What sort of school are we?
The schools specialise in meeting the needs of pupils with emotional, social and behavioural difficulties and social communication difficulties, including children on the autistic spectrum. Pupils at Beckmead and Chaffinch Brook have received statements of SEN or Education Health and Care Plans (EHCP). Most pupils start at Bramley Bank without SEN statements or EHCPs. They have been identified as having additional needs through their schools and are referred through the Primary Fair Access Panel. The CLT at Alverston Gardens is a Key Stage 4 provision and includes SEN pupils and pupils out of education, where referrals come through the Secondary Fair Access Panel.
Parent And Pupil Voice
The Beckmead Family of Schools values the support and feedback from all our stakeholders. We have active schools councils and promote positive pupil voice activities throughout the year. Parents may wish to join our Governing Body and we ask you to give us feedback through ‘Parent View.’
How We Support Your Child
Across the family of schools we have a range of specialist expertise in the area of social, emotional and behavioural needs and social communication difficulties. The school operates in as empathic a manner as possible to take account of these varied special needs. The informal approach of the staff, the teaching, curriculum and environment are all aimed at maximizing the inclusion of all pupils.
Most of the pupils are educated in small groups of 6 with a teacher and 2 teaching assistants supporting them. Some pupils may receive one to one teaching as appropriate. Targeted interventions for literacy are provided for pupils where appropriate. At Chaffinch Brook we have a sensory room and all pupils are able to access therapeutic interventions where appropriate which includes music and drama therapy.
Monitoring Your Child’s Progress
All pupils at the Beckmead Family of Schools have an IEP (Individual Education Plan) which is reviewed every term. The IEP has targets which are agreed with the child. The whole school population is actively encouraged to ’own’ and act upon the objectives and targets in the IEPs.
Pupil progress is monitored and evaluated half termly. Pupils with statements of SEN or EHCP have an annual review of their SEN statement/EHCP with a report and meeting. Parents meetings are held every term and written reports provided to parents.
Our Staff
We have highly experienced teams of staff in each of our schools who may be involved in supporting your child. These include:
Our school’s Educational Psychologist may give advice or complete more detailed assessments on identified pupils.
To ensure our staff have the skills and knowledge to support all children appropriately there is a programme of ongoing training both in school and elsewhere. Recent training has included: the Big Write; Price Training for physical intervention.
Working In Partnership With Other Services To Support Your Child
Partnership working is an important element of the support provided to your child and family. All our schools work closely with a number of agencies from education, health and social care. These include the Education Welfare Service, Speech and Language and Family Resilience.
If you want advice from professionals outside of the schools you may find the following numbers useful:
The SENCO role is carried out by the Head of School at each site: