Special educational needs and disabilities

Sarah Hughes

Email: communications@whitehall.waltham.sch.uk

Telephone:02085293813

At Whitehall Primary School, we are inclusive by design. Inclusion is embedded into everything we do- from the way we teach and support our pupils, to the relationships we build and the bespoke curriculum we deliver.

At the forefront of our approach is high-quality teaching. As outlined in the SEND Code of Practice (2015), “High-quality teaching … is the first step in responding to children who may or may not have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND)”. This ensures that all children have access to learning that supports and challenges them- regardless of their starting point or ability.

High-quality teaching is underpinned by the following key principles:

• Explicit instruction: Effective teaching follows the sequence of explanation, modelling, practice and feedback. This ensures that new learning is introduced clearly and consolidated effectively.
• Metacognition: We support our children to develop an awareness of their own learning. This is through planning, monitoring and evaluating their approaches to classroom activities.
• Scaffolding: We use temporary supports that enable all pupils to engage with challenging tasks that they might otherwise find difficult. This fosters independence over time.

Our Behaviour Policy is rooted in Carl Rogers’ concept of Unconditional Positive Regard. This means that every child knows they are valued, respected and cared for. By prioritising Unconditional Positive Regard, we build stable and trusting relationships between children, their peers and the staff who work with them. Our approach also supports children holistically by attending to their social and emotional wellbeing as well as their academic needs.

We are a Trauma informed School (TiS) and are RISL (race and identity) trained. This ensures that our practice recognises and responds to the diverse experiences of our children by supporting them with empathy, sensitivity and equity.

Our school offers a dedicated Specialist Resource Provision (SRP) for Deaf children.  Our staff and school environment are ‘deaf aware’ ensuring our Deaf children are fully immersed into mainstream learning.

In addition, we work closely with external agencies to provide specific interventions or targeted support where needed.

Our curriculum, relationships- based behaviour policy and teaching approaches all work together to create an inclusive environment where every pupil can thrive- we call this The Whitehall Approach.