At St Mary’s School, we seek to ensure that we have an agreed understanding of the broader meaning of inclusion; i.e. that we adhere to these main principles in developing a more inclusive curriculum:

  1. Setting suitable learning challenges.
  2. Responding to children’s diverse learning needs.
  3. Overcoming potential barriers to learning and assessment for individuals and groups of pupils.
  4. Making reasonable adjustments to practices, procedures and the environment in order to meet the needs of its pupils.
Admissions

This school strives to be a fully inclusive school. All students are welcome, including those with special needs and / or disabilities, in accordance with the Local Authority Admissions Policy. If a parent of a child with a Statement for Special Need wishes their child to be educated in a mainstream school, the Authority must provide this unless it is incompatible with the efficient education of other students and there are no reasonable steps that can be taken to prevent the incompatibility.

Aims and Objectives of the School

The aims of the school in this respect are linked closely to the principles in the revised Code of Practice and are as follows.

  1. To identify, assess and meet the children’s needs as early as possible, in order that they may achieve their full potential. The importance of early intervention cannot be over-emphasised, and this is our main objective.
  2. To ensure that every child with S.E.N has their needs met.
  3. To take into account the views of the child regarding their problems.
  4. To recognise that parents have a vital role to play in supporting their child’s education.
  5. To work in close co-operation with all outside agencies to ensure equal access to the National Curriculum.
  6. To enable pupils with S.E.N to reach their full potential and to be fully included in the school community.
  7. To offer all S.E.N children FULL access to the Foundation Stage and the National Curriculum, unless (in very rare cases) a Statement of Special Needs states this is inappropriate.
  8. To ensure that interventions are reviewed regularly to assess the impact, and decide on the appropriate “next steps”.
  9. To enable the physically disabled to achieve or maintain as much independence as possible, whilst developing their strengths to their full potential, in line with the Disability Discrimination Act.

It is recognised that provision for children with S.E.N is the responsibility of the school as a whole, i.e. the headteacher, the governing body, the Inclusion Leader and all other members of staff who have important day-to-day responsibilities, and that all teachers are teachers of children with special educational needs.