SEND local offer - introduction to SEND

SEND stands for Special Educational Needs and Disabilities.

A child or young person has SEND if they have a learning difficulty or disability and they need special educational provisions.

They might need extra support if they:

find learning harder than other children of the same age
have a disability which prevents them from using educational facilities provided for others of the same age
struggle with social, emotional or mental health
have sensory or physical needs
have speech, language or communication needs including autism

Who can you to talk to?

If you think your child may have special educational needs, you can speak to the teacher, the SEN co-ordinator or SENCO in your child's school or nursery.

If your child isn't in a school or nursery, then you can contact the SEND and Inclusion team on sensection@stockton.gov.uk or 01642 527145.

What can I do as a parent or carer?

If you are worried about your child's development, you can talk to nursery or pre-school workers, teachers or a Special Educational Needs Coordinator about the support for your child's needs.

Look for specific behaviours, or trigger points. Keep a diary of significant behaviours and this will help the professionals understand more about your child.

How SEND can affect learning

Special educational needs and disabilities can affect a child's ability to learn. They can affect their:

behaviour or ability to socialise, for example struggle to make friends
ability to read and write
ability to understand things
concentration levels
physical ability

Support your child can receive

If your child has special educational needs, they may be eligible for:

SEN support in school such as speech and language therapy
an education, health and care (EHC) plan - a plan of care for children and young people aged up to 25 who have more complex needs

SEN support in education

Children under 5

SEN support for children under 5 includes:

a written progress check when your child is 2 years old
a child health visitor carrying out a health check for your child if they're aged 2 to 3
a written assessment in the summer term of your child's first year of primary school
making reasonable adjustments for disabled children, like providing aids like tactile signs

Nurseries, playgroups and childminders registered with Ofsted follow the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) framework. The framework makes sure that there is support in place for children with SEND.

Talk to a doctor or health adviser if you think your child has SEND but they do not go to a nursery, playgroup or childminder. They will tell you what support options are available.

Children between 5 and 15

Talk to the teacher or SENCO if you think your child needs:

a special learning programme
extra help from a teacher or assistant
to work in a smaller group
help taking part in class activities
extra encouragement in their learning
help communicating with other children
support with physical or personal care for example eating or using the toilet

Young people aged 16 or over in further education, training or employment

Contact the school, college or training provider and or employer before your child starts their post-16 journey to make sure that they can meet your child's needs.

The local authority can also talk to your child about the support they need if necessary.

Help at home

It is important that you continue to support your child at home to help them develop.

As a parent or carer you can help development at home by:

assessing support groups or websites to improve your knowledge about their condition
being a good role model and encourage family bonding by doing things together
avoiding giving multiple instructions and maintain eye contact when giving instructions in easy to remember chunks
planning the day so they know what to expect
providing positive feedback and rewards for good behaviour
setting a good bedtime routine
watching out for warning signs that may cause them to lose self-control and talk to them in a calm manner
being consistent and firm when setting rules
avoiding confrontation with them

SEND: The Four Areas of Need

Special provision can be made to allow your child to have the same opportunities as others of the same age. Their needs will fall into one or more areas listed in the SEND Code of Practice.