information with the school, college, or other setting the student is moving to. We will agree with parent/family and students which information will be shared as part of this. We undertake regular visits and contact with the most relevant people, as part of the personalised plan to support the student into their new setting. This may also include travel training, support planning for uniform purchasing, meet and greets etc.

Adaptations to the curriculum and learning environment: We make the following adaptations to ensure all students’ needs are met:

Differentiating our curriculum to ensure all students are able to access it, for example, by grouping, 1:1 work, teaching style, content of the lesson, etc.
Personalising our resources and staffing.
Using recommended aids, such as laptops, coloured overlays, visual timetables, larger font, etc.
Adapting our teaching, for example, giving longer processing times, pre-teaching of key vocabulary, reading instructions aloud, etc.
Providing choice of seating and physical learning spaces for students.

Additional support for learning: We have a large team of Student, Family and Teaching assistants who are trained to deliver interventions such as ELSA, Precision Teaching, Homunculi, Lego Therapy, Mental Health First Aid, De-Escalation, Trauma Informed Practice. Teaching assistants will support students on a 1:1 basis when identified as part of a student’s consultation and admission process. Teaching assistants will support students in small groups as part of our core offer all classes are staff with a specialist Teacher and TA.

Review: We follow the graduated approach and the four-part cycle of assess, plan, do, review. The Learning Family Leader will work with staff to carry out a clear analysis of the student’s needs. This will draw on:

The teacher’s assessment and experience of the student.
Their previous progress and attainment and behaviour.
Other teachers’ assessments, where relevant.
The individual’s development in comparison to their peers and national data.
The views and experience of parents/family.
The student’s own views.
Advice from external support services, if relevant.
The assessment will be reviewed regularly.

All teachers and support staff who work with the student will be made aware of their needs, the outcomes sought, the support provided, and any teaching strategies or approaches that are required. We will regularly review the effectiveness of the support and interventions and their impact on the student’s progress. We use a student led one page profile and individual risk assessment for each student. This is reviewed at least termly and forms a core part of our ADPR cycle. We evidence the need and impact of enhanced provision through Personalised Learning or Positive Support plans, these are reviewed more frequently in line with the profile of student need.

Expertise and training of staff: Our Senior Leadership Team have a comprehensive and deep range of specialist experience in independent and maintained schools across the age range. Our Extended Leadership Team lead whole staff training on Preparation for Adulthood, Nurture, Specialism and Evidence for Learning.

Staff have been trained and receive regular refreshers in a number of specialist strategies including Autism Education Trust Awareness, trauma Informed Practice, Mental Health First Aid, Team Teach, AET and Attachment Theory alongside a broad range of De-Escalation and Behaviour training. We use specialist staff for student and family support interventions such as ELSA, OT, SALT and counselling.

Securing equipment and facilities: We are a purpose refurbished school with a contained building that has features such as acoustic ceiling and daylight lighting through the main spaces. Alongside the EHCP contents, an OT assessment is done if needed, to match students with the most appropriate seating and physical resources to enable excellent progress.

Evaluating the effectiveness of SEN provision: We evaluate the effectiveness of provision for students with SEN by:

Reviewing students’ individual progress towards their goals each term.
Reviewing the impact of interventions after 2-6 weeks, depending up on the intervention.
Using student questionnaires.
Monitoring by the TLR holder for Specialism and SLT.
Using provision maps to measure progress.
Holding annual reviews for students with EHC plans.