Post-16 provider responsibilities

Ethos and leadership responsibilities

• The provider has explicit policies on teaching and learning, including how young people are taught, grouped, marking/feedback and target setting.

• Associated policies such as Equality, SEND, and Behaviour are implemented and regularly reviewed.

• The senior leadership team ensures that all staff in school are aware of their individual responsibility with respect to SEND and are aware of the key content in the relevant documents, including:

  • The SEND Code of Practice (2014)
    
    
  • Children and Families Act (2014)
    
    
  • Equality Act (2010)

• There is a named person in the setting who is responsible for:Appropriate funding is identified to support SEND.

  • Informing strategic decision-making with the senior leadership team
    
    
  • promoting SEND within the setting
    
    
  • provide support and guidance to all staff around SEND
    
    
  • being one point of contact for external support services, e.g. EPS
    
    
  • engaging parents/carers in supporting young people’s mental health, if appropriate
  • maintaining awareness of relevant research and policy updates in the area of SEND
    
    
  • identifying the potential risk factors within the vulnerable groups within the setting
    
    
  • liaising with the governing body regarding SEND.

• The senior leadership team promote an ethos of positive enquiry and acceptance of difference through:The senior leadership team ensure there is a clear process for communication and the dissemination of information regarding SEND.

  • Mutual respect
    
    
  • Assessment for intervention rather than assessment for diagnosis regarding learning concerns
    
    
  • Responsiveness to individual needs
    
    
  • Problem-solving around SEND and solution finding
    
    
  • Development of collaborative and constructive relationships with peers and adults.

• School systems are flexible enough to support the individual needs of all young people on roll at the setting including those educated off-site.

• There is adequate time available for staff to fulfil their SEND duties as required, for example attending meetings

SEND procedures

• All staff are committed to the promotion of inclusion of all young people in the setting.

• There are processes in place that ensure that young people are aware of and involved in whole school decision-making including support available regarding curriculum access.

• Staff skills are regularly audited and further training in SEND is offered to staff groups and individual staff when required.

• Providers encourage and support a team approach to addressing SEND. In particular:

  • Staff are given encouragement and opportunities to discuss concerns, problem solve and provide support both practically and emotionally to each other
    
    
  • There are planned opportunities for key staff to share good practice with staff from other schools
    
    
  • Senior staff actively promote and facilitate these networking and mentoring opportunities

Assessment, identification and monitoring

• There are procedures in place for the senior leadership team to assess how effectively staff are meeting learning needs.

• There are assessment procedures in place for young people that allows staff to identify any that are not achieving as early as possible. 

• There is a system in place to further assess these children to identify the barriers to learning and baselining the skills causing concern in order to inform intervention.

• There are processes in place to monitor and record identified young people’s progress more closely such as Individual Support Plans using the principles of Assess, Plan, Do, Review which includes teachers, young people and parents/carers, if appropriate.

• Young people are aware of whom approach to seek help themselves

• Parents/carers know who to approach if they have concerns or information regarding their child’s learning

• There are processes in place in school for sharing information with relevant staff regarding individual young people’s progress.