Talk to the SENCo
Special Education Needs Coordinator (SENCo)
A SENCo, or Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator, is the leader who is responsible for assessing, planning and monitoring the progress of children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
We are delighted to have Gwyneth as our Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCo), and Heidi as our Assistant SENCo.
How can I support Learners?
Gwyneth Little
I will work alongside my Learning4Life-Gy colleagues and the exam centres to make sure the correct provisions and interventions are in place.
In order to make learning as inclusive as possible and break any barriers that may be an obstacle to their learning and achievement, I also aim to work closely with the learners and regularly monitor and review their progress.
How can learners with support needs contact me?
We know that everyone is different, and what you need to support your learning is unique to you. We will continue to work with you to find solutions to help you succeed.
As an organisation, we reguarly monitor how the learner is progressing on their EHP, which involves contacting stakeholders however, you can contact me at anytime with the options below.
Learners can contact me by either email, phone or using the webform on the contact section of the website.
Our approach
We support children and young people with a range of special educational needs that fall under each of the four broad categories of need.
- Communication and interaction: e.g. Speech, Language and Communication Needs (SLCN), Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Asperger’s Syndrome.
- Cognition and learning: e.g. Specific Learning difficulties (SpLD) which includes Dyslexia, Dyscalculia and Dyspraxia, Moderate Learning Difficulties (MLD), Severe Learning Difficulties (SLD) global developmental delay.
- Social, emotional and mental health difficulties (SEMH): e.g. Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD), Depression, Anorexia, Anxiety.
- Sensory and/or physical needs: e.g. Vision Impairment (VI), Hearing Impairment (HI), Medical needs.
If a pupil is identified as having special educational needs, we will consider everything we know about the pupil to determine the support that they need. The support the school provides is already tailored however we can offer a guaranteed bespoke package if a learner has access to a Educational Health Care Plan. We follow these steps in order to provide the best support for our learners:
1. Inclusive quality first teaching
This is the quality first teaching your child will receive from their subject teachers and may include some minor adaptations and differentiation to match your child’s learning needs.
All teachers and support staff hold relevant knowledge and experience to meet the needs of your child. All pupils at Learning4Life-Gy have a learning profile which is shared with the staff that teach and support them. This profile outlines their individual needs and the specific strategies that must be used to support their progress in and outside of the classroom.
2. Targeted, catch up provision
Specific targeted one to one or small group interventions may be run outside the classroom. These will be limited to a set period of time to minimise disruption to the regular curriculum. You and their class teachers will be kept informed of your child’s progress towards the learning outcomes of the interventions they participate in.
3. Specialist intervention
It may be necessary to seek specialist advice and regular long-term support from a specialist professional outside the school in order to plan for the best possible learning outcomes for your child. This may include for example educational psychology, speech and language therapy, occupational therapy and sensory advisory teachers. The school may need to prioritise referrals to these services.
For more information about learner needs, contact our SENCo on 01472 240440 or alternatively email admin@learning4life-gy.co.uk