The SENDCO role in a mainstream school is invaluable, especially when supporting pupils with complex needs. External specialists can be equally as invaluable.
Are there times though when the presence of a specialist – the SENDCO, an Educational Psychologist – can delay teachers and TAs from making good decisions for pupils? In relation to the use of specialists within SEND, care must be taken to ensure colleagues are supported but not disempowered.
Tag Archives: SEN
The SEND and AP Improvement Plan: 3 things that could feel different for SENDCOs
I don’t know a SENDCO who thinks the SEND system is helping them to work efficiently, focus on the right things and consistently have impact. I don’t know many parents who speak glowingly of their experience of getting an EHCP. I don’t know any Local Authorities who aren’t consumed and overwhelmed by workload.
So something needs to change. But what is going to change for schools? What does the SEN and AP Improvement Plan tell us change is going to look like, and how might that change the SENDCO role?
The summer term SENDCO
Consider these 8 areas as potential priorities for the summer term, which broadly fit into 2 categories: doing the summer term well and preparing to do next year well
Why everyone should want to be a SENDCO
All teachers should want to be a SENDCO. Whether for the professional development it brings, for the difference it can make to pupils who otherwise might struggle, or just to step up to a whole-school role, ambitious colleagues should view it as an essential step on their own route to leadership.
SENDCOs: 12 questions you’ll want to think about before OFSTED arrive
Try out your answers to some of these with your line manager or a supportive colleague, so you can be as prepared as possible for the OFSTED call.
Seeing without observing: how to be a visible SENDCO without adding to school scrutiny
As a SENDCO, you need to know what is going on in class. You need to make sure students are receiving quality-first teaching. You need to be able to diagnose where this isn’t happening so you can support teachers to develop their practice. You also need to do this without creating a culture of fear.Continue reading “Seeing without observing: how to be a visible SENDCO without adding to school scrutiny”
New to the SENDCO role/new to a school? Try to tick off these things by the end of September
Rather than try to master everything in the first month, this list gives 10 ideas for things to try and tick off by September 30th. Each should be manageable alongside teaching and other responsibilities; it should be broad enough to cover many elements of the role, without expecting you to master everything in just over 4 weeks.
Practical ways to meet parents/carers 3 times per year
“Where a pupil is receiving SEN support, schools should talk to parents regularly to set clear outcomes and review progress towards them, discuss the activities and support that will help achieve them, and identify the responsibilities of the parent, the pupil and the school. Schools should meet parents at least three times each year.” SENContinue reading “Practical ways to meet parents/carers 3 times per year”
How to fix a broken inclusion system
In the first blogpost, I argued that the system of supporting children and young people with complex needs is broken. It punishes schools whose Headteachers see inclusion as their duty, rewarding those who put up barriers to inclusion. What would a fairer system look like? What incentives would need to exist for balance to beContinue reading “How to fix a broken inclusion system”
Inclusion: the system is broken
The school system works best for schools who have no children with SEND on roll. Schools who aim for inclusion have greater budget struggles, a tougher time impressing on performance tables and as such greater difficulty getting to OFSTED Outstanding. There’s no equity. Society would largely agree that schools should be inclusive of the needsContinue reading “Inclusion: the system is broken”
SEND Matters 