SEN Magazine - Issue 100 - May/June 2019

May • June 2019 • Issue 100

Our 100th issue!

Teaching girls with autism Positive support for learning disability Healthy eating for kids SLCN • dyslexia • dyscalculia • outdoor play • sport • all-ability cycling technology in education • SEN law • fostering • DME • senses and behaviour mental health • recruitment • news, CPD and more…

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May • June 2019 Issue 100

Editor

Peter Sutcliffe editor@senmagazine.co.uk 01200 409810

Advertising sales Denise Williamson Advertising Sales Manager denise@senmagazine.co.uk 01200 409808

Charlotte Williamson Advertising Sales Executive charlotte@senmagazine.co.uk 01200 409805

Administration Anita Crossley (left) anita@senmagazine.co.uk 01200 409802 Amanda Harrison (centre) office@senmagazine.co.uk 01200 409804/800 Dawn Thompson (right) dawn@senmagazine.co.uk 01200 409804/800

Design Rob Parry design@senmagazine.co.uk

Welcome

to the 100th issue of SEN Magazine It’s hard to believe that SEN Magazine is now in its seventeenth year. On behalf of the whole team at SEN, I’d like to thank all our readers, advertisers and everyone who has written for the Magazine over the years. Without your help and support, we simply couldn’t do what we do.

In the last 100 issues of SEN Magazine, we’ve witnessed huge changes to the SEN system. We’ve seen policies and initiatives fuelled by good intentions, and a system struggling to cope with increasing demand amidst swingeing cuts to services. We’ve seen technological and medical developments, and changes to the ways we all live our lives, that were all but unimaginable less than a couple of decades ago.

We’ve also witnessed the courage of children, young people, parents and carers – many struggling against seemingly unsurmountable odds – and the dedication of professionals who are determined to provide the best support they can, often in very difficult circumstances. While qualities like these abound, hope for a better and fairer future will never be that far away.

Director

We can now look forward to the next 100 issues of SEN Magazine, though we may have a day off first!

Next issue deadline Advertising and news deadline: 5 June 2019

To children and young people with SEN across the UK – and to those who live

Jeremy Nicholls

Peter Sutcliffe Editor

editor@senmagazine.co.uk

and work with you – please be assured that we will, as always, do our best to raise the issues that matter to you, to share with you the latest practical tips and ideas on all things SEN, and to provide a platform on which you can tell your story.

In this issue of SEN Magazine, you will find articles on SEN law (p.22), learning disability (p.24), dyscalculia (p.28), dyslexia (p.32), dual or multiple exceptional children (p.36), outdoor play (p.40), healthy eating for kids (p.44), SLCN (p.48), mental health (p.54), sport (p.56), all-ability cycling (p.61), technology for learning (p.63), fostering (p.68), autism (p.76), senses and behaviour (p.91), recruitment (p.92) and much more.

We hope you like the new look of SEN Magazine for our 100th issue. If you have any comments or ideas, please drop me an email.

Peter Sutcliffe SEN Magazine Editor editor@senmagazine.co.uk

Disclaimer

The opinions expressed in SEN Magazine are not necessarily those of the publisher. The publisher cannot be held liable for incorrect information, omissions or the opinions of third parties.

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CONTRIBUTORS Debbie Austin Valerie Butcher David Eggboro Graham Ford David Glover Emma Haycraft

Ben Higgins Tania Marshall Adam Meyersieck Mary Mountstephen Katharine Moylan Louisa Reeves

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Ben Shears Douglas Silas Eleonoor van Gerven Vicci Wells John Williams

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Positive support for learning disability Do we need a new approach to caring for children with complex needs?

Summing-up dyscalculia How to identify and support dyscalculia at school

Learning to teach dyslexics Practical ideas to use in the classroom

Unseen (dis)ability How to address the needs of dual or multiple exceptional students

Play for all Designing an inclusive outdoor learning space

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How to improve kids’ eating habits Evidence-based ideas for helping children to eat healthily

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Communication’s the thing

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Identifying and supporting SLCN

Improving care for mental health Four principles underpinning a major review of the Mental Health Act

What’s new?

The latest products and ideas from the world of SEN

Point of view Have your say!

SEN law Legal issues around the move to secondary school

Book reviews Recruitment Key issues affecting teacher recruitment and retention

About SEN Magazine CPD, training and events Your essential guide to SEN courses, seminars and events

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SEN resources directory

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SEN subscriptions

An exercise in social skills Using sport to help girls with autism to connect with their peers

Freedom ride How cycling can promote health and happiness for people of all abilities

Harnessing tech for learning What can technology offers those who teach students with SEN?

Christmas in February The challenges and rewards of fostering a child with SEN

Teaching girls with autism Best practice in supporting the learning of girls on the spectrum

Sensitive conduct The impact of the senses on behaviour

In the next issue of SEN Magazine...

RSE/PSHE autism literacy cerebral palsy modular classrooms SEN law dyslexia looked-after children augmentative and alternative communication manual handling visual impairment recruitment, CPD and much more…

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Healthy eating

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SEN news

£6.5 million for early support of SLCN The Government has announced a £6.5 million package to help young children who require additional help because they have speech, language and communication needs (SLCN).

A range of local initiatives will include projects designed to support families by improving training for early years professionals, introducing family reading sessions and running local parenting pop-ups.

In a speech in July 2018, Education Secretary Damian Hinds noted that 28 per cent of children finish their reception year “without the early communication and reading skills they need to thrive”, and he announced his ambition to cut that figure in half over the next decade.

The new funding will support eight projects, across 27 local councils. The Department for Education (DfE) says it will build on successful programmes already in place to “bring education and health services closer together to help improve children’s outcomes by age five”.

■ The Government is supporting schemes to help children develop communication skills.

Projects will concentrate on supporting families in some of the most disadvantaged areas of the country, including three of the Government’s 12 “Opportunity Areas”: Doncaster, Derby and Stoke-On-Trent. DfE figures show that disadvantaged children are, on average, four months behind at age five, ten months behind by the age of 11, and 19 months behind at 16.

Professionals such as health visitors, early years staff and family support workers will be trained to identify children with poor language and communication skills and to ensure the right support is in place so they don’t fall behind.

The schemes will offer parent-child workshops and outreach programmes to raise awareness amongst parents of the importance of speech, language and communication development. One local project will introduce an online tool to help parents understand the basic child development stages, and provide activities and ideas they can use at home.

Lasting impact The Government hopes the eight projects will create tools and approaches that can have a lasting impact on how children with SLCN are supported. “I want to support families with hints and tips to propel their child’s learning so they can go on to reach their full potential, whatever their background”, says Mr Hinds.

The funding announcement has been broadly welcomed by children’s communication charity I CAN, whose Chief Executive Bob Reitemeier believes it will go some way towards providing support for the 1.4 million children in the UK who struggle with their communication skills.

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“Identifying a child’s SLCN early is crucial to ensuring it doesn’t become a long-term barrier to them succeeding in life”, he says. “One aspect of this funding is to support collaboration between the health and education sectors. We are particularly interested to see real progress in this collaboration, which currently is not taking place in many parts of the country.”

Councillor Anntoinette Bramble of the Local Government Association’s Children and Young People Board also supports the Government’s focus on early language and literacy skills.

“It’s positive that some areas will receive funding to provide additional support to families and improve children’s early communication skills”, she says.

A recent survey of members by school leaders union NAHT found that 86 per cent believe school readiness has become worse over the past five years. Speech, language and communication issues were identified as the greatest area of concern, with 97 per cent identifying this as a problem.

“Damian Hinds is absolutely right to be looking at early intervention to help parents support children in this crucial area of development”, says the union’s Director of Policy for School Leaders James Bowen. “Children’s early speech and language skills are the foundations upon which all future learning is built.”

Mr Bowen cautions, though, that the new proposals will only go so far: “what is often needed is specialist help from speech and language therapists. This expert support is something that schools have been finding it harder and harder to resource, as both school budgets and local authority budgets have been cut.” senmagazine.co.uk

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Ofsted reveals “huge problem” of illegal schools in England As many as 6,000 children may be being educated in unregistered settings and are therefore at risk because the quality of their education, safeguarding and health and safety issues are not subject to external oversight, says Ofsted.

The Government’s education watchdog has released previously unpublished data showing the extent of “suspected illegal schools” in England: since January 2016, Ofsted investigated 521 settings and inspected 259.

Around 28 per cent of settings investigated are in alternative provision, while 26 per cent are general education providers and 21 per cent are places of religious instruction. London accounted for 23 per cent of those investigated and the rest were fairly evenly spread across the country.

“This is not simply an issue with faith settings, nor is it limited to certain areas of the country”, says Victor Shafiee, who heads up Ofsted’s unregistered schools taskforce. “Unregistered schools come in many shapes and sizes, and not all of them are run with malicious intent. But, all children deserve the best.

These settings deny children a proper education and can leave them at risk of harm.”

Inspectors have issued warning notices to 71 settings. Nine of these settings have since registered as independent schools,

39 have changed how they operate in order to comply with the law, and 15 settings have closed.

A setting is defined as unregistered if it is operating as an independent school without registration. If a setting provides full-time education to at least five children of compulsory school age, or one child who is looked after by the local authority or has an education, health and care plan, it is required to register as a school. The setting must operate from a building, and must offer a curriculum that includes maths and English.

Running an unregistered independent school is a criminal offence in England.

Safeguarding is one of the key issues of concern to Ofsted.

“Many of these places are unsafe – with poor facilities and hygiene, badly trained or untrained staff, who may not have had any employment checks made on them, and little care for children’s health and wellbeing”, says Mr Shafiee.

Ofsted has welcomed the Department for Education’s proposal for a register of children not in school (see below) as a useful first step in helping to identify and tackle unregistered schools.

However, It is calling on the Government to strengthen legislation and provide inspectors with additional powers to collect evidence they find in unregistered schools.

New register of children not in school The Department for Education (DfE) is seeking views on its proposal to establish a local authority registration system for children who do not attend state-funded or registered independent schools.

This is a follow-up to the consultation and call for evidence on elective home education held by the DfE in 2018.

It seeks views on proposed legislation to establish a register maintained by local authorities of children not attending mainstream schools, together with associated duties on parents and the proprietors of certain educational settings. It also consults on proposed legislation to establish a duty to support parents who educate children at home and seek support from their local authority in doing so.

The consultation, which closes on 24 June 2019, can be found at consult.education.gov.uk senmagazine.co.uk

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More people with SEN and disabilities to get personal budgets People who use aftercare services under the Mental Health Act and wheelchair users will soon have a right to a personal health budget, the Government has announced.

Personal health budgets allow people to choose their own health and care support, which could include specially adapted wheelchairs, a choice of personal assistants who can be specially trained to meet the individual’s needs, technology, equipment or an assistance dog to reduce the need for support from a carer.

Over 1,000 councillors demand greater investment in education and SEN A letter signed by 1,115 local councillors calls on the Government to reverse education spending cuts and properly fund support for pupils with SEN and disabilities.

“Many schools are now desperately overwhelmed, as more and more students are competing for fewer and fewer resources”, the letter says. “Compounded by biting cuts to local council services, in addition to the teacher recruitment and retention crisis, the current settlement is not tenable.”

The letter demands that the Government invests more money in schools to help meet what it describes as the huge funding crisis across education, which is resulting in growing budget deficits, cuts in teaching staff, a reduction in some subject areas and a poorer education for children.

The Institute for Fiscal Studies Annual Report on Education Spending in England states that schools have experienced a cut of eight per cent per pupil since 2010. The Education Policy Institute has said almost a third of all council-run secondary schools are now in deficit and, according to last year’s Kreston UK report, eight out of ten academies are in deficit.

In addition to reversing the cuts to school budgets since 2010, the letter calls for funding for SEN provision to be of a level that ensures all children and young people get the education they deserve, regardless of where they live.

The signing of the letter has been organised by the National Education Union’s councillor network, which is supported by the education fair funding campaign group f40.

Councillor Maggie Browning of Southwark believes cuts to school budgets have reached “epidemic levels” in England and Wales. “Schools are also struggling to provide adequate support for students with special educational needs and some are even closing early or starting late to save money”, she says.

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Over 40,000 people currently operate personal health budgets, and the Government plans to increase this to up to 200,000 people by 2024.

As well as extending the legal right to wheelchair users and people who access aftercare services under the Mental Health Act, the Government will look to give personal health budgets to people with ongoing mental health needs, autistic people and people with learning disabilities.

Personal health budgets are planned and agreed between individuals and clinicians, with the aim of giving people greater choice, flexibility and control over their health and care support. The Government believes personal budgets can also help to join up health and social care services in local areas and reduce pressure on emergency care.

Increasing access to personal health budgets is part of the NHS Long Term Plan, which aims to extend personalised care to 2.5 million people by 2024. This will partly be achieved through personal health budgets and social prescribing, which is when people are referred by their GPs to local community or voluntary activities.

Physical exercise helps children learn In a new study into the impact of physical activity on behaviour and classroom achievement in primary school age children, 77 per cent of participating schools noted an improvement in brain function and learning in their pupils after exercise.

Findings from the study indicated that brain speed, the ability to process information and apply it to tasks, increased by up to 19 per cent after exercise. Physical activity also significantly improved mood in all the children who exercised.

The research was led by Professor Eef Hogervorst of Loughborough University and Super Movers, an initiative run by the BBC and the Premier League. senmagazine.co.uk

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New proposals to improve online safety New measures have been announced to promote the safety of children and adults online.

In its Online Harms White Paper, the Government sets out plans for a “world-leading package of online safety measures that also supports innovation and a thriving digital economy.” This package includes legislative and non-legislative measures aimed at making companies more responsible for their users’ safety online, especially children and other vulnerable groups.

The White Paper proposes establishing in law a new duty of care towards users, which will be overseen by an independent regulator. Companies will be held to account for tackling a wide range of online harms, ranging from illegal activity and content to behaviours which are harmful but not necessarily illegal.

PAPYRUS, a charity for young suicide prevention, has welcomed the introduction of a regulator for online content and the plan to make social media companies sign up to a new mandatory duty of care. “This strategy ■ The new White Paper seeks to make companies accountable for tackling online threats to users. might well help save the lives of some of the most vulnerable children and young people in the country”, says PAPYRUS Chief Executive Ged Flynn. “Suicide remains and the enforcement powers of an independent regulatory body. the lead killer of our young people between ten and 35 years Views are also sought on potential mechanisms of redress for of age. Many young people considering suicide can far too online users who experience problems online, and measures easily access information, discussion and graphic imagery to ensure regulation is targeted and proportionate for industry. online which compound suicidal feelings or, worse, encourage suicide behaviours.”

This is an open public consultation and the Government says it is particularly keen to encourage responses from organisations, A consultation is currently underway on the White Paper and the companies and others with relevant views, insights or evidence.

Government is seeking views on various aspects of its plans.

Areas of interest include: the scope of the regulatory framework; This consultation closes at 11.59pm on 1 July 2019. To take options for appointing an independent regulatory body to part or for more information, search “Online Harms White implement, oversee and enforce the new regulatory framework; Paper” at gov.uk

Call for better support for pupils with vision impairment New figures published by the Scottish Government show that the number of pupils with vision impairment in Scotland’s schools has more than doubled over the last ten years. The charity Royal Blind is calling on local authorities and the Scottish Government to take urgent action to improve support for blind and partially sighted pupils.

The Scottish Government’s Pupil Census for 2018 found that there were 4,574 pupils with vision impairment. This is a rise from 4,331 pupils in 2017 and more than double the number recorded in the Pupil Census in 2010, which showed in that year there were 2,005 vision impaired pupils.

Over the same period where there has been an increase in the number of pupils with vision impairment there has been a reduction in the number of specialist teachers for children and senmagazine.co.uk

young people with vision impairment. The charity is concerned that specialist teachers in vision impairment in mainstream schools are facing unreasonable pressures and are being asked to support more pupils with less time to do so.

“This situation is leading to an attainment gap for pupils with vision impairment”, says Royal Blind’s Chief Executive Mark O’Donnell. The charity is calling for better support in mainstream schools for vision impaired pupils and a “fairer process” for securing a place at a special school for pupils who would benefit from it.

For the latest news, visit senmagazine.co.uk

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SEN news

“Overthinking” trauma causes kids to develop PTSD Children who believe their reaction to traumatic events is not “normal” are more likely to develop post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), according to new research from the University of East Anglia.

While most children recover well after a traumatic event, some go on to develop PTSD that may stay with them for months, years, or even into adulthood. The study found that children begin down this route when they have trouble processing their trauma and perceive their symptoms as being a sign that something is seriously wrong.

“Symptoms of PTSD can be a common reaction to trauma in children and teenagers”, says lead researcher Professor Richard Meiser-Stedman of UEA’s Norwich Medical School. “These can include distressing symptoms like intrusive memories, nightmares and flashbacks. Health professionals steer away from diagnosing it in the first month after a trauma because, rather than being a disorder, it’s a completely normal response.”

The research team worked with over 200 children aged between eight and 17 who had attended a hospital emergency department following a one-off traumatic incident. These included events such as car crashes, assaults, dog attacks and other medical emergencies. These young people were interviewed and assessed for PTSD between two and four weeks following their trauma, and again after two months.

The young people who didn’t recover well were much more likely to be thinking negatively about their trauma and their reactions – “they were ruminating about what happened to them”, says Professor Meiser-Stedman. “They perceived their symptoms as being a sign that something was seriously and permanently wrong with them, they didn’t trust other people as much and they thought they couldn’t cope.”

In many cases, more deliberate attempts to process the trauma, such as trying to think it through or talk it over with friends and family, were actually associated with worse PTSD. The children who didn’t recover well were those that reported spending a lot of time trying to make sense of their trauma. “The young people who recovered well on the other hand seemed to be less bothered by their reactions, and paid them less attention”, says Professor Meiser-Stedman.

The study, A core role for cognitive process in the acute onset and maintenance of post-traumatic stress in children and adolescents, is published in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and is available at onlinelibrary.wiley.com

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UK autism and learning disabilities researchers learn from global best practice Four UK citizens have won Fellowship awards to travel internationally and research new ideas around issues affecting people with learning disabilities and autism. The projects, which seek to support the practical application in the UK of knowledge and best practice around the world, are being funded by the Churchill Fellowship programme at the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust.

A visual artist from Leicestershire, Peter Matthews (pictured), will travel to the USA to study support for artists on the autistic spectrum. Peter’s aim is to help autistic artists in the UK gain greater exposure for their work.

Heba Al-Jayoosi, an assistant headteacher from London, will spend time in the USA looking at approaches to including autistic students in mainstream education. She will use her findings to inform a pilot project in her own school.

Approaches to protecting adults with learning disabilities from sexual abuse is the subject of Susan Sharples’ research.

The founder of a community interest company from St Annes-On-Sea, she will travel to Canada and the USA and will use her findings to develop training materials and other resources for UK organisations working with people with learning disabilities.

Emily Niner, an autism participation manager from London, will base herself in Australia and New Zealand to research supporting teenagers following a diagnosis of autism.

Emily will use the research to develop a toolkit for health professionals working with autistic young people.

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Urgent need to recruit and train specialist teachers of the deaf The provision of specialist support for deaf children is at crisis point, says the National Deaf Children’s Society (NDCS).

The warning comes after a new survey showed that specialist teachers for deaf children are battling stress and are facing spiralling workloads and excessive working hours. Conducted by the British Association of Teachers of the Deaf (BATOD), the survey of more than 600 specialist teachers found that 46 per cent say they experience stress in their role on a weekly basis, with a quarter (25 per cent) saying they are affected every day.

Around 87 per cent are now working additional hours due to increasing workloads, with 63 per cent saying they are forced to work an extra day every week just to keep up.

The NDCS cautions that the entire profession is “creaking under growing pressures and increasing needs”, despite the SEN reforms introduced in 2014, “with grave knock-on effects for the 45,000 deaf children who rely on it”.

Of teachers surveyed, 58 per cent said there was less support available for deaf children than in 2014, while 43 per cent felt that pupils were now performing worse.

Deaf pupils already fall behind their classmates at Key Stages ■ Deaf pupils’ attainment is a full grade behind their peers by GCSE. 1 and 2, with the gap growing to an entire grade by GCSE. The charity says that specialist teachers offer crucial advice and to 15 years. The charity is urging the Government to introduce support to children and their families. This can include help a bursary fund to replace outgoing teachers. The £3.3 million with developing language and communication, assistance scheme would help train around 400 new Teachers of the Deaf with hearing technology and advice, and training for schools over a three-year period. to ensure every deaf pupil can succeed.

BATOD supports the call for more specialist teachers. “The The number of specialist teachers has fallen by 15 per cent introduction of a training bursary would help to provide more in the last seven years across England. The NDCS says the teachers to the profession, relieve some of the pressure and profession is heading towards a staffing crisis, with more than ultimately support deaf children to achieve their potential”, says half of those teachers still in the role due to retire in the next ten its President Steph Halder.

Call for national cerebral palsy register A UK charity is asking the Government to introduce a UK-wide register to improve the coordination of services and funding channels for young people with cerebral palsy. The move follows the recent launch of a national cerebral palsy register in Wales.

“The introduction of cerebral palsy registers in other countries has demonstrated that, with robust recording and coherent information, the provision, health and education outcomes for young people with cerebral palsy can be dramatically improved”, says Action Cerebral Palsy CEO Amanda Richardson.

The charity argues that a UK-wide register would give local government, education services and the NHS a clear insight into how best to direct services and funding, as well as allowing clinicians the oversight to monitor young people at risk of, or with, cerebral palsy and offer tailored support.

The next issue of SEN Magazine (SEN101, July/August 2019) will include an article by Amanda Richardson of Action Cerebral Palsy discussing support for cerebral palsy and the case for a national register.

News deadline for next issue: 5/6/19. Email editor@senmagazine.co.uk

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What’s new?

Only six weeks to go until The Autism Show 2019 The national event for autism is returning this June with a packed programme of specialist talks, workshops and clinics. Once inside the event, all content is free to access and CPD certified.

Speakers this year include: Georgia Harper and Sam Ahern, Presenters of Channel 4’s Are You Autistic?; Willard Wigan MBE, internationally renowned micro artist; and Professor Francesca Happé of King’s College London. Special new features include the Hexagol Interactive Games Station, Motability Central and Autism Reality Experience.

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LEGO®-based therapy training courses Bricks for Autism run training courses for professionals on using LEGO®-based therapy to support children with social communication difficulties such as autism.

LEGO®-based therapy is a fun social skills programme involving collaborative LEGO® play.

Suitable for psychologists, teachers, SALTs and other health professionals, courses are endorsed by Cambridge Autism Research Centre. The trainer is Dr Gina Gómez de la Cuesta, Clinical Psychologist and co-author of the LEGO®based therapy manual.

Attendees said: “Extremely enjoyable and informative” and “Excellent delivery and useful materials”.

Book tickets and save 20 per cent at autismshow.co.uk

bricks-for-autism.com info@bricks-for-autism.co.uk

Fully inclusive D of E courses at Bendrigg Trust

Live online Catch Up® training now available

Improve your self-confidence and life skills whilst enjoying adventurous activities on Bendrigg Trust’s fully inclusive and accessible D of E courses.

Training courses to deliver Catch Up® Literacy and Catch Up® Numeracy are now available as live online sessions, so teaching assistants and teachers can train from wherever they are, with no travel costs.

Gold Award places are available for individuals on Bendrigg Trust’s open courses in July and August 2019 for the Residential and Expedition sections of the Award.

Catch Up® is a not-for-profit charity that offers two structured one-to-one interventions, proven to significantly improve the achievement of learners who find literacy or numeracy difficult.

The Bendrigg Trust can also run training, practice and qualifying courses for the Expedition section of your Bronze and Silver Awards.

Learners taking part in Catch Up® Literacy or Numeracy typically achieve more than double the normal rate of progress.

For more information, visit bendrigg.org.uk/dofeaward/, call 01539 723766 or email jo@bendrigg.org.uk

Visit catchup.org, email training@catchup.org or call 01842 752297.

SEN Course at BGU earns national recognition

Former SENDCO receives business boost from Dragon’s Den star

Bishop Grosseteste University (BGU) has been recognised as a high-quality provider of The National Award for Special Educational Needs Co-ordination (NA-SENCO).

Georgina Durrant, CEO of Cheshire SEN Tutor LTD and owner of the website The SEN Resources Blog, has been announced as winner of entrepreneur Theo Paphitis’ Small Business Sunday award.

The masters-level course provides focused, professional development for teachers who lead the education of pupils with SEN in schools.

“I initially set up a tutoring service for children with special educational needs”, said Georgina. “I was keen to reach more families, so I started to provide reviews, activities and advice via my website, The SEN Resources Blog. The Blog is now visited by thousands of teachers and parents each week.”

The course has been awarded the NA-SENCO Quality Mark, a nationally recognised accreditation only given to providers who offer the highest standards of teaching and learning.

To find out how you can apply to take on the NA-SENCO at BGU, email enquiries@bishopg.ac.uk

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New residential service for adults with a learning disability in South Yorkshire

Back to helping parents of children with SEN

Cygnet Health Care is opening a specialist service for adults in Barnsley in summer 2019.

Following on from their very successful annual SEN Law Conference in March, put on with IPSEA and Matrix Chambers, Douglas Silas Solicitors are again assisting parents of children and young people with SEN to get appropriate provision and placements, either through general assistance or helping them appeal to the SEND Tribunal.

Dove Valley Mews will provide outcome-focused care for individuals with a learning disability and associated complex needs who may have behaviours that challenge. It will offer modern accommodation with two apartments and an enclosed garden. The team will focus on ensuring people are part of the local community and wherever possible can access education, employment and meaningful recreational activities.

Douglas says: “Things seem to already be a lot busier this year, with us now seeing more disputes than before regarding EHC needs assessments or plans.”

For information, visit cygnethealth.co.uk or call Richard Dalby on 07920 296854.

www.SpecialEducationalNeeds.co.uk

Could you foster disabled children for Derbyshire County Council?

Assist for Autism from Emotion Robotics

Derbyshire County Council is looking for foster carers for children with complex disabilities.

Emotion Robotics have released Assist for Autism to help teachers easily utilise Softbank Robotics’ interactive Nao robot for the education of autistic children. Assist for Autism provides a simple control interface and the ability to customise activities, while including turn-taking, collaborative play and empathy development activities as standard.

These carers provide familybased, long-term and short-break foster placements for children and young people who continue to live with their families or carers.

The role is self-employed, paid at a higher rate equivalent to a wage and carried out full-time as a main job.

Carers would have experience of working with young people with complex disabilities, have suitable accommodation or be willing to have it adapted. derbyshire.gov.uk/fostering

Doncaster School for the Deaf The School provides a full curriculum for pupils aged four to 19 years. It develops communication skills including British Sign Language, spoken English and assistive communication systems.

Assist for Autism supports iPads/tablets and requires no internet access. Activities can be tailored to meet a student or class’s needs, helping to engage students effectively and reinforce their specific subject material. emotion-robotics.com/sen info@emotion-robotics.com +44 (0) 1252 404155

EQUALS Pre-formal (PMLD) Curriculum

Specialist staff include teachers of the deaf, speech and language therapists, an audiologist and a nurse. It is an inclusive school and accepts referrals throughout the year.

EQUALS Pre-formal (PMLD) Curriculum is a curriculum of ideas for learners with profound and multiple learning difficulties. It is designed to help teachers and teaching assistants to build routines, facilitate change, offer alternatives, observe and guide.

The School is rated “good” by Ofsted, who recognise that pupils make strong progress and pupils “thrive”. The residential Children’s home is “outstanding”, providing respite, weekly or 52-week care.

The aim is to put the learners in control by giving them an environment that they can understand and that they are allowed to keep changing in order to encourage development.

secretary@ddt-deaf.org.uk deaf-trust.co.uk/school

For more information, go to equals.co.uk

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What’s new?

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Essex wants fee-paid short breaks carers

Local dignitaries open sensory room at Hamilton Lodge School

Essex County Council are appealing for fee-paid short breaks carers to support children with disabilities.

The Mayor of Brighton and Hove, Councillor Dee Simson, and Lloyd Russell-Moyle MP officially opened the Sensory Room at Hamilton Lodge School in March.

If you have significant experience of caring for children with disabilities, their specialist feepaid short breaks scheme enables professionals to care for children with more complex needs. This would be within your own home as an approved foster carer.

You would be carefully matched with children needing part-time or full-time respite. Approved carers would receive £485 a week plus £52 per night for five-nights and £300 a week plus £52 per night for three-nights.

The David Sawyer Sensory Room is named to honour the School’s newly retired Governor and Trustee David Sawyer MBE. His lifetime commitment to the School and local charities inspired many others to act to support the deaf community.

0800 801 530 essexadoptionandfostering.co.uk/fostering

You can read more about this and about Hamilton Lodge School at hamiltonls.co.uk

Sensory processing with GriffinOT

Enriching the curriculum through the magic of theatre

Are there children in your classroom who have sensory issues? Do you work with children who avoid messy textures or who dislike sounds?

Do you want to learn more about sensory processing disorder (SPD)?

GriffinOT provides resources to help teachers and parents support children with sensory issues. Their book, Sensory Group, is a step-by-step programme to help children with sensory sensitivities. They offer online SPD training options for both individuals and larger groups. This includes a free introductory course.

You can start your sensory learning journey by visiting them at griffinot.com/sen/

Changing lives through fostering Fostering can be a challenge for children and young people coming into care, which in turn can be challenging for carers.

But through challenge comes growth. Seeing a young person return home, move on to independent living or going to college or university – because you gave them the love, understanding, stability and tools they needed – is a reward that changes you as well.

Foster carers have a positive impact on children in their care. For details of fostering for Hackney Council, call 020 8356 4028 or email fostering.recruitment@hackney.gov.uk

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M&M Theatrical Productions are passionate about enriching the curriculum whilst educating young audiences through the powers of entertainment and imagination.

Their teams of highly skilled professional actors always take time to understand the audience they are working with – ensuring that children with varying levels of learning needs or challenges are at ease throughout the performance.

From October 2019, all of M&M’s pantomimes will feature an interactive Makaton section, further inspiring a fully inclusive and engaging experience for children of all ages and abilities. magicoftheatre.com

Save £100 on virtual reality for your classroom Inclusive ClassVR is a powerful headset that will make your students feel like they are in another world.

These are brilliant learning tools which, when combined with the included lesson plans, can help you guide your students around anywhere from mesmerising ancient temples to calming locations like the Northern Lights.

Visit inclusive.co.uk/inclusive-classvr and enter the code CLASSVR100 to redeem your £100 discount.

Alternatively, visit Inclusive Technology’s stand at The Autism Show to experience it for yourselves. You can find their stands in London (E3), Birmingham (A13) and Manchester (C8).

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New developments at Kisimul School

Medpage introduces video baby monitor watch

Kisimul School continues to be one of the leading independent special schools for young people aged eight to 19. It offers day and residential education for young people, who have severe learning difficulties and autism, for up to 52 weeks a year. With class sizes of no more than six, the school can cater for each young person’s needs.

The all new video baby monitor watch from Medpage provides a perfect monitoring solution for all short range (up to 100m) wireless requirements.

Recently, leaders have overseen significant developments in the school’s learning environment, curriculum and therapy provision, and their plans continue apace. Kisimul invites visitors to come and see these changes for themselves. kisimul.co.uk 01522 868279

Unleashing potential at MacIntyre School MacIntyre School provides residential education for children and young people aged ten to 19 with autism, severe learning difficulties and other complex needs. The school believes that potential is limitless and every child can and will “achieve above and beyond”.

Based near Aylesbury in rural Buckinghamshire, with excellent transport links, the school is currently accepting referrals for September 2019. It is rated “Good” by Ofsted with “Outstanding” for Personal Development, Behaviour and Welfare.

The school has small classes, bespoke learning programmes, a waking day curriculum and offers 52-week residential and day options.

Users can view live video with sound in H-DEF on their wrist.

There is also a vibrating alert to baby crying, which is ideal for deaf people.

The unit is priced at £94.00.

For more details, search code MEDBM-03 at medpage-ltd.com

Autism, Gender and Sexuality Conference The National Autistic Society is holding their first Autism, Gender and Sexuality Conference on 17 May in Leeds.

This one-day conference explores the relationships between autism, gender, and sexuality. It will examine the questions: why is there a high prevalence of gender and sexual orientation diversity amongst autistic people? How can autistic people best be supported in exploring their sexual and gender identity?

Attendees will hear personal insight, reports of best practice, and have the opportunity to put their questions to the experts.

macintyrecharity.org

Tickets are limited; register at: learn.autism.org.uk/gender-sexuality

Exploring neurodiversity

Bringing families together through play

Hay Festival and Ruskin Mill Trust (specialist education provider) are collaborating to help neurodiverse individuals reimagine their potential in a presentation at Hay Festival, Hereford on 30 and 31 May. For details, visit hayfestival.com

A free service from Newlife the Charity for Disabled Children is helping families around the country have fun and play together.

This theme will be picked up at a two-day “Living Conference on Neurodiversity” at Ruskin Mill Trust, Gloucestershire on 19 and 20 July, where attendees can engage with new perspectives on autism through panel discussion and performances, while exploring the Trust’s craft and land based curriculum.

01453 837500 Sue.smee@rmc.rmt.org rmlt.org.uk/Event/autism-re-imagining-our-potential

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Newlife’s Play Therapy Pods contain a selection of specialist toys that can help with a child’s development and distract them from pain. Newlife works closely with a play therapy specialist to select toys to engage children and young people. Each pod has been devised for particular age groups and sensory needs; they are loaned to families for free on a 12-week basis.

To apply for a Play Therapy Pod, visit newlifecharity.co.uk

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What’s new?

Free 30-day trial of Rapid Plus online A Rapid Plus online subscription gives you and your students access to all of the Rapid Plus texts in online eBook format, both in-school and at home.

Designed to give maximum support to struggling readers, each eBook contains a wealth of features to help your students become more confident with their independent reading.

In the Reports section, teachers can also monitor student reading progress and track their performance in comprehension activities, helping to identify areas of difficulty.

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In-ground Rebound Therapy trampoline The first wholly UKmanufactured in-ground Rebound Therapy trampoline is being launched by Sunken Trampolines this Spring.

Two sizes have been made, a standard school trampoline size (15’ by 9’) and a 12’ by 8’. Both comply with sporting equipment safety standards, meaning schools and residences can have an easily accessible sunken option instead of a heavy and clumsy above ground trampoline.

Compatible for outdoor and indoor use, the ST100 and 110 are perfect for Rebound Therapy and recreational use with great responsiveness and power combined.

You can request your free trial at pearsonschools.co.uk/SENRapidtrial

For more information, visit sunkentrampolines.co.uk

2019 Shine a Light Award winners revealed by celebrity host Sally Phillips

Solardome Industries completes biggest school project in 24-year history

Now in its seventh year, the Shine a Light Awards celebrated 11 winners across 12 categories for their incredible contributions, innovative work and excellent practice in supporting children and young people’s speech, language and communication development across the UK. The awards were hosted by British comic actress and writer Sally Phillips, with a special performance by BGT Winner Lee Ridley (Lost Voice Guy).

Geodesic dome specialists Solardome recently met with staff at The Arbor School Dubai to sign off three interlinked 15m Solardome® PROs. The domes will enhance sensory activities for their students, with one being used as a tropical ecosystem, one as an edible garden and the other as an experimental classroom.

For information about the Shine a Light winners and highlycommended finalists, visit shinealightawards.co.uk and follow updates on Twitter at #awards_SAL

Solardome’s outdoor classroom range provides inspiring spaces for fun sensory activities.

Flexi-Bounce Therapy makes therapy fun

Bright Sparks from SpaceKraft

Most of us would like to provide Rebound Therapy for students every day, but realistically can only manage once or twice a week.

Flexi-Bounce Therapy is the solution to this dilemma. World Jumping UK have developed an orthopaedic quality rebounder called the FlexiBounce, and have worked with ReboundTherapy.org to develop a programme of exercises, called Flexi-Bounce Therapy, to complement existing Rebound Therapy sessions.

Every Flexi-Bounce rebounder comes with an online certificated training course. Bulk sales come with a certificated in-house training workshop. worldjumping.co.uk/therapy

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The school’s Director of Education Russell Toms said: “These structures help us go back to traditional values, delivering hands-on experiences like picking fruit and growing your own produce.”

solardome.co.uk/sen

SpaceKraft has launched its innovative Bright Sparks range of equipment featuring small light-up tile components that are activated by any movement. Especially useful for teaching cause and effect in an engaging way, the intense visual impact of Bright Sparks equipment makes it ideal for children with visual impairment.

The range includes small hand-held pieces up to large structures such as light-up floors. Each piece works well in daylight but is particularly stunning in dark spaces or sensory rooms.

For information or to order a catalogue, visit spacekraft.co.uk or call 01274 581007.

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WESC students recognised at Devon BASH Awards

Would you like to create an outdoor sensory space but have no funding?

WESC Foundation students were out in force on 22 March at the annual Devon BASH Awards (Be Active, Be Safe, Be Healthy) organised by Devon and Cornwall Police.

The outdoor sensory space in any setting should be fully inclusive and provide the same opportunity for everyone to explore regardless of their ability or special need. It should be a place where diversity is respected and valued, enabling children of all abilities to explore their surrounding in a safe child-centred inclusive environment.

Seven young people were nominated for awards celebrating their achievements in the past year. All have a visual impairment and either attend WESC Foundation’s education provision or access services such as supported living accommodation or internships.

Organised by Devon and Cornwall Police, the BASH Awards aim to ensure everyone, no matter what their disability, has choices and a good quality of life. wescfoundation.ac.uk

Modular eco buildings TG Escapes design modular eco buildings providing ideal spaces for special needs.

Bespoke designs provide bright, secure rooms, covered walkways, secure lobbies and wide doorways, allowing free flow to the outdoors. Sun pipes, sedum roofs and energy efficient designs make the A rated buildings more economical.

Every project starts with a free site visit/survey to provide one inclusive full-service price including: planning permission, design and architecture, foundations and clearance and service connections.

Learning Escapes are sensitively designed for low impact, low maintenance year round use, with complete safety manifestation and regulation compliance. tgescapes.co.uk

Bespoke outdoor buildings TG Escapes bespoke design process means that every building is tailored to your needs, following the frameworks laid out in the Government building bulletins for special needs.

Buildings are designed for low environmental impact.

Focused learning centres encourage all students to interact and work together. Designs can include sensory learning spaces, treatment rooms and individual work stations.

“It’s such a calming environment and I have noticed that the students are much calmer and more engaged. They like the structure of the room: low stimulus really works for autistic learners.”

Music Teacher, Cambian Pengwern tgescapes.co.uk

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Timotay Playscapes have a free funding guide and free inspiration guide to outdoor sensory play spaces and outdoor sensory play equipment.

For a free copy, email enquiries@timotayplayscapes.co.uk or call 01933 665151.

Respondents wanted for study of the specialist in gifted education A study into the role of specialists in gifted education is looking for interested parties with relevant experience to complete an online survey.

Respondents might include classroom teachers with gifted students, those working in specialist programmes for gifted students, SENCOs, school counsellors, school administrators, school psychologists, educational advisors and parents of gifted students.

Phase 1 of the questionnaire takes about 30 minutes. Phase 2 is expected to take between 30 minutes and one hour.

For more information and to take part in the research, follow the instructions at slimeducatief.nl

Helping children with vision impairment take tests Testbase, part of education charity AQA, has partnered with the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) to produce Braille and modified large print versions of Optional Tests, which are used to assess the National Curriculum at Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2.

iStock.com/cristianl

The Tests are designed to help children progress by enabling teachers to: identify strengths and weaknesses of individual pupils and classes; determine whether pupils are working at the expected standard; and discover the probability of pupils achieving the expected standard. aqa.org.uk

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Point of view

Point of view: parent

Left behind It’s easy to feel isolated when you have a child with a dual diagnosis, writes Debbie Austin

M

y ten-year-old daughter Lucy has a dual diagnosis of Down’s syndrome and autism and when stressed, has behaviours that can be described as challenging. As time has gone by and it’s become clear that autism is her primary need, we have begun to feel very different and distanced from the Down’s syndrome community.

The dual diagnosis brings strengths and challenges. Lucy’s strength is her memory. She is particularly good with things like songs and words, and has perfect tuning when singing.

Our greatest challenge as a family is that Lucy struggles socially; she wants social contact but it has to be in a way she can predict. This limits it to very familiar people who understand her social cues and social scripts, and to situations she understands.

One of the biggest issues for me is that I crave social contact, although I know this can be a real struggle for Lucy. I find myself thinking things like who should we spend today with?

But in truth, Lucy is happiest when it’s just us and it’s easiest when I can give her my full attention and respond to her needs without having to think of others.

I have to remind myself that a local event or friend’s party will not be fun for her. I have taken her to many, but I’ve learnt that to be successful I need to take a carer, if there’s someone available. If not, it’s usually better simply not to go, as the stress can often push Lucy towards behaviours she and I would both rather not see.

I watch other families with children who need to have reasonable adjustments made or to have activities differentiated and the contrast to our situation is stark. Lucy doesn’t want to be there at all. It’s all too easy to feel isolated.

Supporting Lucy Moving to an excellent special school has been very positive as she is so much happier. I hope new activities for us to try at home will come from her varied curriculum. It’s easy to run out of ideas when her world is really small.

My daughter is a delight but as her family, we need good social support to ensure we can meet her needs.

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About the author Debbie Austin is the parent of ten-year-old Lucy, who has the dual-diagnosis of Down’s syndrome and autism. She originally contacted the Down’s Syndrome Association with this piece for World Down Syndrome Day. downs-syndrome.org.uk @DSAInfo

@DownsSyndromeAssociation

I have to remind myself that a local event or friend’s party will not be fun for her

Our community has two jobs to do: to support and to educate.

However, we tend not to access the support in terms of events organised for children with Down’s syndrome as they are too socially challenging for Lucy. We could do it with a carer, but our precious respite hours are saved to give me and my husband some time together.

Imagine a circle were drawn big enough to fit in every activity that most children with Down’s syndrome can access or enjoy when reasonable adjustments are made and access is supported. Then picture a second circle of the size needed to include just the activities that my daughter and many with complex needs can enjoy. If you could see how much smaller that second circle is, I think you might understand how socially limiting the experience of our family really is. senmagazine.co.uk

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Point of view: SEN consultant

Tackling learned helplessness Teachers should reward effort and perseverance, not just achievement, writes Katharine Moylan Learned helplessness can be one of the biggest barriers to learning for many children, and it’s often an issue for teachers too.

About the author

Learned helplessness refers to when a student believes that they can’t do something, so they stop trying. Would you continue trying to achieve something if you always failed at it? How long would it take for you to give up? Once a child (or an adult) loses their self confidence, how can we help them to get it back?

Katharine Moylan has worked as a primary and secondary school teacher in the UK and Spain. She is studying for an MA in Special and Inclusive Education and runs an SEN consultancy for schools.

The very nature of learning means that we must do that which we do not know how to do and mistakes are an inherent part of this journey. Inspiring students to take risks is integral to teaching; how to do this can be one of the biggest challenges in teaching.

The antithesis of learned helplessness is self-belief and this is what we must focus on teaching in order to overcome learned helplessness. We need to teach students that as individuals, they will all achieve different outcomes to a particular task and they should motivate themselves to achieve their own “personal best”. We can promote this by rewarding effort rather than attainment. For example, in internal assessments and tests, teachers should reward students who achieve more than they did last time. This cultivates an attitude of personal perseverance, rather than competing against the grades of other students in the class. This means the teacher can celebrate the student’s achievement no matter what their grade, as long as they are showing progress. Developing a sense of self-worth and self-confidence is the first step to overcoming learned helplessness.

Honest endeavour To teach self-belief, we must create an inclusive learning environment based on reflection and honesty. Students need to be taught how to reflect on whether they achieved their personal best, without being given a grade by a teacher. In order to do this, at the end of a test teachers could ask the children to close their eyes and put their hand up if they tried their personal best. The children who do, receive a reward.

This requires a high level of honesty and trust within the classroom, but most of the time children (and adults) are honest and only put their hand up if they really did do their senmagazine.co.uk

inspiringinclusion.org Katharine Moylan

Children should not know each other’s test grades, so only personal effort is visibly rewarded best. This encourages children to reflect on their effort levels and to motivate themselves to try harder next time.

Using this kind of approach, children are regularly rewarded for trying their personal best. Less able children and those with learning differences can receive just as many rewards as the children who get the highest grades. In addition, children should not know each other’s test grades, so only personal effort is visibly rewarded. This means that all children are treated equally irrespective of their attainment level. Children working at all levels can grow in self-confidence and all students learn that they can achieve.

One of the key roles of a teacher is to inspire self-belief and we must first cultivate a teaching and learning relationship based on honesty, positivity and perseverance. As children learn to trust their teacher, and they realise that effort rather than ability will be praised, they will become more resilient when attempting more difficult work and taking on new challenges.

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SEN law

What the law says about:

secondary school transfers Douglas Silas looks at legal issues in the move to secondary school for pupils with SEN

E

very year, we have the legal deadline of 15 February for local authorities (LAs) to amend the education, health and care (EHC) plans of children and young people with SEN to name their secondary school from September of that year. And every year, around this date, many parents find themselves wanting legal help to appeal to the Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Tribunal, seeking an alternative school.

For example, the LA may be intending to name or has named a local maintained “generic� special school, whereas the parents want a local maintained mainstream school or academy, with additional support/therapy, or sometimes a non-maintained or independent more specialist special school. On the other hand (and more commonly), the LA may be intending to name or has named a local maintained mainstream school or academy, whereas the parents want a local maintained special school, or a non-maintained or an independent special school. In these situations, parents may even have been given the mainstream school or academy they want, but are requesting a place in a special unit or additional resource provision (ARP) at that mainstream school or academy in their LA, or in a neighbouring LA.

The theory is that every child has a right to be educated inclusively in a mainstream school The law surrounding secondary school transfers is very complicated and the law in deciding placements is slightly different, depending on the situation in which parents find themselves. However, there are some general principles and the SEND Code of Practice 2015 (CoP), brought into effect by the Children and Families Act 2014, is always a good place to start.

General duties The CoP states that an EHC plan must be reviewed and amended in sufficient time prior to a child moving between key phases of education, including primary or middle to secondary school. It adds that reviews and amendments SEN100

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The child’s parent has the right to request a particular school to be named in their EHC plan

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About the author Specialist SEN solicitor Douglas Silas is the Principal of Douglas Silas Solicitors.

SpecialEducationalNeeds.co.uk @douglassilas

must be completed by 15 February in the calendar year of the transfer at the latest for transfers into or between schools.

@douglassilas

Right to mainstream inclusion The theory is that every child, no matter what their SEN, has a right to be educated inclusively in a mainstream school.

Where parents want mainstream education and it would not be incompatible with the efficient education of others, the LA has a duty to secure that provision. The CoP states that where a parent or young person does not make a request for a particular school or does so and their request is not met, the LA must specify mainstream provision in the EHC plan unless it would be against the wishes of the parent or young person, or incompatible with the efficient education of others.

The CoP also states that mainstream education cannot be refused by an LA on the grounds that it is not suitable.

An LA can rely on the exception of incompatibility with the efficient education of others only if it can show that there are no “reasonable steps” it or the school (or other mainstream schools in its area) could take to prevent that incompatibility.

Requesting a school or college The child’s parent has the right to request a particular school to be named in their EHC plan and this includes: • a maintained school and any form of academy or free school (mainstream or special) • a non-maintained special school • an independent school or independent specialist college (where they have been approved for this purpose by the Secretary of State and published in a list available to all parents – known as a “Section 41” list).

If a child’s parent makes a request for a particular school in these groups, the LA must comply with that preference unless: • it would be unsuitable for the age, ability, aptitude or SEN of the child, or • the attendance of the child or young person there would be incompatible with the efficient education of others, or the efficient use of resources.

The child’s parent or the young person may also make representations for places in independent schools that are not on the list mentioned above and the LA must consider their request, but the LA is not under the same conditional duty to name the provider but must have regard to the general principle (in Section 9 of the Education Act 1996) that children should be educated in accordance with their parents’ wishes, so long as this is compatible with the provision of efficient instruction and training and does not mean “unreasonable public expenditure”. senmagazine.co.uk

■ The SEN Code of Practice sets principles for transfers to secondary school.

The right to appeal Unfortunately, sometimes parents and LAs are in conflict about the school being named. Although there are other ways of resolving disagreement (such as mediation), it is now fairly common for parents to bring an appeal to the SEND Tribunal seeking an alternative school to the one being named by the LA. They must do this within two months of the EHC plan or one month of the mediation certificate, which they must first obtain to lodge an appeal (it does not mean they have to mediate first, but only ensure that they have been counselled on the benefits of mediation).

The right to a denominational school The LA should consider very carefully a request from a parent for a denominational school, but denominational considerations cannot override the requirements of the Children and Families Act 2014.

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Learning disability

A

child as young as six years old is left covered in bruises after being physically restrained by adults.

A child is locked in an empty room, isolated, alone and terrified because their behaviour is considered “out of hand”. A child is tied to a chair and left sitting in their own urine just because they didn’t understand that they had to get off a bike. These stories are all true and all happened recently in a UK school.

These cases are not rare. Too many children with learning disabilities or autism are being denied their basic rights as we fail to meet our obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

The four core principles of the Convention are nondiscrimination, the best interests of the child, the right to life, and respect for the views of the child. But how does the culture we promote in our schools support these principles? Are we meeting the needs of society’s most vulnerable children?

Excluded and left behind Ofsted recently highlighted the “deep injustice” of the rising number of children with SEN being excluded from school.

The education watchdog found that pupils with SEN are five times more likely to be permanently excluded than other pupils overall. Shocking reports like this led the Department for Education (DfE) to commission a review of school exclusions (currently expected to report by Easter 2019), led by former Children’s Minister Edward Timpson.

Positive support for learning disability We need new attitudes and a new approach to the care and education of children with complex needs, writes Ben Higgins What is behind these high exclusion figures for children with SEN? Recently there has been a growth in schools adopting a “zero tolerance” approach to behaviour. This involves a focus on reactive disciplinary approaches such as “naughty” children being removed from the classroom, put in detention or excluded from school. The zero tolerance approach puts the blame on the child, when often the reality is that their needs have not

Are we meeting the needs of society’s most vulnerable children?

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Learning disability

Our job is not to send the problem out of the classroom, it’s to find out what that problem is

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About the author Ben Higgins is Chief Executive of the charity BILD, the British Institute of Learning Disabilities. bild.org.uk @BILD_tweets

been met. We are punishing children because we have failed to meet their needs. This approach is unethical, not at all in the best interests of the children and is often detrimental to their mental health.

@ukbild

So how have we ended up with such a draconian education system – a system that focuses on academic results and relies on a punitive culture? And what happened to the inclusion agenda?

The Education Policy Institute has highlighted the severe shortage of teachers. The Secretary of State for Education has said recruitment of teachers is the top priority for his department. The assumption is that teachers do not want to teach due to difficult behaviour so tackling behaviour issues in schools is a political priority.

Discipline and force Last year, the Government strengthened teachers’ power to discipline pupils for misbehaviour, impose same-day detentions and search pupils. But where is the evidence base that this approach works? The DfE has also reinforced the message that teachers’ powers to discipline pupils include the power to use reasonable force, yet teachers are not required to attend training in order to use reasonable force safely. In fact, a school could commission training in the use of physical force from someone with a background in martial arts or as a nightclub doorman. I find it shocking that we live in such a regulated world, yet training in using physical force on vulnerable children in our schools is completely unregulated. As a result, too often such training does not include prevention, de-escalation or recovery but purely focuses on restraint and the use of force.

Such training is high-risk in terms of safeguarding and can result in unnecessary trauma, increased risk of physical harm and the development of a toxic culture. Whilst measures are being put in place to ensure training in health and adult social care is accredited by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) and complies with the Restraint Reduction Network Training Standards, this remains voluntary in schools.

Far too many schools are over-reliant on restrictive practices and this has been reinforced by recent research by the Challenging Behaviour Foundation. In 2017, BBC 5 Live Investigates revealed that hundreds of children in special schools across the UK have been injured while being physically restrained. The Government needs to take action to address this scandal. While the Education Secretary recently announced new funding to support children with SEN, putting the right provision in place depends on more than just money; it also requires policy and cultural change in schools and services. senmagazine.co.uk

■ Ofsted says the rise in SEN exclusions is a “deep injustice”.

So clearly there is a problem. But what is the solution?

The roots of behaviour We know there is always an underlying reason for any behaviour.

A child may be disruptive simply because they are feeling unwell or haven’t had any breakfast. Equally, a child may be traumatised as a result of abuse they may have experienced the week before. We don’t always know what the reason is.

Our job is not to send the problem out of the classroom, it’s to find out what that problem is.

In Connection Parenting, parent educator Pam Leo says: “You can’t teach children to behave better by making them feel worse. When children feel better they behave better”. We need a shift in values in our schools, to move away from a system based on compliance, judgement and disciplining pupils.

It’s not the children that need to change; it’s the adults. We as professionals and services have to take responsibility for supporting every child and recognising what we can do differently in order to meet needs. We must change the ethos within our schools to one that develops and nurtures the

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Learning disability

mental health and wellbeing of the next generation. Our school system should promote inclusion, not exclusion, and teach compassion and understanding.

We have to introduce training on evidence-based approaches to preventing behaviour of concern and move away from a focus on reactive approaches like sanctions or restraint. Whilst this is happening in health and adult social care, it is less developed in schools in the UK. It is staggering that different government departments can use such different approaches.

Positive behaviour support Respected school systems, such as those in Scandinavia and North America, have increasingly adopted positive behaviour support to better understand and meet children’s needs, as it has a strong evidence base in preventing behaviour occurring in the first place and in promoting sympathy and inclusion. The overall aim of this approach is to improve the quality of life for an individual and those around them. Support is personalised and engages an individual in activities that are meaningful for them. Based on an understanding of how an individual learns and what behaviours of concern mean for them, it includes proactive strategies to prevent or reduce the triggers and events that provoke or maintain these behaviours. Interventions are designed to support personal development and the learning and maintaining of new skills.

Some UK schools have adopted positive behaviour support and also sourced physical intervention training from a provider

It is staggering that different government departments can use such different approaches

that has been through external scrutiny to ensure best practice.

These schools have demonstrated a significant reduction in reliance on restrictive approaches. One such school is Calthorpe Academy in Birmingham. As a result of changing to accredited training and introducing positive behaviour support, Calthorpe has reduced restrictive practices by 85 per cent over an 18-month period. A recent Ofsted report said that “the use of physical interventions has reduced enormously over the last year and is now infrequent… Staff use their skills and knowledge of communication and behaviour to support pupils in a thoughtful way, helping pupils to express their needs and feelings in a more acceptable way”.

Our school system is cautious about promoting particular approaches or frameworks. After-all, we know every child is different and different children will respond better to different approaches. But we also know we have a problem of excess exclusion and restraint in our schools. Whilst positive behaviour support is not a silver bullet, it can be important in promoting a culture of wellbeing and inclusion within schools.

The need for action The DfE is responsible for supporting professional development and helping disadvantaged children. NHS England’s Transforming Care Programme and the Lenehan review (of residential special schools) recognise the benefits of positive behaviour support. I hope that Edward Timpson’s review will also encourage the DfE to facilitate the system-wide roll out of evidence-based preventative approaches to bring about a culture more akin to that of adult health and social care.

We also need to publish improved guidance to reduce reliance on restrictive practices and better protect children’s fundamental human rights. The US Department of Education has recently announced a programme to address the inappropriate use of restraint and seclusion with people with disabilities. Surely, we in the UK can do the same.

Education is a fundamental right for children. We need inclusive schools that foster compassion and wellbeing and that adequately cater for all pupils. The failure to create such an ethos in our schools is an unintended consequence of current misinformed policy, such as zero tolerance to behaviour in schools. The Government and service commissioners must take action to fulfil their responsibilities to better protect the human rights of all children and to stop the physical and emotional harm experienced by too many children with learning disabilities or autism in UK schools.

■ Intervention activities should be meaningful for the individual.

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Jim Green Challenge for students with SEN Students with learning difficulties from across Sussex, Surrey, and Kent came together recently to participate in the South of England Agricultural Society’s twenty-first Jim Green Challenge.

Organised in honour of the Society’s past chairman, who founded its educational outreach programmes, the Challenge invites students and adults from land-based colleges and specialist day centres to take part in both practical competitions and evidence-based project work, all focused around the countryside.

This year, more than 100 students in 11 teams took part in the all-inclusive competition including those from Aldingbourne Country Centre, Chichester College, Manor Green College and Woodlands Meed College in West Sussex, Plumpton College in East Sussex, Nescot College and Young Epilepsy in Surrey, and Hadlow College in Kent.

More information and details of the winners, can be found at seas.org.uk

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Dyscalculia

Summing-up dyscalculia Judy Hornigold explains how to identify and support dyscalculia in the classroom

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f you can’t read or write well, it’s a major issue. In Britain, so many of our opportunities in life are decided by how we access the written word and how we articulate our thoughts and ideas on paper. Saying “I’m bad at reading” or “I struggle with writing” brings up lots of questions about someone’s wider abilities.

So, if a child is lagging behind in literacy, we take it seriously and if we suspect dyslexia is the root cause, we have established ways to diagnose and provide effective tailored support.

However, saying “I’m bad at maths” is common and carries little judgement about someone’s wider abilities. Generally, children are told not to worry, muddle through maths exams and focus their energy elsewhere. Hence, dyslexia’s numerical cousin dyscalculia is rarely diagnosed and not generally understood or supported – although it can cause substantial challenges that extend beyond the maths classroom.

Dyscalculia is a specific learning difficulty with mathematics, primarily arithmetic. It is estimated to affect five per cent of the population, so around half the number that are affected by dyslexia (around ten to 15 per cent of people).

Children are told not to worry, muddle through maths exams and focus their energy elsewhere SEN100

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When given two numbers, a dyscalculic learner will have difficulty in identifying which is the larger

The British Dyslexia Association has recently published this definition: “Developmental dyscalculia is a specific and persistent difficulty in understanding arithmetic and basic number sense. It may also affect retrieval of number facts and key procedures, fluent calculation and interpreting numerical information. It is diverse in character and occurs across all ages and abilities. Dyscalculia is an unexpected difficulty in maths that cannot be explained by external factors.

“Maths difficulties are often thought of as a continuum, not a distinct category, with dyscalculia at the extreme end of this continuum. It should be expected that developmental dyscalculia will be distinguishable from general maths difficulties due to the severity of difficulties with symbolic and non-symbolic magnitude, number sense and subitising.

“Developmental dyscalculia can often co-occur with other specific learning difficulties, such as dyslexia, dyspraxia and attention deficit hyperactive disorder.”

What might suggest someone is dyscalculic?

To follow are a few key indicators that a person may have dyscalculia, rather than just being bad at maths.

An inability to subitise even very small quantities The word “subitise” comes from the Latin word “subito” which means suddenly. It refers to our ability to immediately recognise the number of items in a set without actually having to count them. Most people can subitise up to six or seven items. A dyscalculic learner will not be able to do this and may have difficulty in subitising just three items.

Most people will instantly recognise that there are five dots here without having to count them.

However, we would have to count these dots.

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About the author Judy Hornigold is a member of the British Dyslexia Association’s Dyscalculia Committee and an independent education consultant specialising in dyslexia and dyscalculia. judyhornigold.co.uk @DyscalculiaInfo

@bdadyslexia

Assessing numerical quantity When given two numbers, a dyscalculic learner will have difficulty in identifying which is the larger.

Poor number sense Number sense refers to how well we can work with numbers, how they can be broken up or joined together and how we can make numbers work for us, through using them flexibly.

For example, someone with good number sense would tackle 39 + 40 + 41 as 3 x 40, since this is quicker and more efficient than adding 39 + 40 + 41.

Inability to generalise Being able to generalise greatly reduces the load on our working memory and enables us to make connections and predictions in maths. It is really a question of using what you do know to find out what you don’t know. So, if I know that 7 + 3 = 10, I can generalise this to know that 10 - 7 = 3 or 30 + 70 = 100 and so on.

Other indicators of dyscalculia: • an inability to estimate whether a numerical answer is reasonable • immature strategies – for example, counting all instead of counting on • poor recall of number facts and procedures • difficulty in learning to tell the time, which can persist in learners with dyscalculia; they can also have difficulty with appreciating the passage of time, so they may not be able to tell whether one minute or one hour has passed • difficulty using money; this can be a severe difficulty and often stems from a lack of understanding of place value – for example, not being able to appreciate that a £20 note will be sufficient to cover a £15.75 taxi fare.

A dyscalculic person may not be able to subitise even two dots.

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Dyscalculia

Practical ways to support children with dyscalculia at school 1. Use tangible materials, such as Cuisenaire rods or base ten materials; spend time exploring these and don’t take them away too soon as they will help to develop the child’s understanding.

2. Play games with dice and dominoes so that the child can recognise common dot patterns.

3. Encourage the child to use more efficient calculating strategies, such as counting on rather than counting all.

4. Encourage the child to visualise the maths by drawing diagrams and using concrete materials to model the maths.

5. Make the maths practical and multi-sensory and avoid worksheets.

6. Spend time on place value so that it is fully understood, as this can be a very difficult concept to grasp.

7. Have a little and often approach; repetition and overlearning will help.

8. Use mathematical language as much as possible and encourage the child to do the same.

9. Give multiplication grids and number bonds to reduce the stress of having to remember these facts.

10. Courses to become specialist teachers for dyscalculia are also available; whilst many are relatively new, the hope is that over time, dyscalculia will be supported in a similar tailored way to dyslexia.

The impact of dyscalculia is far reaching and can profoundly affect daily living

Screening for dyscalculia It may be necessary to have a formal identification of dyscalculia in order to access the right kind of support and intervention.

The first step would be to carry out a checklist to see if the learner is at risk and these are available from a wide range of organisations.

There are also several dyscalculia screeners that will assess the learner’s ability to subitise, to identify the numerically larger number from a pair of numbers and to perform simple calculations. Screeners can be online or pen and paper and can give very useful information about the difficulties that a particular individual has.

The next step in identification would be a formal diagnosis and this can be carried out by a specialist assessor or an educational psychologist. However, It is important to weigh up the cost of the assessment against the benefits to the learner

How does dyscalculia affect people?

Depending on the severity, the impact of dyscalculia is far reaching and can profoundly affect daily living.

In extreme cases, some dyscalculic adults never learn to drive, because of the numerical demands of driving and map reading (although satellite navigation can help a great deal here). Dyscalculia can also lead to social isolation, due to an inability to be at the right place at the right time, or to understand the rules and scoring systems of games and sports.

Most commonly though, it leads to financial challenges due to difficulty in budgeting.

To have dyscalculia can be a very frustrating experience, but it does not mean that you will never achieve in life. It is, after all, a specific learning difficulty. Paul Moorcraft’s book It Just Doesn’t Add Up is testament to what can be achieved despite having severe dyscalculia.

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Dyslexia

Learning to teach dyslexics When teaching individuals with dyslexia, it helps to follow a few basic principles, writes Adam Meyersieck

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ince Sir Jim Rose’s report on dyslexia was published a decade ago, our collective understanding of specific learning difficulties (SpLD) including dyslexia has improved the teaching and learning experience for dyslexic individuals; the Department for Education (DfE) funded thousands of teachers to be trained as dyslexia specialists to localise expertise, and more recently funded training for teachers to deepen their understanding of neuro-diverse learners. As our awareness and identification of these difficulties continues to expand, it is vital we maintain our path toward better quality-first teaching, tailored interventions and increased parental engagement.

In last year’s March/April issue of SEN Magazine (SEN93), Reid and Guise highlighted the importance of personalised assessment to help us better appreciate individuals’ learning profiles. In order to go beyond a diagnostic test to simply obtain a label of “dyslexia”, we must be more solutions-based in our understanding of these children.

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We must be more solutionsbased in our understanding of these children In light of developing a more personalised knowledge of students, I have found “SLOOM” teaching helps families and practitioners better understand some of the key issues for planning, and best practice principles for teaching and supporting children with these profiles.

SLOOM stands for: • Scaffolding • Little and Often • Overlearning • Multi-sensory.

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Scaffolding Scaffolded teaching develops confidence, success and motivation in children. In scaffolding, support is tapered off as it becomes unnecessary, much like scaffolding is removed from a building during construction, so a student can perform a skill on their own (see McLeod, 2018).

Scaffolding instruction takes place between a pupil’s 93 to 97 per cent success zone (Gickling and Armstrong, 1978). If they are succeeding at a rate lower than this, they are likely to lose interest quickly due to frustration. If they are succeeding at over 97 per cent, they may develop better fluency, but there is a risk of becoming bored after finishing a task quickly. The chart below explains why.

Little and often When done well, teaching little and often can: • help with retention and memory • provide frequent opportunities to demonstrate newly learnt skills • build fluency • prevent burnout from long lessons with little success • keep students interested • ensure students don’t miss entire curriculum lessons • make scaffolding easier.

Strategies like Incremental Rehearsal (MacQuarrie at al., 2002) and Repeated Reading (Samuels, 1979) fit well within a

About the author Adam Meyersieck is a Specialist Leader of Education based at Gosden House School in Surrey. He runs the School’s SEND Outreach Service and writes regularly at We Get To Teach.

WeGetToTeach.com @WeGetToTeach

Teaching little and often can keep students interested

15-minute time frame, and are based on scaffolding, little and often and overlearning. In practice, I call Incremental Rehearsal “lightning cards” because children enjoy it more when it has a more exciting name – although this flashcard-based strategy remains unchanged.

■ Why we scaffold Frustration

Scaffolding (often called “instructional level”)

Independent

Accuracy (with no help)

0-93 per cent

93-97 per cent

97-100 per cent

We give work at this level because…

it’s typically part of curriculum or we don’t know the pupil well

it builds accuracy and children will acquire new skills

we want a child to improve in their fluency with a skill

A child feels…

frustrated

challenged with a sense of accomplishment

either confident, bored, or both

A child will learn…

to be helpless, give up, rely on adult support/cheating

they can succeed at meaningful and challenging activities

to complete easy work at a faster pace (develop fluency)

Likelihood of behaviour problems are…

high – due to low completion low – due to correct rate, frustration, lack of level of challenge and confidence accomplishment

low to start with but can increase if child finishes early or feels unchallenged

What it looks like – student

disengaged with higher likelihood of behavioural challenges

engaged for longer periods of time and lower likelihood of behavioural challenges

engaged for a short period of time; likelihood of behavioural challenges increases if bored

What it looks like – teachers/TAs/parents

you have to sit next to them the whole time

you check on them occasionally, correcting and prompting as needed

student needs almost no support with a lesson/skill

(Adam Meyersieck, 2018)

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Dyslexia

To tailor a 15-minute literacy intervention you might consider: • two minutes of sight word/known word reading using lighting cards • two minutes of decoding/sounding out practice • two minutes of spelling practice (spell words out loud to develop metacognitive strategies) • two minutes of practicing reading previously mastered words • seven minutes of story reading/fluency practice of a story they can read with 93 to 100 per cent accuracy with repeated reading.

Overlearning Think back to when you learnt to ride a bicycle (or another second nature activity). Were you instantly successful or did you first learn to pedal and steer on a tricycle? Did you instantly ride off into the horizon, or were you a bit wobbly and unstable like I was? Fortunately, with repetition we eventually grew into competent cyclists. When we apply the teaching principle of repetition to literacy instruction, we give children ample opportunities to consolidate their learning.

Due to the demands of the National Curriculum and our incessant drive for higher test achievement, we may mistake moving a student on to a more difficult skill with a student being ready for a more difficult skill. By doing this, our students with SpLDs can be inadvertently moved through school until we later notice they struggle with foundational, conceptual skills (such as adding, subtracting, reading accuracy, sounding out words and basic spelling).

High quality interventions provide pupils with opportunities to overlearn. In your own practice, search for ways pupils can demonstrate skills outside of the intervention (generalisation).

Remember, just because a young person shows you they can perform a skill two or three times in an intervention does not mean it is part of their skill repertoire. Generalisation of these skills into a child’s environment is often where our interventions lack success, so it is critical children overlearn skills until they become automatic.

Sand trays are an engaging multi-sensory teaching resource for spelling and handwriting

as a pencil grip by poking a pen or pencil through the ball. The ball then becomes a large pencil grip, useful for mark-making, letter formation and fine motor skills development.

Sand trays are another engaging multi-sensory teaching resource for spelling and handwriting. The grains of the sand can reinforce letter formation and sensory stimulation, and the larger muscle movements can support learning and engagement.

Say and stretch Before writing out a word, slowly say the word you want to spell while stretching out your arms for each sound. For example, if a student wants to write the word “cat” (or any regular word) and asks you to help them, have them stretch out the word with their hands while simultaneously saying it slowly so they can hear each individual sound.

Here’s how it’s done: say the word while clapping your hands, then keep your hands together. Slowly “pull” the word apart, sound by sound, until your hands are stretched wider. Repeat these steps with the student, then let them do it on their own to show they can use the strategy. They can then write the word out.

The objective of “say and stretch” is for a student to utilise this independently in their own writing, so you will likely need to model and scaffold this at first. If an older pupil feels selfconscious doing this, they can use smaller movements for stretching out a word. Tapping a table, foot or leg may prove useful for young people with dyslexic difficulties.

Multi-sensory

We’ve got at least five senses. Let’s use them in our teaching!

There is no shortage of multi-sensory teaching advice. This approach was first pioneered (at least in name) by OrtonGillingham in the 1930s, and promotes giving kids more than one sensory method to learn new skills – sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch. Multi-sensory teaching allows for neuro-diverse learners to discover and tap into their strengths.

Although the term “SLOOM” might sound a bit more like a seafood curry dish than best-practice teaching, it is catchy, easy to remember and useful for helping teachers, parents and support staff recognise the type of teaching that works best for children and young people with SpLDs.

Tips to promote writing and reading Handwriting and spelling For handwriting, use different sized, coloured writing utensils and surfaces like sandpaper, sand trays, shaving foam, or chalkboards. Textured surfaces like sandpaper and chalkboards create a sensory experience, and using larger paper for writing encourages bigger movements which can help with muscle memory for letter formation and spelling (think overlearning).

These resources are also more engaging. If a young person has fine motor skills difficulties, try using a tennis ball or squash ball SEN100

References Gickling, E. E., and Armstrong, D. L. (1978). Levels of instructional difficulty as related to on task behavior, task completion, and comprehension. Journal of Learning Disabilities,11, 559-566.

MacQuarrie, L.L., Tucker, J.A., Burns, M.K., and Hartman, B.(2002). Comparison of retention rates using traditional drill sandwich, and incremental rehearsal flash card methods. School Psychology Review, 31, 584-595.

McLeod, S. (updated 2018) www.simplypsychology.org/Zone-of-ProximalDevelopment.html Reid, G. and Guise, J. (2018) Assessing dyslexia, in SEN Magazine (March/April 2018, SEN93).

Rose, J. (2009). Identifying and Teaching Children and Young People with Dyslexia and Literacy Difficulties, Department for Children, Schools and Families.

Samuels, S.J. (1979). The method of repeated readings. The Reading Teacher, 32(4), 403-408.

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DME

Unseen (dis)ability Eleonoor van Gerven looks at how to address the needs of dual or multiple exceptional students

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igh learning potential is not a magic shield that protects students against learning or developmental disabilities. Dual or multiple exceptional (DME) students are students who have a high learning potential (HLP) who are also hindered by a learning and/or a developmental disability. As a result of this, their developmental process is not only influenced by their exceptional abilities, but also by the specific inabilities concurrent with them. The students show a discrepancy between their IQ and their achievement levels in both their disability domain and the domains influenced by their disability. This discrepancy causes a clash that may influence the student deeply.

Masking We can distinguish three groups among DME students. Firstly, there are students whose high learning potential masks their disability. Their behaviour and personal traits indicate a high learning potential, although their achievements lag behind what might be expected of an HLP student. The discrepancy between expectations and reality is often explained as underachievement. The idea that the student may have a learning or developmental disability is hardly ever the first option that comes to mind.

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The students show a discrepancy between their IQ and their achievement levels

Secondly, there is a group of students whose disability masks their high learning potential. The disability hinders them to such an extent that the student’s intellectual potential stays undiscovered. The problems caused by learning or developmental disabilities are so big that, at school, their intellectual potential cannot compensate for the problems that occur in the domain of their disability or the domains affected by their disability. The student’s behaviour draws our attention. Although we have our eyes on the student, it is not for the right reasons.

Thirdly, there are students whose abilities and inabilities interact in a way that leaves both their high learning potential and their

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learning and/or developmental disability unseen. Often, these students stay undiscovered until their behaviour gives us cause to be worried. If these students come to our attention at all, it may be for their out of school performances. In these non-curricular oriented activities they express their potential in a way that matches their abilities, where their inabilities do not create barriers that cannot be overcome.

Unidentified DME students are not getting what they need out of education. Being DME influences their development and the lack of proper meaningful educational responses influences their development even more negatively. They experience the emotional consequences of the clash of their enormous talents and developmental potential and the fact that they cannot use these talents in the same way as other HLP students with identical talents.

What does not work?

The use of parallel segregated interventions that aim separately for the remediation of the disability and for challenging the student by setting up an enriched programme has been proven unsuccessful. The characteristics of remediating tasks are that they have a slow pace, a high level of copying and small learning steps towards educational objectives. This approach contradicts what is considered characteristic of the way HLP students learn. Even in the domain of their disability, they can learn at a higher pace, with less copying and repetition and with bigger learning steps than students of average intelligence with the same disability.

Sometimes, parallel segregated interventions addressing the same academic domain may even be contradictory. For example, an intervention may offer work on remedial tasks at below classroom level for reading and spelling because that addresses weaknesses, while, at the same time, offering an enrichment task that requires the ability to read and write at an above classroom level, because that addresses the student’s strengths. For DME students, this approach leads to being bored to death while working on remedial tasks and to being extremely frustrated while executing a task that requires a production process that is beyond their capabilities.

Single goal interventions aiming to overcome the difficulties a student has in a disability domain are also unlikely to be meaningful. Although the student learns that they might use their strengths to compensate for the weaknesses in their achievement profile, the approach to the strengths comes from a negative perspective. In this approach, the focus lies on the deficits and not on the opportunities the student has.

The student’s strengths are used to create a balance between weaknesses and strengths without respecting the basic need to develop the strengths on their own merits. Big and longlasting successes are not likely. A focus on the weaknesses and viewing strengths merely as a tool to overcome them does not ignite long-lasting motivation.

Meaningful educational responses DME students have seemingly paradoxical educational needs that can be best-addressed from a holistic perspective: the strength-based and talent-focused approach. Strength-based senmagazine.co.uk

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About the author Eleonoor Van Gerven is the Managing Director of Slim!

Educatief, a teacher education institute based in Holland.

She educates teachers in gifted education and dual and multiple exceptionality. She has published more than 15 books in Dutch on gifted education. slimeducatief.nl @EleonoorvanGerv

@slimeducatief

If these students come to our attention at all, it may be for their out of school performances.

means to proceed from the student’s strengths, cognitive style, learning style preferences and intelligence profile.

Talent-focused implies an ongoing process of the student’s developmental potential combined with their interests, and creating opportunities to include a student’s capabilities that would not normally be part of the curriculum. The strengthsbased and talent-focused approach takes the clash of being DME into account. DME students thrive on the opportunity to explore their multiple talents and capabilities for something other than using them to overcome their weaknesses. Only being allowed to use their talents as a reward for a delivered achievement leads to a negative effect.

Tips for teachers Unfortunately, there are no quick fixes or silver bullets when it comes to teaching DME students. The only thing we are sure of is that to be successful, it is necessary to individualise interventions. However, daily practice in education requires a reality check. A teacher has only one pair of hands, classroom assistants are scarce, all students in a class have a right to their teacher’s attention, and funds for additional resources are limited. Therefore, start by keeping things simple and small.

Lose the need for a label Do not wait until there is a formal label that classifies your student as being DME. If we postpone responding to the student’s educational needs until they get a label, we fail our students.

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Create opportunities Think about creating learning opportunities instead of “fixing what is broken”. What does the student need to learn and why is that important? Extend learning objectives beyond the academic domain and also consider interpersonal and intrapersonal objectives. What interventions might be a match with these set objectives?

Make learning safe A student learns how new behaviour, new knowledge or new skills contribute to their development. They may feel anxious at the start. That feeling has an impact on regulating emotions. This requires a safe pedagogical-didactical environment. Explore how both the teacher and the student can each contribute to this.

Respect unicity Each gifted student has an individual intelligence profile. Each disability comes with an individual profile as well. These two individual profiles interact uniquely, fuelled by interaction with the student’s environment. So even when you have two students who are both gifted and dyslexic or two students who are both gifted and have ADHD, each of them has a unique profile and therefore unique needs.

Each teacher also has a unique profile with different strengths and different weaknesses. That teacher profile interacts with the student’s profile. Consequently, changing teachers may lead to a change of educational needs. What works in situation A may no longer work in situation B. Therefore, no intervention is likely to be successful forever.

Motivation Consider that four questions ignite a student’s motivation: “Is my task meaningful?” “Do I think that I can be successful in completing the task?” “How do I value the task objectives?”

“Are costs and results well balanced?” Then consider that teachers and students are more alike than we sometimes think. The same four questions ignite a teacher’s motivation to implement interventions. So start exploring what is meaningful

■ Each student has a unique profile of strengths and difficulties.

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Do not see students only as their difficulties or disabilities but also as their abilities

for both of them. Do not strive for interventions that exceed the teacher’s capabilities or stretch capacity above and beyond what they can do in the context of their classroom practice.

If you aim high for your student, remember that this requires that the teacher should be able to provide high-level support.

Stimulate, compensate, remediate and excuse Stimulate the use of both strengths and weaknesses. Remember that doing something in a domain that confronts you with a relative weakness may be something a student likes to avoid.

Stimulate the student to take on the challenge. Stimulate the development of strengths as well. Do not see students only as their difficulties or disabilities but also as their abilities.

Teach them how to use their ability to compensate effectively.

Also, teach them how to cope with the fact that their ability to compensate might not always be equally strong under different circumstances.

Just as with other students, a learning disability does not mean that there cannot be progress in the domain of their relative weaknesses. Use remediation as a strategy to develop skills to their best possible level. Excuse the student from doing a task that they are not able to do in situations where stimulating, compensating and remediation did not lead to progress and development.

Respect the disability and the IQ equally Last but by no means least, being an HLP student does not mean that this student has an endless malleability. Too often the idea exists that if the HLP student is willing to put in enough effort, he or she can overcome the disability. That might be true to a certain extent. You can teach a dyslexic student grammar and spelling strategies. You can teach a student with dyscalculia basic mathematical strategies. You can teach a student with autism spectrum disorder what is socially accepted behaviour in communication. You can teach a student with ADHD to inhibit dominant reactions. However, you don’t know to what extent the student will be able to use the taught strategies within the proper context in the proper way. That not only depends on being an HLP student, but also on the profile of the disability and the context they function within. Encourage a growth mindset, but accept that there may be a point in time where the student has a right to give in, and at that moment, giving in does not mean giving up or having a fixed mindset, it merely means that the student is ready to accept who they are.

A referenced version of this article is available at slimeducatief.nl/artikelen/download/29/ senmagazine.co.uk

WESC

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Outdoor play

Play for all Ben Shears looks at how to design an outdoor learning space that celebrates ability

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s any good teacher will tell you, no two children are the same. In every group you’ll find individuals with a wide range of differing abilities, all presenting with their own challenges for learning and skills development. Many schools have worked hard in recent years to provide better and more integrated learning experiences for pupils with SEN. The effective use of outdoor space is often low on a school’s list of priorities though, particularly for pupils with SEN, who can find themselves with very limited opportunities to enjoy time outdoors at school.

One of the key things that children learn through play is to embrace challenge

I believe that success in outdoor learning lies not in concentrating on special educational needs, but in considering all educational needs. Whether you are designing a playground for a special school or improving the outdoor learning provision in a primary setting, don’t just look at restrictions imposed by disabilities; instead, focus on enabling children of all abilities to take part.

For children to learn outdoors they have to feel included and empowered. This means providing opportunities that suit those with a wide range of abilities and are accessible to them. When we think in terms of ability – rather than disability – children

with SEN are no longer separated out and outdoor learning and play can start to become more inclusive.

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It’s important not to play it safe when it comes to presenting learning and play opportunities. One of the key things that children learn through play is to embrace challenge. If children aren’t challenged, they don’t experiment and they don’t improve their skills. Children of all abilities need to be given opportunities to explore new things and make mistakes, as these are vital elements of the learning process. senmagazine.co.uk

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Testing pupils As part of the scheme for one special school’s outdoor learning space, panels that offer rewards or targets for the children were added to a tower and ramp design to provide a sense of learning as children make their way through the structure.

The panels, which were selected to offer differing levels of challenge, make things more interesting and engaging for the children, as well as providing an accessible route towards the shelter of the tower. Once at the tower, there is a slide or a fire-person’s pole for the children to use, depending on their wishes and ability.

This kind of design allows teachers to integrate a sense of learning and challenge into the play experience: “Can you make your own way to the first panel?” “Can you complete the puzzle at the second zone?”

Another similar type of scheme might, for example, involve using different surfaces (such as bumps, cobbles or logs) and posts for the children to navigate. This could be integrated within an active trail, perhaps on a sloped deck.

It’s important that things are not made too easy for the children, so they complete the activities too quickly, and we also want to ensure pupils are able to move on to the next challenge without restrictions. Providing a range of versions of the same activity, so that peers of different abilities can play and learn together, can be a great way of achieving the right balance.

Inclusive play Good play schemes help all children to build on their strengths, and discover new ones, while having fun. The Seashell Trust, near Manchester, has created an inclusive play area for children living on site and visitors. The main focus was on inclusivity – getting children of all ages and abilities playing together.

Swings with a range of different seats and a roundabout with access for a wheelchair were installed, along with a sunken trampoline, a shelter, picnic tables, teepees and a variety of different surfaces. By combining equipment designed for those with limited physical ability with mainstream equipment, the scheme makes it easy for peers to play and learn side-by-side, as well as offering opportunities for progression.

■ Being active outdoors can have a positive impact on behaviour.

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About the author Former primary school teacher Ben Shears is a Consultant at Playforce, who design and install children’s outdoor play equipment for schools and nurseries. playforce.co.uk @PlayforceUK

PlayforceUK

Active engagement Reach Primary Learning Centre in Leeds specialises in teaching children with social, emotional and mental health (SEMH) needs.

Headteacher Ali Elvidge was keen to include a strong active aspect to her students’ education.

“We really wanted a new outdoor space that would help the children find an outlet for their energy”, she says. “We’ve been able to incorporate a huge range of educational equipment for the children to enjoy, like the post-mounted chalk board, spinning disk challenge and the large mud kitchen. But it’s also involved a range of equipment designed to give them a chance to ‘blow off steam’ and be active”.

Good play schemes help all children to build on their strengths and discover new ones Finding positive ways to be active is particularly important for children with SEMH needs and the school’s new outdoor space has, Ali Elvidge believes, had a tangible impact in terms of pupils’ behaviour and social interaction. “We’ve gone from having on average 20+ serious incidents a day to no more than three a day. Now that the children have something fun to do, they’ve got a positive outlet for their energy.”

More and more schools are recognising the impact that active time outdoors can have on pupils’ learning and behaviour, not to mention their fitness and health. Settings of all types are starting to think creatively about how they use their outdoor space for the benefit of pupils. As the examples in this article show, while it is important to consider the abilities and needs of the children who will be using the play space, the crucial thing is to provide an engaging and challenging environment for all children. The best outdoor environments present challenge, integration, progression and, most of all, fun for all children.

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Healthy eating

How to improve kids’ eating habits Emma Haycraft shares evidence-based ideas for helping children to eat healthily

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e all want children to eat a healthy, balanced diet, and caregivers have a really important role in feeding children in their care, yet children often have other ideas!

Most children go through a phase of fussy eating1 and this behaviour is totally normal. How this fussiness is managed can affect whether children outgrow it, or if it will continue as they get older, and this is why caregivers are vital for helping children to develop healthy eating habits.

There are some common feeding pitfalls that caregivers may encounter, including: children refusing to eat foods; children having preferences for unhealthy foods; caregivers pressuring children to eat more than they want to; caregivers restricting children’s access to certain foods; and caregivers using food as a reward for good behaviour.

Food refusal Being faced with a child who refuses to eat fruit or vegetables, but who will happily eat cake, chips and other “junk” foods, can be worrying for those who are taking care of them.

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Foods people are pressured or forced to eat become less desirable Caregivers may feel a need to force the child to eat food, believing that this is in the child’s best interests. But compelling a child to eat a food, or to eat more than they wish, can have unintended consequences.

Research has shown that foods people are pressured or forced to eat become less desirable2, which means children are even less likely to want to eat their cabbage or pasta bake if they feel pressurised.

Evidence also shows us that if a child is repeatedly pressured to eat more than they want to at mealtimes it can “teach” them to ignore their internal signals about fullness and hunger which, senmagazine.co.uk

Healthy eating

The “clean your plate” mantra is a thing of the past in the long-term, will contribute to children putting on weight and potentially becoming overweight or obese3.

If a child is refusing to eat foods, there are certain practical steps I recommend, including: Examine the evidence Think about how long it is since the child last had a snack or filling drink such as milk. Might they be too tired to sit at the table and eat well? Are they feeling unwell? If they are poorly, they may not want to eat.

Check portion sizes – the rule of palm As a guide, a single portion is roughly what would fit in the palm of the child’s hand. Meals should include a palm of the main attraction and two to three palms of the accompanying foods.

Providing too much food could be why children refuse to eat it.

Ten tips for healthy, happy mealtimes 1. Offering children a variety of different tastes and textures when young will encourage them to enjoy a range of foods as they grow.

2. Toddlers can struggle to eat large amounts of food at one mealtime. Three small meals and three small snacks spaced equally throughout the day often works best.

3. Food is a necessity. It should not to be used as a reward or taken away as a punishment.

4. Restricting foods can make them unintentionally desirable.

5. If you must restrict, it’s better to restrict covertly. It’s harder to refuse a child when the temptation is in front of them.

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About the author Dr Emma Haycraft is a Reader in Psychology at Loughborough University. With Dr Gemma Witcomb and Dr Claire Farrow, Emma has developed the Child Feeding Guide to promote healthy eating habits and behaviours in children. childfeedingguide.co.uk @EmmaHaycraft

@ChildFeedingGuide

Don’t use food as a reward It can be tempting, and often very effective, to use food as a reward for good behaviour, either at the table (“Eat all of your cauliflower and then you can have a yoghurt”) or elsewhere (“We have to go home now. If you come without crying, we can get an ice lolly on the way”). However, using food in these ways can have a negative effect on children’s developing preferences and future eating behaviour4-6.

Research shows that using food as a reward or a bribe is associated with a number of less desirable outcomes. These include: children’s liking for the non-reward food (cauliflower) decreasing (“cauliflower must be bad if I’m being bribed to eat it!”); increased liking for the reward food (yoghurt or ice lollies); and poor diet, as the foods that are most often used as rewards are often unhealthy, sugary treats and snacks that can contribute to being overweight, obesity, and an unhealthy diet.

Instead, I suggest offering children real, tangible objects or experiences as rewards, rather than food. A sticker, small toy or trip to the swimming pool can all be very rewarding for the child.

Ultimately, eating food should be an enjoyable experience.

Food is a fuel, not a tool.

6. It can take 15 to 20 exposures before a child accepts a new taste. Introduce foods gradually, over time.

7. Do not force feed children. The “clean your plate” mantra is a thing of the past and could teach children to ignore the natural signs of feeling full.

8. Praise children for trying new foods and for exhibiting appropriate behaviour at the table.

9. Children love to copy. If they see you enjoying your vegetables at the dinner table, they are likely to have a go themselves.

10. Try to have at least some meals at the table each week and avoid giving children meals in front of the television as this can distract them from eating.

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Footnotes 1. Carruth, B.R., Ziegler, P.J., Gordon, A. and Barr, S.I. (2004). Prevalence of picky eaters among infants and toddlers and their caregivers’ decisions about offering a new food.

Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 104, 57-64.

2. Galloway, A.T., Fiorito, L.M., Francis, L.A., and Birch, L.L. (2006). “Finish your soup”.

Counterproductive effects of pressuring children to eat on intake and affect. Appetite, 46, 318–323.

3. Carper, J.L., Fisher, J.O., and Birch, L.L. (2000). Young girls’ emerging dietary restraint and disinhibition are related to parental control in child feeding. Appetite, 35(2), 121-129.

4. Puhl, R.M., Schwartz, M.B. (2003). If you are good you can have a cookie: How memories of childhood food rules link to adult eating behaviors. Eating Behaviours, 4(3), 283-93.

5. Farrow, C., Haycraft, E. and Blissett, J. (2015). Teaching our children when to eat: how parental feeding practices inform the development of emotional eating. A longitudinal experimental design. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 101(5), 908-913.

6. Blissett, J., Haycraft, E. and Farrow, C. (2010). Inducing preschool children’s emotional eating: Relations with parental feeding practices. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 92, 359-365. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.2010.29375.

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Encouraging healthy eating in children with autism

By Sarah Sherwood, Director of SEN at LVS Oxford and LVS Hassocks Dietary challenges are common amongst young people with autism. This can be a sensory issue – relating to the smell, taste or texture of a particular food – or because the young person’s thinking style does not allow them to conceive of a particular food cooked in a slightly different way, or possibly because of anxiety due to contamination issues. Rigidity around food choices is a common problem, with some young people restricting their food intake to as little as ten to 15 foods. This can result in issues such as irregular bowel movements, not gaining weight or being overweight, dental issues (particularly if a high sugar diet is consumed), and pica, a disorder which sees the person eat non-food items such as hair or dirt.

Managing mealtime expectations Within school, mealtimes present a number of challenges to students with autism. Eating is often a social event with other people present and a range of expectations placed on the individual. Anything from having to use the right cutlery, to interacting with others at the table, and not talking with a mouthful of food can add to the anxieties that an individual may already have regarding mealtimes. At LVS Oxford and LVS Hassocks, some students find it difficult to be in the same room as others who are eating, so the schools provide additional rooms that they can eat in away from their peers, whilst still supported by staff. Therapists sit with students in the main lunch halls to encourage appropriate lunchtime conversation, and support students who may have coordination difficulties to hold cutlery, use trays and clear plates.

Pupil power!

Allowing students to have input to their own mealtimes is another key aspect in encouraging positive responses to food. Both LVS Oxford and LVS Hassocks have student councils, encouraging pupils to take responsibility for themselves and their peers, gain leadership skills and make their own decisions. Food is a standing item on their agendas, allowing students to have a say in what they eat, and offer feedback.

Regularly consulting with students on food options encourages a healthy approach to mealtimes, helps them feel valued and automatically makes them more engaged with the offering when they enter the dining hall.

Putting theory into practice One of the best ways to help students engage with food is through cooking it themselves. Dedicated food technology senmagazine.co.uk

classrooms allow LVS Hassocks and LVS Oxford to offer all students the chance to experiment with food by preparing and cooking it themselves. They are able to build their cooking skills, gain more interest in food, and often go on to take one of the schools’ Level 1 or 2 catering qualifications.

Healthy school eating – a team effort The medical teams at LVS Oxford and LVS Hassocks liaise closely with the catering teams to ensure menus cover a range of healthy options. Many students at the schools do not like pasta in sauce, so the specialist catering teams offer “deconstructed” pasta, with the sauce available separately, so students can try a taste of the sauce and choose whether to mix it with the pasta themselves. Menus are posted outside the dining rooms each week so students can see what is available and ask staff questions before they go into the dining hall. Fresh fruit is available throughout the morning so students can help themselves at break times to ensure they do not experience dips in their blood sugar. This particularly supports students whose appetite may be suppressed due to medication, or those who had to leave home early to travel.

For more information, go to lvs-oxford.org.uk or lvs-hassocks.org.uk SEN100

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Speech, language and communication needs

Communication’s the thing Louisa Reeves on the importance of identifying and supporting SLCN at school

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ommunication is possibly the most important life skill.

If you are reading this article, you might work in one of a wide range of positions across the education, care and health sectors, or you might be the parent or carer of a child with SEN. Whatever your role, without communication skills you wouldn’t be able to perform it. We need to be able to listen, understand and share our ideas, feelings and knowledge for work, social and family life. Yet, we take these skills very much for granted and assume that all children will simply develop them in the same way as other skills.

Communication skills don’t develop in isolation. Babies and young children need to have people around them who are communicating with them, talking, playing turn-taking games such as “peek-a-boo”, telling them about things and responding to their needs and interests. Without this, communications skills just aren’t going to develop.

In schools, we tend to focus on literacy skills but sometimes we overlook the key role that language plays in learning to read and write. Skills like attention and listening, phonological awareness and understanding of words, concepts and grammatical SEN100

Sometimes we overlook the key role that language plays in learning to read and write elements of language are all essential, so what happens when children don’t start school with these in place?

How widespread are SLCN? We know that about ten per cent of children across the UK have long-term, persistent speech, language and communication needs (SLCN): that’s about 1.4 million children. This means that SLCN are the largest area of SEN. This difficulty is seven times more prevalent than autism (Baird et al., 2006) and yet SLCN and the term developmental language disorder (DLD), which applies to those children who have SLCN as their main area of need is not widely known about. Teachers often lack confidence in knowing how to spot children who are struggling and knowing how to support them when they are. senmagazine.co.uk

Speech, language and communication needs

It can be hard for staff to know what level of language skills children should have

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About the author Louisa Reeves is a Speech and Language Advisor at the children’s communication charity I CAN. ican.org.uk @icantalk

The consequences of not identifying children’s SLCN can be quite devastating. Children who have poor language skills at the age of five are four times more likely to struggle with reading at the age of 11 years (I CAN, 2017).

Children with language difficulties are four times less likely to achieve expected levels in reading, writing and maths at the end of primary school. They are nearly four times less likely to get good GCSE results at the end of secondary school (I CAN, 2017).

The impact on behaviour and mental health is also significant: 45 per cent of children and young people referred to mental health services have communication difficulties and 81 per cent of children with emotional and behavioural disorders have significant language problems; often these difficulties are unidentified (I CAN, 2017).

Given that many of the interventions used to support children and young people with social, emotional and mental health difficulties (SEMH) use talk and are often referred to as “talking therapies”, it is clear that accessing these treatments will be a challenge for those with SLCN.

Identifying SLCN Speech, language and communication difficulties can be hard to spot in school and teaching staff may need support and information on what skills children should have at certain ages to spot when children are struggling.

Children and young people who have difficulty understanding spoken language are particularly hard to identify. In the early

@icantalk

years stage, children can get by through watching what other children do. Sometimes, a focus on a child-led structure can mean that children with SLCN can pass unnoticed as they don’t need to interact with an adult to get through the day.

At this stage in the child’s development, adults may need, at times, to “sabotage” an activity, for example by not putting out the cups at snack time or “forgetting” the scissors for a cutting activity so that children need to use their language skills. Using close observation, you can spot children who aren’t understanding spoken language when you say something unusual such as “put the pencils in the bin”, making sure you don’t use gestures to give away what you are saying.

Throughout Key Stage 1, children with difficulties understanding can still manage to get a long way by copying what other children are doing, although this can lead them to getting into trouble if they follow the wrong group and the teacher thinks they haven’t been listening.

In Key Stage 2, things become more challenging. Reading comprehension often becomes an area of concern for teachers as this has a significant impact on children’s ability to tackle the Statutory Assessment Tests (SATs). The transition into secondary school can be the trigger for a child who has just coped in the structured context of a primary school to really begin to struggle. Often, this looks like something other than SLCN and can be expressed as mental health or behavioural issues. Secondary schools need to think about whether language underpins a behavioural or learning issue and make sure they have the right tools to identify and support these.

Supporting pupils So, what can teaching staff do to support children and young people with SLCN? The starting point is, of course, identification and tracking. It can be hard for staff to know what level of language skills children should have and if they need support and

■ Playing simple games with children can help them to develop communication skills.

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Speech, language and communication needs

Visual support is helpful, especially for children with difficulties understanding spoken language and how many syllables it has). Identifying and pre-teaching key vocabulary using both these approaches help children to engage and perform better in lessons. It’s important to include verbs and descriptive words as well as nouns and to teach the words in context over a period of time.

■ A focus on literacy skills can mask difficulties with understanding language.

information. Support from specialists such as speech and language therapists can be key in pinpointing exactly what areas of difficulty a child is having and how best to support them.

Visual support is helpful, especially for children with difficulties understanding spoken language. This can include photographs alongside labels in early years and Key Stage 1, as well as visual timetables which sequence the events of the day, visual “lists” of equipment needed for an activity or the stages needed to complete a task.

For older children, having story strips or other visual aids in the folders or on their desks can help to tailor support to their own personal needs. Other activities such as practising asking for help, knowing when you haven’t understood something and promoting an asking-friendly environment in class can all be supportive for children and young people with SLCN. Vocabulary is another key area where schools can really support children and young people with SLCN. All children learn and store new words through both their meaning (such as what it does, what it looks like and situations it is used in) and a sound related route (for example, what the word rhymes with

Children who are unable to recall a word could be encouraged to describe or explain it, whilst young children can be asked to gesture the word or show an object or picture. Words and objects could also be displayed in the classroom or a “word of the week” could be used as a regular occurrence to teach children a new, unique word, and words can be taught in categories. Children can also be asked to develop their own personal word books so as they get older, they can revisit new vocabulary and extend their lexicon further.

Adjusting teaching methods Making small changes to the way teaching staff speak to children with SLCN can have an impact on learning and engagement. Talking too quickly and not giving students enough time to think can limit the length and accuracy of responses.

A pause time of around seven seconds or more can allow students to shape their thoughts. Structured partner talk or providing older students with a “thinking frame” such as a mind map or simple written questions can also help. Additionally, consider what you say; simplify the length and complexity of spoken sentences. Sarcasm, idioms and metaphors will only add to a student’s confusion.

Changing the way staff communicate with pupils, organise their classroom and plan lessons can be a challenge and some aspects are harder to alter than others. It is essential when introducing a new strategy to monitor any change in the pupil’s response and understanding. This may be over several weeks as the impact of some strategies can take more time than others to be evident. Pupil’s with SLCN need differentiated strategies and approaches if they are to access information, engage in school life and achieve their academic potential.

References Baird, G. et al. (2006) Prevalence of disorders of the autism spectrum in a population cohort of children in South Thames: the Special Needs and Autism Project, The Lancet, vol. 368, issue 9531, P210-215, 15 July 2006. https://doi.org/10.1016/ S0140-6736(06)69041-7 I CAN (2017). Reaching Out: Impact Report 2016/17.

■ Unsupported SLCN can lead to mental health and behaviour issues.

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Mental health

Improving care for mental health John Williams outlines four principles behind a major review of the Mental Health Act

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ne of the most important things for professionals working in mental health is to ensure patients feel respected and included. The Independent Review of the Mental Health Act 1983 sets out four key recommendations targeted at making patient care more inclusive.

The Independent Review seeks to place the needs of service users at the heart of treatment and care

The Review – Modernising the Mental Health Act, Increasing choice, reducing compulsion – was commissioned by the Government and published in December 2018. It seeks to place the needs of service users at the heart of treatment and care, and make sure staff are trained with the necessary skills and knowledge to deliver on four central “principles of co-production with patients and service users”. These principles focus on choice and autonomy, the use of least restriction, therapeutic benefits for patients, and treating people as individuals.

which the Chair of the Review Professor Sir Simon Wessely has highlighted, will not only substantially improve the individual care of service users, but will also promote a more healthy relationship between patients and staff, and enable service users to take control of their treatment in order to live more fulfilling lives.

I believe the Independent Review will prove to be pivotal in the progression of the Mental Health Act and will bring it into line with modern healthcare standards. The four recommendations, SEN100

With the key principles set to play such a vital role in guiding standards, I think it is a good time to consider how healthcare practitioners and settings can implement these revised recommendations through training so both staff and service users see the numerous benefits. senmagazine.co.uk

Mental health

Positive behaviour support techniques can be used to prevent and respond to challenging behaviour

Choice and autonomy The principle relating to choice and autonomy comes into force when looking at health and social care services, which have a duty to support service users to balance safety from harm with freedom of choice. In order to ensure healthcare workers get this right, it is crucial that training prepares practitioners to accept both staff and service users as partners who have an equal say in healthcare provision. By embedding this principle in training we can develop a culture where staff involve the service user in decisions at the outset, talking compassionately with them and promoting an inclusive environment.

Least restriction Supporting individuals to make decisions that boost their confidence and enable them to advocate for their own rights is absolutely essential. This also promotes proactive learning.

While restrictive practices are not utilised that often, where they are used there should be a restrictive intervention reduction programme in place, which healthcare professionals should discuss thoroughly during training.

Plans for the use of restrictive interventions must not include the physical restraint of people in a way that includes the deliberate application of pain. Staff should become comfortable with, and confident in, using a graded response to any incidents that occur, ensuring all interventions are appropriate and ethical.

Positive behaviour support techniques can also be used to prevent and respond to challenging behaviour, rather than responding with restraint.

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About the author John Williams is the Learning and Development Manager at Ludlow Street Healthcare, a specialist provider of care for adults over the age of 18 with complex mental health conditions, learning disabilities and neuropsychiatry conditions.

The Group includes Beechwood College in South Wales. lshealthcare.co.uk @ls_healthcare

@ludlowstreethealthcare

Therapeutic benefit This principle is concerned with enabling service users to recognise, engage with and develop their own sense of worth.

For me, this is important as it supports individuals in building on their own range of capabilities and strengths, so they can ultimately live more independent and fulfilling lives.

Staff need to be encouraged to recognise that there is no one single concept of recovery for people with a mental health problem. Instead, they should identify the individual care needs of the service user and support them in regaining a meaningful life through interventions based on transition-focussed care, step-down community living, social integration and inclusion.

It’s imperative, as professionals, that we are able to recognise the best course of treatment for our patients, and engage with them and support them in their choices.

The person as an individual This principle underlines the core belief that, during any interaction with them, a service user must always be seen as an individual and treated with dignity, respect and compassion.

This approach should be ingrained in staff training and should underpin daily practice. Staff should listen to every individual and engage with them to ascertain their beliefs, needs and feelings, which must be respected.

Universal standards

■ Service users should be supported to develop their sense of self-worth.

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I believe that the adoption of the principles discussed in Professor Wessely’s Report would greatly enhance patient care and create a common approach to mental healthcare provision; this could only be positive for the sector as a whole.

By having a set of training standards that reaches right across the service, we can make sure that no matter where or why people access a service, they can be confident that the service provided will meet a minimum national standard.

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Sport

An exercise in social skills Sport offers girls with autism a great opportunity to connect with their peers, writes Vicci Wells

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n these ever more “connected” times, girls in particular can find the demands of the modern world increasingly complex.

Friendships often hinge on attention to feelings and rapid communication – in person or via social media. No matter how much they want to connect, girls with autism spectrum conditions (ASC) can find themselves locked out.

We know there is a crisis in young people’s wellbeing. Too many young people are inactive, stressed, lonely and lacking confidence. The 2017 Girls Active report (Youth Sport Trust in association with Women in Sport) surveyed 21,000 girls; it found that one in five girls lack confidence which, in conjunction with other factors, holds them back from being physically active.

These issues are magnified for girls with SEN and disabilities.

The National Autistic Society describes autism as “a lifelong developmental disability that affects how people perceive the world and interact with others. Autistic people see, hear and feel the world differently to other people”.

Many teachers and others who work with young people will see girls copying or mimicking the behaviour of those around them. They can seem exhausted due to the constant effort to appear similar to their peers. Often, particularly with very young girls, they are unaware that they are “masking” in the first place.

There is a pronounced gender difference when it comes to people with ASC. Although different studies have produced very differing findings, the ratio of females to males with autism is often reported to be in the region of one to four. This could be due to the challenges around diagnosis, especially in girls due to their abilities to mask their issues with social interaction.

Because diagnosis can be tricky, girls with ASC often find their needs are not identified or understood in schools, and later on in adulthood. The social difficulties, isolation and

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About the author Vicci Wells is National Manager for Targeted Interventions at the children’s charity Youth Sport Trust. youthsporttrust.org @YouthSportTrust @vawells1

■ PE and sport can be useful tools for promoting social interaction.

social exclusion of girls with ASC often fall under the radar, with girls more likely to receive targeted support for learning and behavioural needs than for improving social skills and building friendships.

Sport has the power to teach vital skills and nurture positive character traits

Developing skills and wellbeing Sport, physical education and physical activity can be very effective vehicles for creating change and opportunities for young people, as well as promoting tolerance, acceptance and friendship. Sport has the power to teach vital skills and nurture positive character traits. Physical education provided in the right way improves young people’s mental, physical and emotional wellbeing. It can help them to become more active, more confident and more resilient.

Involvement in sport can be a great way of helping girls with autism to develop the social skills they need to thrive in the school environment and beyond. If girls are denied the opportunities to make connections through sport and physical activity, we will likely see continued growth in mental health issues amongst girls, with more female pupils left feeling isolated. All young people should be given opportunities to form friendships through sport and love themselves for who they are; this is key to developing future healthy and happy generations.

Girls with ASC often need more support, and specific tools, to enable them to have their voices heard and to find their team of people. There are already many organisations doing a great job of encouraging young people to express their feelings and emotions, but we need to continue championing the use of PE and sport to reach more girls. We need to continue exploring, designing and developing innovative ways to support girls with ASC through opportunities presented by PE and sport.

Overcoming barriers to inclusion There are a number of key barriers to inclusion in PE and sport for girls with autism that teachers and sports professionals should consider, including the following.

and physical demonstrations can be a good way to support instruction for pupils with ASC in sport, as in other areas of school life. Teachers should also consider how they provide feedback on performance and reassurance to pupils.

Social interaction Many girls with ASC find group/team work in sport to be challenging, so it’s important to evaluate friendships and group pupils accordingly. Specific instruction and practice around turn taking can also help.

Flexibility of thought Visual prompts can be useful in marking transitions between activities. Rules of the game or activity can also be presented in written and visual formats to aid clarity. We should look at whether issues such as winning and losing act as a significant barrier to girls competing in sport.

Sensory processing People with autism generally experience difficulties with taking in and regulating sensory stimuli that others may find normal.

Sensory overload can be a very big issue, so it’s important to consider how pupils with autism will respond to the often very noisy environment of a sports hall, as well as all the smells, bodily contact and rapidly changing visual information they have to deal with.

In order to better meet the needs of girls with ASC, a short sensory circuit at the beginning of the day – involving a range of different activities to engage the body and the senses – can help with sensory regulation and minimising anxiety and unwanted behaviors. Before PE lessons or sports activities, it can be very useful to conduct an environmental sensory audit,

Language and communication Professionals should look at using girls’ names to gain attention when communicating with them. The use of visual prompts senmagazine.co.uk

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Sport

Some girls with autism may be more interested in participating in sport when boys are not involved

■ Girls are more likely to engage with a sport if it is one they enjoy.

in which the sounds, smells and visual and tactile aspects of the activities and of the PE kit are assessed.

We should also consider how we use sensory activities to support concentration and attention.

STEP The STEP principle can be very helpful when looking at how to support girls (and boys) with ASC to access a varied menu of PE, school sport and physical activity. This involves considering how we can adapt the activity to better promote the inclusion of girls with autism by looking at: the space being used; the

task (or activity) itself; the equipment used; and the people involved. Even relatively simple adjustments, for example reducing or increasing the size of the space used for the activity or changing the number of people on the pitch at any one time, can make a big difference.

Changing lives PE and sport can be powerful tools to support girls with ASC to develop physically, emotionally and socially.

It was encouraging to hear the Minister for Sport acknowledge recently that PE, sport and physical activity have an essential role to play in every child’s education. I would take it further to say that physical literacy should be considered on a par with literacy and numeracy. Through sport, young people can learn fundamental life skills and develop character and confidence. These are all things that no young person should miss out on.

Tips to engage girls with ASC in sport Support routines and familiarity Pupils with ASC tend to be uneasy about change and usually like to stick to familiar routines. Try to make sure that the same girls get changed next to them each time and ensure girls have a designated place to store their belongings and change into their PE kit. This should be clearly marked by an object of reference, name or picture.

Pupil voice and ownership Ask (and when necessary assist) pupils with ASC to complete an emotional regulation tool that will inform you about which activities and stimuli they think may cause them to lose control, upset them or make them feel nervous – and which ones will help them to relax and enjoy themselves.

Encourage them to have ownership of activities by asking them what their true feelings are about PE and school sport and what they would like to do. When girls realise their views matter, they are more likely to make positive choices.

Personal targets Group targets in PE can be challenging because of the increased demands on already heightened sensory systems and, for some young people, the sensory inputs which can result from group tasks and activities can result in a negative reaction, making it difficult for them to take part.

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Consider timings for activities Try to run activities in short blocks, such as 20 to 30 minutes, followed by a break or change of activity. This can give students time to manage any sensory overloads and self-regulate.

Single-sex activities Some girls with autism may be more interested in participating in sport when boys are not involved. They may feel less pressure in girl-only environments and this can increase their confidence levels, so consider running some girls-only clubs.

Try new sports Traditional school sports may not be the most engaging for girls, and particularly those with autism, so get creative and investigate alternative sports such as dodgeball, basketball and archery.

Use language carefully Some of the words we use about sport and sporting events can be much more welcoming than others. The term “festival”, for example, generally conjures up ideas of fun and inclusion, while the word “competition” could seem scary to many girls with ASC and could act as a barrier to them getting involved. So use language that will encourage girls to take part.

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Advertisement feature

Inclusion 2020 and the Learn to Swim Programme Swim England believes that everyone should have access to and enjoy the water in a safe, inclusive environment. In association with the Youth Sport Trust’s Inclusion 2020 initiative, Swim England’s Learn to Swim department is placing key focus on developing the amount and quality of its SEND resources available to swimming teachers, schools, parents and learners.

Throughout 2019-2020, Swim England’s “Inclusion Hub” will launch and evolve. Keep your eyes peeled for a range of free guides, information on upcoming events, and products that support swimming teaching and learning for SEND. The hub will also signpost to approved centres which specialise in SEND swimming lessons and/or develop innovative poolside teaching and learning tools focussed on engaging SEND learners.

What’s in the Swim England Inclusion Hub? • Free guidance on learning to swim with SEND for parents/guardians, teachers and learners.

• Signposting to recommended products, resources and approved centres for SEND swimming.

• Information on Swim England’s upcoming SEND workshops and webinars.

• Links to the latest Institute of Swimming CPD training for teachers.

• Where next after Learn to Swim? Pointing you in the right direction for inclusive Swim England club activity and lifelong participation. senmagazine.co.uk

For schools Swim England have also recently updated all the material in their School Swimming and Water Safety Charter with SEND in mind. There are now comprehensive checklists and specific guidance for planning school swimming and water safety lessons – before, during and after – which now include points of reference throughout for teaching swimming at school to pupils with SEND. This guidance gives both school teachers and lesson providers detailed information about all the considerations that should be given to pupils with SEND at Key Stage 1 and 2 – to help ensure they can, where possible, meet the three National Curriculum requirements. swimming.org/inclusion-hub For more information or to discuss featuring an organisation or product on the Inclusion Hub, email learntoswim@swimming.org SEN100

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Advertisement feature

World Jumping UK introduce Flexi-Bounce Therapy Making therapy fun every day An issue for many schools is that they can only provide Rebound Therapy once or twice a week. Some schools are not able to provide it at all because they do not have a full sized trampoline. There is now a solution to this dilemma.

World Jumping have developed an orthopaedic quality rebounder called the Flex-Bounce. It enables students to continue with complementary activities in-between their weekly Rebound Therapy sessions, and at home during holidays.

Flexi-Bounce Therapy provides many of the benefits of Rebound Therapy for children across a wide spectrum of disabilities. It comes with a certificated online training course developed by ReboundTherapy.org – the international body for Rebound Therapy. Bulk sales of eleven or more come with a certificated in-house one-day training course.

Visit worldjumping.co.uk/therapy Email therapy@worldjumping.co.uk Tel 07788 433355

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All-ability cycling

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Freedom ride Cycling promotes health, happiness and independence for people of all abilities, writes David Glover

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ycling is about much more than Lycra-clad racers on two wheels. Almost everybody – including children and young people with SEN – can access cycling, using a range of adaptive bikes. Cycling is great fun, it brings physical and mental health benefits, helps with skill development and builds confidence.

Taking Scotland as an example, we can see how all-ability cycling is growing all the time. Initially pioneered by Fife Council’s Outdoor Education Centre and Freewheel North in Glasgow, all-ability cycling hubs have sprung up across the country. From Inverness in the North to Dumfries in the South, and from Aberdeen in the East via Arbroath, Edinburgh, Livingston, Perth, Falkirk, and Inverclyde to Ayrshire in the West, it’s great to see so many places where children and their families can take advantage of the many benefits of cycling.

So why do children and young people with SEN enjoy cycling?

I think they get involved for many of the same reasons that most people do: it’s really exhilarating, creates lots of social interaction, is great for health and wellbeing, and boosts independence too.

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It’s really exhilarating, creates lots of social interaction and is great for health and wellbeing Fun and enjoyment This is the most important aspect of cycling for anyone; if we didn’t enjoy it, it’s very unlikely we’d do it. Even in the oftenchallenging Scottish climate, riders take part just for the sheer thrill of cycling. “There’s never a dull day”, says one volunteer at the Edinburgh All-ability Bike Centre. “Every session is different because every personality is different. People change because they have good days and bad days. But you can feel the energy rise; you can see the bikes making people happy.”

Even for children with profound or complex needs, cycling can have a huge impact due to the range of adaptive equipment available. From small adaptations like strapped pedals

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About the author David Glover is Senior Development Officer for Cycling UK’s Edinburgh All-ability Bike Centre (ABC) and VIE Velo tandem cycling club for people with visual impairments. cyclinguk.org @CyclingUKScot ■ Bikes come in many different configurations to suit individual needs.

@CyclingUKScotland

and hand straps, to fully bespoke cycles, there is a bike to suit every rider.

Adaptive cycles include semi-recumbent trikes and handcycles, which provide stability and reassurance thanks to broad seats with backrests and three wheels. Side-by-side trikes are trikes built for two; riders sit next to each other, which is brilliant for social interaction and for supporting anyone with anxieties about cycling. Tandems are great for people with visual impairments.

Those with profound, complex or multiple disabilities can get involved by using a wheelchair transporter, which allows people to remain in their own chairs. “A young lady with severe complex needs got on the wheelchair bike on Friday, and the smile on her face was absolutely fantastic”, says another volunteer at the Edinburgh project.

Social interaction Cycling brings people together. Thanks to adaptive bikes, families can ride together for the very first time. As one parent who started cycling with their child puts it: “It’s the freedom of doing what I would normally do myself, but now being able to do it with the children is just amazing.”

All-ability bike centres can also be a great way for parents and children to share experiences with others outside of the school environment: “It’s a nice social thing for parents with children with these kind of needs to actually be able to meet somewhere that isn’t a school.”

Health and wellbeing Children with SEN often face huge anxieties and worries about what they are doing day-to-day, which can negatively impact upon their parents too: “It’s been the only thing that [he] anticipates the night before with happiness”, says another parent. “Generally, it’s huge anxiety for him. He starts to panic about what’s happening the next day at teatime the day before.

When you say it’s cycling, then he’s really quite happy about it.

Whereas anything else, he would just get quite upset.”

Engaging with physical exercise can also be a real challenge for those with SEN, as a support worker explains: “It’s nice to show people they are capable of everything everybody else SEN100

Thanks to adaptive bikes, families can ride together for the very first time

does…. a lot of people are sat in front of televisions in their houses and don’t actually get out and do an awful lot. So it’s important that we promote exercise and health and fitness.”

Independence Cycling can allow children to demonstrate levels of autonomy that may previously have seemed impossible. One parent summed this up perfectly: “I can’t express how much difference it has made to him and to his self-esteem, because he’s doing something for himself independently. He might have a trail of people following him, but he is absolutely doing it by himself.

I never, ever dreamt that would be possible.”

It is the way that some adaptive bikes work that allows riders to gain the skills they need to manage things on their own on a cycle. At the Live Active project in Perth, a participant with learning disabilities was struggling to master the rotational motion of pedalling until a side-by-side trike was introduced.

This type of trike was perfect, as it enabled the operator to pedal the bike with the participant’s legs completing the movement. Gradually she was encouraged and prompted to do this intermittently by herself.

Eventually, she gained the confidence and skills to ride independently. She managed to ride a semi-recumbent trike on her own with minimal verbal prompts for steering only.

She even managed braking. This was due to a combination of raised confidence levels, social integration, and improved coordination, muscle strength and core stability, as well as being offered the opportunity to develop a skill.

Photos courtesy of Cycling UK.

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Technology in education

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Harnessing tech for learning Graham Ford looks at some of the opportunities technology offers those teaching students with SEN

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ech is a powerful tool for educators – not only in enriching the education experience, but also in equipping children with the twenty-first century skills they need for further education, work and their own e-safety.

Despite the incredible technical developments in most areas of life, the changes in the classroom have been relatively modest.

There are many reasons for this, such as hardware being too expensive, not enough curriculum based content, slow internet speeds and high-cost internet access. However, the jigsaw pieces of accessible technology and cloud communications are now coming together and the pace of change should start to accelerate.

Schools which have committed to embedding tech across the curriculum have made digital learning more widespread and simply a part of learning. It’s important that this becomes the norm so all teaching staff and pupils can experience the benefits it brings. While technology will never replace a good or inspirational teacher, it is a great tool in enhancing the interaction between teachers and pupils.

Benefits for teachers and pupils Tech helps teachers gain access to a plethora of resources through new apps and software that deliver a wider, more relevant curriculum. It also supports efficient management of information, for example, setting tasks or homework and receiving completed work back, monitoring a pupil’s academic senmagazine.co.uk

Tech can release teacher time in the classroom for pure teaching

progress and facilitating accurate report writing. Importantly, tech can release teacher time in the classroom for pure teaching. In a large class, some children can spend time on a specific project application, while the teacher coaches other pupils who need more attention or learn in a different way.

Both primary and secondary school pupils tend to experience increased levels of engagement in classroom learning when using the right technology. Tools such as video, interactive websites, games and music make subjects more relevant and enjoyable. The number of maths apps now available is evidence of this. The best ones cleverly build a child’s confidence and put the subject into an every day, problem solving context.

A conclusive shift for students is the improved access to good quality “recommended” learning material outside school. This is great for homework and for those children who simply want to improve their results.

Pupils also benefit from a whole universe of virtual and real “worlds” now available on the Internet. This unleashes new,

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Today’s technology can cope with a variety of learning styles

creative approaches and ideas for learning, and goes a long way towards meeting the varying needs of visual, auditory, verbal or kinesthetic learners – something that is particularly relevant for many children with SEN.

Supporting SEN

About the author Graham Ford is Operations Director for Techs4Education, a specialist provider of IT support services and technology solutions to schools. techs4education.co.uk @Techs4Education

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Technology has a key role to play in helping teachers to make the classroom experience for all children and young people second to none.

The right tech is game changing. Rather than relying on the work of a few hardworking teachers, you can now pool all the creativity and resources of a global educational world with the backing of today’s technical giants and a plethora of specialist apps. Learning can more easily be tailored to meet the specific requirements of individual children. New apps can be programmed to go at the right speed for pupils and disturbing elements, such as flashing lights or loud noises, can be removed. This level of content control can make a huge difference to overall classroom wellbeing.

Today’s technology can cope with a variety of learning styles and create an inclusive classroom environment. Audio-to-text, text-to-speech, intuitive touch screens and keyboards, and virtual reality are just some of the tools that are becoming more accessible in classrooms.

Affordable and more robust tablets have also brought about a revolution in schools. They have long been used for children with dyslexia; for children who are unable to read or write, they can also be configured to develop stronger listening and speech skills. Children can respond to what is being said by the teacher, specific sounds or pictures by giving their “answer” via their tablet, often using a colour based response system.

Teachers can see how their pupils react to specific words or

■ Tech is a powerful tool in adjusting learning to the individual’s needs.

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visual prompts and recognise achievements or problems more readily. Not only does this create a more interactive environment in the classroom, it also ensures pupils don’t get frustrated through misunderstandings.

Virtual reality Virtual reality (VR) has the potential to be transformational in all classrooms. It has matured to a point where it is more affordable and includes supporting, accessible content that works alongside the curriculum from Key Stage 1 through to A-levels and beyond.

In the “age of experiences”, VR promises to give pupils, whatever their circumstances, the opportunity to visit places and try out things they would otherwise be unable to access.

They can go on far-flung field trips, fly a jet plane simulator or even learn to play a new sport. Imagine virtually exploring the Grand Canyon as part of a great rivers project or seeing and hearing an orchestra play your music. This hands-on access to new material and first hand “evidence” will bring a new depth of understanding into the classroom.

Safeguarding Technology is a positive force in education, but tech and communications industries, in close cooperation with schools, have an important responsibility in making sure children are kept safe from the negative aspects of the internet and social media. The right network configuration and software can help limit unnecessary tech usage and prohibit access to dangerous information and websites. I think everyone in education welcomes Education Secretary Damian Hinds’ February 2019 announced that, from September 2020, all primary pupils will be given detailed guidance about online safety and navigating the “pitfalls and dangers” of the internet.

The educational innovations discussed in this article have only really started to become feasible in the last few years. We are at an exciting juncture for tech in education and, with the right educational leadership and support from the technical community, our classrooms can be transformed. Children’s appetite and desire for technology is obvious, but we must now help channel it into learning and make it “good tech”, rather than hours spent on social media outside school. senmagazine.co.uk

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Advertisement feature

Capture and keep a child’s learning journey online Learning Journals have grown in popularity over the last decade, offering early years settings and schools a way to record the special moments of their children, and to keep parents involved in a partnership as their children blossom and grow. Traditionally, these individual records have been collected in scrapbooks or binders, building up into a treasured memoir that children can take with them when they leave for the next stages of their educational journey – each entry forming a thread in the warp and weft of the tapestry that is their life.

The cost, in time and money, of providing these journals has often caused problems for leaders and staff in schools and settings. The purchase of the scrap books alone can be significant; printing photographs, and cutting, pasting and writing in the journals is a time-consuming affair.

Additionally, managers experience the trauma of sending their journals home with parents, only to find they return them late or even lose them. In the event of parents who are separated it can be difficult to make the journals available to both, or to include the wider family and outside professionals who might be working with the child.

What if it were possible to create records of observations instantly? To add notes and images and have them immediately available to any authorised person as part of the complete story of the child’s life at their nursery? To have parents able to view and comment on these special moments, and to be able to contribute their own stories of the child’s life outside nursery?

Well, we believe you can. This is what we call Tapestry Online Learning Journals.

Tapestry online learning journals Tapestry is about capturing the magic of a child’s learning, and recording children’s experiences in a way that is easy, fun and affordable.

Launched in 2012 and used by over 16,000 educational settings, Tapestry looks after the journals of almost 900,000 children, containing over 60 million observations! senmagazine.co.uk

We’ve thought carefully about every single aspect of our online learning journals, to make it easy for you to record and track children’s progress – as well as providing p a re n t s with special memories to treasure.

Assessment frameworks are an important part of the tracking progress. But traditional, linear progress focused analysis isn’t always the best way to show it, especially to the students and their parents. Traditional reports can leave parents and children cold.

We’re working to change that.

Over the last year, we have had the pleasure of working with the outstanding Cherry Garden School in South London, which has developed an assessment framework for children with SEND and complex needs. The exceptional Cherry Garden Branch Map assessment framework is based on years of SEND teaching experience and is targeted at children who are working below Year 1 expectations.

An online version of this framework is now exclusively available through Tapestry.

We believe that maximising the quality of parent and carer engagement is a core strength of Tapestry. To that end, we’re developing a powerful visual alternative to standard assessment reports. Here, a family-friendly interactive animation brings the data to life, by representing observations, milestones, and wow moments in a fun and intuitive way. Parents and carers – and children themselves – are free to explore the animation interactively with touch, experiencing the sights and sounds of their learning journey.

Prices start at just £53 a year for up to six children, inclusive of all Tapestry features: learning journal, care diary and a register coming soon.

To find out more about this unique system, ask for a free noobligation trial by contacting us at customer.service@eyfs.info www.eyfs.info

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Fostering

Christmas in February David Eggboro discovers how fostering a child with SEN offers great rewards despite the challenges

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here are currently more than 65,000 children living with almost 55,000 foster families across the UK each day and there is a need for more than 8,000 new fostering families in the UK over the next 12 months.

Because a disproportionate number of children in care have a physical or learning disability, many foster carers look after a child with additional needs and there is a particular need for more foster carers who have the relevant skills to care for a child with complex needs. The experience of these foster carers is often that the rewards and satisfaction outweigh the challenges and sacrifices.

Without enough foster families willing and able to offer homes to these groups, some children will find themselves living a long way from family, school, and friends, being split up from brothers and sisters, or being placed with a foster carer who does not have the ideal skills and experience to meet their specific needs.

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They love fostering and get so much from their life with her Overcoming difficulties Lesley and Mark Hughes are one couple who do foster children with disabilities and currently look after a little girl who is profoundly disabled. They are firmly of the opinion that they gain as much from fostering as she does, if not more.

The couple are frank that fostering the little girl – who they have nicknamed Mrs Moo – is tough, unpredictable and sometimes nerve-wracking. However, they love fostering and get so much from their life with her. senmagazine.co.uk

Fostering

“It’s hard work, of course it is. I don’t think we’ve had a whole night’s sleep since she came to live with us. But we’ve had so much pleasure. She was about 15 months old when she eventually gave us her first smile after she’d been quite poorly in hospital. Her first smile was just amazing and now she smiles so much”, Lesley explains.

This little girl is the third child they’ve fostered. “You hear of people who’ve been doing it for over 20 years, but we only started four years ago”, says Mark, who also works as a social housing manager in a troubled families unit. “We both decided that we were in a position to help children from backgrounds like these and to offer them love and a secure place to stay.”

The little girl came to Mark and Lesley six months after they started fostering a little boy. They were asked if they could take another baby for a couple of weeks. “She was five weeks old and she’d been infected by the group B streptococcus bacterium so we knew she would have complex needs, but at that stage nobody was sure”, Lesley says. “She did cry an awful lot as if she were in a lot of pain. We had an amazing health visitor, but nobody knew how she would develop.”

“We continued to look after her while an adoptive family was found for her, but nobody came forward”, Mark explains. “It broke our hearts that nobody could see past her disabilities and see the beautiful little girl she really is. It upset us both, so we approached our social worker and asked if we could foster her long-term.”

Dealing with health issues The girl’s physical and learning disabilities have turned out to be more severe than anyone had anticipated. Now three, she has cerebral palsy and hydrocephalus, she is visually impaired, isn’t meeting her developmental milestones and also has complex health issues, including seizures. She needs a lot of medication and, although she does not need oxygen, her lungs have to be cleared through a tube in her nostrils at least three times a day. “Every day is different”, says Lesley.

Unsurprisingly, the little girl has had numerous stays in hospital – including a series of prolonged stays in 2017. “She was poorly

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About the author David Eggboro is Media and Communications Officer at The Fostering Network. thefosteringnetwork.org.uk @fosteringnet

thefosteringnetwork

It broke our hearts that nobody could see past her disabilities in August, went in for planned surgery, and then became really ill”, Lesley explains. The girl came out of hospital at the end of September, but was then readmitted at the beginning of December and stayed in over Christmas and New Year. “It was a tough year”, Lesley adds. The family eventually celebrated Christmas with relatives in February 2018 when the girl came out of hospital.

As a result of their child’s health issues, Mark and Lesley, who started out without any medical training, have had to learn a great deal and much of their week is dominated by the medical demands of caring for the girl rather than other, more common, fostering tasks. “You have to be organised. I always keep Thursdays free as our play day with our grandson, but otherwise have a lot of hospital appointments”, Lesley explains. “She and I go from one appointment to another – sometimes as many as three in one day. And there’s more equipment to take with us now she’s getting bigger: the suction machine, nebuliser, catheters and so on, as well as emergency equipment in case of things like a seizure. We’re learning as we go along, as everyone else does who has a child with additional needs.”

The essential support network The Hughes are very clear that the high level of support they receive from the rest of the team around the child is one of the reasons they have been able to offer such good support to the little girl.

“We have meetings every six weeks with the social workers, and during that Christmas in hospital they came up and visited us, just to make sure that we were OK”, says Lesley. “We’ve had some difficult days in the past, but I would never say I feel I’m on my own. I’d pick up the phone and literally call everyone – nurses, the home advisory service, the consultant, any of them.

■ Foster carers with the skills to care for a child with SEN are urgently needed.

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“The social workers are amazing too. They all know that this little girl is our priority, and if I phone them asking to be put in the right direction they’ll help. It’s the support for us that we appreciate too. We don’t get a lot of respite, apart from occasional stays at a local hospice – the shortage of respite carers is actually the main thing that we struggle with, because we would need trained nurses and very few are also registered foster carers.

So being asked “are you two OK?” is quite important. In fact, our previous social worker has been through so much with us that we’re still friends even though she has retired.”

Mark adds another point: “It’s been vital for us to have that team around the child, and to build those relationships with social workers and with health professionals. But also, one skill that Lesley has, in particular, is the ability to make a challenge to

Foster Care Fortnight 13 to 26 May 2019 This Foster Care Fortnight, from 13 to 26 May, The Fostering Network is focusing on how fostering can “change a future” – be it the future of those in care or those in the fostering family. Foster Care Fortnight is the charity’s annual campaign to raise the profile of fostering and show how foster care transforms lives.

It is also the UK’s biggest foster carer recruitment campaign.

Throughout the two weeks, you can find out about becoming a foster carer, from what fostering entails and how it differs from adoption, to what you can expect when the first child comes to live with you.

The shortage of respite carers is actually the main thing that we struggle with

doctors and nurses. I think it’s important for anyone caring for a child with disabilities to be able to challenge, in a respectful manner, and to get everyone to look at this particular child as an individual.”

The couple also have two grown-up sons living nearby, so their overall support network is a combination of friends, family and professionals that really makes a huge difference. It made it possible, for instance, for Mark, Lesley and their fostered child to be part of their younger son’s wedding. “Mrs Moo was a little flower girl, and a nurse and a carer from the hospice came to help out”, Lesley explains. “They took her to the hospice with them after the wedding, so we could celebrate and relax.”

An enriching experience Since their fostered child came to live with them, Lesley and Mark have found that the girl has enriched their lives immeasurably. “She loves to hear our voices – or other children’s voices – she likes our toddler group and she always loves seeing our little grandson, who plays with her”, Lesley says.

“She looks very angelic but she’s very rough and tumble; she loves playtime on the floor and she likes music. She gives lots and lots of smiles. People say, ‘you give her so much’ but we say, ‘she gives us more’.”

You can get involved by visiting thefosteringnetwork.org.uk/FCF or by using #FCF19 and #ChangeAFuture on social media.

■ Foster Care Fortnight will highlight how fostering transforms the lives of both children and carers.

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Advertisement feature

Could you be a fee-paid short breaks foster carer?

If you have significant experience of caring for children with disabilities, our specialist fee-paid short breaks scheme enables professionals to care for children with more complex needs. This would be within your own home as an approved foster carer. You would be carefully matched with children needing respite either part-time, three nights a week or full-time five nights per week.

Fee-paid short breaks foster carers will receive £485 a week plus £52 per night for five-nights and £300 a week plus £52 per night for three-nights.

This scheme allows us to provide an alternative arrangement to respite within residential care and provide a family environment to children that would benefit from it.

Tammy Langsdon is a fee paid short breaks carer with Essex County Council and worked in a school that specialised in pupils with moderate learning difficulties and autism for seven years before becoming a short breaks carer. She specialises in autism and is a fluent Makaton signer.

Talking about the young people she cares for she said: “The activities we do provide a nice respite for the child. We use lots of different sensory toys. senmagazine.co.uk

“We are never pressured into taking on a child, everyone has been very mindful with careful matching.

I have an excellent social worker who is always there for me and the support group allows me to bring up any concerns and have them dealt with.

“The gratitude of the family and the impact on families is so worth it. For parents to be able to take the other siblings out for a breakfast or a sibling being able to have their friends for a sleepover and knowing if it wasn’t for this scheme that couldn’t happen.” essexadoptionandfostering.co.uk/fostering 0800 801 530 SEN100

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Book reviews

Book reviews Executive Functions in Children’s Everyday Lives: A Handbook for Professionals in Applied Psychology

M. J. Hoskyn et al. (Editors)

The Editors of this publication are academics working in the fields of learning differences such as autism and developmental disorders and the interplay between learning, language disorders and executive functions.

In the book’s introduction, executive functioning is described as “foundational” for children’s early social and communicative competencies. The Editors argue that executive functions are implicated in emotional regulation, social development and academic achievement, and responsible for ensuring other cognitive systems work efficiently.

The contributors provide insights into the implications of their research findings for the practice of professionals working with children and families. They recognise the need to develop links between research and practice to enable both parties to learn.

The book outlines the development of executive functions; it then goes on to discuss the complexity of the executive system in terms of children with learning differences, with chapters focussing on the ways in which executive functions develop in children with ASD and ADHD. This is an academic text that would be of interest to practitioners working at post-graduate level. It provides a valuable compilation of the latest research findings and practical implications.

Oxford University Press £41.49 ISBN: 978-0-1999-8086-0

Social and Emotional Development in Early Intervention (2nd Edition): A Skills Guide for Working with Children

M. Delahooke

The author is a paediatric psychologist concerned with developing interventions for children with developmental, behavioural, emotional and learning differences.

In the opening chapter of this book, Delahooke introduces the concept of neuroception – the subconscious detection of threat and safety – in relation to a child’s social and emotional ability to adapt to the environment and play and learn in the company of others.

The author uses the metaphor of constructing a house to illustrate how children acquire firm foundations as a secure base for coping with their world. She provides examples

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of children with weaknesses in their sensory systems and then proposes a simple, but comprehensive method for assessing a child’s social and emotional development, based on elements of the house structure.

This practical book offers many worksheets, charts, handouts and examples of interventions to support practitioners to nurture relationships, measure progress, reduce child stress, address challenging behaviours and promote self-regulation.

This book is written from an inclusive perspective that asks the reader to reflect and consider how individual differences can be considered through a positive lens and in the context of collaboration between professionals and parents.

PESI Publishing and Media £19.99 ISBN: 978-1-6837-3055-2

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Book reviews

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by Mary Mountstephen

The Key to Autism:

An Evidence-Based Workbook for Assessing and Treating Children and Adolescents

C. M. Daily

Dr Daily’s book combines research and practical strategies for use in clinics and other settings.

She writes with passion, detailing the history of autism as a diagnosis and providing a conceptual framework that demonstrates how two or more disorders can be associated with the condition. She links this to brain development and environmental factors, supported by brief case studies. There is a detailed guide to tests associated with aspects of functioning, including cognitive, language, academic, social communication and motor functioning.

The book considers strategies to improve social communication and behaviour, taking into account the

ways in which environments such as the classroom can be modified to provide support and reinforcement. The author includes worksheets and examples of graphic organisers and visual schedules to structure activities.

A section on self-regulation includes information on assisting the individual to identify and cope with “cognitive distortions” and negative thinking patterns through techniques such as diaphragmatic breathing and the use of positive imagery.

The author has taken her years of experience and combined it with a user-friendly overview of related research to produce a resource for professionals assessing and treating children and adolescents.

PESI Publishing and Media £17.99 ISBN: 978-1-5595-7053-4

Leading on Pastoral Care D. Sobel

Daniel Sobel is a well-known columnist, the founder of Inclusion Expert – advising schools globally – and the author of Narrowing the Attainment Gap.

classrooms that can manage vulnerable students. This section covers developing an understanding of challenging behaviours that may be related to a range of learning and emotional issues. The third part provides a model for conducting a whole-school pastoral review.

In this book, he proposes that pastoral care should be a foundation stone in primary and secondary schools, where the role of pastoral leader is critical and requires guidance and support. Sobel draws on his own experiences as a child with undiagnosed ADHD who was “failed” by the pastoral care system.

Sobel writes in an engaging style that reflects his commitment to supporting schools in developing effective strategies to deal with emotional trauma and complex needs. The phrase “Behaviour is communication” is used to introduce a section that identifies the impact that ADHD, attachment disorders and mental health issues can have on a student’s behaviour in school. Sobel then links this to key areas of debate around inclusion for the school’s leadership team.

The book is divided into three parts. The first considers what successful pastoral care looks like. The second part seeks to help teachers develop their own inclusive

senmagazine.co.uk

This is an excellent book.

Bloomsbury Education £19.99 ISBN: 978-1-4729-5844-0

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Autism

Teaching girls with autism Tania Marshall looks at best practice in supporting the learning of girls on the autism spectrum

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irls and boys with autism present quite differently to one another in school and also across the lifespan. Generally speaking, they differ in terms of the severity of their symptoms, personality, IQ, social skills, sensory processing sensitivities, cognitive profile, disorders and learning disabilities.

Speech delay is one of the red flags that can be used to identify autism

All individuals with autism have social communication challenges. In girls in school this usually presents as difficulty working in groups, not participating in class discussions, anxiety when attention is placed on them and often making unintentional social faux pas due to not understanding the unwritten rules of communication and behaviour. Other clues that a student may have autism include: over-apologising, social immaturity with high intelligence, intense special interests, different forms of eye contact, coordination issues and trouble with handwriting.

At times, the teacher may view the student as “odd”, whilst not being able to put their finger on what is going on.

attitude; they do not like getting into trouble and are not able to manage stress or conflict well. The other group is outspoken, may correct the teacher (regardless of whether it is socially inappropriate), be overly talkative, tell on other peers and become a school leader. Both groups are often high achievers, perfectionistic, rule followers (sometimes of their own rules), don’t manage conflict or stress well, and are highly sensitive and emotional. Many individuals with autism also have a strong sense of justice, and are rigid in their thinking and adherence to what they think is right.

There are two main groups that girls with autism tend to fit into. One group is passive, compliant, and has a rule-following

The way autism presents in girls can range from severe impairment to barely noticeable characteristics. In relation

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About the author Tania Marshall, is an Autism Ambassador for Education Placement Group, a specialist education recruitment business, and the author of I Am AspienGirl and I am AspienWoman. taniamarshall.com @TaniaAMarshall

@taniamarshallauthor

■ Girls with autism can mask their sensory and other difficulties.

to intelligence, girls with an intellectual disability tend to be more severely affected, whereas girls with higher IQs are characterised by subtler presentations, and are often not diagnosed until they are older, when their social difficulties become more obvious. Their intelligence often masks their issues and they are more motivated to learn the necessary skills to fit in with their peers.

Unstructured time is when pupils with autism may feel most vulnerable

Hidden difficulties

Focusing on an individual’s talents, while assisting them with their challenges, is crucial. It is important to take a strengthsbased approach to offset a tendency towards self-deprecation, which students with autism often have.

Speech delay is one of the red flags that can be used to identify autism and girls are likely to learn to speak earlier than boys, so their language development may not be seen as delayed; those with a higher IQ can usually read and have advanced speech prior to starting school. Females also have fewer repetitive behaviours than boys with autism and often appear more neurotypical due to their use of language. However, girls with autism do not tend to engage in what they consider “meaningless” chatter and this is one major challenge when they interact with other girls during childhood and adolescence.

Girls tend to be diagnosed later than boys and the diagnostic process is usually longer and more challenging for clinicians.

Prior to the age of ten, it can be difficult to pick up a female with autism. Females are typically diagnosed during their teen years and are less likely to be diagnosed than males due to their ability to camouflage, mask and compensate their way through school.

Females have been found to have more social understanding than their male autistic peers. Girls are usually more motivated to be sociable and make friends. Their ability to do this often results in a “social hangover” – a realisation they are “different” – and their social effort and over-analysing of social interaction can predispose them to mental health issues.

Strategies for teachers A lack of identification, support, and appropriately trained teachers and staff can result in a pupil with autism feeling isolated, depressed and lonely. This can lead to lower grades, mental health issues and a reduction in future opportunities.

Early intervention by school staff is crucial and the earlier it is provided, the better the outcome. senmagazine.co.uk

Inflexibility in learning approaches and not understanding an autistic child’s preferred learning style are harmful. Most girls on the autism spectrum who are high-functioning prefer to be self-taught and have a teacher check in on them from time to time. The allowances of an individualised education plan, sensory tools, academic accommodations, support and teachers who understand the world from an autistic pupil’s perspective are vital.

To help those with autism thrive in the school environment, accommodations and provisions could include: Alternatives to unstructured time Unstructured time is when pupils with autism may feel most vulnerable, due to the difficulties they have with change; their traits often become more obvious during breaks and lunchtime and they may choose to spend time with school staff or hide away, rather than socialising with their peers. A good alternative is setting up a lunchtime club; this could be a reading or hobby-related club.

Ideas for promoting learning: • topic-based learning – a great way to teach pupils with autism, as they have a tendency to hyper-focus for long periods of time on special interests • physical education based around the child’s interests

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• pre-teaching content; this enables students to be more confident, understand the information better and improve their status with peers • teaching touch typing and using dictation apps to help students with autism who often have difficulty with writing and fine/gross motor skills • small group work and step plans to help students with autism feel more comfortable in groups • reducing the amount of homework or having supervised homework at school, which can prevent students feeling overwhelmed • untimed tests/exams and 50 per cent more time to complete their work to help those with processing speed issues • visual spatial teaching, using visuals rather than verbal instructions and demonstrations • clear, specific instructions and checking in with the student to ensure they have understood • a low-arousal and calming environment • a sensory toolbox (a collection of sensory strategies that can help the pupil with sensory regulation) • regular breaks.

In primary school, girls with autism tend to be included in groups by neurotypical girls

boys with autism tend to spend time alone and are more likely to be bullied. Due to the fact that girls with autism appear to be part of a group (although they often flit between groups and stay on the outer edges), teachers may not recognise their social difficulties. Many girls experience depression and anxiety from an early age – as young as six – and this often goes unnoticed.

As girls move into the teen years, the social complexities are more challenging. During these years, girls with autism have great difficulties with their changing bodies, in addition to heightened anxiety due to the combination of having autism, an increase in hormones and increased social challenges.

Ideas for social skills training: • peer programmes which use small groups of socially aware and trusted students to support and mentor students with autism • modelling (for example using role play and writing narratives) to explain social situations in a factual way • providing opportunities for pupils with autism to build friendships with other pupils who have similar interests • social skills classes, with training around relationships, managing conflict, negotiation and social interaction • in secondary school, female-specific teaching about hygiene, personal development, gender identity and sex education • strength and interest-based activities, such as supervised and structured groups, leisure and sporting activities, volunteering or work experience as well as career training, which focuses on talents and interests.

Wellbeing and mental health Socially, in primary school, girls with autism tend to be included in groups by neurotypical girls and will mimic them. Conversely,

Teaching girls how to be independent, resilient, assertive and socially aware reduces their vulnerability. The complexity of female relationships in secondary school is overwhelming for girls with autism and the earlier they are taught social skills, the better the outcome. Working on girls’ self-esteem, self-image and building their confidence is also crucial, as is focusing on their emotional and mental wellbeing.

The role of teachers The current state of autism training among teachers is poor.

Worldwide, teachers receive little-to-no autism training at university. Teachers are often role models and mentors for pupils and spend more time with children than their parents; yet, in England, 60 per cent of teachers say they feel inadequately trained to teach children with autism (Support for Children and Young People with Special Educational Needs, NASUWT, June 2013). It is not a surprise that many teachers report being overwhelmed in the classroom and have a high burnout rate due to a lack of training.

The type of teacher a child with autism has can make or break their school experience.

■ Social complexities generally cause greater difficulties as girls grow older.

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Many girls on the autism spectrum have great difficulties when they start school. The teen years are particularly challenging and this is when many females drop out or are home-schooled.

Teachers should learn how to better identify autism (including understanding masking and compensation strategies used by pupils), and how to recognise individual educational needs early on and take a strength-based approach to teaching methods.

It is also important for teachers to understand the full breadth of autism conditions, from extreme demand avoidance autism, low-functioning autism, high-functioning autism, Asperger’s syndrome and twice-exceptional (2e) autism to gifted and talented with autism. Teachers who are patient, adaptive and persistent can have a major impact on improving the school experience of a child with autism. senmagazine.co.uk

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Advertisement feature

Getting active at Wilsic Hall School Thinking back to when we were children might evoke a host of different memories, such as exploring our environment, experiencing new activities, becoming competitive with friends, learning new skills, discovering the need to abide by rules, socialising, making new friends, learning through play and having fun.

At Wilsic Hall School we try to incorporate all these things in our young people’s lives.

The support staff strive to be the best possible role models for students, helping them to develop their self-assurance and confidence.

We try to invite, entice and encourage all young people at Wilsic Hall to maintain a healthy lifestyle, giving them opportunities to participate in and experience numerous, diverse activities.

These include recreational and team sports, Rebound Therapy, trampolining, swimming, hockey, football, ice-skating, biking, gymnastics, dancing and organised discos.

We organise an annual, three-day residential trip to the Kingswood Activity Centre where we encourage joint participation in all the exhilarating activities on offer. Activities include canoeing, climbing, laser quest, zipwire, abseiling, fencing, archery, low ropes and crate stack team games. We achieve many firsts at Kingswood, from sleeping in a different environment and accepting change to conquering a fear of heights and jumping off the zipwire platform. We join with another school so our young people have the opportunity to mix, socialise and make friends with other children. Feedback from the young people is always stupendous; we know we play a massive role in making happy memories for them to keep forever.

At Wilsic Hall we encourage community participation and many of our young people enjoy visiting the cinema, gym or theatre, or bowling and eating out with friends at local restaurants. This helps to develop all aspects of their social skills and promotes self-confidence.

Promoting independence We are very lucky to have links with a community barge called “The Ethel” which facilitates day trips and residentials for children with SEN. Some of the trips are based on the young people’s sensory needs. The hum of the engine, stillness of the countryside, movement of water and the peaceful exquisite, surroundings can be so refreshing for them. We see their anxieties and apprehensions simply drain away as the day progresses.

We also plan more active barge trips where we promote independence through steering the barge, opening locks, and dealing with roads and bridges alongside the crew. On the three-day residentials the young people are encouraged to prepare meals, cook, wash-up, make beds and take part in numerous waterway tasks. Our young people talk about their visits for many months.

This May we will be completing our Duke of Edinburgh expedition walk with the support of the Ethel Barge crew.

We have so many themed events at Wilsic Hall but if we asked our young people what to tell you about, they would definitely choose Rebound Therapy. All our young people have an individual Rebound Therapy programme; activities include enjoying massage with sensory lights and individual music playlists, learning gymnastic skills, enhancing body awareness, turn-taking, listening and communication skills.

Independence is encouraged and we promote learning through visuals and sounds and the feeling of proficiency that comes, in time, with the mastery of the gymnastic skill. We see massive improvements in their ability to develop new gymnastic skills and put them together into a routine, while gaining accreditation for their efforts.

Wilsic Hall School is a specialist residential school offering education and care for young people aged 11 to 19, all of whom have complex needs including behaviour that may challenge and a learning disability, often in association with autism. For more information, visit www.wilsichallschool.co.uk

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Do you know anyone in the autism spectrum?

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Residential • Supported Living • Day Opportunities • Respite • Training and consultancy • Support Groups Available Sutton / Derby / Morden / Barnet / Wembley / West Drayton Contact us: 0800 3689 433 info@ss4autism.com www. ss4autism.com Salisbury Support 4 Autism @salisburyautism Salisbury Support 4 Autism

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CRUCKTON HALL AUTISTIC SPECTRUM DISORDERS SPECIALIST

We are one of the leading provider of independent specialist education and care for children, young people and adults with autism, severe learning difficulties, global development delay and associated challenging behaviour. Our track record of success and sector-leading Ofsted and CQC judgements has been achieved through an ethos of high aspiration, placement stability and our inspiring environments. These all combine to optimise life opportunities for children, young people and adults.

Our schools offer personalised curriculum programmes which are inclusive of a range of therapeutic interventions. We can provide placements in a day, termly and up to 52 week residential placements. We also offer respite and flexible boarding options, depending on individual need. Our schools are based in Lincolnshire, Shrewsbury and Surrey and provide full time education for pupils aged 8 to 19 years. Post 19 education is provided at our specialist college in Peterborough. Our support and care is continued into adulthood with several adult homes and supported living homes across the East Midlands, West Midlands and within the south east of England.

Our approach allows each individual to develop their independence and look to the future with increased confidence.

We are truly proud of the role we play in changing the lives of children, young people and adults in helping them to realise their full potential.

Cruckton Hall School · Cruckton · Shrewsbury · Shropshire · SY5 8PR • T: 01743 860206 • F: 01743 860941 Email: referralss@kisimul.co.uk • www.kisimul.co.uk Registered Office: Cruckton Hall Limited • The Old Vicarage, 61 High Street, Swinderby, Lincoln, LN6 9LU • Company Registration Number: 6952821

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Advertisement feature

Only six weeks to go until The Autism Show 2019 The Autism Show, the national event for autism, is returning to London, Birmingham and Manchester in June. It’s packed with over 100 hours of specialist talks, workshops and clinics, plus hundreds of products and services. Once inside the event, all content is free to access and CPD certified for professionals.

This year’s Autism Matters Theatre is filled with insightful and knowledgeable speakers. We’re looking forward to hosting talks from Georgia Harper and Sam Ahern (pictured below), the presenters of Channel 4’s Are You Autistic? Willard Wigan MBE (right), the internationally renowned micro artist, telling us about his amazing life story, author and journalist Keith Stuart presenting a talk based on his acclaimed book A Boy Made of Blocks.

carpet colours, and employ experienced and sensitive staff.

There is also a quiet room available for those who need it.

A host of features Visitors can book free 30-minute private consultations in the One-to-One Clinic area. Subjects covered include: managing distressed behaviour; mentoring and employment support; preventing and challenging school exclusion; a snapshot sensory assessment of your child’s sensory needs; and autism and anxiety in children and young people.

Leading professionals, such as Professor Francesca Happé of King’s College London will also be speaking at the Show.

Other notable specialists include Dr Dido Green of Royal Free Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Sharonne Horlock, Strategic Leader at SEND, and Dr Glenys Jones, Honorary Lecturer and Researcher at University of Birmingham.

The Hub Theatre 2 provides a huge variety of practical talks which can make an immediate difference to you and the individuals you care for, support or teach. Subjects covered include: what to do after an ASD diagnosis for your child; classroom resources; navigating the SEN maze; managing anxieties; estate planning for parents of children with autism; and promoting independence for young people.

The Hub Theatre 1, in association with PARC, provides a voice for autistic adults to talk about their experiences living with the condition. Their thoughts can throw light on your own past and present, and help to shape how you view the future. Many of the speakers from this theatre will be available in the Autism Meets area to answer questions.

To help visitors with sensory processing difficulties, wireless headphones are provided in all theatres and relevant features.

We also use reduced lighting, build wide aisles with muted senmagazine.co.uk

The ever-popular Sensory Room, created by Mike Ayres Design and OM Interactive, in London and Birmingham, offers an immersive sensory experience while showcasing the latest in sensory design and technology. In Manchester we are excited to be working with The Space Centre, the largest and most versatile multi-sensory centre in the UK. There are lots of other features on offer. In London, you can enter the Hexagol Interactive Sports Station to experience this new inclusive sports product in action. You’ll see exciting games offering flexible fun for school pupils of all abilities, played inside an enclosed game cell. In Birmingham, you can visit Motability Central with Bristol Street Motors and discover whether you are eligible to join the Motability Scheme. Manchester sees the return of the Artism Gallery, where you can admire and purchase works of art from artists on the autism spectrum, and try the new Autism Reality Experience.

Amongst all this content, you’ll be able to speak to the UK’s leading suppliers of learning tools, visual aids, sensory equipment, furniture, advice and support services, residential care, specialist schools and much more.

Book your tickets and save 20 per cent at autismshow.co.uk ExCeL London: 14 to 15 June 2019 NEC Birmingham: 21 to 22 June 2019 EventCity Manchester: 28 to 29 June 2019 SEN100

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Sensitive conduct Joanna Grace looks at the impact of the senses on behaviour

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ur senses are our primary source of information about the world. If your senses tell you something is occurring, no amount of reasoning or persuasive language will convince you otherwise. I learnt this for myself when I tried out virtual reality. Even though the experience was one of only sound and sight, and even though I concentrated on the taste of the cake in my mouth and the feeling of the carpet between my toes, I was unable to convince my body not to duck as a large T-Rex swung towards me.

Students who have behaviours triggered by sensory causes are, just like me in that VR experience, unable to override the information coming to them through their senses. If their senses tell them they are in danger, they will respond as if they are in danger, however much we try to persuade them otherwise.

Settings across the UK are reporting a rise in the number of students who have difficulties with the sensory world. And if more students are struggling with sensations, it seems likely that we will see a rise in behaviour stemming from sensory causes. Our sensory systems have a development process that they go through and our later sensory skills are founded on those we acquire during early sensory development – much in the same way as our later mathematical skills are founded on being able to count.

I believe part of the rise in sensory difficulties is caused by changes in what it is typical to experience in early childhood.

For example, children who grow up with a lot of screen time may not have had as many opportunities to have experiences that are critical to the foundations of sensory processing. I am not against screen time per se – and clearly children growing up in a digital age need to learn the skills they will use in later life – it is simply a matter of displacement; if a large amount of time is spent clicking and swiping then that same time is not spent swinging and climbing.

■ Sensory support toys should be used in a considered way.

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About the author Joanna Grace is a sensory engagement and inclusion specialist, author, trainer, TEDx speaker and founder of The Sensory Projects.

TheSensoryProjects.co.uk @Jo3Grace

@TheSensoryProjects

If their senses tell them they are in danger, they will respond as if they are in danger How can we support sensory-derived behaviour?

To follow are a few practical things we can do to help this situation.

We can find out about the development of the senses and offer our students the chance to practice the foundational sensory skills.

We can explore the effect the senses have on behaviour and learn how to communicate with someone whose senses are giving them unreliable information. Our traditional methods of consequences and reason will not work for these children, as they are unable to override the information from their senses.

We can learn more about sensory support toys. Simply giving a child with sensory needs a sensory toy is not akin to addressing those needs. Whilst it may help a little, teaching will help far more. You might give a child who struggles with maths some bricks to count and a calculator and leave them to it; they might learn slightly more than a child with no equipment, but they are far more likely to learn if you teach them. We need to understand how these resources are used, just like we understand how maths equipment is used.

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Recruitment

Coming and going Valerie Butcher outlines some key issues affecting teacher recruitment and retention

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he latest government initiative designed to address the current teacher shortage, Teacher Recruitment and Retention Strategy and Early Career Framework (DfE, 2019), is one in a continuing series of related measures. Cited within the Introduction to the Strategy is the importance of ensuring that “… careers in teaching are attractive, rewarding and sustainable”. Stated concerns continuing to affect teacher retention are listed: workload, accountability systems, the need for flexible working and support for new teachers. Whether this type of focus and approach will address the reasons why teachers are leaving the profession is debatable. Many of the concerns cited are symptomatic of a deeper unease affecting teacher retention.

Workload is just one example.

The workload narrative has undergone a number of iterations in recent times. Used as an umbrella term to cover a range of factors creating an imbalance in the working lives of teachers, Damian Hinds picked up the workload baton from his predecessors as Secretary of State for Education Justine Greening and Nicky Morgan – the latter having introduced a SEN100

Many of the concerns cited are symptomatic of a deeper unease affecting teacher retention

“Workload Challenge” in 2014. In March 2018, Hinds raised the issue (ASCL conference, Birmingham) and a workload reduction toolkit for schools was introduced in July 2018.

The impact of this measure on teacher workload and more so, teacher retention, has yet to be identified.

Motivations to teach In understanding why teachers come and go, it is pertinent to begin with an exploration of the drivers attracting individuals to the profession. Drawing on my work with trainee and new senmagazine.co.uk

Recruitment

The reduction in status is exemplified by the constant checks made on teachers

teachers, it is useful to reflect on their reasons for wanting to become teachers. For many, the reasons denote inclusive principles, referring to philosophical positions on equality, social justice and mobility – wanting to make a difference; others say they are keen to provide learners with opportunities to succeed or that they want to maximise potential or support aspiration. Some motivations reflect trainees’ own experiences, mirroring teachers who had a positive impact on their lives and wanting to do similarly for their learners. For secondary and further education trainee teachers, enthusiasm for their subject and a wish to share this with others also emerge as drivers.

For those joining a PGCE rather than an undergraduate initial teacher education (ITE) programme, the motivations appear more defined. Students tend to be older, partly because they have already experienced working life in previous careers, including retail, business, social work, education, finance or the armed services. Many have child-care or family responsibilities and as such, are aware of the demands of juggling workfamily commitments. Some were leaders and managers in their previous roles and come to the teaching role with this experience as part of their mind-set. Many are aware of the teaching salary which is, in some cases, less than that previously earned. Collectively, their skills and experience combined with their predispositions suggests that, for some, teaching offers an appropriate “match” or something different to that offered within their present occupation. For students such as these, making the decision to change career is a carefully measured one.

In one respect, a combination of the factors presented above suggests that such candidates are well-placed not only to undertake an ITE course but to sustain a successful career in teaching. However, despite sound intentions, teachers akin to these continue to leave the teaching profession – often within the first four years of teaching. Why is this?

Changing times There are two interlinked issues that remain unaddressed in current government policy; firstly, teaching is a creative profession; it attracts those who are resourceful, curious and autonomous, and are risk takers, creative problemsolvers, organisers and leaders. For trainee and early career teachers, however, they enter a profession that has become so performative in nature that it cramps such creativity and conflicts with reasons for joining the profession.

Secondly, the voice of the teacher needs to be recognised as that of a professional with professional knowledge and senmagazine.co.uk

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About the author Dr Valerie Butcher is a former Head of School, Teacher Education and Professional Development at Manchester Metropolitan University. Current research interests include leadership in teacher education, and ITE partnerships. drvbutcher.co.uk

status. The subject of workload echoing in current initiatives is indicative of a wider tension, namely the de-professionalisation of teaching. The reduction in status is exemplified by the constant checks made on teachers and teaching. Arguably, the impact of the current audit culture on teacher retention could be reduced if professional trust was accorded to teachers.

In doing so, the voice of the teacher would have singular recognition without the need for multiple external authorities to endorse it.

In exploring recruitment and retention, political focus turns to teacher continuing professional development (CPD).

What continues to be overlooked however is firstly, how teachers’ previous knowledge and work experience is developed rather than subsumed within teaching and leadership roles and secondly, how the research-informed ITE programme trainee teachers have followed, supporting the importance of evidence-based practice, is developed within organisational cultures. There seems to be little evidence of continuation of these two elements in developing teachers as professionals.

Conflicting ideas Viewed as a whole, the issue of teacher recruitment and retention centres on contradictory, competing expectations of the teaching role. Whilst many trainee teachers are attracted by the humanity of teaching, few enrol on ITE programmes wanting to become substitute parents, data collectors, social workers, dieticians or police officers; they want to teach.

Although it could be argued prospective teachers may be naïve in their perceptions of the teaching role, the counterargument is that the expectation of the role demands something more than that envisaged; we would not expect other professions to take on the numerous roles currently undertaken by teachers.

The changing status of teachers and the shift in what teachers are responsible for reduces the autonomy of teachers and serves to detach them from their initial reasons for joining, and staying, in the profession.

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About SEN Magazine

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In the next issue of SEN Magazine: • RSE/PSHE • autism • literacy • cerebral palsy • modular classrooms • SEN law • dyslexia • looked-after children • augmentative and alternative communication • manual handling • visual impairment • recruitment • CPD and much more... follow us on twitter.com/senmagazine join us on facebook.com/senmagazine senmagazine.co.uk

CPD, training and events Your indispensable guide to SEN courses, workshops, conferences and exhibitions

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CPD, training and events

SEN email newsletter For the latest news/features, CPD and events

Free every month Sign up at senmagazine.co.uk (click on “Newsletter�)

or email newsletter@senmagazine.co.uk

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CPD, training and events

Rebound Therapy Training Courses ‘ReboundTherapy.org’ – the official UK body and international consultancy for Rebound Therapy.

Responsible for the development and delivery of the genuine ‘Eddy Anderson model’ accredited and approved training courses.

Founded 1972

01342 870543 reboundtherapy.org

Communication Matters events Various locations Communication Matters is a UK-wide organisation committed to supporting the needs of people with complex communication difficulties; they run events for AAC users, families and professionals including: AAC Information Days showcasing the latest technology; AAC and Literacy Study Days; and an Annual International AAC Conference and Exhibition. communicationmatters.org.uk

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MEd Professional Practice in Dyslexia and Literacy This programme is designed for professionals who are passionate about supporting learners with dyslexia. The programme is quality assured

by Middlesex University and you will receive a Middlesex University award upon completion. dyslexiaaction.org.uk

MA in Education (Early Years) modules Centre for Research in Early Childhood CREC offers a flexible way for trainees and early years practitioners to gain a post graduate Masters degree in Early Years Education.

All modules are designed specifically for early years practitioners and leaders in the early years. They are offered as part-time courses which can be fitted around a busy, full-time working life. crec.co.uk/ma-in-education

The Skills Network Funded Course in Children’s Mental Health

Free accredited qualification – Level 2 Certificate in Understanding Children and Young People’s Mental Health. Study in your own time. r1.dotmailer-pages.com/ p/1B3R-9G3/funded-sendcourses

Part-time Training

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CPD courses from ICEPE

ICEPE’s 20-hour CPD courses cover a range of topics and are designed by PHD level experts in positive psychology and special educational needs. They are designed for teachers and other professionals who wish to up-skill, and each course will give you the tools and understanding to get the most out of your students.

(+353) 01 061 0618 info@icepe.eu

Diploma in Trauma and Mental Health Informed Schools and Communities

Ten-day training over two terms in many regions.

University validated 12-day training in London. Also available in your own venue. info@traumainformedschools.co.uk traumainformedschools.co.uk

Please check all details with the event organiser before you make arrangements to attend.

icepe.eu

Online – live now

Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) UK wide

GriffinOT Learn about SPD and how to help children with sensory issues, including sensory supports for autism.

Introduction, individual and inset day formats available.

Code SENMAY19 gives five per cent discount.

GriffinOT.com/spd

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Various dates

15 May

16 to 17 May

25 May to 2 June

National Deaf Children’s Society spring/summer 2019 training

Temple Talks Autism 2019 – featuring Dr Temple Grandin

Social Thinking Conferences

Edinburgh International Children’s Festival

A range of workshops at a number of locations across the UK to help professionals support the development of deaf children and young people from early years to post-16. ndcs.org.uk/training

May 2019 7 May (starts)

Understanding and supporting autistic people Lancaster A practice-based course, exploring ways of working with autistic people in a range of settings. This 20-credit module has been validated at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. autism.org.uk/events

Glasgow

UK exclusive. An opportunity to hear from perhaps the most accomplished autistic person in the world, Dr Temple Grandin, at this oneday event. Gain knowledge updates, practical tips aplenty, and a certificate of attendance. For more information, contact Carolyn:

Tes SEN North Manchester Central Tes SEN North will take place on 10 and 11 May at the iconic Manchester Central to provide everyone in the SEN community with a new opportunity to access highquality, CPD-certified SEN training, the latest resources, networking opportunities and more. Register free and make seminar bookings at: tessenshow.co.uk/manchester

15 May

Autism and Eating Challenges

Speakers: Michelle Garcia Winner and Pamela Crooke.

Award winning programme for children/adults with social communication difficulties. sltcommunicationcourses.co.uk

20 to 21 May

0141 638 4098

Social Thinking Conferences

carolyn@medicacpd.com

High Wycombe

medicacpd.com/temple-talksautism-2019

15 and 16 May

Essential Autism Licensed User Training

Speakers: Michelle Garcia Winner and Pamela Crooke.

Award winning programme for children/adults with social communication difficulties. sltcommunicationcourses.co.uk

Two-day training course that provides an affordable option to license autism experienced professionals to deliver the NAS Essential Autism course to their staff teams.

16 May

Kidz to Adultz South

Farnborough International Exhibition Centre One of the largest free UK exhibitions dedicated to children and young adults with a disability or additional needs, their families, carers and the professionals who support them. 140+ exhibitors offering advice and information on funding, mobility, seating, beds, communication, access, education, toys, transport, style, sensory, sports, leisure and more. kidzexhibitions.co.uk

autism.org.uk/events

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imaginate.org.uk

June 2019 8 June

LEGO®-based therapy training courses Cambridge

Bricks for Autism C.I.C. info@bricks-for-autism.co.uk bricks-for-autism.com

11 and 12 June

Autism, Gender and Sexuality Conference

Supporting Primary School Students

Leeds In this new, one-day conference, attendees will hear personal insight, reports of best practice, have the opportunity to put their questions to the experts and contribute to discussions.

Practical support and advice on teaching young people who are visually impaired who are at primary school. £80 per day with lunch and refreshments included.

01905 763933 ncw.co.uk

11 June

autism.org.uk/events

21 to 23 May

EarlyBird Licensed Training Barnsley EarlyBird and EarlyBird Plus are programmes for parents whose child has received an autism spectrum disorder diagnosis aged 4-9. Licensed training to deliver is available to autism-experienced professionals. autism.org.uk/events

Understanding stress and anxiety in autism and their impact on behaviour: Training Edinburgh

One-day course exploring how you can understand and support autistic people reduce stress and anxiety.

You will learn to assess behaviour and the reasons behind anxiety using SPELL framework. autism.org.uk/events

14 to 15 June

The Autism Show

in association with the National Autistic Society

London Training Course. Feeding and eating problems are common in autistic people.

The presenters have several decades of combined experience in the clinical and academic fields of childhood feeding disorders and autism services.

The Festival attracts over 10,000 pupils and families yearly, as well as hundreds of industry professionals from over 23 countries. With an emphasis on striking visual productions, the international programme includes a wide range of events for toddlers to teenagers.

17 May

London

autism.org.uk/events

10 to 11 May

Central London

follow us on twitter.com/senmagazine join us on facebook.com/senmagazine

ExCeL London The national event for autism is returning this June with a packed new programme of specialist talks, workshops and clinics. Once inside the event, all content is free to access and CPD certified.

Book your tickets now and save 20 per cent at autismshow.co.uk

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Autism

T.E.A.C.C.H. Treatment and Education of Autistic and related Communication Handicapped Children

3 DAY TRAINING COURSE 20-22 January 2020 - £407

Course led by: Prof Gary Mesibov Div. TEACCH

This induction training is most appropriate for educators, therapists, administrators, paraprofessionals & families AM/PM refreshments & light lunch

199-203 Blandford Ave Kettering Northants NN16 9AT Tel/Fax: 01536 523274 Email: autism@autismuk.com Book on-line: www.autismuk.com

HALLIWICK ASSOCIATION OF SWIMMING THERAPY TEACHING PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES TO SWIM Affiliated to the International Halliwick Association (IHA)

Halliwick AST Courses 2019 Foundation Courses The Halliwick Concept 4 days YORK: Queen Margaret’s School 20th to 23rd August 2019 (Tuesday to Friday 4-day course) The Halliwick AST Foundation Courses are accredited by CERTA

Advanced Course Teaching and Applying Halliwick Skills Pre-requisite – Foundation Course must have been attended YORK: Queen Margaret’s School 20th to 23rd August 2019 (Tuesday to Friday 4-day course) Residential accommodation is available at the school for the York Courses.

Course fee £400 for the 4 days Discounts may be given to people from groups who have been affiliated to Halliwick AST for a minimum of 2 years.

Application forms and posters can be downloaded from the website www.halliwick.org.uk or by e-mail or post from the course organiser (enclose a s.a.e.)

Other courses may be arranged in the year. Please look at the website www.halliwick.org.uk INAUGURATED 1952 Registered Charity Number 250008

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15 June

21 June

27 and 28 June

2 July

What Children and Teenagers Need to Know About Life in Order to Live it Well

Social Stories™ Workshop

SCERTS

LEGO®-based therapy training courses

Mental Health Programmes in Schools and Psychoeducation. Conference including Robert Withers, specialist in transgenderism 10.00 to 17.00 £183 The Centre for Child Mental Health

020 7354 2913

info@childmentalhealthcentre.org

Reading

This one-day workshop is delivered by Dr Siobhan Timmins, certified Social Stories trainer, and aims to support people in understanding how to develop and use Social Stories™.

Learning to the use the Therapy Outcome Measure (TOM) 52 Club, London

1-day training workshop with Prof Pam Enderby.

Delegate fee: £175. communitytherapy.org.uk

18 June

National Healthcare Show Cardiff City Hall

The Show is an annual allday conference and exhibition on health care in Wales. It is suitable for care home managers or owners, professionals delivering domiciliary care, care providers, healthcare professionals, full-time carers of relatives and newly qualified health, social, and care professionals. nationalhealthcareshow.com

19 June

Professionals Welcome Day

Take a look in more details at what is on offer at NCW. This can be used as a monitoring opportunity for local authorities. Free with lunch and refreshments included.

01905 763933 ncw.co.uk

19 and 20 June

Teen Life Licensed User Training London

Two-day training course to enable professionals to offer a six-session support programme for parents of young people on the autism spectrum aged 10-16 years. autism.org.uk/events

SEN100

01536 523274 autismuk.com

autism.org.uk/events

28 to 29 June

21 to 22 June

The Autism Show

www.childmentalhealthcentre.org

18 June

Introduction and application to the SCERTS model. Twoday training course. Using the SCERTS curriculum and practise principles to design programming for children with ASD. £265.00. autism@autismuk.com

The Autism Show

in association with the National Autistic Society NEC Birmingham The national event for autism is returning this June with a packed new programme of specialist talks, workshops and clinics. Once inside the event, all content is free to access and CPD certified.

Book your tickets now and save 20 per cent at

in association with the National Autistic Society EventCity Manchester The national event for autism is returning this June with a packed new programme of specialist talks, workshops and clinics. Once inside the event, all content is free to access and CPD certified.

Book your tickets now and save 20 per cent at autismshow.co.uk

July 2019

autismshow.co.uk

22 June

Outreach Open Day

Practical support and advice on teaching young people who are visually impaired.

Specific curriculum areas such as maths, PE, music, science and Braille. £80 with lunch and refreshments included.

01905 763933 ncw.co.uk

24 to 26 June

Autism T.E.A.C.C.H.

Treatment and education of autistic and related communication handicapped children. Three-day training course. £398.00.

01536 523274 autism@autismuk.com autismuk.com

26 June

Autism and Adulthood Conference London

This brand new one-day conference explores essential themes relating to autism and adulthood – employment, ageing, health and wellbeing, relationships and more. autism.org.uk/events

2 July

National Deaf Children’s Society Deaf Mental Health Conference

An inspiring one-day conference promoting emotional health and wellbeing for deaf children and young people. This event is for professionals working with deaf children and young people from early years to post 16. deafmh.eventbrite.co.uk

Cambridge

Bricks for Autism C.I.C. info@bricks-for-autism.co.uk bricks-for-autism.com

3 July

Priorities for improving teacher recruitment and retention Central London

CPD certified event with Emma Hubball (Department for Education), Sir Andrew Carter (Carter Review of Initial Teacher Training), Professor Samantha Twiselton (Sheffield Institute of Education), Emma Hollis (The National Association of School-Based Teachers), Dr Mohammed Jakhara (University of Derby), Sinead McBearty (Education Support Partnership) and Nicholas Paul (Manchester City Council). westminsterforumprojects.co.uk

4 July

Kidz to Adultz Wales and West

Thornbury Leisure Centre, Bristol One of the largest free UK exhibitions dedicated to children and young adults with a disability or additional needs, their families, carers and the professionals who support them. 100+ exhibitors offering advice and information on funding, mobility, seating, beds, communication, access, education, toys, transport, style, sensory, sports, leisure and more. kidzexhibitions.co.uk

4 and 5 July

engage in their future National Conference Crowne Plaze Hotel, Stratford upon Avon

A perfectly balanced programme of inspiring keynote speakers, practical workshops, Teach Meet and networking opportunities around the theme “Engaging with Our Behaviour… Building Resilient Communities”.

Residential and day delegate places available. engageintheirfuture.org

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Introduction & Application to the

SCERTS

Advertise your course/ event or vacancy SEN Magazine is widely read by teaching and support staff, school leaders, therapists and other SEN professionals.

If you have a vacancy to fill, or if you’re running a training or CPD event, make sure you promote it in the UK’s leading special educational needs magazine.

To book your space, contact Denise 01200 409808 denise@senmagazine.co.uk or Charlotte 01200 409805 charlotte@senmagazine.co.uk

senmagazine.co.uk

Model

2 DAY TRAINING COURSE

27-28 June 2019 - £265 23-24 January 2020 - £274 Using the SCERTS curriculum & practice principles to design programming for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Course led by: Emily Rubin MS, CCC-SLP Director

This training is appropriate for: educators, therapists, administrators, paraprofessionals & families AM/PM refreshments & light lunch

199-203 Blandford Ave Kettering Northants NN16 9AT Tel/Fax: 01536 523274 Email: autism@autismuk.com Book on-line: www.autismuk.com

Spectra Inclusion Support Team

Autism Professionals Conference Wednesday 12th June 2019 9am-4.15pm

Trinity Centre, Meole Brace, Shrewsbury SY3 9HF

Keynote Speakers

‘How do we make the inclusion of autistic children work to the benefit of all? ’ Dr Glenys Jones ‘My Autistic Life’ Dean Beadle Wide Range of Workshop Topics

Workshops on anxiety, attachment, sensory needs, puberty, child voice, working with parents & more!

Plus Q&A session with Dr Glenys Jones Booking: £125/delegate inc lunch.

Visit spectraautisminclusionservice.co.uk for more details and to download a booking form.

Queries: Contact Val Jones on 07717575362 or vj@spectraautism.com Spectra Inclusion Support Team, 131, 8 Shoplatch, Shrewsbury SY1 1HF Registered in England & Wales No. 10632120

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4 to 6 July

22 and 23 August

21 September

11 and 12 November

LEGO®-based therapy train-thetrainers courses

PECS Level 1 Training Workshop

NCW Sixth Form Open Day

PECS Level 2 Training Workshop

Cambridge

For LEGO®-based therapy practitioners with a professional qualification. info@bricks-for-autism.co.uk bricks-for-autism.com

5 July

Curriculum at the Heart of Learning NCVO, Central London

One-day conference with key note Nick Whittaker, HMI Ofsted. Includes four curriculum-themed workshops: Pre-formal PMLD Curriculum, Semi-formal SLD/ MLD Curriculum, Informal (P4-P5) Curriculum, and Formal Curriculum. equals.co.uk/equalsconference-2019

5 July

Success in Science

This course will involve carrying out practical work using modified resources, tactile diagrams and graphs. £80 with lunch and refreshments included.

01905 763933 ncw.co.uk

6 July

Angry About Everything: How to Connect with the Vulnerable Young Person Underneath

10.00 to 17.00 Cost: £183 The Centre for Child Mental Health

020 7354 2913

info@childmentalhealthcentre.org

www.childmentalhealthcentre.org

August 2019 20 to 23 August

Halliwick Association of Swimming Therapy Foundation Courses York

This is a basic course on the Halliwick Association of Swimming Therapy (Halliwick AST) concept. Consisting of four days of training, this includes both theory and pool work. Courses are accredited

by CERTA. halliwick.org.uk

SEN100

Brighton

PECS is an approach that teaches functional communication skills using pictures. This workshop will give you all the practical details you need to start implementing PECS immediately, including: demonstrations, videos and opportunities to practice.

01273 609555

pecs-unitedkingdom.com

29 and 30 August

PECS Level 1 Training Workshop Aberdeen

PECS is an approach that teaches functional communication skills using pictures. This workshop will give you all the practical details you need to start implementing PECS immediately, including: demonstrations, videos and opportunities to practice.

01273 609555

pecs-unitedkingdom.com

September 2019 11 September

Women and Girls Conference Edinburgh

Annual conference exploring how autism presents in women and girls, and how to better support autistic women. autism.org.uk/conferences

18 September

SoSAFE! Social and Sexual Safety/ Safeguarding Workshop Manchester

How safe are your students in their relationships? The need to educate children and young people about relationships and social safety is not being met at the moment. SoSAFE! is a visual teaching tool which enables learners to develop their abilities in managing and communicating about their relationships.

01273 609555

pecs-unitedkingdom.com

The Sixth Form Open Day is an opportunity to find out all the benefits of attending NCW at Sixth Form. You will learn about studying and living at NCW and how students prepare for onward transition into further or higher education, the workplace and independence.

01905 763933 ncw.co.uk

24 September

LEGO®-based therapy training courses Cambridge

Bricks for Autism C.I.C. info@bricks-for-autism.co.uk bricks-for-autism.com

October 2019 4 to 5 October

TES SEN Show 2019 Business Design Centre, London

The Tes SEN Show is the largest special educational needs show in the UK. The show provides an opportunity for SEN professionals at all levels of education to benefit from direct access to professional development opportunities and the latest products, resources and services available to the sector. The show includes a full programme of CPD certified seminars, free-toattend workshop sessions and a wide range of exhibitors tessenshow.co.uk/london

17 to 19 October

London

Learn practical ideas for advanced lessons in expanding language and communication within functional activities, plus tools for identifying communication opportunities across the day.

Successfully problem solve PECS implementation and take it to the next level.

01273 609555 pecs-unitedkingdom.com

19 November LEGO®-based therapy training courses

Cambridge Bricks for Autism C.I.C. info@bricks-for-autism.co.uk bricks-for-autism.com

December 2019 5 December

PECS in Your Curriculum Workshop Birmingham

A practical workshop which will help you maximise teaching time for learners with autism and complex communication difficulties.

Develop effective learning environments which emphasise functional communication and learn how to use reinforcers effectively in the classroom.

01273 609555 pecs-unitedkingdom.com

LEGO®-based therapy train-thetrainers courses Manchester

For LEGO®-based therapy practitioners with a professional qualification. info@bricks-for-autism.co.uk bricks-for-autism.com

November 2019 14 to 16 November

LEGO®-based therapy Train-theTrainers Courses Cambridge

For LEGO®-based therapy practitioners with a professional qualification. info@bricks-for-autism.co.uk bricks-for-autism.com

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London pan-disability dance event The London Youth Games in conjunction with Para Dance UK and Alexandra Palace have announced their first pan-disability dance event.

Taking place at Alexandra Palace on Thursday 23 May 2019, the event will bring together children and young people with disabilities and SEN from across London. “We are pleased to be one of the first partnerships in the UK to deliver a regional dance competition and we look forward to seeing each group showcase their talents�, says Elysia Barrick of London Youth Games.

This event builds on a successful pilot scheme running over the last two years within the London Youth Games dance event. This has led to the development of this event, which is open to all disabled children and young people in London.

For information on how to enter, email info@londonyouthgames.org or info@paradanceuk.org or visit paradance.org.uk

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SEN resources directory

Sen resources directory Information, advice and support for all things SEN

ADHD ADHD Foundation

Training and awareness raising around ADHD. adhdfoundation.org.uk

National Attention Deficit Disorder Information and Support Service

Resources and information for ADHD. addiss.co.uk

Autism Ambitious about Autism

National charity for children and young people with autism. ambitiousaboutautism.org.uk

Autism Alliance

Network of 16 UK autism charities. autism-alliance.org.uk

Autistica

Autism research charity. autistica.org.uk

National Autistic Society

Help and information for those affected

by ASD. autism.org.uk

Brain conditions Cerebra UK

Charity for children with brain related conditions. cerebra.org.uk

Child Brain Injury Trust

Charity supporting children, young people, families and professionals. childbraininjurytrust.org.uk

Bullying Anti-Bullying Alliance

Coalition of organisations united against bullying. anti-bullyingalliance.org.uk

Bullying UK

Support and advice on beating bullying. bullying.co.uk

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Cerebral palsy

Epilepsy

Action CP

Epilepsy Action

Charity raising awareness of issues facing children and young people with cerebral palsies. actioncp.org

Advice and information on epilepsy. epilepsy.org.uk

Scope UK Help, advice and support for those affected by cerebral palsy. scope.org.uk

Child support Childline Confidential advice and support for children. childline.org.uk

Down’s syndrome

Young Epilepsy Support for children and young people and training for professionals. youngepilepsy.org.uk

Hearing impairment Action on Hearing Loss Charity for people with a hearing loss. actiononhearingloss.org.uk

National Deaf Children’s Society Charity supporting deaf children and young people. ndcs.org.uk

Learning disability

Down’s Syndrome Association Information, support and training on Down’s syndrome. downs-syndrome.org.uk

Down’s Syndrome Research Foundation UK Charity focussing on research into Down’s syndrome. dsrf-uk.org

Dyslexia British Dyslexia Association Information and support for people affected by dyslexia. bdadyslexia.org.uk

Driver Youth Trust Charity offering free information and resources on dyslexia. driveryouthtrust.com

Dyspraxia

BILD Charity offering support and information on learning disabilities. bild.org.uk

Choice Forum Forum for discussing issues affecting those with learning disabilities. our.choiceforum.org

Mencap Learning disabilities charity. mencap.org.uk

Learning outdoors Council for Learning Outside the classroom Awarding body for the LOtC quality badge. lotc.org.uk

Literacy

Dyspraxia Foundation UK

National Literacy Trust

Dyspraxia advice and support. dyspraxiafoundation.org.uk

Literacy charity for adults and children. literacytrust.org.uk senmagazine.co.uk

SEN resources directory

Mental health MIND

Advice and support for people experiencing a mental health problem. mind.org.uk

NHS National Health Service nhs.uk

Department of Health Northern Ireland health-ni.gov.uk/

Health in Wales wales.nhs.uk

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Special educational needs nasen Organisation for the education, training and advancement of those with SEN. nasen.org.uk

SEN.fyi (App) Everything You Wanted to Know About SEN – all in one place! Download this app free to your smartphone or tablet for iOS (on Apple App store) or Android (on Google Play store). specialeducationalneeds.co.uk/ senfyi-app.html

NHS Health Scotland healthscotland.scot

Rebound Therapy ReboundTherapy.org

The UK governing body and international consultancy for Rebound Therapy. reboundtherapy.org

SEN law Douglas Silas Solicitors

Douglas Silas Solicitors are the legal experts specialising exclusively in SEN, helping parents successfully throughout the SEN process.

SpecialEducationalNeeds.co.uk

IPSEA

Spina bifida Shine Information and support relating to spina bifida and hydrocephalus. shinecharity.org.uk

Tourette’s syndrome Tourette’s Action Information and advice on Tourette’s. tourettes-action.org.uk

Free, legally-based advice for parents of UK Government children with SEN. ipsea.org.uk For Department for Education, Department of Health and Social Care SLCN and other departments.

Ace Centre gov.uk Advice on communication aids. ace-centre.org.uk

Visual impairment

Afasic

Help and advice on SLCN. afasicengland.org.uk

Communication Matters

Support for people with little or no clear speech. communicationmatters.org.uk

I CAN

Children’s communication charity. ican.org.uk

The Communication Trust Consortium of charities raising awareness of SLCN. thecommunicationtrust.org.uk senmagazine.co.uk

New College Worcester Advice and support for those teaching children who are visually impaired. ncw.co.uk

Royal Society for Blind Children Support and services for families and professionals. rsbc.org.uk

RNIB Support and advice for those affected by visual impairment. rnib.org.uk SEN100

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SEN subscriptions

Subscribe to the UK’s leading special educational needs magazine

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