SEND Local and National Support
A child of compulsory school age or a young person has a learning difficulty or disability if they:
- have a significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of others of the same age.
- have a disability which prevents or hinders him or her from making use of facilities of a kind generally provided for others of the same age in mainstream schools or mainstream post-16 institutions.
Communication and Interaction
Autism (Autistic Spectrum Disorders/Conditions – ASD/ASC)
- You or your child’s educational setting’s SENCO or inclusion manager; the setting may seek advice from the education inclusion team or the educational psychology service.
- There is a range of training available for school staff and parents covering autism awareness, structured teaching, picture exchange communication, social understanding and sensory needs; parents could inquire at their nursery or school setting.
The school can ask for support from the Education Inclusion Team. This team:
- helps schools to their skills and knowledge when working with children with speech, language and communication needs
- trains all staff in all schools to use the Barking and Dagenham handbook
- trains specific staff in schools to give them a qualification in speech, language and communication
- trains school staff to use specific interventions and screening tools
- arrange meetings for trained staff to keep them up to date with best practice
- The Sycamore Trust
- London Autism Group Charity
Cognition and Learning
Dyslexia
Moderate learning difficulty (MLD)
Severe learning difficulty (SLD)
Schools should already:
- provide quality teaching of literacy in the classroom
- carry out, monitor and evaluate catch-up small group interventions
Where schools have children who, in spite of this support are still struggling with reading, the following training and consultancy services are available from the Education Inclusion Team:
- support for identifying children with dyslexia
- training to carry out assessments in order to ascertain the children’s strengths and difficulties
- assistance with producing individual programmes for children with dyslexia
- expert advice on individual pupils
Social, Emotional and Mental Health Difficulties
Speak to the class teacher.
The class teacher will use Barking and Dagenham’s behaviour handbook to:
- identify the child’s behaviour needs.
- work effectively with children with social emotional and mental health needs at lower level of needs.
- Ask the school to set up a plan to meet their child’s needs.
This plan will:
- target priority areas.
- suggest strategies to meet the child/young person’s needs.
- review how well the plan is working to move the child forward.
- both you and your child would be at the centre of this planning.
Speak to the special educational needs co-ordinator (SENCO).
The SENCO will:
- carry out further assessment to find out the child’s difficulties.
- provide strategies for teachers to use in the classroom.
- offer the option of a group to help the child/young person to develop skills according to needs.
The school can ask for support from the Education Inclusion Team. This team:helps schools with their pastoral support arrangements for all pupils
- helps schools ensure effective behaviour for learning
- helps schools with their skills and knowledge when working with children with behaviour, social and emotional difficulties
- trains all staff in all schools to use the behaviour handbook
- trains school staff to develop specific interventions
- arrange meetings for trained staff to keep them up to date with best practice
NELFT CAMHS (Child & Adolescent Mental Health Services)
NHS CAMHS deliver a range of services to support positive emotional wellbeing and mental health. The team can support children and young people with emotional and mental health difficulties, such as:
- Feeling sad or like you don’t want to be here any more
- Hurting yourself or thinking of hurting yourself
- Feeling anxious and scared
- Having problems with eating and food
- Find it hard to concentrate or get on with friends
- Having trouble talking and relating to people
- Difficulty with sleep
- Hearing voices or seeing things
- Struggling to control your behaviour or temper
- Having problems at school or with friends
- Have to check or repeat things, or worry about germs
- You don’t like yourself, or have low self-confidence
Deafness and Visual Impairment
Deafness
Since 2006, all babies in England have been offered a newborn hearing screen (NHSP). The majority of deaf children in the UK, although not all, are diagnosed via this screening programme. The purpose of the screening is to improve the outcomes for deaf children through early identification. Access to timely intervention and provision should improve the speech, language and communication outcomes for deaf children and ensure the provision of appropriate hearing technology.
There are different types, degrees and causes of deafness. These are explained and discussed at the time of diagnosis by an audiologist.
The Audiology Service (NHS) and the local education service for deaf children liaise closely together and will work with you and your child if they are permanently deaf.
Early Years Teacher of the Deaf (0-5 years), Mrs Janice Barnett, Education Youth and Childcare, Alibon Annexe, 177 Sterry Road, Dagenham, RM10 8PT, 07742 878610 janice.barnett@lbbd.gov.uk
Outreach Service Teacher of the Deaf (5 to 25 years) , Miss Lynn Wager, Five Elms Primary School, Wood Lane, RM9 5TB, 020 8724 8014, lwager@five-elms.bardaglea.org.uk
Visual impairment
Visual impairment is the functional limitation of the eye or eyes or the vision system.
To register a child’s Certificate of Visual Impairment:
- Families can self-refer at Care and family support 5 -11 years.
- Professionals can refer at Early help for professionals working with children.
For more information, please contact:
- Joseph Clarke Educational Service (0-19 years)
Joseph Clarke Educational Service for the Vision Impaired, Macdonald Road, Walthamstow, London E17 4AZ. - Portage and Inclusion (0-5 years)
Telephone: 020 8724 8550
Portage and Inclusion, Alibon Children’s Centre, 175 Sterry Road, Dagenham RM10 8PT. - Adult Sensory Service
Telephone 0208 227 2915 (Adult Triage)
Email: intaketeam@lbbd.gov.uk or sensory@lbbd.gov.uk
Disability Service Sensory Team, Roycraft House, 5th Floor, Roycraft House, 15 Linton Road, Barking IG11 8HE
- Royal Society for Blind Children (RSBC)
Telephone: 020 3198 0225
Email: connections@rsbc.org.uk
RSBC Orpington Campus, The Walnuts, Orpington, Kent BR6 0TE. - LOOK UK 11- 29
Telephone: 07464 351958
Email: info@look-uk.org
LOOK National Federation of Families with Children with a Visual Impairment, Fred Bulmer Centre, Wall Street, Hereford, HR4 9HP. - SENSE
Telephone: 0300 330 9256
Email: info@sense.org.uk
Sense information and advice, 101 Pentonville Road, London N1 9LG. - Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB)
- Retina UK
- Visionary
- Guide dogs
Information about guide dogs for children – Guide Dogs website. For more information please call the Guide Dogs helpline on 0800 781 1444 or email children@guidedogs.org.uk
Certificate of Visual Impairment registration Children and Young People information – Guide Dogs website.