SEN Magazine - 122 - January-February 2023

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There’s a feast of brilliant articles here on wide ranging subjects, so I’m hoping everyone will find something (or a lot of somethings!) to read and share with colleagues, parents etc.

A big thank you firstly to all the contributors: it’s a pleasure getting to know you and I appreciate the time it takes to put an article together. As always, if any of the pieces inspire you to have a go yourself, do contact me and let’s have a chat about the whole process from initial idea to seeing your work in print. It’s a really good way to sharpen your thinking and writing skills through sharing something you feel passionate about. This is where I give a massive thank you to all the team, whose patience with the new occupant of the editor’s chair is hugely appreciated in making the magic happen.

I was impressed by the authors of this issue’s Point of View, on page 16, where you can read about how two Y11 students, Chaitanya Sapra and Zahra Qazi,created a new approach to inclusion in their school and how they took the initiative to improve the daily lives of some of their fellow students. From small beginnings, they have really made a big impact on the school’s culture.

Jody Ashfield takes the music to the outside in her article on page 17, then you can hop over to Tina Stubbs on page 39 to read about her work connecting children with nature. There’s something of a theme, as Richard Hirstwood on page 25 looks beyond the classroom walls and asks us to consider other aspects of the school environment such as the dreaded school corridor.

From overly stimulating corridors to the Serengeti: that’s just one small leap for Shazia Sarwar-Azim, on page 51, through the use of Assistive Technology. Her passion and drive to engage vulnerable learners demonstrates how vibrant, inclusive and effective AT can be, and she has made this a driving force for academic improvement.

In this issue, we also have two excellent articles on hearing impairment from Ian Noon, the Chief Policy Adviser at The National Deaf Children's Society and Liz Rothwell, a retired Teacher of Deaf Children and Young People and a Trustee of DELTA. Both articles highlight the lack of support many children and students contend with in mainstream schools.

There are many more articles that I don’t have the room to mention here. I also found some fascinating news articles (don’t miss the one about GCHQ and neurodivergent women, which conjured up an image of ‘Bond, Jessica Bond’ for me).

Finally, another big round of applause for contributors, advertisers and the amazing SEN Team. Together, you make SEN Magazine the leading authority in this field.

Happy New Year

Kay Jones

Ian Noon Gemma Peebles Lucy Rand Liz Rothwell Nadim Saad Shazia Sarwar-Azim Douglas Silas

Tina Stubbs Helen Trethewey Brendan Wignall

CONTRIBUTORS

Concerns over government delays in SEND Review Plan

Delays in improving support for children with Special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) are causing concern, following the announcement that the Government will not be responding to the review now until early next year. In a letter to the sector explaining this delay, the education secretary reported that she wanted to understand the extensive feedback before publishing a full response. She also reported that the government is to invest £21m in training for educational psychologists, as well as extending a training programme in assistive technology for 150 schools.

Early years leaders, among others, have raised concerns about these further delays, as providers are seeing more children with additional needs, particularly in terms of speech and language issues as a result of the pandemic. The chief executive of the Early Years Alliance, Neil Leitch says the sector is 'grappling with a complex, inconsistent and slow SEND system, underpinned by wholly inadequate funding that consistently falls short of meeting the needs of providers and families'. The Association of School and College Leaders also said that the longer wait for a response was 'disappointing', with current SEND provision under 'intolerable strain'.

Nearly a million under18's seek help for mental health issues

A recent NHS Digital Data Report presents a series of follow-up reports to the 2017 Mental Health of Children and Young People (MHCYP) survey. The data shows that nearly a million people under the age of eighteen were in contact with mental health, learning disabilities and autism services in the last year with increases across the age range, and with almost a quarter of 16 year old girls making contact with the services in what is seen as an unprecedented crisis. Olly Parker, head of external affairs at Young Minds said that thousands of young people are seeking mental health support and young women, in particular, face a wide range of pressures that may affect their mental health. Other sources also report a rise in the number of young people attending emergency department with mental health issues and that many young people are unaware of the services and resources that are available to them.

Longer wait times for autism and neurodevelopmental diagnoses in Scotland

Figures obtained via freedom of information requests by the Scottish Liberal Democrats reveal that wait times are as long as four and a half years in NHS Ayrshire and Arran, with NHS Ayrshire, NHS Highland, Lanarkshire and Lothian all also recording long waits. NHS Borders was the only health board where the average wait time for autism was less than six months. The response from the Minister for wellbeing and social care, Kevin Stewart, indicated that more than £3m had been allocated for the remainder of the year to support NHS boards and that the National Neurodevelopmental Standard for Children and Young People (2021), which sits along the NHS Scotland National Service Specification for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) sets out the principles and standards of care expected. This also establishes that support should be put in place when it is needed, rather than being dependent on a formal diagnosis. However, as leader of the Scottish Lib Dems Alex Cole-Hamilton commented, the impact of waits of more than four years can reverberate for life.

BAE Systems plc, a British multinational, and GCHQ (Government Communication Headquarters) are actively seeking women on the autism spectrum, with dyslexia or ADHD, in recognition that some of their most talented and creative employees have a neurodiverse profile that can benefit and strengthen diversity in teamwork. GCHQ focuses on security, organised crime and counter-terrorism and is looking in particular for neurodivergent women to apply and add to the mix of minds working on new and emerging threats to national security. Theresa Palmer, who holds the post of head of diversity and inclusion at BAE Systems digital intelligence division echoes this in terms of seeking out potential employees whose abilities to process different forms of information, pattern recognition and innovation, are of value. As neurodivergent employees often report challenges in their work environments, Code First Girls, a social enterprise that works with these companies, has encouraged employers to offer tools such as software to map out thought processes and noise cancelling headphones.

Major organisations seek out neurodivergent women as valued employees

As Chair of CReSTeD and Headteacher at a school with a long tradition of catering for pupils with specific learning difficulties (SpLD) in a mainstream environment, I am often asked for advice on choosing a school for a child with dyslexia. The first point I usually make is that the principles involved in selecting a school really should not be significantly different—if we are considering mainstream schools—whether a child is dyslexic or not. Choosing a school for any child is a potentially fraught exercise for a caring parent, and the most important considerations will be the same for all parents.

Getting a feel for what's best

There is no substitute for a personal visit to the school. In the independent sector, this should be a normal part of the admissions process. An open day event will usually be helpful; while such events are often criticised on the grounds that they are stage-managed by the school (and you should perhaps be worried if they are not), a perceptive parent should be able to see past the artifice and gain a feel for the ethos of the school. While a personal visit to a school in the maintained sector may be difficult to arrange in some cases, the open or

information events should be useful in helping you gain an insight into the school.

When considering a school, look at its promotional materials. If they are smart and well-presented, that is all well and good, but look past the surface appearance; does the school make it clear that it celebrates individual achievement or does it boast about the number of high grades its pupils achieve? Does the

When selecting a school for a child with dyslexia, the school's ethos says more than official documents can, says Brendan Wignall

More than words

What really matters in a child's education?

Be cautious about 'objective data'

school make it clear that it has a vision of education that goes beyond the classroom, or does it simply make vague mention of an 'after school' (one suspects this phrase almost always means 'not taken seriously') activity programme?

Word of mouth is, of course, useful for parents, but only if the opinions are from parents with similar educational values to your own. If you value an education which concentrates on individual development, a recommendation from a parent on the grounds that a school achieves high results is not likely to be of much relevance.

Looking beyond league tables

Performance tables also have to be seen in the right context. Such tables do provide information and some of it is useful, though not necessarily in the obvious way. In the independent sector, if a school is doing a poor job for the majority of its pupils, it will close (and a good thing too). So far as independent schools are concerned, league tables tell us more about the selection policies of a school than anything else. Highly selective schools should score high marks in the performance tables, but this does not mean that they are adding any more value than less selective schools with more modest rankings; it is unlikely to be the case that they focus more on individual pupils than the more averagely ranked schools.

The relationship between league table performance and maintained schools takes one into risky and controversial political waters. Undoubtedly, there are some poorly performing schools that are in that position because they are poor schools but continue to operate because the healthy market disciplines that apply to independent schools do not apply in the maintained sector. However, there are plenty of apparently poorly performing schools doing an excellent job for their pupils.

Good schools with relatively low examination results may be judged unfairly negatively. Similarly, there are high-performing schools that are not pupil-focused and are coasting along because they have a good catchment.

What really matters in a child's education?

In short, 'objective data' should be treated with great care and a little suspicion. Indeed, to turn the situation on its head, the parents of a dyslexic child—and, indeed, the parents of any child who would like their son or daughter to be treated as an individual—should be wary of a high-performing school that places excessive emphasis on that high performance. As a parent you should not be interested in how many pupils achieved Grade 9 at GCSE or A* at A level, or how many got into Oxford or Cambridge. Instead, your focus should be upon

About the author

Brendan Wignall is the Chair of CReSTeD, the Council for the Registration of Schools Teaching Dyslexic Pupils, and the Head of Ellesmere College.

crested.org.uk

@CReSTeDDyslexia

the school's emphasis—or lack of it—on helping all its pupils to achieve their full potential, whatever that might be. Ideally, this desire for achievement should go well beyond the academic.

Specialised Dyslexia Provision

The specifically focused provision that a school provides for dyslexic students will be an important consideration for parents, and there are some specific questions that can be asked of a school in this regard. Is it CReSTeD accredited? If not, why not? Ignorance, a desire not to have too many enquiries from dyslexics and an inability to meet the criteria are all possible answers.

Of these three possibilities, the final answer is potentially the least worrying. A school could be working towards CReSTeD criteria and be heading in the right direction and therefore worthy of consideration; there is a CReSTeD category suitable for just about every type of school. The other two answers could suggest a lack of interest or, worse, an attitude towards dyslexic pupils that suggests that it is worth having a few for the money or the capitation but that too many might get in the way. I would not want my child to be in a school with such an attitude to human beings regardless of whether she or he is dyslexic.

It is important to remember, though, that while good dyslexia provision is a necessary foundation, it can never be the solution on its own to the challenges that dyslexic pupils face. Good specialist provision is hugely important, but what goes on in the maths, English and history classrooms, for example, is just as important and—unless it is a specialist school—it is this non-specialist environment in which dyslexic children spend most of their educational lives.

The importance of a school's ethos cannot be overemphasised. Indeed, the emphasis that a school places on individual development and achievement, in all its forms, is important for any pupil, but for those with SEN it is absolutely vital.

Educational experiences of young people with SEND

The ONS report is entitled 'Educational experiences of young people with SEND in England: February to May 2022', and its contents are important as they may influence forthcoming developments in the law relating to special education.

Previous research had highlighted evidential gaps about young people with SEND, often only reflecting proxy views, rather than their direct views. Research was particularly needed because the Department for Education (DfE) was undertaking the SEND Review, which needed to understand direct experiences. It was based on a qualitative approach, with researchers speaking to young people attending different educational settings, including mainstream, special and residential schools, alternative provision and those in home education, with 'SEN Support' or an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP).

The report found that young people with SEND described strategies they used to manage their learning and emotional wellbeing, which included wearing headphones or sunglasses, fidgeting, doodling and accessing sensory spaces. Other educational support was said to result in many young people reacting by feeling angry or frustrated and potentially distracting others, but this was sometimes treated as 'naughty behaviour', with punishments such as isolation and exclusion. It was important to highlight the need to consult with individuals to understand them better and find appropriate ways to accommodate their needs, without them feeling labelled as 'different'. The report identified that schools needed to be more responsive to young people's needs by providing more training to staff on how to understand these better by meeting them and ensuring that support plans were appropriate, up to date and updated as needed. There need to be flexibility around issues, such as coursework, uniforms,

Schools need to be responsive to individual student needs

In a departure from his role as Law commentator, Douglas Silas looks at recent research from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) on educational experiences of young people with SEND in England.

About the author

access to safe spaces and ensuring that teaching methods considered a range of learning styles and preferences.

The research also found the need for good communication and relationships between staff and pupils and families and staff. Staff who displayed empathy, respect and care also encouraged young people to ask for help and had a positive impact, as they were better able to understand individual needs and adapt lessons appropriately.

In addition, both young people and their parents/carers indicated how schools could promote more inclusion, through school clubs or 'buddy' systems' and by recognising that there could be a range of achievements beyond academic grades, including raising awareness about understanding of needs and differences.

Parents and carers highlighted difficulties with navigating systems to ensure that their child's support needs were met; describing stressful, lengthy, complex and inconsistent processes to access appropriate schools and support plans. They also called for greater accountability by Local Authorities (LAs).

Young people suggested that to manage learning, they needed both resilience and self-reliance. Some preferred not to be identified as 'different', to avoid social judgement and assist

them with 'belonging'. This was not only about other pupils, but also about teachers, who did not acknowledge their needs or preferences. Additionally, young people reported a need for 'self-management', to manage emotional well-being at school and to avoid negative emotions, such as anger, frustration, anxiety and aggression, which in some cases was experienced every day as their emotional needs were not always recognised or responded to appropriately. Some young people said that 'fidgeting', using tactile objects, was a helpful strategy for improving concentration and maintaining calm, although some teachers saw this as 'distracting' or 'disruptive'. They also expressed that their emotional needs would be managed better if teachers and support staff listened and understood them more.

The researchers identified the main strengths of the report. In particular, the research enabled a more detailed understanding of how young people with SEND experienced their education and what is important to them—it also showed what could be improved to help them in the future. The inclusion of parents, carers and staff in the research ensured a better understanding of the broader contexts, which meant that they could provide views and experiences of processes that were not necessarily part of young people's direct experiences, but had a bearing on their education. Interview approaches were tailored creatively, to maximise accessibility and comfort.

But: the researchers also conceded that there were some 'limitations' of this research. There were only limited opportunities for some young people with sensory or physical disabilities to engage in some of the creative methods (such as drawing or building Lego). Difficulties and challenges involving those young people with Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulties (PMLD), or those who were minimally verbal—the researchers recognised issues around greater accessibility. The process was also highly reliant on 'gatekeepers', such as schools and other networks, to identify and recruit eligible participants, which meant that they could potentially have excluded some young people from participating properly.

Parents often struggle with navigating systems, it can be very frustrating

Douglas Silas is the Managing Director of Douglas Silas Solicitors.

Point of view: students

Schools need safe spaces: what we did in our school

Two Y11 students, Chaitanya Sapra and Zahra Qazi from Aylesbury High School, share why they took the initiative to improve the daily lives of some of their fellow students. Here they describe the process they went through and its impact in their secondary school.

The idea began when we noticed that our school needed a safe space for people to learn more about hidden and visible disabilities. People needed a space to discuss and share experiences, learn about disabilities and destroy stereotypes. Before our club began, so many people didn't even know what 'ableist' meant, it was thrown around and we wanted to change that. Things needed to change. We became the change we needed to see.

Our club takes place during lunchtimes, and we are so grateful to see so many people attend. So many people want to come and learn about disabilities, and we were so glad to see that we never stood alone in wanting change. We've covered Autism, Dyslexia, OCD, ADHD and Tourette's so far, in an interactive and educational way. This ranges from myth busting games, eradicating thoughts such as 'everyone's a little bit OCD' to safe, open discussions where we tackle questions that need to be talked about, such as Autism in the media and the importance of self diagnosis. We're delighted to say that we've received amazing feedback about the beauty of the community that we've created, because feeling understood and heard holds unimaginable value.

We never underestimate the importance of quotes and our own experiences. People feel safe sharing their experiences with us, both anonymously and by standing up and speaking to the group. Our presentations are filled with quotes that people find relatable and reassuring. Speaking or listening to those with the disability that you may share or relate to can make you feel so understood and heard, and some can feel so supported by learning from others experiences.

British Sign Language

The second half of our session is focused on learning British Sign Language! Learning BSL is something that so many people enjoy, and we've had some amazing achievements so far, with many conversing through signs that they had already learnt prior to our club! We wanted to highlight the importance of Sign Language, with it now being recognised as an official language, by going through an official BSL course and learning together in our club. Recently, our school had a Diversity Week, where we celebrated the diversity of the students at our school.

To celebrate, the BSL club prepared a showcase, where we performed a section of 'This is me' from The Greatest Showman in BSL! The lyrics were inspiring and easy to learn, and with great response at our lunchtime practices, we showcased our fantastic community at our club. The video is one of our greatest achievements, and encapsulates so many memories.

Big Ambitions!

We are so proud of ourselves for starting this club from scratch, and with the overwhelming support from everyone—year 7s to year 11s and 6th formers, even teachers join in too! We have many plans for upcoming sessions, and we're especially excited to begin preparing a BSL showcase to compete in the talent competition our school hosts annually—A Factor. Together with our school, BSL and Awareness club have achieved so much. It truly shows that when you step out to make a difference with a whole heart, change will follow.

■ Learning together has been fun!

■ Chaitanya Sapra and Zahra Qazi, Year 11, Aylesbury High School

Music without boundaries

Listening to and creating music lifts people's moods and creates a powerful sense of wellbeing, and the positive impact outdoor musical instruments have on people with special educational needs is well established. Musical instruments based outside have no rules, which means there is no 'right' or 'wrong' way to create music, making it inclusive to everyone. Instruments that are pentatonic mean anyone can play and create beautiful sounds. Playing musical instruments stimulates the brain to make new connections and strengthens existing ones, resulting in improved mental health and increased cognitive ability for people with autism engaging in musical play.

Music is a universal language that operates across linguistic, cultural, and social barriers and is hugely effective at breaking down all sorts of obstacles to normalised versions of communication, both verbal and non-verbal. For people with ASD, music is often able to capture and maintain attention in a way that other mediums may not to the same extent. Playing musical instruments can therefore assist people to navigate, comprehend and participate in social situations more easily and alleviate negative emotions.

By combining music and the 'great outdoors,' we believe it is instruments that can help create fun and laughter, helping support people with ASD and their families. Playing music outside enables families to have fun together while strengthening the bonds of communication between parents, grandparents, siblings, and children.

Sarah McGinley is Occupational Therapy Lecturer & Admissions

Tutor at the University of Southampton, which advised the Sir Harold Hillier Gardens and Arboretum in Southampton on their provision for children to explore our natural world while creating music. Sarah says "Outdoor musical instruments are hugely

About the author

Music grabs attention. It's a universal language

beneficial for children and adults with special educational needs as they provide opportunities to explore environments through the use of touch, sight, sound and vibration. Users can interact with the instrument in ways that are meaningful to them, which may improve sensory stimulus, feedback and response to the world around them."

In the end, the team went for a variety of tones, and installed chimes, metal drums, bongos, and a small Metallophone, and the changes have resulted in a space for peaceful enjoyment on a quiet day, yet where multiple people can enjoy it at once. Some come initially just to watch, but they soon join in, and their playing becomes part of something bigger. Music gives everyone a voice, and making music together can build a harmonious, cooperative spirit of support and encouragement for us all.

Inclusion is about engagement and often the lack of opportunity to get involved can be as significant a barrier as the nature of a person's disability. The creation of holistic accessible outdoor music spaces, where many of the barriers that prevent a person from accessing music (whatever they might be) can be removed, will allow all members of the community the opportunity to experience live music as both a performer and listener—building shared musical and play experiences and in turn an understanding that will only help inclusion to grow.

After all, that's exactly what inclusive communities should be about: creating opportunities for us to share experiences, learn together, and maybe most importantly to have great fun together.

Jody Ashfield on making music and why it lifts our spirits.

Overcoming PE-phobia

Sport is always a dividing subject at school. From the child who thrives on discipline and structure and throws themselves into a competitive situation, to the child who is overwhelmed by the noise or activity of a sporting game. PE can cause problems for many children, whether they have special educational needs or not. Some may be easily distracted in an open environment and unable to concentrate or it may simply be the thought of getting changed into a PE kit. But I believe it is about reinventing the subject and finding even the most hardened PE-phobe can find appreciation and a new lease of life through sport if enough variety and diverse opportunity is available.

Many students I work with have a range of social and emotional needs, moderate learning difficulties or are on the ASD spectrum. And more often than not, sport is not something they enjoy. In many instances they do not have a clear perception

Activities that promote healthy exercise can also be fun

of how they could enjoy sport or exercise. But with careful consideration of how it is presented, my colleagues and I find sport is a great way for them to not only explore more healthy options in life, but also discover emotional needs and bring about a positive dimension to learning.

For our students, they either hated getting changed, were always the last to get selected for teams, or had been kicked out of PE lessons in their last school setting and it wasn't something they wanted to engage with. Many of them were aware of their physical limitations, even if they didn't consciously understand it was because of their dyspraxia or their sensory overload.

After they think they can't do it or are told they can't do it, they are going to build walls against that and add in all their 'self preservation' skills. But it is something we find can really enrich the lives of our pupils and we work hard to let them explore the concept of sport through play, team fun and adjusting rules and stringencies to accommodate their skill level. Before too long they are asking for additional 'games' lessons in their timetable and are impatient for lunchtime activities.

The big NOs include having a PE kit—we can cope with a sweaty t-shirt for the day!—other peers picking teams and choosing activities that do not fit the cohort, the choice of game is very important. It is a natural transition, being outside and having fun and engaging in something of a competitive nature. Modern life has also added to reducing physical activity for most young people. The days of wandering the local woods and rambling hills with your friends are a distant memory. However, it is that sense of adventure and fun that we try to bring to exercise and activity.

It's about reinventing sport, learning that there are more ways to enjoy it and opening their vision for it. They will find they are playing sport before they even realise it is a PE lesson.

Sport and PE can be a difficult subject for children with Special Educational Needs. They may love it or hate it but either way it can become a taboo.

Specialist Kay Jones looks at how to reinvent PE and help students thrive.

We definitely won't put PE on the timetable. Instead, we would put ‘games’, 'out and about' or ‘hall time’ on there. Sometimes it's dodgeball and sometimes it's four square, but four square with our own rules, which may not be nationally recognised or indeed recognised by anyone outside the school gates or in fact the field of play.

Instead there may be a session on forest school or horse riding, anything that will interest the children or we know they will enjoy. With a positive approach to an activity rather than delivering a curriculum subject that has negative connotations, the students can really appreciate not only the fun nature of it but also other pivotal life lessons such as teamwork, determination, problem solving and resilience.

Ours is an environment specifically designed to meet the needs of children aged five to eighteen and those who need a more specialist education than mainstream schools. A high number of children have a significant, complex case history and team

About the author

Kay Jones is managing director and co-founder of Bettws Lifehouse has been running independent special schools in England and Wales since 2007.

bettwslifehousekg.org

@bettwslifehousekg

@bettwslifehousekg

games may be something they have never encountered, they just may never have been part of a team. But I find that through opening our school's eyes to a much wider concept of sport, students can even help themselves to build connections and emotional development too. We promote a healthy and active lifestyle, but part of this is learning to build trust with adults and encounter and manage different emotions too—sport is a great way to do this. They encounter rupture of relationships and anger when they lose, but build to repair it after and learn how to manage these emotions, which then translates into resilience in other areas of life.

There is no development in never having a winner or telling everyone they are one without a belief in what you have achieved. Their life experience has already given them experience of loss and losing—sometimes their friendships, their school placements and sometimes, sadly, their families. There is no emotional growth through not competing with your peers.

These students come to us and they succeed. We have success in getting them a sense of academic achievement and a huge sense of enjoyment from the outside world and the feel good factor of exercise. We also see them head back into mainstream further school—and sometimes on to university. Obviously this is due to the whole team here who help with so many aspects of their development from independent living skills, through social community and inclusion to intrinsic therapy and physical and mental wellbeing.

And while it may not say PE on the timetable, sport is a big part of that.

Dodgeball rules and team games are adapted to increase engagement

Teachers

Cleaners

Teaching Assistants 2B

Shapes, lines and visual correspondence

Many children with cerebral palsy have difficulties with learning to write. Often this is put down to the fact that the children's muscles and ligaments in their hands and arms are tight or uncoordinated but sometimes there may be other reasons. In a special school for children with physical disabilities, where the majority of the children had cerebral palsy, some of the children were very able but were slow with their literacy development, and in particular with learning phonics—the association between letters and their sounds.

Many children learn to spell and write at the same time, sounding out letters while writing them out, for example simple words such as cat and dog. While the children with CP were able to sound out the individual letters, they were not able to point to the letters individually or write them. It was as though the children were not able to see the individual shapes of the letters.

By the way, there’s an article by Minnie (MLJ) Abercrombie from 1964 in which she asked children to copy simple shapes. The drawings below shows how a 15-year-old girl with CP copied four simple shapes.

Copying simple shapes can be made more multisensory

The drawings below show her attempt to copy the shapes. She was able to copy simple individual shapes but she was not able to connect them together. For the two shapes on the right side, she was only able to approximate parts of the more complex shapes. As the children in her class seemed to have the same difficulty in that they only copied parts of letters, we decided to try to help the children to perceive the shapes using different methods other than copying or tracing. The children were asked to make individual letters using play dough, copying magnetic letters of the alphabet. This was quite successful except that the alphabet letters kept skidding off the table. Rather than teaching them to write with cursive

writing

Valerie Critten and David Messer on teaching children with cerebral palsy to write and spell.

■ Copying simple shapes by a girl with cerebral palsy.

■ Practising how to write the letter a. He is able to draw the circle, but has difficulty in working out where to add the mouse’s tail.

the class used the Ball and Stick method to teach individual letter shapes: the letter d is a circle (ball) and a stick, and the letter p is a stick and a circle. This worked for simple letters but it was more difficult with other letters such as the letter a. The children were asked what the letter a looked like, they said it looked like a circle with a mouse's tail, so that is what they used as a mnemonic to help them remember the shape to identify the letter and to write it.

Some of the children found it difficult to write with a pencil on paper. His fingers and wrists were weak, but he found it much easier to make marks by using a white board and pen.

Once the children were able to identify and write a few letters, the children started to put magnetic alphabet letters together to learn to spell simple words, however they found them difficult to manipulate as they were small and skidded off the table. Instead, the children were given large laminated letters which

About the author

Val Critten was a teacher in a special school but since gaining an EdD she now works as an EdD supervisor for the Open University. She is interested in the cognitive difficulties of children with cerebral palsy and how it affects their literacy and mathematical abilities.

David Messer is Emeritis Professor of Education at the Open University. He has a long-standing interest in the development of thinking and learning abilities in children and young people.

they stuck using Velcro onto boards. Using word families such as -it, -an, or -ug, the children used their phonetic knowledge to add a letter at the beginning to make simple words, for example, jug, mug, and bug.

The advent of digital tablets helped to revolutionise the teaching of phonics and letter writing with free apps available to download. Once the children were able to write a few words they were able to compose simple personalised stories using their own photos and drawings on tablets which could be printed, emailed or shown on white boards in the classroom.

Although these photographs show children aged about seven, these teaching approaches were also used successfully with secondary aged children who were still learning the basics of spelling and writing.

Not all children with cerebral palsy will learn how to spell and write as other abilities such as intelligence will play a part in each child's development. However, teachers can check to see if the children in their classes have difficulties in copying simple shapes and use these types of teaching approaches to help them develop literacy skills.

■ Linda (aged 7) has worked out how to spell using the laminated letters of a few -ug words. She is now writing the individual letters using the stick and ball approach and mnemonics to help her with her writing skills.

Apps that provided rewards helped motivate students

Multisensory learning: corridors matter too

Multisensory learning is used to describe any learning involving two or more senses in the same activity. It is not a new concept. The value of learning through a combination of senses was recognised early in the twentieth century by Montessori, whose approach continues to influence multisensory learning in a carefully created learning environment.

Sensory overstimulation and under-stimulation

A sensory loss or impairment can mean that the learner does not interpret the sensory information they receive correctly and processing simple sensory input can be challenging. Any of their senses may be over or under-sensitive, or both, at different times. This also applies to learners on the autistic spectrum, when too much sensory information may cause anxiety or stress. So, a learner's ability to take in and use information through the senses and respond appropriately is known as sensory integration. Some learners have heightened sensory awareness, resulting in the continual bombardment of their sensory system by sensory experiences, which are too overwhelming and result in their withdrawal from that environment. Conversely, some learners' awareness of sensory experiences is too low, resulting in limited engagement with their environment.

Multisensory Learning and Communication Skills

Learners learn when they are interested in an activity or object; they become motivated and further engaged when the learning is fun. For successful multisensory learning, we must understand more about the learner's expressive and receptive language skills.

For clarity, expressive language is the ability to convey meaning and messages to others using words or gestures.

■ Simple but effective sensory resources can inspire engagement.

Receptive communication concerns the ability to understand information and meaning—from words, actions, visual clues, and environmental sounds. Note that expressive and receptive communication may be at different levels of ability. So, a learner may understand symbols and use these to convey thoughts, but their expressive communication may be limited to nonspecific vocalisations.

Multisensory learning encourages a learner's interaction in an activity—a reason for engagement and communication, while supporting their ability to understand the experience and to embed learning. A learner may need more time to process and understand a learning experience, requiring frequent repetition to secure this knowledge.

The flexible classroom

Evidence from research shows that physical classroom environments make an impact on learning. However, we should also recognise that the type of environment that best meets the needs of a learner with autism may well differ from that which suits a learner with profound and complex learning needs. Creating the right physical classroom environment is more complicated when children and young people have coexisting and overlapping conditions or when they are taught in mixed groups where learners have different needs.

Richard Hirstwood looks at aspects of multisensory learning in relation to school environments and how to improve the learning journey.

Repetition is your friend when it comes to learning

About the author

Richard Hirstwood is the founder and principal tutor of Hirstwood Training. He is passionate about enabling educators/practitioners to maximise the impact of delivering sensory learning opportunities, in a sensory room or other learning environments, with the resources available to them.

hirstwood.com

@HirstwoodT

@HirstwoodTraining

Classroom learning environments designed to accommodate sensory impairments require the physical environment to be adjusted to support effective learning. The provision of lighting and visual clues is vital for all learners. Consider the use of high colour contrast; for example, a dark tray placed on the work surface to assist the visually impaired learner in engaging with the object. For those with a visual impairment, it is critical that lighting levels meet their visual needs. For learners with a hearing impairment, clear visibility is essential to enable lip reading and signing and for wayfinding. Making sounds more explicit by cutting down echoes with partitions or carpeted surfaces will help learners develop hearing and listening skills.

The physical classroom environment should provide as many multisensory learning cues as possible to accommodate and stimulate the seven sensory systems. Such provision will depend on the level of sensory loss learners have in a particular class, or if a multisensory impairment is one of several coexisting conditions they are experiencing.

The physical classroom environment can make many demands on all learners with autism, especially those with a specific difficulty with sensory regulation. These environments should

Classroom

environments need careful planning

take into account sensitivities to noise, light, temperature and strong colour, with low levels of distraction and sensory stimulus and a safe, calming space.

For learners with CLDD, a multisensory classroom should be considered. This should be in addition to many schools' dedicated rooms to provide multisensory learning experiences.

Corridors can be more than just spaces in which learners move around the school. Think of them as a 'sensory journey' for learners, punctuating their school day regularly. But do long corridors and endless doors mean the journey is stressful and disorientating? What sensory clues indicate where the learner is on this journey? Does visual and auditory clutter in the corridor increase levels of distraction? Should our corridors be distinct learning environments specifically designed to meet the needs of our cohort of learners?

Walk down a corridor in your school with your eyes closed and feel, not just with your hands, but with all your senses. You have a sensory memory for vision, hearing, touch, taste, smell, and vestibular and proprioceptive experiences. Does the corridor you are in provide sensory clues related to these sensory experiences? Remember, too, that if you are a learner in a wheelchair, this sensory journey along the corridor will be entirely different again.

A multisensory learning approach, in a supportive learning environment, will help us to make the learning journey effective and enjoyable for all our learners.

■ A well planned classroom supports effective learning.

Why aren't more disabled adults employed?

With the cost of living and a looming energy crisis occupying many people's minds, there has been another ongoing crisis that gets a lot less attention. What is also focusing the minds of many businesses and organisations is the recruitment crisis. In Britain, latest data show 53.5% of people with disabilities aged 16-64 are classed as economically active. 81.6% of all people are economically active and this is known as the disability employment gap. This means there is a hidden labour pool of at least 1 million people that some employers are ignoring.

There is a huge hidden labour force

The benefits

Isn't it the Government's job to support disabled people to find work? Historically the government has run various schemes to support disabled people, such as Remploy supported workshops, Access to Work (to pay for reasonable adjustments and on-going support costs in the workplace) and currently the Work and Health programme which offers coaching and support to unemployed people. Access to Work supports just under 40,000 people each year with about £82 million (circa 55% of the budget) spent on support for hearing and sight impairments. Work and Health enrols about 70,000 benefits claimants per year and around a third do not complete the programme. After 24 months the success rate into employment is just 22%—or just over 2,000 people a month added to the workforce.

• There is a huge hidden labour pool of people with skills.

• High retention rates for disabled employees.

• If existing staff become disabled, employers sustain that employment.

• Adjustments to the workplace can be simple and free or low-cost.

• Mirror the diversity of your customers and enhance your reputation.

• Simple changes to recruitment can make a huge difference.

• Cheaper and quicker than sponsoring an overseas worker.

Mark Dale wants to help employers unlock Britain's hidden labour force.

How can we lift the veil of ignorance and help prospective employers swim in that hidden pool?

■ Preparing for work builds self-confidence.

So what can we do? Schools, colleges and other organisations that support disabled people should first of all examine their own record as an employer. How many disabled people do you employ? What support, if any, do you put in place? What are the main challenges and the main benefits of employing disabled people for your organisation. We need to be talking to employers as a sympathetic fellow employer and finding out

What can employers do?

• Assess how you can encourage more disabled applicants. How closely does the diversity of your workforce match that of the general workforce?

• Separate the job description from the person specification, to give candidates a clearer idea of what the job actually requires.

• For the person specification keep the number of essential requirements to a minimum—don't ask for things the job doesn't need.

• Ask candidates directly what they need to make the process more accessible—don't guess.

• Offer a work placement through a Supported Internship, Traineeship or work experience.

• Sign up to the Disability Confident Scheme.

• Raise awareness in your sector. Share your success stories.

About the author

what they need and the challenges they are facing. I believe the conversations need to be much broader than simply trying to fulfil work experience placement quotas.

Our programme Portland Pathways is an example of what can be done to bridge the disability employment gap. For example, the Recovery College, in partnership with the Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, provides courses which give people with mental health difficulties strategies and techniques to support them in the workplace and daily life, meaning mental health should no longer be a barrier for people wanting to find a job. Our specialist Preparing for Work team provides employability training, interview preparation and support with job searching. And there is support for employers. For example, Portland helps employers find the right person to fill their vacancies.

Louise Smith has benefited from our programme: "Finding employment has had a big effect on my mental health, it has given me a reason to get up in the morning. I now have a purpose and I know I'm not relying on benefits to live on, which is a huge boost to both my mental and physical health. Financially I'm better off so I don't have the worries, and it makes me feel like a worthwhile member of society."

It's a positive way to mirror the diversity of the customers

Autism is a difference, not a deficit

Employment rates for autistic people are bleak. Only 29% of autistic people are in any form of employment, compared to 81.6% of non-disabled people. This is one of the lowest employment rates of all disabled groups. Although many autistic young people want to work, when they leave school there are still many barriers that prevent them from achieving their ambitions. A survey of over 500 autistic young people and their parents and carers conducted by the charity Ambitious about Autism found that 71% of those who are currently unemployed would like to be in work, but less than a third were confident they would be able to find work within the next year. Worryingly, over a fifth said they don't tell potential employers that they are autistic because they are afraid of being treated unfairly, with over 70% saying they don't disclose they are autistic due to fear of discrimination. These findings reveal just how much more needs to be done to increase employers' understanding of autism and to stamp out unfair discrimination.

Getting more people into work

The Employ Autism programme works with employers, young people and careers professionals to break down barriers and improve confidence about autism and neurodiversity. As well as providing training, resources and ongoing mentorship, the programme has helped to harness the potential of hundreds of autistic young people across the country who have achieved work placements in government departments, media and communications companies, insurance firms and finance businesses.

For autistic people, employment inequality does not begin and end with access to work. Workplace culture plays a huge part in autistic people's experience of employment and their sense of fulfilment in their roles. In a recent national employment survey we conducted, 45% of respondents said their employers' understanding of autism was poor or very poor and 36% of respondents said they had experienced bullying or harassment at work. Statistics like this demonstrate the vital importance of awareness and understanding of the needs and differences

About the author

of autistic people in the workplace. We work closely with our business partners to ensure that reasonable adjustments are put in place for autistic employees and that colleagues are informed of their needs and how best to support them.

Every autistic person is different and has different aspirations and support needs. As a charity we run specialist schools and a college with campuses across London, supporting young people aged 4-25. Through the college, internships are available to young people with Education, Health and Care plans. These internships are for autistic people aged 16-25 who would like to gain valuable work experience, develop their employability and life skills, build confidence and expand their social networks. A recent partnership with a local hospital saw 60% of the graduate interns secure a paid job of 16 or more hours of work per week, following their placements.

The employers share the view that autism is a difference, not a deficit, and that autistic employees can offer enormous benefits to business through different ways of thinking and problem solving.

Clare Caccavone on supporting more autistic young people into the workplace.

Many young people with autism would like to be in work

Work colleagues benefit from learning how to be supportive

How to set up a college for SEND that wins awards

Three years ago, I decided that the young people of Doncaster with special educational needs deserved a better education, and a better opportunity to secure employment. I wanted to be a solution to a problem and close the gap in education provision. So, in 2019, I opened a specialist business and enterprise post-16 college, with a cohort of just three. Now, we're home to over 60 students, many of whom have autism or social, emotional and mental health needs (SEMH).

While I am immensely proud to say we are the only provider of education for post-16s with special needs, where the focus is on internships, employment and work skills, it also shouldn't be the case. There should be more educational settings which provide learners with the opportunity to thrive, placing no limits on what can be achieved, no matter their ability, background or starting point, which leads young people to a secure and prosperous future.

Young people with SEND deserve to have the same opportunities as their peers and while forming a new school or college isn't feasible for most, there are ways settings can support their students further on the road to employment.

Students need a calm, creative culture and environment

Putting students centre stage

While this may seem obvious, a student-centred approach provides the best opportunities for young people who may be disenfranchised from traditional education, or whose needs simply are not being met elsewhere. For many of our students, this is the first time they have been happy in a learning environment; it is the first time they have made friends, feel safe and want to come to college and learn. In order to move young people towards their independence and adulthood, we need to ensure each student has clear targets and a tailored study programme that meets their individual needs. Combining

Gemma Peebles knows. She's on a mission.

high expectations with a firm but fair pastoral approach enables students to move forward with small but progressive steps. A successful learning environment needs to be calm, creative and purposeful, offering a curriculum that develops the skills and attributes desired by employers while building young people's confidence to succeed.

We are extremely proud of the environment we have created. There is a culture across the college where staff and students are encouraged to make mistakes and be innovative in their approach to learning, a learning journey that develops them academically, socially and culturally so that they are equipped to enter the working world. You can create a similar learning environment by looking at business and commerce and how they operate. Our environment is akin to a professional office space rather than a school; we are preparing young people for work but also keeping the environment purposeful. We ensure that the walls are calm colours and with minimal displays..

Preparing young people for the world of work

Presently, fewer than one in four young people with high functioning autism access education after GCSE level and only 16 per cent are in full-time employment. Our ethos is that a young person's learning needs or disability shouldn't hold them back. We recognise these students have a lot to offer and, together with supportive local employers, we can help them pursue their dreams and succeed as young adults. As a key part of our students' study programme, we offer internships, employability preparation and personal finance skills. Each student engages with a supported internship that is linked to their own long-term targets and career aims. The college has established a strong support network for students ranging from the college team and business mentors, to the wide range of employers we work with, enabling us to offer internships from software quality assurance, 3D design and groundskeeping to accounting, administration and digital marketing, to name but a few.

About the author

Gemma Peebles is the founder and CEO of Harrison College, which won the nasen Award for 16—25 Provision.

harrisoncollege.co.uk

@HarrisonCollege nasen.org.uk/awards

All good careers programmes rely upon the relationship between the education provider and local businesses. A top tip is to make sure that someone in your provision has the time and skills to build those business relationships and have the resilience when many will say no.

We haven't been afraid to be innovative in the approach to our study programme and this has allowed staff and students to be in a culture that allows them to take calculated risks and not be afraid to fail. This is a key learning curve for students and builds resilience which is something that can be used in all types of education provision.

Moving on

I am proud of the recognition given to the fantastic hard work of our staff in winning the nasen Award for 16-25 Provision this year. But it's the feedback from students and their parents which tells us we're truly on the right path. Students have reported improved confidence levels, developing core skills, having the ability to make new friends and being able to complete an actual apprenticeship, which in turn has led to employment post college. A parent of a student who joined us just 12 months ago is amazed at the progress their son has made, from a young recluse, riddled with anxiety, who is now developing into a confident young adult.

I can't wait to see what our class of 2023 achieves, and the opportunities they will be given. Children and young people with SEND deserve a solid education and successful career prospects.

This is the first time many of our students have been happy

■ From anxious recluse to confident student in just 12 months.

Put creativity and wellbeing at the heart of your curriculum with Artsmark

Artsmark is the only creative quality standard for schools, accredited by Arts Council England.

Through its flexible framework, it helps schools and education settings champion arts, culture, and creativity - and SEND settings are no exception. Artsmark provides additional guidance for alternative and specialist education settings, that are sensitive to your unique context and challenges, which outline the practical steps you can take to ensure your young people can access a rich, diverse and high-quality cultural and creative curriculum. Artsmark.org.uk/send

Specialists in outdoor spaces

dbdplay specialises in the design and installation of exceptional outdoor spaces.

“It was really important to us to find a partner that listened and truly understood the outcomes we were looking for when planning our outdoor learning centre and dbdplay did exactly that.

They understood the need for a variety of different learning areas to match the diverse needs of our students, the need for unrestricted and ease of movement around the garden with areas of high stimulation through colour, texture, sound and smell.

dbdplay have designed and created an accessible, inclusive and inspiring learning environment for our cohort of inspirational students.” Treloar School and College. dbdplay.com

Caledonia Play

Caledonia Play believes in making outdoor play accessible and fun for everyone. The addition of the TERMA range to their portfolio of Inclusive Play products for schools does just that.

The TERMA Swing offers wheelchair users the chance to swing, rock or glide without assistance providing valuable agency in both play and therapy. Or the swing can be used in conjunction with a friend or helper. For non-wheelchair users it provides an opportunity to exercise the upper body, improve sensory integration, and build balance strategies.

Above all, it’s fun! www.caledoniaplay.com/inclusive-play-for-all info@caledoniaplay.com 01577 840570

Helen Arkell Dyslexia Charity

Helen Arkell is a longstanding ‘gold standard’ provider of professional training courses, which are delivered by their experienced team.

Supporting Learners with Dyslexia /SpLDs: a practical online course for teaching assistants or anyone supporting learners.

Helen Arkell Level 5 Diploma Teaching Learners with Dyslexia / SpLDs: CPD-accredited, PATOSS approved. This course focuses on specialist teaching.

Helen Arkell Level 7 Diploma Teaching and Assessing Learners with Dyslexia / SpLDs: CPD-accredited. SASC approved. This course provides an all-in-one route to achieving an Assessment Practising Certificate (APC). All course details: helenarkell.org.uk/courses-and-events/

DELTA – Deaf Education Through Listening and Talking

DELTA is a small charity which works with professionals and families of deaf children who want their children to develop the spoken language of the home through everyday family life and to participate independently in their community.

The charity is run by deaf adults, parents of deaf children and professionals who work with them. It provides online CPD sessions for professionals and information and discussion sessions for parents.

Visit their website for their range of leaflets, information sheets, life stories from deaf adults and much more. deafeducation.org.uk

Do you need high quality moving and handling training to ensure your compliance with UK legislation?

With more than 24 years’ experience in delivering training EDGE Services are one of the leading providers of moving and handling training in the UK today.

All their People and Children handling courses are Quality Assured and Regulated by RoSPA Qualifications as a Customised Level 4 Award, endorsed by the Royal College of Occupational Therapists, certified by the CPD certification service, and run on a public and in-house basis across the UK. edgeservices.co.uk

Education support for students struggling to access mainstream education

EK Outreach is a SEND tuition service providing educational support to Local Authorities, schools and individuals. They work with students aged 5 to 25, providing bespoke education packages designed to meet the needs of young people who are currently outside of the education system. EK gives learners across the UK the opportunity to explore accredited courses, outcomes, therapeutic provisions, and helps those on home education packages. Their aim is to improve learning outcomes for children and young people for whom education has been a challenge.

ekoutreachservices.com

The Autism Inclusion Award

An award aimed at mainstream providers in education and services

Once your organisation has the award, you’ll be able to enjoy the following benefits:

• use of the Autism Inclusion Award logo on promotional materials once the status is granted, and licence agreement signed

• press pack containing guidance on how to publicise your accreditation achievement

• invitations to free accreditation and Raising the Standards days

• 10% discount to National Autistic Society conferences and training events

• opportunity for staff to continue professional development

• access to the wider Autism Accreditation Community autism.org.uk/what-we-do/best-practice/accreditation/ autism-inclusion-award

Assessing & Recording Progress in EYFS

EQUALS offers a new resource to support assessment and recording in the Early Years Foundation Stage, including an interactive learning journal designed specifically for children with complex and profound learning needs. The materials reflect the key principles of the revised EYFS, reducing time spent on recording, and using qualitative data and practitioner knowledge to provide high quality assessment. Record the child’s unique learning journey, emphasising the strengths and characteristics of the child, to capture progress without checklists or excessive data. Useful links are provided to support the transition beyond EYFS, and the Skills Maps support Observational Assessment and Recording equals.co.uk/assessing-and-recording-progresswithin-the-eyfs

Sensory Awareness Training

Ever wondered why a child is never still? Chews on everything? Cannot focus? Has several meltdowns a day? School is such hard work?

For answers to these questions, Excelchild is releasing a new online learning platform for teachers and parents, featuring live videos from previous courses.

This on-demand, CPD-certified course, will explore the impact a poorly developed sensory system can have on behaviour and learning. The good news is if we all know a little bit more, we can all help a little bit more!

Enrol today in Sensory Awareness Training Level 1. courses.excelchild.com

Custom shelter solutions from Fordingbridge

Fordingbridge pride themselves on creating outdoor canopies and sheltered solutions tailored to educational spaces. From social areas, pathways, and sports pitches; Fordingbridge has you covered. With choices of timber and steel, designing the perfect structure to shelter your students has never been easier. They provide assistance from concept through the design process, and to the completion of installation. Their teams help make the best outdoor educational environment with ease, and their in-house manufacturing facilities allow for prefabrication, making for less on-site construction time, allowing for less disruption to the academic year.

fordingbridge.co.uk

New life skills flat at Hamilton Lodge

The Life Skills flat at Hamilton Lodge is a safe place for teaching our college learners a wide range of knowledge and skills. The flat comprises of a private entrance, patio, kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, and lounge area. This space enables us to take classroom learning into a real environment thereby embedding practical skills such as keeping safe, general housekeeping and socialising in the home. This approach builds on the independence program in care, empowers learners and equips them with many of the Life Skills needed to live as independently as possible in the future.

hamiltonlsc.co.uk

Plan, deliver and inspire learning with Ayoa

Ayoa is the nextgeneration mind mapping and task management app. It is an AI powered neuro-inclusive collaborative digital workspace embracing the true nature of neurodiversity. Allowing students and teachers to view the same content in their own unique way, Ayoa enables neurodivergent and neurotypical brains to excel and work together in real time.

Powered by the flexibility and vibrancy of mind maps, make learning creative, productive and fun with four mind mapping views, visual task management, intuitive digital whiteboards, and a whole host of digital reasonable adjustments to support neurodiversity! ayoa.com/sen

Inner Child Yoga School

Vic, founder of the Inner Child Yoga School, has launched her signature children’s yoga programme, the Finding Focus series. Drawing on her experience as a children’s yoga teacher, classroom teacher and parent, she has designed the programme to support children who struggle to focus using the powers of yoga and journaling to help build attention span. With two weekly yoga classes (each 10-15 mins) and printable journal along with support videos for parents and caregivers, the series hopes to make the benefits of yoga accessible to all.

innerchildyogaschool.com

Kidvelo 2-in-1 bikes

Kidvelo Bikes have designed the perfect bike for your child to successfully learn to ride. Superlight balance bikes that cleverly convert into proper pedal bikes, for children aged 3 to 8. Using a 2-In-1 bike is easier and less daunting, especially for kids with additional challenges such as Dyspraxia. Starting as a balance bike, riders get used to brakes and learn the balancing skill that is fundamental for cycling. Then, when the rider is ready to give pedals a go, parents can easily bolt on the included pedal kit. kidvelobikes.co.uk

Ever thought about fostering?

If you have ever thought about fostering, why not join one of Hackney’s monthly information sessions. Here, you can speak to a social worker and foster carer about the day to day expectations of fostering and how you can make it a part of your life. Children in care need people that are caring and dedicated to supporting their growth. In return, the team will support you through the offer of training, support groups, competitive fees & allowances, free memberships and access to local discounts. For more information call 020 8356 4028 or email fostering.recruitment@hackney.gov.uk

Scanning Pens reading aids

Scanning Pens award-winning electronic reading aids empower students to read independently, building confidence and unlocking the entire curriculum. With text-to-speech functionality and multiple dictionaries, Scanning Pens are proven to increase both reading accuracy and comprehension by 13 and 10 months respectively, over just an eight-week period. The C-Pen Reader 2 won the BEST SEN Resource at the Teach Awards 2022 and 91% of schools said that students using the C-Pen Exam Reader 2 achieved their expected grade or better.

Accelerate your students’ reading age, build their confidence and enable them to read for enjoyment. scanningpens.com

NEW from Medpage: the MMFA66 tracker watch with fall sensor

The MMFA66 is a highdefinition large screen Smartwatch. A carer/ guardian can monitor the user’s location, blood pressure, heart rate, and daily physical activity via the secure smartphone app (Android & iOS). The fall sensor is particularly useful for people with epilepsy while away from home. A detected fall is reported to a guardian via the Smartphone app, along with precise mapping location.

For SEN Magazine readers: 10% off with offer code: MMFA66 10% off easylinkuk.co.uk/health-conditions/health-conditionsautism?product_id=1782

Life skills at St. John’s School, Sussex

Teachers, governors and staff celebrated the opening of a newly refurbished life skills flat at St. John’s School in East Sussex recently, where students will learn all sorts of everyday skills like cooking, cleaning and other life skills.

Learners expertly served up a lovely brunch for guests to launch the new flat. St. John’s School offers an inclusive learning environment for children and young people aged 7 to 19 with autism, learning disabilities or other needs too complex for many mainstream settings. Pictured are student Dolly, with headteacher Anthony Carlo and teacher Martin Johnson.

st-johns.co.uk/st-johns-school

Creating confidence and self-esteem

Beechwood’s multidisciplinary team of education specialists, therapists and care staff ensure that students are supported to access meaningful learning opportunities in a way that takes account of their unique learning style and the impact their ASC has upon them.

To find out more about Beechwood College, visit beechwoodcollege.co.uk or contact the Admissions Coordinator on 029 2053 2210 or email referrals@beechwoodcollege.co.uk

Broaden your horizons with a postgraduate qualification

Plymouth Marjon University offers postgraduate opportunities in subjects including education, public health, sport, journalism, social policy and youth & community work.

Join their open evening on 2nd February 2023 to learn more about the MA, MSc, MRes, MPH, Phd and PGCE programmes on offer. The evening will include subject talks, campus tours and information about finance and funding. You’ll also be able to chat to course tutors and meet current students.

In the 2021 Postgraduate Taught Education Survey, Marjon ranked in the top five nationally for student satisfaction. To register your place visit marjon.ac.uk/postgraduate

Raw Learning

Raw Learning provides accessible education for neurodivergent children. Their Forest School provides tuition to support Raw Learners ages 5 to 16. Children are screened for neurodiversity to identify their learning differences, and then we build connections with them so that they feel safe and can build trust, usually following school-based trauma. Raw Learning is an early help, well-being and therapeutic provision for pupils who are unable to access mainstream education for different reasons. Raw Learning offers 49% maximum of a child’s education with a philosophy based on self-directed learning, providing much needed autonomy for a neurodivergent child. rawlearning.co.uk Facebook/Instagram: Rawlearninguk

Donut beanbag from Pineapple

Pineapple Contracts has added a Donut shape to its existing beanbag range, providing a comfortable, reassuring seating option for children in SEN environments. With double-stitched seams, non-accessible zips and fire retardant as standard, Pineapple’s beanbags are now filled with 100% recycled content, making use of waste foam from manufacturing their other seating ranges.

To find out more, visit uk.pineapplecontracts.com or email sales@pineapplecontracts.com

Freeman College – Sheffield

As a provision of Ruskin Mill Trust, Freeman College offers exciting workshop and outdoor learning environments, utilising practical craft and land activities to support the development of work and life skills in young people with autism and other learning difficulties. Alongside the urban environment of the college, there is a nine-acre biodynamic market garden at High Riggs. Students grow the produce used in the residential homes, in the Fusion Café and the canteen at Freeman College. Placements are offered on either a day or residential basis, for young people aged 16 to 25. rmt.org

Sunken Trampolines

Sunken Trampolines are launching a new, automated lid system for schools and care institutions and residences. At the press of a button the floor lifts and reveals a Sunken Trampoline

With a patent-pending on this innovative product Sunken Trampolines are now in a position to offer it with installation or supply only.

Sunken Trampolines have extensive experience in providing in-ground trampolines across the UK. Should you be interested in discussing your needs with Sunken Trampolines please visit our website or contact either Joel or Angus.

sunkentrampolines.co.uk

SEND Group has a variety of online courses

Their SENCO Innovation Course plus Level 3 and 5 Dyscalculia courses tutored by Professor Steve Chinn and Judy Hornigold. Each course includes: understanding dyscalculia, maths difficulties and maths anxiety and how to identify them. Understanding typical maths development and barriers to learning as well as practical solutions to support all learners at their core.

The range of courses on offer is expanding to include a variety of short maths courses and further SEND eg, Executive Functioning and associated issues. Other courses will also be made available soon.

Contact: hello@sendgroup.co.uk sendgroup.co.uk

New Head at Slindon College

Slindon College is delighted to announce Mrs Vlahodimou as the new head of the College as it looks forward to further growth. The first female Headteacher in the College’s 50 year history, Mrs Vlahodimou (BSc, MSc, Post. Grad. Diploma, PGCE, NASENCO, NPQH) has more than ten years experience in special education in mainstream and independent sectors. Mrs Vlahodimou joined Slindon College in 2016 and is motivated by her own personal experience as a school-age student, when she was told that she was not academic enough and not good at languages.

She is dedicated to working with children to remove barriers to their learning.

slindoncollege.co.uk

Sovereign Play

At Sovereign, they are always striving to create equipment and play areas that anyone can enjoy and use to reap the benefits of play. Sovereign’s Apollo Roundabout is designed to allow all users to play together. As it is installed flush with the ground, the product is easily accessible for all and those in wheelchairs can easily ride alongside their peers. Available in a range of colours, the roundabout is the perfect addition to brighten up any play area and encourage users to interact with their friends and make new connections.

sovereignplayequipment.co.uk

Spike Sight Words

Spike Sight Words are the world’s first board games designed exclusively to teach sight and highfrequency words. They have over 30 designs and 10 themes to choose from, so whether your child likes dinosaurs, unicorns, tractors, space, nature, sport or culture – they have it covered! Each pack comes with three board games and you can either select a themed pack or choose your own individual boards. The word tokens are divided into Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced word packs.

The board games have been received particularly well with children with dyslexia and ADHD as well as adults learning to read.

spikessightwords.com

Timotay Sensory Light Cube Tunnel

Let the light create colourful reflections in this hideaway for children. A tunnel, a hiding place or create a sensory area with these high quality and safe sensory cubes which are suitable for indoor and outdoor use. The cube creates a light show that provides stunning effects and helps to create stimulating environments for all needs. Learning aims also include:

• Light and colour provides sensory visual stimulation

• Physical development – gross motor skills

• Sensory/ tactile development

• Colour recognition

timotayplayscapes.co.uk/product/sensory-light-cubetunnel-play-feature/

Climbing, balancing, noticing and exploring

We instinctively know that fresh air and natural open spaces affect us in a positive way. It's well known that natural light balances hormones, mood, sleep, and diet and offers many other incredible health benefits. I'm lucky to witness the daily wellbeing benefits of children engaging in their natural surroundings, and to see the effect this has on some of our more 'challenging' young people.

Learning through outdoor experiences is extremely important for sensory development and our natural environment is a sensory playground waiting to be explored and discovered, nurturing creativity and building confidence, resilience, and curiosity. Through evolution and our co-existence with the outdoors, our bodies naturally relax when we are in nature. We can absorb far more information when there is no artificial light, mechanical sounds or noisy chatter in confined spaces.

When we replace 'indoorness' with 'outdoorness', we are moving out of a largely sedentary environment and celebrating the joy of squatting, exploring, noticing, running and balancing on uneven surfaces.

As delicate as a flower, as tactile as tree bark

There is much in nature to explore through touch, smell, sight,sound and taste. Outdoor play and learning stimulates the senses calmly and enjoyably and children can interact and engage with their surroundings under the sky, even in restricted circumstances. For those who struggle in the classroom, being outside can often decrease anxiety levels as they are drawn into making, creating, observing and sharing and using gross and fine motor skills as nature intended.

A tree or plant can provide enough to gently stimulate all the senses, just by touching a flower's petals and leaves and smelling the scent. Look at the shapes and colours; some you can taste or get adventurous with making potions and perfumes. Get mucky! Not only does dirt have feel-good chemicals, but it can be a fabulous natural sensory material, like clay or water. Be mindful of children who are more sensitive to new sensations so you can adapt to suit them. Slowly introduce new natural materials and gauge their reaction; we want this to be an enjoyable experience for them. Consider adding some objects for them to 'find' and spades to dig up treasures. Watching how they interact or what they're curious about can provide great insights into aspects of their personality that may not surface in the classroom. There's a lot more fun potential.

balance and coordination. Exercise

a vital part

Children move around more when outside, supporting better health,

plays

Taking learning outside can lead to explorations that connect us to our senses and calm troubled minds, says Tina Stubbs, who is passionate about the myriad benefits of going outside.

Bodies are meant to move and explore outdoors

About the author

Tina Stubbs is an award winning author and founder of Life’s Little Bugs Ltd, whose books and workshops teach children fundamental healthy habits. Her own passion for nature and its benefits in childhood development led towards the popular Outdoor Learning programme ‘Life’s Little Bugs Go Wild’. @lifeslittlebugs @lifeslittlebugs player.vimeo.com/video/271659699

in mental health, too. A change of environment can help to calm the senses if challenging behaviours arise. Another benefit of outdoor play and learning is the space to expend energy, reducing tension and anxiety. Don't we all breathe better outside as well? Through my work, I often see the positive effect outdoors has on children with behaviour issues, and these often seem to diminish dramatically when there is space or activities that meet their needs more effectively than class-based interventions. Some children who struggle in the classroom seem to be nourished by outdoor experiences.

Come rain, come shine, there's a sense of freedom calling

A swing or hammock is a great way to regulate, and digging, pulling or using tools can engage the hard-to-reach child. Rolling a heavy log, watering the plants—this kind of activity can become almost mindful. Everyone is different, so I try to work out what seems to work for them and acknowledge when they've taken back control of their behaviour. Sincere praise helps support and highlight their adjustment to positive

Children learn about risk-taking by taking risks

behaviour. Through outdoor learning activities and being in nature, children use judgement and decision-making much more. Children can happily be part of a group or find a space with an activity they enjoy on their own. I often have two or three different activities to choose from and let the child gravitate to the one that appeals to them. Risk-taking challenges, such as using tools or climbing help build awareness of potential dangers such as overhanging branches, prickly leaves, or uneven surfaces. By developing tactics and strategies, some children discover personal strengths they were unaware of, while gaining an understanding of safety rules and being alert to possible dangers when outdoors. If necessary, I will add a quick lesson on handling tools safely. It gives a child a feeling of responsibility and trust. Using natural materials and outdoor activities is a great way to engage a child and help them become more aware of their emotions. You can use natural materials to create pictures that can help explain things. Outdoors feels less restrictive and gives them a sense of freedom, so this may result in a child being more willing to communicate. Outdoorness reconnects the child to the universe and can re-balance perspectives.

Collect natural materials to take home for crafts, a vase of flowers to discuss and admire, or start a micro garden with some pots and seeds on the window sill and watch them germinate and grow. You could even study some minibeasts that may have ventured into the home. My best advice: always take a magnifying glass.

Some students have excellent observational skills.

■ Children love making potions.

Bonkers Yoga

Maybe I was a little crazy. I often think I am crazy to do what I do. I put myself in front of a class of students on the spectrum, of mixed ability, who I've never met, whose individual needs I don't know, and who may find me frightening. Their needs may be highly complex; they don't know me, and the expectation from the adults present is that I will deliver an amazing lesson, where every student is engaged and achieves. That's bonkers.

Planning

My approach used to be simple. With five lesson plans up my sleeve, I would assess the students on arrival and decide which plan to use, A, B, C, D or E.

A bit hit-or-miss, maybe, but generally this approach worked well. However, I became aware that there were drawbacks that could influence the quality of the training and prevent staff from getting full value from the day. For example, a student meltdown, which can happen for any number of reasons, could cause disruption to the lesson, as well as the student and their adult support having to leave and miss the training. My goal is to show staff how to adapt the postures and activity should a student be reluctant to engage. After all, reluctance is an everyday part of teaching students with ASD.

Lightbulb Moment

It was time for a change, so I took the best aspects of my existing practice and combined them with a new approach,

Student meltdowns could lead to staff missing training

Michael Chissick ponders on what helped him improve his yoga teacher training programme in Special Needs Schools. It's yoga with a confident smile.

which has resulted in a much more rounded and immersive training day. The new training structure enables me to show staff six sessions covering three different sections of ability or learning style. In each section, the first session will involve staff only, in an interactive and practical way, where they learn how to structure each lesson. I focus on how to teach yoga to whole groups, lesson planning and classroom management specifically in the yoga lesson. The staff also have access to successful and engaging yoga games and activities and techniques to teach movement sequences, self-esteem enhancement and calming and relaxation techniques. They also learn how to ensure that as many children as possible are engaged and included.

About the author

Michael Chissick is the founder of Yoga at School and has been teaching yoga in education for twenty-five years. He is a leading specialist in teaching yoga to children with autism and the author of several books on Children's Yoga, including Yoga for Children and Young People with Autism, published by Jessica Kingsley.

yogaatschool.org.uk

The staff session will be followed immediately by a lesson with students of that ability level, when staff will see how it works in practice.

This has been successful because by the second session staff have a greater understanding of the structure of the lesson and the individual elements of the lesson, as well as their role, how to adapt postures and how to engage reluctant students Above all, from their initial session, staff can appreciate how yoga can be such fun and at the same time they have experienced being in their students' shoes. They often have that lightbulb moment that sparks confidence and an eagerness to get started.

Real Time Remote Training

These sessions have become far more common in our 'new normal’ world and I adapted my own by asking some course participants to pretend to be students, with some of the staff acting as the adults in the room. This was such fun: I have not laughed so much for years. Putting staff into students' shoes also widens their understanding of how teaching yoga this way works and is engaging.

Remote training enables trainers to give schools more value for money, cutting travel costs and also improving carbon footprint. At the same time, staff continue to learn how to confidently integrate yoga into their practice through my twilight sessions, scheme of work, with lesson plans for the whole of the academic year for each ability and learning style group, and visual resources.

Changing the format helped engage everyone more

Special Yoga

Research has shown time and again that the wellbeing of adults around children impacts the wellbeing of the children themselves yet at the same time surveys of teachers report 91% saying their job had adversely affected their mental health with 52% saying workload was a critical factor.

Sadly we can’t help to reduce workload but we can offer a series of 2 hour trainings offering easy-to-follow evidence-based trauma-sensitive practices specifically developed to integrate easily into the school day.

Offered in twilight hours we teach skills and practices to use yourself and with different populations including Practical Self Care for Teachers, Autism and Behaviour, Dyslexia, SEMH, Trauma, Autism and Masking, Keeping A Regulated Classroom and MSI.

“I found that the children showed increased focus, concentration and motivation to learn in the sessions that followed after yoga. What an amazing impact!”

When you self regulate it is easier for the child to regulate and by implementing these mindfulness, breath and body practices in

the classroom successfully, stress, anxiety, overwhelm and behaviour needs will be reduced, and selfregulation, mental health and academic success will be improved.

“Special Yoga is the best thing to happen at our school. It is all encompassing: physical, mental, social and emotional. Staff also benefit through the heightened awareness of their state and the impact this has on students”

Normally priced at £75 per place - join for just £50 with discount code: SEND50 at teacherandchild.com/twilightwebinars

Additionally, we offer bespoke one day insets or series of twilights, for a class, whole school or group of schools and training sessions for parents too.

Our regular courses, run over several months offer a deeper dive into the practices to support a wide range of special and additional needs - visit specialyoga.co.uk to read more.

Rebound Therapy Training Courses

Rebound Therapy has a huge number of benefits for children and adults across virtually the whole spectrum of disabilities. The ReboundTherapy.org team of tutors provide accredited training courses throughout the UK for: Teachers, TAs, care staff, physiotherapists, OTs etc. The course includes training in planning, measuring and recording progress, and providing evidence of outcomes.

For further information, or to arrange course, please contact us at: email: info@reboundtherapy.org or visit our website at: www.reboundtherapy.org

It's OK to read with your ears

Reading can be daunting for people with dyslexia.It can be hard work to get beyond the words and letters and into the meaning of the story, which is where the magic happens. However, who says books have to be read with our eyes? Since the pandemic, audiobooks have seen, and continue to see, a huge boom in popularity. With the rightful fading of the idea of audiobooks as a cheat or a shortcut, audio reading is finally being recognised as just another way to enjoy books. However, many of those who have been using audiobooks for longer—students who struggle to read, for example—still associate them with homework, or just another thing they have to do to improve their reading skills. It's easy to forget how powerful audiobooks can be at instilling a love of literature that supports us through life's ups and downs, far beyond the classroom.

Reading the written text while listening to an audiobook or someone reading aloud has been shown to improve reading fluency, but this practice has its limits too, especially when the student's reading speed is slower than that of the narrator. When it comes to comprehending a piece of literature, engaging with the big ideas it explores, and developing our own opinions and discussion skills, listening to an audiobook by itself might be the best way. The narrator of the audiobook, often a professional actor, or the author themself, models excellent interpretive reading, which students can imitate in their own speech. The way the narrator reads certain words or sentences can aid comprehension, model pronunciation and highlight humour. In my experience as someone who struggles with older texts that

Books—in any form—help us through life

are written in a less familiar language, audiobooks have helped me hugely in accessing and absorbing the content. For example, I'd always felt that Frankenstein wasn't a book for me, but when I listened to it read by Daniel Philpott, Roger May and Jonathan Oliver, I found myself intuitively understanding words like 'aver' and 'dilatoriness', just by the tone and context, and was able to follow the plot just as easily as with a contemporary book.

I've spoken to various people who struggle with reading, and one person who is temporarily unable to read written text told me "I've found listening to audiobooks has helped improve my

Last year I discovered how much easier it is to follow the story and information in audio form.

Chanel, a library assistant who was diagnosed with dyslexia as an adult.

After experiencing chronic fatigue and insomnia in my twenties, audiobooks provided me with a great way to switch off, a narrative to follow, and a voice that is often warm and friendly. Going to bed had become an enormous source of anxiety, and with attempting to read physical books overstimulating my tired, dyslexic brain and causing me to feel more awake, audiobooks were exactly what I needed.

Jennie, an avid reader who has dyslexia and ADHD.

Lucy Rand on the joys of audiobooks. It's so much easier to follow the story.

I don't think I'd be able to read fiction at all if it weren't for audiobooks. Josh, a dyslexic brand strategist who's now a voracious reader and makes a living from reading and writing.

vocabulary, as listening to the correct pronunciation gives me the confidence to use [new words] in day-to-day life."

Skipping the decoding stage

The extra work many dyslexic readers face when decoding can stop them from being able to fully comprehend the meaning of the text, leaving them at a loss when it comes to participating in discussion or simply engaging emotionally with the book. Audiobooks allow us to skip this step and focus on understanding and enjoying the story, feeling empowered to engage in reflections and discussions of the plot, the characters, the style of writing and the big ideas the book explores.

Access to higher-level writing

Audiobook listeners are also able to listen to much longer and more difficult books than they are able to read, giving them access to higher-level ideas, more sophisticated vocabulary, and more challenging topics. When a dyslexic learner is in the habit of regularly listening to audiobooks and being able to focus for meaningful chunks of time, this learned focus and

Tips for getting into audiobooks

• Start with an author, series or narrator you know and like.

• Set achievable goals, such as a chapter a day.

• If you're a fidgeter, do something you can do on auto-pilot while you listen, such as doodling or simple knitting.

• Short stories can be a great starting point.

• Find something the whole family can enjoy, and listen to instead of watching TV.

• Try supplementing with plot summaries and character descriptions if you're still confused.

• If you want to read along while listening, try out x-books.

• If you're struggling to keep up, most audiobook apps allow you to change the playback speed.

About the author

Aver and dilatoriness: a masterclass in unfamiliar vocabulary

concentration may transfer to reading written text and other activities. So yes, audiobooks are a great way to get students engaging with the literature they have to read for school, but books are about so much more than school!

As anyone who reads regularly knows intuitively, reading fiction has the power to take our mind off whatever else is going on in life, gives us a sense of perspective, and, when we've found the reading format that best suits us, can pull us into a blissful state of 'flow'.

Being absorbed in fiction can also raise self-esteem, boost mental health, ease anxiety, improve sleep, reduce stress (as much as both yoga and laughter!) and alleviate loneliness. It's also a fantastic stimulus for the imagination.

While all forms of reading fiction offer us these benefits, audiobooks boast some extra ones! Research shows that listening to a human voice—whether through being read to in real life or listening to an audiobook—elicits emotions more effectively than reading written words. The audio format means those of us with busy hands can listen while doing something else.

It's a great moment for the parents or teachers of children with dyslexia when at last they 'see' the point of reading and actually start enjoying it.

Achieve more with AT

Let's start by looking at what's available in AT. We regularly attend conferences and trade shows to keep up to date with the latest advances in AT, but whatever we like the look of, we make sure that we choose our tools with our learners. They heavily influence our selection and take part in trials of software and equipment before we make any purchasing decisions. They've helped us choose devices or software that help them with memory recall, creating mind maps, turning text on the page audible to help strengthen their fluency and comprehension, and special pens that read words on the printed page, among many others.

There is another person or set of people you also need on board—your IT Department. They must be supportive of your vision to make this work. If you are adding devices and software onto your network, you need their insight to troubleshoot any potential technical issues and ensure your devices comply with your network/systems requirements, so they work in harmony with few or no gremlins.

Putting AT in place

The best tech is nothing without the provision of appropriate training for students and staff. At Oldham, we've appointed an Assistive Technologist, dedicated to driving confidence and ambition by enabling those with SEND to use technology. Part of the role involves trialling new resources in different settings—in class, at home, sometimes even on day trips—to demonstrate how these resources can be used.

Our Additional Learning Support (ALS) team also includes dedicated Assistive Technology Champions, who lead on showcasing the use of technology across the campus. This year, the team has opened a Dyslexia Innovation Hub, where all students or staff with Dyslexia can come and test out the AT that is available for them to use.

Help them feel more empowered

Liz Wilcox on making the most of Assistive Technology.

Listen to your learners.

It builds their confidence.

About the author

Of course, not everyone will be lucky enough to have an Assistive Technologist, but there are several things you can do to help get your staff up to speed:

• Ensure AT is included as part of your induction package for new staff.

• Whenever you purchase any new AT devices or software, run a showcase session where your staff can see and try it. In addition to this, share news of the new resource—its name, purpose and benefits—in staff meetings, email bulletins and any staff blogs or news items you may have.

• Recruit AT Champions. Currently we have 12 AT Champions throughout the college who support the use of AT. All our champions receive training on the technology we have and learn how to identify learners in their faculty areas who would benefit from our AT and refer them for training.

• Create a Google Classroom, or similar, specifically for AT which contains resources, information, videos and any webinar recordings that explain all the technology available in more detail.

• Where possible, offer 1:1 training for neuro-diverse staff. They will then incorporate some of the AT available into their job role, such as voice notes to give feedback for marking, creating resources using voice typing and setting up packages like Global AutoCorrect so it automatically corrects their spelling errors.

Listen to your learners

One of the biggest barriers to people embracing technology is confidence, so it's vital for students to have time and space to try out the AT tools you have available. They may love it, struggle using it or don't find it helpful at all—whatever their thoughts, their feedback is important. It's invaluable for planning effective interventions and getting the appropriate support in place. It will also help you support other learners. Feedback of using equipment at home or in class will enable you to pass on any tips to other learners who will benefit in turn.

It's not just about learners though, it's important to listen to parents, carers and any external professionals who may work with your learners. With parents and carers especially, make sure that they are also aware of the AT available, the benefits of using it, anything they can support with at home and any equipment that could possibly be loaned to use at home.

Reaping the rewards

Introducing AT is not necessarily cheap however each new programme, software, device or app is an investment that we never regret. We've seen increased study engagement, especially with those previously disengaged, reduced anxiety, high levels of confidence going in to and success with exams. AT has also helped break down many barriers, particularly in respect of literacy. AT can help prepare learners of any age for the next stage of their lives, whether that be primary learners going to secondary, secondary students moving on to college and college learners progressing to higher education, apprenticeships or employment.

We love observing our learners' self-confidence soar and their wellbeing improve. Having access to AT has made many of our learners more determined and ambitious as they have the tools to grow and reach for their goals. It's exciting to see our staff and students not only thrive through the use of AT but recognise technology as part of an ongoing solution, and not the problem. Assistive Technology has the capacity to enable accessibility for so many students and it could do the same for your students too.

Liz Wilcox is Dyslexia Programme Tutor at Oldham College. oldham.ac.uk

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Serengeti, and back by lunchtime

Iwas an Advanced Skills Teacher in 2006, supporting the introduction of interactive white boards into primary schools across Greater Manchester. As an Advanced Skills Teacher, I made sure teachers were trained to use the interactive white boards effectively and with passion to enhance learning experiences. As technology evolved, so did my teaching style. By setting up computer suites, modeling the use of technology such as VR sets, Bee-bots and digital microscopes, and consistently advocating using technology and its role in improving standards, engaging learners, and removing barriers to progress.

Later, as Headteacher of an ASC/SEMH Primary and Secondary School, I introduced staff to Immersive Reality Technology—it was a 21st Century resource that needed to be explored. As our world became increasingly technologically driven, we wanted to give our children access to these resources. Drawing on a significant amount of research identifying the role of technology in attracting vulnerable learners with Social Emotional Mental Health, we set about improving engagement, interaction, and connection, so that progress could be made. The Immersive Reality experience has been used for years by pilots in flight simulators, and by astronauts and doctors to practice complicated procedures. So, if we truly wanted to open our children to the world of work, we had to expose them to Immersive Reality Technology.

The teaching and learning style in our school was based on metacognition and self—regulation theories, so the introduction of the Immersive Reality Room was a perfect platform for the

pupils to monitor their progress and to plan learning experiences that would ensure progress was being made.

Teachers found the Immersive Reality Room easy to use—it features remotes to turn on the technology, a tablet computer to select scenes, and familiar gadgets such as Xbox controllers or wireless keyboards to navigate scenes in the space. Teachers were trained to use the technology in an hour, which meant they could spend the rest of the morning exploring the packages and becoming excited about what Immersive Reality had to offer the curriculum.

With files organised in curriculum areas, it was easy for teachers to find, and later develop, content. Teachers were now planning how to use the scenes in their lessons to facilitate the learners in the development of enriching their knowledge base and practical experiences.

There were many different types of scenes to be explored in the immersive space. They were interactive, giving you several sensory experiences. For example, in Geography, focusing on the travel and tourism industry, children were encouraged to write brochures after they virtually visited the Serengeti. They identified and classified animals and plants in the scene. They designed merchandise (animal print t-shirts and caps) based around animal patterns. They even watched the sunset and camped underneath the stars as explorers.

Using the immersive space gave the children a captivating sense of real life experiences, and as a result evoked feelings of awe and excitement. The dramatic difference in the quality of writing was noted during book scrutinies. In Lower Key Stage 2 (KS2), sentence level improved and in Lower Key Stage 3

Shazia Sarwar-Azim recounts her adventures in immersive reality.

Getting to grips with Xbox controllers and exploring new worlds

About the author

(KS3) the structuring of text as a whole improved, especially the use of paragraphs.

As scientific enquirers, the children were able to work scientifically by identifying and classifying the planets that were whizzing around them. Children in KS2 (Year 5) travelled into space and reported on the Earth's rotation to explain about day and night and the movement of the sun across the sky. They were able to demonstrate how they were able to interpret observations and other data, trends, making inferences and drawing conclusions. They felt like astronauts in space. When they touched the planets, facts would appear, and in Year 6, children were able to use this information to write non-fiction books.

Moments that were previously teachable through videos, books and photocopied sheets were now taught through immersive experiences that enabled our children to be motivated and engaged to initiate and join in leading conversations. With effective facilitation and guidance throughout the experience, pupils made the connection from theory to practice and voiced the multifaceted depth of implications the experience had on their learning.

We noted a huge improvement in communication—children initiated and joined in conversations. The respect for others

when communicating improved, even when views differed, they listened attentively and children across the school developed a rich and varied vocabulary that interested the learners to use in conversations and in their work. There was a huge difference between the communication style in the classroom and that in the Immersive Reality Room. Children were more patient and courteous. They supported each other to be solution focused when discovering new aspects of the technology.

At the end of a topic, children used the Immersive Reality Room to set the scenes to tell stories that captured the interest and imagination of the audience. The Immersive Reality Room was also used to hold presentations and art exhibitions. In summary, through the integration of innovative technology and approaches to teaching and learning, pupils clearly transformed as they developed skills that they could apply to the real world.

Immersive learning not only held the key to addressing the challenges of the digital age, but significantly improved education by harnessing the power of technologies such as virtual, augmented, and mixed reality. The pupils' experiences were powerful and meaningful, with all the young people reporting that this experience was so much more exciting than being sat in a classroom looking at an Interactive White Board.

Children enjoyed the range of gadgets that supported their learning in the curriculum, and they could measure their interaction and engagement and link it to how much progress they had made. Children reported that being teleported to new realms and experiences opened their imagination up to a whole host of endless possibilities of what the world and beyond has to offer.

Teachers were excited about what Immersive Reality had to offer

Two wheels good

Learning to ride a bike allows children to gain confidence, enjoy the outdoors, and feel independent and a fun way to exercise. A balance bike is a two-wheeled bike without chain, drivetrain and pedals. The rider walks the bike along and develops the balancing skill needed to move onto a pedal bike. With feet flat on the floor, as the bike leans to one side, the rider instinctively shifts it back to an upright position, and balance is learnt through feel. These bikes are now widely considered the safest and easiest way for children to learn to ride a bike, but they have not been available for older riders.

Now balance bikes are available for older children, which can be converted to lightweight pedal bikes. This two-in-one approach allows the rider to try pedalling when they are ready, all on the same bike, and quickly revert to balance mode again if required. Using the same frame is helpful for riders who need familiarity, and this approach breaks the steps down into bitesize steps, making it easier to learn to ride.

About the author

Karen Wood is the co-founder of Kidvelo Bikes, a specialist balance bike company that manufactures learn-to-ride bikes for children aged 18 months to 8 years old.

kidvelobikes.co.uk

@kidvelobikesuk

@kidvelobikesuk @kidvelobikesuk

Starting in balance bike mode, with a footrest, the rider holds the bars and shuffles the bike along, getting used to handlebar brakes, but always being able to stop with their feet if they need to. This approach works well for children with mild cerebral palsy too. As confidence grows, balance improves, and a love for their bike develops. When the rider reaches the stage where they can control the bike with their feet off the ground, it's time to bolt on the pedal kit. A three-minute conversion, done by parents at home, transforms the same frame into a pedal bike. With a good range of adjustability in the seat height, the seat can still be kept low, so they can revert to stopping with feet if needed. It's all about little steps to gaining confidence, and as the process is intuitive, there isn't too much to concentrate on at once, which is vital for children with learning difficulties.

Convertible balance-to-pedal bikes can be handed down to siblings to learn on, because they are regular-looking bikes. They're just redesigned to open up the world of cycling to children who may previously have been told they wouldn't ever be able to ride a bike.

Balance-to-pedal bikes: Karen Wood explains why taking the pedals off a standard bike is not the answer.

It's about taking little steps to build confidence

Sitting comfortably?

The average person spends a third of their day sitting. We all know, from personal experience, how correct seating impacts on our physical and emotional wellbeing and our performance. The impact is significantly amplified in a special needs setting. Specialist seating can play a key role in a child's or young person's development, social skills and quality of life.

There are various options available, from seats that look like conventional "work" chairs through bean bags to positioning systems. With budgets for specialist equipment under increasing pressure, whether at school or home, it is important to consider the value a particular purchase brings— how long will it work for the child, does it require alterations for each individual and if so how easilyy, cost-effectively and quickly? Is it multi-purpose? Is there something beyond the conventional solution that may be better?

Bean cushion seats are common today, predominantly falling into two categories—fixed mould or the newer vacuum (infinitely variable). The vacuum option is gaining increasing traction among OTs, schools and parents, because of its inherent ease of adaptability and adjustability: in seconds, it can be altered to suit what either a specific

child needs daily, or for a number of children in the same environment. Beechcliffe School in Yorkshire bought four because of this flexibility, for young Daniel Bostock with Cerebral Palsy. The bean cushion seat can be adjusted as his muscles require throughout the day without impinging on his peg. It can also be used as a sensory seat by placing a device underneath, delivering sound and vibration.

There is also a further development, a foam positioning seating system that works particularly well with children and young adults with severe and complex motor and sensory disabilities. Scientifically designed to positively harness the natural forces of gravity, providing a stable, deep, inclined seat provides a low centre of gravity to naturally encourage a stable seating position. High arm rests support the elbows

Peter Wingrave on specialist seating for SEND settings.

Appropriate seating can make a huge difference for everyone

forward helping reduce muscle tension in the shoulders and enabling fine motor control activities. Snug non-restrictive lateral supports help maintain seated symmetry to ease deformities and contractures. The Percy Headley Foundation and Sefton Council are just two organisations already appreciating the benefits of the system, where there is a noticeable, tangible improvement in recipients' interaction with others, behaviour and social skills.

About the author

It may also be useful to consider the added value which specialist cushioning may bring. A single well-chosen posture cushion can be suitable for use on a variety of seats, giving correct musculoskeletal support, abduction, and reducing muscle spasms in a range of ADLs.

Colin McDonnell has a rare condition that can cause difficulty moving, spasms, jerking, rigidity and decreased muscle tone and muscle weakness. Through the William Merritt Centre, he acquired a combined back-and-seat vacuum posture cushion. As well as supporting him in daily life, it has enabled him to

travel comfortably and even fly abroad on holiday, in a beach wheelchair and snow-sledging. That one cushion has also been used for canoeing, to provide support in a bath, and for aquatherapy.

It's a case of thinking outside of the box. Look at what's new and how it may help. Less than a decade ago no-one knew of—or even had—a voice-activated virtual assistant; now they are commonplace. Most reputable suppliers have trained assessors who can support a practical review of the child and specialist seating, and work with you to find the most appropriate answer.

Taking the leap

Working in an international school is a rich and varied experience, and for many professionals it broadens their understanding of education and leads them to be more open minded in their approach. It has taught me much, particularly in the areas of early identification, parental support and understanding local culture. One of the positives of working in an international school is that while the school may be loosely tied to a national system, they do not have to follow all the guidelines and legislation from that country. This gives schools the freedom to formulate their own policies and procedures to suit the students and families who attend the school. As a result, learning support ethos and organisation can be decided by the school and that support can be provided on a needs basis without formal diagnosis. This makes early identification of learning differences and effective intervention easier to facilitate.

While working in Hong Kong, I was lucky enough to experience the benefits of providing play-based interventions in early years. I saw this in the nurseries I visited as part of the admission process, and at a number of schools, including the one I worked at. One of the keys to its success was the

involvement of the inclusion team right from the admissions process, where the children visited the school for 'stay and play' sessions. Experienced specialist teachers and teaching assistants played with the students and observed who might need support. They would continue to get to know the children and make observations over the first term in Reception, so that those needing more practice in basic skills could be targeted. As the children were familiar with the adults in the inclusion team, any groups or activities seemed part of the normal classroom provision.

Helen Trethewey on working overseas, and how international schools can meet SEND needs

International Schools have greater freedom to meet student needs

About the author

The inclusion team can be involved right from the start

These intervention groups focused on pre reading skills such as visual memory, listening skills, fine motor skills and vocabulary development. Different groups of students were taken once or twice a week to play games that specifically targeted these skills. Baseline data and teacher observations were also used to determine who could benefit from this support. Regular reviews ensured that when a child had made sufficient progress, they would stop attending.

Creating positive support frameworks

Some students make slow progress and need further assessment and more individualised support. However, because of the low key support already in place, and the trust that had been built with the parents, this journey was much easier. Most parents readily followed our advice and so support plans could be drawn up quickly. More intensive support could be provided and other professionals such as Speech and Language Therapists and Occupational Therapists were often consulted. These students would be supported for many years but having started support early, often went on to do well in the future.

I learnt early on that understanding cultural differences is important in communicating with parents. I would be full of enthusiasm about the support we could offer a student and try to explain how this could make a big difference, only for the parents to be upset with me for suggesting there was something

Helen Trethewey is currently Assistant Principal for Inclusion and Individual Needs at the British International School of Stockholm. She is an experienced Inclusion Leader with a passion for early identification of children with learning differences. She has worked in education for over 28 years in the UK, Belgium and Hong Kong.

beingtwice-exceptional.blogspot.com

twiceexceptionallearners.com @helen-trethewey

wrong with their child and refusing support of any kind. For some parents, the idea that their child is having difficulties at school is distressing and often unacceptable in their culture. Sensitive but clear communication with parents is vital for students to get the support they need. The language used is key in this instance: using terms like 'learning support' and 'learning difficulties' can cause unnecessary alarm. By re-phrasing this and saying that their child would really benefit from joining a small group to work on memory skills was more likely to lead to a different response. Providing support without using labels helps, alongside creating a culture where children working with a range of adults is considered normal in the Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1. Many international schools work hard to ensure their learning support staff are well integrated into the school and work closely alongside class teachers.

Building an inclusive community

International schools also have a key role in educating and supporting parents. When people are away from their home country, they often lack the usual support mechanisms. If a parent is concerned about their child's development, they may not know where to turn. Regular health checks may differ from those in their home country. In addition, grandparents and extended family, who often provide a different perspective, are not at hand, leaving parents confused and isolated. Schools that have good inclusion departments can be a lifeline to parents. Many times, I have witnessed the relief when parents realise there were professionals who would listen to and understand their concerns. Many schools provide regular parent workshops on a wide range of topics from 'How to read with your child at home.' to 'What are the signs of visual difficulties?' These

workshops are not only informative to parents, they also help bring the parent community together, supporting conversations between parents about some of the challenges they faced at home. This might not happen otherwise.

Imagine our shock

As well as the positives, there are a number of challenges that are common to many international schools. Being bilingual or multilingual is a great life skill, but unfortunately it can mask other difficulties in the school years. When a student is not a native English speaker, teachers are understandably cautious about low test scores. They will often explain the lack of progress as a result of having English as an additional language. While it is important to realise that acquiring a new language

can be challenging and that it takes time, it is not the only reason for slow progress. A student started in our school in Year 2 with little English, whose home languages were Mandarin and Cantonese. At the end of the school year his progress in English had been limited, but many of the teachers felt that this was because of him being exposed to three languages. I felt it was more than that and worked alongside our Mandarin teachers to devise a simple assessment in three languages— English, Cantonese and Mandarin. The student had a novel picture to look at and over a number of sessions he was asked the same questions in each language. Imagine our shock when it turned out that his strongest language was actually English! Our perspective and support for this student had to be rethought completely. Many years later this student was eventually diagnosed with a language disorder and continues to need specialist support in school.

A certain satisfaction

One of the joys of working overseas in the field of SEND comes from revisiting all your professional knowledge and expertise and reframing them in an international context. When we can use our skills to pinpoint a child's strengths and areas of concern, and devise effective interventions, our role takes on a deeper significance.

It's challenging, rewarding and highly recommended.

Breaking barriers

Iwas first diagnosed with ADHD at the age of 39, and I have experienced first-hand how unaddressed neurodiversity and learning differences can wreck relationships, put careers at risk, ruin schooling, and leave you feeling ashamed. Being neurodivergent is nothing to be ashamed of, but external factors can often make us feel like we are not 'good enough' or 'smart enough' to achieve success.

I am living proof of why this type of thinking is outdated and simply untrue. Despite not being diagnosed with ADHD earlier in life, there is something that helped me get to where I am today. Unknowingly, having access to IT saved me. I'm now the Founder of an Education Charity, CEO of a business, and have had many successful years in International Management.

A switch of focus opened up a new world

Access to IT saved my A-level results, which enabled the rest of my career. I was failing badly at traditional Music A-level. A wise and kind teacher suggested I move to Music Technology instead. The format and medium in which I was working went from the 1000-year-old written composition format, to recording, sequencing and editing—all on screen. I flew, and IT unlocked a world of possibility for me, as well as a life-long passion for writing and recording music.

We hear so many examples of students (again, regardless of SEN label or type) who fail traditional exam subjects, but then go on to dazzling success in coding, gaming, or creative arts. This goes to show that the role of IT and EdTech in SEN, Neurodiversity and Learning Differences has never been more valid. Nor more important for unlocking the futures for those in

areas of economic need throughout the world. Comparatively, the UK has a strong approach to SEN, and with increased Governmental funding now coming through. I hope this will only continue. I've witnessed first-hand that people with SEN in other nations are not so lucky.

Clearing paths and opening gates

I'm one of these lucky ones, I have a successful international career, thanks to tech-access as simple as a diary, workflow planners, reminders, timers. These give people the 'table stakes' to enter employment and find their strengths, as IT can clear the path and open the gate for those with SEN to find their footing. Without IT, traditional teaching, spoken, written, or practical formats can be barriers to what is otherwise a wide spectrum of choices and possibilities. SEN inclusivity and equity will NEVER be all about Technology, but the best examples are when traditional teaching has evolved to include IT, and a revolution in schools is already underway.

IT is crucial for SEN support internationally, says Nathaniel Comer

IT can unlock a world of possibilities and life-long passions

■ Students learning IT skills in Sierra Leone.

■ Students in Ghana using a sustainable IT lab.

Providing the 'table stakes' opens up opportunities for SEN students

It is essential that EdTech Innovation is shared and promoted, especially in areas of economic need. In nations with weaker GDP and Government stability, the opportunity to improve lives via IT is vast. From specific needs-based physical devices to novel spatial formats for traditional subjects, IT enables people with SEN to access a wider variety of choices including design, music, audio, animation, video editing, mathematical gamification, the list is endless. Importantly, EdTech allows for the individual to work at their own pace, often without drawing as much attention to their needs in comparison to their classmates. IT in this instance is the open door for creativity to flow, in whichever medium the SEN individual finds to their advantage.

Worsening the digital divide

This is why those delivering IT education must ensure content is diverse and relevant. While children under 2 in the UK know how to use tablets, many school leavers in areas of economic need don't. For the nations of West Africa, for example, the traditional IT charity model of 'here's an old PC we no longer want' has not only caused a huge toxic E-Waste problem, but has worsened the digital divide. This has created a façade of having enabled digital access, with further funding and donations being channelled elsewhere due to the misconception that there were many computers already being sent to Africa already. In reality, the computers that were

About the author

Nathaniel Comer is founder of Sun Screen IT Foundation Charity. The Foundation aims to combat environmental damage from the IT industry and create life-changing outcomes for young people in areas of economic need.

meant to be enabling, educating, and offering employment opportunities to children were instead being dumped, and burned for scrap metals. One could argue that IT access in the majority of West African nations is approximately where the UK was 35 years ago.

The IT curriculum leads to school exams being prepared for using wall posters of a keyboard and mice—and as we know, for people with SEN especially, theoretical learning without practice is one of the most challenging environments.

West African nations, and other areas of economic need—are seeing an increase in digitally skilled employment and this trend will only increase. This makes it even more important for people with SEN not to be left behind in these nations, but to be enabled to flourish in their own style, format, and pace.

■ Women and girls encouraged to gain IT skills for life.

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Deaf children are being failed by the education system

There are around 33,000 deaf children in schools across England, but evidence suggests that they are being consistently failed by an education system that should support them. Latest analysis shows that deaf children across England continue to achieve a whole grade lower at GCSE when compared to all children. and, on average, just over a third of deaf children achieved at least a grade 5 in key subject areas, English and Maths, in 2021, compared with more than half of all children. However, deaf children are just as capable as hearing children, and there is no reason why they should achieve less. So, this begs the question, 'Why are they falling behind their classmates?' We believe this is largely down to a lack of specialist support, particularly in mainstream schools, where 84% of deaf children access education.Despite the best efforts of teachers, SENCOs and Teachers of the Deaf, the current system supporting deaf children in schools simply isn't fit for purpose.

Deaf awareness in schools

Many deaf children and families report that teachers do not always understand deafness and how it impacts them or their child, and teachers support their concerns. One in five teachers surveyed on behalf of the National Deaf Children's

Society reported that they do not get the information they need to teach deaf children effectively. This lack of understanding around the impact of deafness was particularly evident during the pandemic, where face masks, and a lack of subtitles when home learning, presented serious challenges to deaf children's learning and socialisation. Our recent poll of 5,700 primary and secondary school teachers found eight in ten teachers across England overwhelmingly backed our calls for deaf awareness to be included in teacher training. Considering more than half of all teachers will teach a deaf child during their careers, this is hardly surprising.

Academically, deaf children are just as capable as hearing children, and there's no reason why they should achieve less. So why are they falling behind their classmates? asks Ian Noon

Lack of specialist support has a huge impact on learning and achievement

The mental health and wellbeing of deaf children is a major concern

Only 3% of the teachers surveyed were opposed to the training, which would provide teachers with a basic understanding of how to support deaf children and know how, and when, to get specialist support to teach a deaf child. Alarmingly, the same poll also found that six out of ten teachers believe deaf children will continue to underachieve at school without changes to the current system. Deaf children achieve less than their hearing classmates at every stage of school and it is disturbing that most teachers do not believe this will change.Many deaf young people will continue to achieve less than their hearing classmates at every stage of school unless we see clear and decisive action to address this.

Deaf young people also tell us that a lack of deaf awareness in schools can leave them feeling isolated and left out, experiencing challenges with their mental health and emotional well-being.

The SEND Review acknowledges that teachers lack confidence in teaching children with SEND and states the DfE has already 'begun to deliver a transformed professional development pathway for teachers, with high-quality training at every step of their career.' However, no steps have been taken to incorporate deaf awareness into teacher training. It has not been included in the core framework for training providers, nor the mandatory

About the author

Ian Noon is the Chief Policy Adviser at The National Deaf Children's Society is a British charity dedicated to providing support, information and advice for deaf children and young people, their families and professionals working with them.

ndcs.org.uk @NDCS_UK @NDCS.UK

minimum entitlement for all trainee teachers. This risks teachers being left unsupported to teach deaf children effectively.

Specialist workforce in schools

Specialist staff, such as Teachers of the Deaf, also play an essential role in ensuring a positive educational and social experience for deaf children in school. They are qualified teachers who have taken further training and are qualified to teach children with a hearing loss. They provide support to deaf children, their parents and family, and to other professionals who are involved with a child's education, particularly mainstream schools which may only have one deaf pupil.

Yet despite their vital work, we've seen the numbers of Teachers of the Deaf have been slashed by almost a fifth in a decade. This is extremely concerning, and worries about specialist workforce staff in schools are shared across the sector. At the National Deaf Children's Society, we joined with the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, Speech and Language UK and Voice 21, in leading a coalition of over 110 signatories who wrote an open letter to the Government in November. We warned that urgent investment is needed now to plug gaps in the specialist workforce supporting children in schools—including Teachers of the Deaf.

The letter highlighted a series of inadequacies in the specialist support children and young people can access. While the need for specialists is increasing, insufficient numbers are being trained to meet demand. And many are failing to be retained, with high numbers leaving the public sector altogether.

Services Need Support

This has a knock-on effect on children, young people, and families, with parents reporting that services are at crisis point, leading to catastrophic impacts on children's education, mental health and wellbeing, home and social life, employment prospects and life chances.

The coalition, which includes charities, professional bodies and associations, trade unions and parent and carer organisations, called on the Government to clearly set out how its much anticipated response to the SEND Review will address this widening access crisis.

We need to see the Government committing to investing in the specialist workforce, including Teachers of the Deaf. Without it, deaf children and young people will be left to play a perpetual game of catch-up with their classmates, with devastating long-term consequences.

The Government must develop a plan as part of its SEND reforms to provide effective, long-term specialist support for deaf children in schools and avoid a long-term, devastating effect on deaf children's education, including more plans for Teachers of the Deaf, and deaf awareness training for all teachers and SENCOs.

Herminia's son Marshall is 7 and was born partially deaf.

"Specialist support has been crucial for Marshall's development, and I don't know what we would have done without it. It's been the difference in helping him to reach his full potential. Because he has to work so much harder to concentrate, if adjustments weren't made to his environment, I think he would have started to fall behind. At pre-school, Marshall socially struggled to make friends and couldn't get involved in all the different conversations going on. The Teacher of the Deaf helped with this so that the staff could help him socialise with other children, he learnt to have one friend, to then two and more. His current school has always been so good and accommodating, and open and willing, asking me what would be helpful. Staff have been great with making adjustments to the classroom, such as where he sits, attending training and learning how to use the radio aid with him. I worry what would happen if the specialist support he receives was ever taken away. I know not all children have access to it, so it feels like a real postcode lottery."

Sharing and discussing books, and modelling the use of cues help in the development of higher language skills.

■ Teachers don't always understand deafness.

Hearing update 2023

For even the most profoundly deaf child, the key to developing the spoken language of the home is through listening. On the surface, this statement may appear to be nonsense but with modern technology many deaf children have and are achieving levels of spoken, and later written, language which have allowed them to access their local peer groups, lead independent lives in their local communities and achieve their potential. All babies, deaf and hearing, are "hard wired" to respond to the spoken interactions of their parents and carers with all the other natural cues which accompany the spoken word—facial expression, eye gaze, and intonation pattern. Family members can provide deaf and hearing babies with a rich linguistic background in the spoken language in which they are comfortable and use spontaneously—regardless of the language in use. Like hearing children, deaf children whose family language is not English, are showing that they can acquire this as a second language in pre-school or school environments once the brain has learnt how to process a spoken language.

Why is all this so much more feasible in 2023? Since 2001 the Newborn Hearing Screening Programme has identified children who may have a hearing loss within a few days of birth, leading

to diagnosis and hearing aid fitting at a few weeks or months of age. Also, modern digital hearing aids have greatly improved the ability of deaf children to use their residual hearing by amplifying the complex range of speech sounds. Almost all deaf children have residual hearing at some level. Cochlear Implants work with even the deafest children to turn sounds into electrical signals which stimulate the Cochlea and Auditory Nerve so that they can access spoken language. Deaf children can have hearing aids within 2-3 months of birth and cochlear implants if appropriate at less than a year old. Although their listening experience is behind that of most hearing children, with the right input and rich linguistic environment they can develop spoken language by interacting naturally with family and peers. "Teaching" language and speech sounds and forcing practice

Liz Rothwell discusses the possibilities for deaf children in 2023 and how their needs can be met in mainstream education.

All babies are hard-wired to respond to spoken interactions

Almost all deaf children have residual hearing at varied levels

About the author

Liz Rothwell is a retired TODCYP and a trustee of DELTA (Deaf Education Through Listening and Talking), a charity which works with professionals and families of deaf children.

and repetition of these are not appropriate. Families are the key to this and are the experts with their children. The role of professional supporters is to empower the family (and other carers including in pre-school settings) to play the key roles in their children's language development, to help them to use the technology, to make the most of language opportunities in everyday family life and to recognise progress, even small steps.

Families need to learn about all these opportunities as part of their right to informed choice, before they make life choices for their deaf children.

deafeducation.org.uk

Below are some of the key areas which need to be considered. Much more detailed and on-going advice and support would be available from a qualified Teacher of Deaf Children and Young People (TODCYP) from the Local Authority Sensory Support Team. Advice is needed well in advance of a deaf child arriving at a school or nursery so that there is time to plan ahead eg the most appropriate classroom, employing additional Teaching Assistant support. It is important that as many staff as possible are trained to understand the needs of the deaf child (rather than just one key person whose possible absence could result in real difficulties).

The TODCYP will advise on aspects of the teaching environment. Many classrooms and nurseries, especially in old buildings, have poor acoustic properties for deaf children (and also for

• More than 90% of deaf children are born into hearing families with a spoken language of the home.

• Most of the families who are asked about their hopes for their newly diagnosed deaf children say they would like them to talk.

• 74% of deaf children are in mainstream classes.

• Some deaf children have one or more significant additional disability. Many of these are able to develop the spoken language of the home, though possibly more slowly, but some have complex needs that mean they may need other approaches and communication methods.

many hearing children), and the resulting reverberation makes hearing aid use difficult. Classrooms are often inherently noisy environments which also results in difficult listening conditions. Seating position in the classroom—the deaf child needs to be able to see as many potential speakers as possible so the middle of the front row is not usually a good option. A speaker's face needs to be visible with light falling on the face not coming from behind. Deaf children, even if they have become excellent listeners, still need the opportunity to use facial cues and to lipread according to their individual learning styles. This needs to be taken into account when speaking while working with interactive white boards or demonstrating equipment.

Support for the deaf child

Hearing aids and cochlear implants help deaf children to access spoken language but they still experience difficulties and need appropriate support. Deaf children with good early support and interaction can arrive in school with age-appropriate language skills—sometimes better than some of their hearing peers and it can be wrongly assumed that they do not need support. Their needs can be masked and an in-depth understanding of these is essential. Discussion with the TODCYP and parents will help to identify the best support model(s) for each deaf child. This would not necessarily include removal from some classes for specific programmes or "reinforcement" of lesson content, though that might be appropriate. Secondary aged students, in particular, can become resistant to being "singled out" eg by being removed from their peers or having a Teaching Assistant working with them in class. Other options could include pre-teaching of concepts and vocabulary or, particularly with older students, a notetaker—this allows the students to focus on what the teacher is saying, demonstrating, talking through calculations, for example, and to go over the content as many times as needed at a suitable later time. The class or subject teacher, not a teaching assistant, must retain overall responsibility for the use of support and the learning of deaf children in the class. The important outcome for any support

What does this mean for mainstream educational provision?

is to continue to develop the pupil's language, understanding and learning skills. This may necessitate imaginative use of resources and different ways of demonstrating the effective use of support.

Language for education

Some deaf children may not have age-appropriate language and this needs to be taken into account in all subject areas—specific programmes or strategies may need to be in place to support continued language development. Although deaf children can become excellent listeners, the limitations of the technology mean that they do not hear language incidentally. They do not overhear conversations around them and this has implications for language and vocabulary learning. Young children generally receive a significant number of hours each day of conversation with adults either one to one or in small groups, ideal situations for acquiring vocabulary and extending language skills. As both deaf and hearing children progress through school, the linguistic demands of the curriculum become greater. Class and subject teachers emphasise new topic specific vocabulary but deaf pupils also need to have ongoing monitoring of their general vocabulary and language development in cooperation with the TODCYP. Higher level language skills become increasingly important such as inference, deduction and Theory of Mind and may need to be modelled and explored more specifically with deaf pupils. If deaf children have developed listening and spoken

language skills the variety of approaches used to develop reading and writing are equally applicable to deaf and hearing pupils including phonics and the same principles apply—reading for meaning is the purpose of the process and "decoding" is not an end in itself. Sharing and discussing books and modelling the use of cues are of particular importance for deaf children and help in the development of higher language skills.

Using crucial technology

The use of equipment to aid or enable listening is essential for deaf pupils who use the spoken language of the home and should be used consistently in their educational settings. The TODCYP will give the necessary training and on-going support for this. The microphones on hearing aids and cochlear implants pick up sound optimally up to six feet away from the speaker. As the distance increases so too does the difficulty in hearing what the speaker is saying. Deaf pupils are likely to be using radio aids to enable them to hear the speaker's voice at the same level no matter where in the room or how far from the speaker they are placed. This will mean the speaker, usually the teacher, will need to use a microphone and the TODCYP will advise on the optimal distance from the mouth, or how to avoid impeding the sound. Other equipment such as Soundfield Systems may be used to enhance the level of the speaker's voice over background noise. This can be beneficial to all pupils in the class. As deaf children get older, and particularly as they go through secondary education, they can become increasingly self-conscious about being seen to be "different" and therefore there may need to be sensitive handling, for example, of the process of handing over the microphone to teachers at the beginning of lessons, or discretely ensuring the deaf pupil has understood instructions. Systems should be put in place to ensure as far as possible that deaf pupils are always able to use the essential equipment throughout the whole school day. For the youngest pupils, this may mean staff testing the equipment, or maintaining a supply of hearing aid batteries, but as pupils get older supporting them to develop the skills to do this independently. Keep in mind that, no matter how good the technology, deaf children will still experience listening fatigue which can overload working memory. Suitable strategies to support this can be discussed with the TODCYP. Note that many strategies which are used to help deaf children in the classroom can benefit all pupils.

Sharing and discussing books, and modelling the use of cues help in the development of higher language skills.

For the best possible learning experience, children must be able to hear the teacher’s voice clearly. However, factors such as classroom noise and challenging classroom acoustics can make understanding the teacher difficult even for children with normal hearing. Roger Digimaster, the latest advance in classroom soundfield technology, amplifies teachers’ and students’ voices clearly, helping to maintain speech understanding over background noise. It provides general sound reinforcement and helps all children, particularly those with hearing loss, to achieve academic success as well as avoid teachers’ vocal strain.

Positioned at the front of the classroom, the Roger Digimaster system has multiple speakers within the tower. By using cylindrical sound dispersion, the teacher’s voice is distributed almost equally through the room, ensuring children can fully participate wherever they are sitting. Like all other Roger devices, the system is adaptive, helping deaf children hear well in the classroom.

connevans.co.uk

Phonak are delighted to announce the launch of updated Roger Digimaster speaker system

BRIGHTON

Situated in the heart of Brighton, our school has educated and cared for Deaf children for over 75 years.

Hamilton Lodge is a special residential school for learners from 5 to 19 years of age with significant expertise in meeting an identified primary need of Deafness (Mild, Moderate, Severe or Profound).

Our Specialist Team includes:

• Qualified Teachers of the Deaf and subject specialists

• Qualified Residential Care staff

• Health Care Assistant

• Audiologist

• Speech and Language Therapist

• Occupational Therapist

• Physiotherapist

• Emotional and Mental Health support (supervised by National Deaf CAMHS)

• Play Therapist

Please contact us for further information, to discuss a placement or to arrange a visit: admin@hamiltonlsc.co.uk 01273 682362

How to reduce social anxiety in school

To a greater or lesser degree, we all feel a level of underlying anxiety. As human beings we are naturally wired to look out for threats, and anxiety is a symptom of this. The pandemic has made us all increasingly aware of danger and,therefore, anxiety levels have naturally risen. Throughout this period, we were told to shut our doors and keep away from each other. This led to stress, worry, and trauma for many, and the after effects of this are still with us, especially for those young people whose lives were seriously impacted. Social anxiety in young people has long since been on the rise and the pandemic has intensified this.

Emotionally based school avoidance (EBSA) is a term used to describe children and young people who experience challenges in attending school due to negative feelings, such as social anxiety, and it has increased following COVID-19. School life

for a socially anxious pupil can be challenging and even harder for SEN pupils. Young people increasingly interact with one another through digital means. During the pandemic, many were actively encouraged to use online methods to keep in touch with each other or their teachers. However, seeing the world through a false, and often fake lens, so consistently,at such a young age, has left many children feeling isolated, self-critical, and often judgemental of themselves for not being 'good' enough. An increased lack of face-to-face interaction during this time accentuated social anxiety, meaning that going back to school for some was tough and still is.

Schools are challenging, busy, social environments. Often noisy, chaotic and, at times, overwhelming, they are not the ideal place for a child who is experiencing social anxiety. There are many situations that have a social component such as public speaking, being called on unexpectedly to answer a question and group-based activities. School life requires a level of interaction and sociability that enables pupils to form and maintain friendships with their peer group and communicate with adults. SEN pupils with social anxiety often experience increased feelings of loneliness and isolation. These feelings cause discomfort, which can be amplified to fear and dread. This will often make SEN pupils feel overwhelmed and they are then likely to display disruptive or antisocial behaviour. This is a symptom of distress that affects their emotional wellbeing and their ability to learn.

Many children are feeling isolated, anxious and overwhelmed

Nadim Saad explains how education professionals can support SEN students with social anxiety.

About the author

Social

learning

How do we reduce social anxiety in schools and create better inclusion for all pupils? Schools who have implemented social emotional learning strategies are faring much better than others, and particularly schools with higher numbers of SEN pupils.

For pupils to thrive academically, they must feel psychologically safe and included when at school; social and emotional learning needs to be at the heart of the school curriculum, including all members of the school community: staff, pupils, governors, parents, and external services. Creating a Wellbeing Team to drive this forward and keep it sustainable is essential, as well as specifically teaching SEL in schools.

Emotional Literacy

Develop the emotional literacy of all pupils so they can learn to express themselves with better emotional clarity using a nuanced emotion vocabulary. 'Name it to tame it, as Dr. Dan Siegel would say, as his neuroscience research has indicated, that when you name a feeling, you reduce its intensity in the brain, making it easier to regulate. When schools are seen by students as safe, inclusive spaces, students may feel more secure and less anxious.

Journal every day

Daily journaling can support pupils’ understanding of their language and the skills needed to deal with the complexities of daily school life, helping them to build resilience when dealing with issues on their own. The most effective way to do this is to teach structured journaling where the pupils name the feelings they experienced over the day, and the three things they are grateful for. Research on journaling indicates that by simply doing this for a week, some children's anxiety decreases.

Learning how to run your brain and support one another

Teach pupils about growth mindset, neural pathways, and how their brains work and schedule whole school Wellbeing Assemblies. Many schools have also created Pupil Mentors and Pupil Playground Helpers who, with training and support, can be supportive to anxious fellow students.

Get outside

Any interaction with the natural world can support students who are experiencing anxiety and aid connecting with the world around them. At the same time, movement can promote more mindful breathing and increase feelings of positivity.

Nadim Saad is a parenting and relationship coach and the author of seven books including the highly acclaimed ‘Kids Don’t Come With a Manual’, ‘Happy Confident Me’ Journal series and ‘Raising Happy Confident Kids’. The experienced father of three founded The Happy Confident Company to help children thrive by offering them the insights and tools they need to face life’s challenges and become the best version of themselves.

Additional Strategies to support SEN pupils

Checking in regularly with SEN pupils during the day to see if things are working for them or need tweaking can be supportive and assessing their emotional temperature, for example, using a Mood Meter or a FEELIT Mapper, will give them choices to cope when they feel overwhelmed. Students also need to have safe places to go when they feel overwhelmed, supported by clear communication strategies,so that all staff understand the power and intensity of feelings of social anxiety: It can be physically overwhelming. Routine and consistency are of key importance to pupils who are often challenged by change and transitions. Some SEN pupils may have difficulty understanding social cues and instructions, so it is important to be consistent in your approach towards them. Use visual and non-verbal cues where appropriate, as an anxious student may not 'hear' you. It is helpful if large schools can stagger break times, to avoid too many pupils in one area, and stagger school entry and end-of-day procedures. Calming kits should be available to all. Good options include items that engage their senses (for example, a small bag of lavender to smell), stress balls, Rubix cube, pipe cleaners, fidget toys, sorting items (like buttons or Lego), play-doh, and bubbles. Schools that have a homework club where pupils can go after school to use shared laptops and have a little support if needed have found that making this a calm inclusive and supportive environment can decrease anxiety symptoms.

Implementing only a few of the above suggestions can make a significant difference. The most important focus for social anxiety is on developing whole school social emotional learning culture and a commitment from the school community to make implementation a top priority.

and emotional

needs to be at the heart of the school curriculum

SENCO wellbeing: quick wins throughout the day

There is no shortage of challenges in both individual schools and nationally and, although it's always better to have a glass-half-full mentality, SENCOs everywhere are exhausted and flagging. So, it is essential to protect your own mental health and wellbeing, as this will help towards being your best self at work and home. Instilling some daily wellbeing wins, and reflecting on them can be useful strategies, combined with self-awareness, and mindfulness about your role. Lack of resources and time; too much paperwork and not enough time with the pupils; the post-pandemic knock-on effect of an ever-growing SEND register, and specific issues in our Y1 and EYFS cohorts particularly—we need to look after ourselves now more than ever.

What gives you energy? What saps it? Once I discovered my own patterns, it was easier to plan for them. Monitor areas such as diet, sleep and relationships (work and home), to identify areas of need as we all need things that bring us joy. Whatever your hobbies, add them into your daily routines or try new things until you find something you love that nurtures you. Who saps your energy? Are you surrounded by 'radiators' or 'drains'? The radiators send positivity out and the drains do the opposite. In your workplace, there may be a minority who can be added to the 'drain' category. Stay optimistic, and work to get the 'drains' onside early before you facilitate any SEND training.

As a SENCO, I have often been chased up the corridor by a teacher just needing to

What gives you energy? What saps it?

Lynn How on managing the role of a SENCO and developing healthy habits to support your wellbeing.

Some colleagues are radiators and others are drains

talk to me 'for a minute', and there are always those daily curve-balls that interrupt our flow. Try to improve your time management—create your weekly timetable, print it out and annotate what actually happens. This is a useful exercise to support workload conversations with your head. Petition for admin support—admin is not an effective use of your time. Try not to interrupt colleagues. In a mentally healthy school, colleagues will respect that you may need some time when you are not to be interrupted, apart from emergencies such as alien invasions or escaped lions. A suitably worded door sign works well. This enables you to take pockets of time throughout your day, not only to complete paperwork but also to practise regular 5-minute mindfulness exercises.. This can

About the author

Lynn How is the founder of the award-winning SEMH, SEND and staff mental health blog, www.positiveyoungmind. com. With 20 years of primary teaching and SLT experience, she has been an Assistant Head, Lead Mentor for ITT and SENCO. She is also the editor of @TeacherToolkit websiteHer areas of interest are wellbeing (staff and pupil), SEND, children's mental health, mentoring and coaching. She holds regular online CPD and training for SENCOs and for teacher wellbeing.

be restorative in a stressful job. Supervision: as SENCOs, we deal with a lot of 'stuff' and some of the children's lives can be complicated. We worry about them. Is there someone you can regularly talk to?

Look after yourself. Avoid negativity, nurture your support network, remind yourself you are making a positive difference to individual children. Go for a ten-minute walk out of school. There are many things in your 'circle of concern' you don’t have much control over, and we often spend too much time worrying about these and not enough on what really is in our circle of Influence.

Book reviews

Andrew Morrish is the founder of Makana Leadership Ltd and has coached many leaders nationally. He is a former executive headteacher and now holds posts in the charity sector and in the education inspectorate. He also founded Headrest, a free wellbeing support service for headteachers. In this book, he presents a four-part model to effective leadership, drawing on both professional experience and current research. This focuses on supporting the reader in defining core values and purpose, to shape 'personal leadership voice'. The book is organised into four sections that cover key issues such as:

This is an interesting book that is written in an accessible style, speaking directly to the reader about subjects such as the authentic leader model, and what it means in terms of strengths like authenticity and courage, combined with self-awareness and vulnerability. There are inspiring quotes to open each chapter, brief case studies and reflective activities. Whereas this is not a book that references learning differences in depth, the concepts and content are widely applicable in terms of not only leadership skills, but also professional development and the contribution of divergent thinkers in complementing and challenging each other professionally. For anyone aspiring to leadership, or seeking fresh insights, this provides a wealth of information and support.

Bloomsbury Education ISBN: 978-1-80199-027-1 £19.99

Phil Naylor has over 20 years' experience as a secondary teacher, school leader, and expert adviser for the Teacher Development Trust. His popular podcast, 'Naylor's Natter' has brought some leading experts in the field of education to a wider audience, in his regular and, always interesting, interviews. Chapters include an opening overview that guides the reader to specific topics, and details the associated interviewees and recommendations. There are also handy QR codes that enable the reader to listen to an expert discussing the topic in their own words. Naylor then demonstrates how these recommendations can be turned into actions in the school setting, drawing on his

own professional experience and that of over 25 experts whose work he references. T

In one chapter, the author describes a project in the Blackpool Opportunity Area that helped in the identification of a high percentage of students who were classified as SEND and had been either fixed-term excluded, or permanently excluded nationally. This led to planned systematic change across all aspects of provision, such as buildings, staffing and teaching, not just a narrow focus on reducing exclusions.

This is a very well-crafted book packed full of knowledge and experience distilled from some of the leading experts internationally.

Bloomsbury Education ISBN: 978-1-4729-9246-8 £19.99

The Authentic Leader: A four-part model to lead your school to success A. Morrish

Tammi Kirkness has produced a lovely, colourful, interactive and practical book to enable adults to help children aged 7-11 in recognising and managing fears and anxiety. This draws on her personal experiences as an anxious child, and her professional careers as a coach, meditation instructor, Clinical EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) Practitioner and anxiety specialist.

Given the high levels of anxiety that are being identified in young children, this book helps adults to structure a dialogue and Kirkness uses everyday language to support easier communication and to help put children more at ease in recognising what is causing their worries.

The book is organised into four sections, that guide the reader through a process to acknowledge specific

anxieties, and work out the best strategies to manage them. As such, it is a tool that is intended to be used whenever the need arises, using 'decision trees' to guide a deeper understanding on what is causing the anxiety.

• How Do I Feel?

• Feeling My Feelings: The most common anxietybased symptoms and feelings

• Figuring Out Where the Worry Started: Anxiety inducing areas

• Checking In Again: Reflecting on the process: How does the child feel now?

Opening with a page of 'Helpful Hints', the overall tone of the book is positive, confident and upbeat, but there is a recognition that a child's levels of anxiety may require specialist, professional support.

Murdoch Books

ISBN: 978-1-91166-838-1 £12.99

Universal Approaches to Supporting Children's Physical and Cognitive Development In the Early Years

S.Sloan and E. Hutton

The authors of this book have extensive experience in the world of SEN and together they have produced a publication that will advise many practitioners with practical strategies and approaches to support the motor and coordination development of children in educational settings.

Sue Soan is currently a university lecturer, with a wide ranging background in educational settings as a SENCO and senior leader. Her co-author, Eve Hutton, comes from an occupational therapist background, where she is a recognised expert in her field at post doctoral level. This spiral bound publication has been designed to provide educators with practical strategies and approaches to support the motor and coordination development of children in an educational setting. It is based on the work undertaken by

the authors over several years that combines perspectives of occupational therapy and special educational needs and developing resources for teachers to use in daily practice.

Chapter include:

• Physical skills, movement and learning

• Personal independence skills for learning and participation

• Confident handwriting

The authors provide many practical strategies with 'Try this' activities that many teachers will find useful. This is a very practical resource that also includes many reflective activities that challenge how we expect children to learn. The authors provide guidance to specific activities as well as guidance on policies and detailed referencing.

A Speechmark Book

ISBN: 978-0-367-26521-2 £32.99

by Mary Mountstephen

Autism Oxford UK Ltd

Autism Oxford UK are excited to be running their 2-day conference at the Kings Centre in Oxford on the 16th/17th January 2023! True to our values, we will be hearing from a blend of clinicians and lived experience experts discussing Anxiety and Autism. Network with other delegates and exhibitors, while also building CPD time!

autismoxford.com/conference

Rebound Therapy 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 accredited and approved staff training courses. With founder Eddy Anderson MCSP Cert Ed.

01342 870543

reboundtherapy.org

Bricks for Autism CIC Play Included C.I.C. Brick-by-Brick® programme training

Support social and emotional development through collaborative LEGO® play! Learn how to deliver Brick Clubs to offer meaningful social opportunities and skills development for neurodivergent children (and all children!) through collaborative LEGO® play. Play Included are LEGO Foundation partners. Self-paced e-learning and in-person workshops. playincluded.com/training

NAS Autism: Supporting families Online module

This online training module explores the common difficulties and experiences faced by families and acquire effective approaches for support autism.org.uk/what-we-do/ professional-development/ training-and-conferences/ online/autism-supportingfamilies

NAS Safeguarding Autistic children Online module

This online training is to increase the quality of safeguarding services, leading to early intervention to prevent abuse and neglect of autistic children.

autism.org.uk/what-we-do/ professional-development/ training-and-conferences/ online/safeguarding-childrenautism

NAS Autism and the sensory experience Online module

This training module explores how people respond to information from the senses and how this can differ with autistic people autism.org.uk/what-we-do/ professional-development/ training-and-conferences/ online/autism-and-sensoryexperience

12

January 2023

January

Therapy & Education “VoiceSING Trauma”: (5-6.30pm) An introduction to the theory and practice of expression and regulation through the voice Cost: £20 Centre for Child Mental Health 020 7354 2913

info@childmentalhealthcentre.org childmentalhealthcentre.org/ online-events/live-events

17-19 January

NAS Early Bird Plus Licenced User

This training course that licences a professional to support parent and carers of autistic children aged 4-9 years old.

autism.org.uk/what-we-do/ professional-development/ training-and-conferences/ earlybird/earlybird-plus

19 January

Therapy & Education Tricky Behaviours, Troubled Souls: Working with Children with Challenging Behaviours (5-6.30pm) Cost: £20

Centre for Child Mental Health 020 7354 2913

info@childmentalhealthcentre.org childmentalhealthcentre.org/ online-events/live-events

19 January

EQUALS

Why would I tell a sensory story like that?

With Joanna Grace. This session will explore different approaches to sharing sensory stories and focus in on strategies that help to maximise the benefits of sensory stories for learners with profound intellectual disabilities. equals.co.uk

23 January NAS Autism and Eating Challenges

This day course focuses on the understanding and supporting autistic children with eating challenges.

autism.org.uk/what-we-do/ professional-development/ training-and-conferences/ autism-eating-challenges

31 January-2 February

NAS Teen life Licenced user training

This licensed user training is for professionals to support parent/carers of autistic people aged 10-16 years old.

autism.org.uk/what-we-do/ professional-development/ training-and-conferences/ earlybird/teen-life

February 2023

2 February Equals Teaching Communication with Peter Imray

Explores how we might break away from the enormously complicated subject that is National Curriculum English, so that our learners can concentrate on effective communication. equals.co.uk

2 February

Plymouth Marjon University Postgraduate opening evening

Join us for our postgraduate opening evening where you can talk to academics and discover our range of courses. marjon.ac.uk/postgraduate

9 February

Therapy & Education

The Use of Big Empathy Drawings in Helping Traumatised Children and Young People to Heal (5-6.30pm)

Cost: £20 Centre for Child Mental Health 020 7354 2913 info@childmentalhealthcentre.org childmentalhealthcentre.org/ online-events/live-events

7 – 10 February

EDGE Services

Level 4 ROSPA

Customised Award Children Handling and Risk Assessment Key Trainers Certificate

London This course will provide you with the skills to train others in the moving and handling of children. edgeservices.co.uk

7-10 February

NAS

Early Bird Licenced training

This licensed user training is for professionals to support parent and carers of autistic children under five years old through our Early Bird programme. autism.org.uk/what-we-do/ professional-development/ training-and-conferences/ earlybird/earlybird

9 February

Equals

Autism

13 February

Equals Play Based Approaches to Semi-Formal/ Informal Learning with James Waller & Jonathan Moffatt

How play is used to develop learning within Sunningdale School across the school’s semi-formal and informal curriculum pathways, as well as how the Engagement Model is used to support this. equals.co.uk

14 February

NAS Understanding Autism in the workplace

Strategies for managers and colleagues. This course will increase participants understanding of autism and develop their confidence in identifying and implementing reasonable adjustments for their autistic colleagues. autism.org.uk/what-we-do/ professional-development/ training-and-conferences/ employment/understandingautism-in-the-workplace

23 February

Therapy & Education Social Media, Technology and the Impact on Children and Young People (5-6.30pm)

Cost: £20 Centre for Child Mental Health 020 7354 2913 info@childmentalhealthcentre.org childmentalhealthcentre.org/ online-events/live-events

March 2023

2 March

2 March

NAS Annual Professionals’ Conference

This annual one-day conference is a unique opportunity for professionals to benefit from topical discussion, current and evidence-based practice, and personal insight autism.org.uk/what-we-do/ professional-development/ training-and-conferences/ annual-professionalsconference

7 – 10 March

EDGE Services Level 4 ROSPA Customised Award

Children Handling and Risk Assessment Key Trainers Certificate

Birmingham This course will provide you with the skills to train others in the moving and handling of children. edgeservices.co.uk

10 March Equals

National Conference Central London Different not Differentiated? Curriculum and Assessment for pupils with PMLD and SLD. Includes as a keynote a senior Ofsted HMI to discuss the Inspection Framework and specifically look at deep dives and Peter Imray/Dr Lila Kossyvaki from Equals. equals.co.uk

13-15 March

22-25 March

NAS Autism and SPELL licence user

This training course that licences autism experienced professionals to deliver the Autism and Spell course to their staff teams. autism.org.uk/what-we-do/ professional-development/ training-and-conferences/ autism-spell-lu

23 – 24 March

EDGE Services Level 4 Advanced ROSPA Customised Award Handling and Risk Assessment Key Trainers Certificate (Refresher/Update) Birmingham

This course will advance your professional development, training others in the moving and handling of children. edgeservices.co.uk

May 2023

9 – 12 May 2023

EDGE Services Level 4 ROSPA Customised Award Children Handling and Risk Assessment Key Trainers Certificate Edinburgh

This course will provide you with the skills to train others in the moving and handling of children. edgeservices.co.uk

June 2023

27 – 28 June

and

Communication

with Dr Lila Kossyvaki

Some of the main communication difficulties Autistic children are likely to face, with several handson ideas on how to support communication in these individuals. equals.co.uk

Therapy & Education Sandplay Therapy: Key Tools, Techniques and Interventions (5-6.30pm)

Cost: £20

Centre for Child Mental Health 020 7354 2913 info@childmentalhealthcentre.org childmentalhealthcentre.org/ online-events/live-events

NAS Introduction to structured teaching based on TEACCH® model

A two-day course for professionals within education settings, delivered by a TEACCH® certified advanced consultant.

autism.org.uk/what-we-do/ professional-development/ training-and-conferences/ structured-teaching-teacch

EDGE Services

Level 4 Advanced ROSPA Customised Award Handling and Risk Assessment Key Trainers Certificate (Refresher/Update) Brighton

This course will advance your professional development, training others in the moving and handling of children. edgeservices.co.uk

Training

Children KeyHandlingTrainer’s Certificate

Successful

• Professionally and Academically Accredited

All our People and Children Handling and Risk Assessment Key Trainer’s Certificate courses are accredited by RoSPA Qualifications to Level 4 or Advanced Level 4, as a customised award. They are Royal College of Occupational Therapists (RCOT) Approved Learning Awards, certified by the CPD Certification Service and aligned to the Skills for Health Core Skills Training Framework (CSTF).

• Extensive Training Resources, Exclusive On-line Library and E-Learning Module

Our training is supported by a professionally produced and fully illustrated course textbook, plus a

supplementary children handling textbook, proposed documentation for onward training delivery, four video modules demonstrating over 45 moving and handling practical skills techniques, an extensive and exclusive on-line resources library and a user-friendly e-learning programme designed for front-line staff.

SEN resources directory

ADHD

ADHD Foundation

Training and awareness raising around ADHD. adhdfoundation.org.uk

Autism

National Autistic Society

Help and information for those affected by ASD. autism.org.uk

Cerebral palsy

Action CP

Charity raising awareness of issues facing children and young people with cerebral palsies. actioncp.org

Down’s syndrome

Down’s Syndrome Association

Information, support and training on Down’s syndrome. downs-syndrome.org.uk

Dyslexia

British Dyslexia Association

Information and support for people affected by dyslexia. bdadyslexia.org.uk

Dyspraxia

Dyspraxia Foundation UK

Dyspraxia advice and support. dyspraxiafoundation.org.uk

Epilepsy

Epilepsy Action

Advice and information on epilepsy. epilepsy.org.uk

Exhibitions

KiDZ to Adultz North

There are over ten CPD accredited seminars at Kidz to Adultz North, suitable for families and carers of children with disabilities and special needs, and the professionals who support them. Topics include toileting, education, moving & handling, and much more! The full programme will be released soon.

kidzexhibitions.co.uk/kidz-north

General SEN

MIND

Mental health

Advice and support for people experiencing a mental health problem. mind.org.uk

Rebound therapy

ReboundTherapy.org

The UK governing body and international consultancy for Rebound Therapy. reboundtherapy.org

Special education needs

BILD

Charity offering support and information on learning disabilities. bild.org.uk

Douglas Silas Solicitors

Douglas Silas Solicitors are the legal experts specialising exclusively in SEN, helping parents successfully throughout the SEN process.

SpecialEducationalNeeds.co.uk

Learning disability

nasen

Organisation for the education, training and advancement of those with SEN. nasen.org.uk

Visual impairment

The Partially Sighted Society

Bold-lined exercise books and resources for schools and individuals for visual impairment and visual processing difficulties. partsight.org.uk

RNIB

BILD

Charity offering support and information on learning disabilities. bild.org.uk

Douglas

SEN Law

Silas Solicitors

Douglas Silas Solicitors are the legal experts specialising exclusively in SEN, helping parents successfully throughout the SEN process.

SpecialEducationalNeeds.co.uk

Literacy

National Literacy Trust Literacy charity for adults and children. literacytrust.org.uk

Support and advice for those affected by visual impairment. rnib.org.uk