Inclusion at St Nicholas
We are pleased to announce that we have been awarded the Inclusion Charter Mark Silver level.
We are a Makaton Friendly School
We are proud to have achieved Makaton Friendly Status. This means that we have a commitment to using Makaton across our school and helping anyone who uses it feel welcome in our school.
We are a Communication Commitment School
As a school we have a continued commitment towards improving communication in all it’s forms across our school. We received our certificate of achievement from the Communication Trust in recognition of this commitment.
If your child has difficulties with Communication and Interaction, they may need support with:
- Attention and listening skills
- Understanding language
- Using language
- Speech sounds
- Interacting with others in groups
- Speaking fluently
Your child may have a diagnosis of Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD), Downs Syndrome or have Speech and Language difficulties.
All pupils at St Nicholas are entitled to, and receive Inclusive Quality-First Teaching though a broad and balanced academic and social curriculum, which is appropriately differentiated to meet individual learner needs.
This is achieved through:
- Highly skilled teachers and well-trained support staff who are dedicated to your child’s academic, personal and social potential
- Appropriate learning challenges, matched the National Curriculum guidelines
Differentiated learning challenges through:
-
- Extending or reducing challenges
- Varying the amount of adult or peer support given to complete the challenge
- The way a learning challenge is delivered, completed and achieved. E.g. visually (looking), practically (doing), orally (speaking), aurally (listening).
- Different resources to complete learning challenges
- Different outcome of the challenge
- Multi-sensory approach to learning challenges
- Visual aids to support attention and listening skills, classroom organisation and language and concept development
- Reward systems
- Modelled language through repetition, emphasis and expansion
- More thinking time
- Writing slope boards, pencil grips and coloured overlays for reading
- Appropriate seating plan
- Talking partners & Peer support
- Early identification of needs through a graduated approach to teaching and learning
- Effective Accessibility, Anti-bullying, Behaviour Policy, Equalities, SEND & Inclusion and Teaching & Learning Policies
Additional Support
Your child may benefit from:
- Information Carrying Word tasks to support receptive language
- Speech sound support
- Makaton sign language used alongside speech
- Support for developing understanding and use of new vocabulary
- Pre-teaching vocab/key facts support
- Recordable devices for sequencing and memory
- Organisation and independence support
- Visual prompts for facial expressions and emotions
- Access to quiet spaces
- Use of Social Stories
- Small group support using speech & Language programmes
- In class adult support
- Elklan’s Blank Level Questioning approach
- Movement breaks
- SALT support and advice
SEND Support
- 1-1 speech sounds support
- Small group or 1-1 support speech & language programme
- Makaton sign language used alongside speech
- ELKLAN resources
- Pastoral Support
- Lego Therapy
- In class adult support
- Technologies to support class work
- Social Stories and Comic Strips
- Movement breaks
- Social communication & interaction skills support
- Review, advice and support from specialists
If your child has Cognition & Learning difficulties, your child may need support with:
- Reading and spelling
- Learning new vocabulary and concepts
- Memory
- Number and calculations
- General learning
Your child may have conditions such as:
- Moderate Learning Difficulties (MLD)
- Severe Learning Difficulties (SLD)
- Downs Syndrome
- Specific Learning Difficulties (SpLD): Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Dyscalculia
Support for all pupils:
All pupils at St Nicholas are entitled to, and receive Inclusive Quality-First Teaching though a broad and balanced curriculum, which is appropriately differentiated to meet individual learner needs.
This is achieved through:
- Highly skilled teachers and well-trained support staff who are dedicated to your child’s academic, personal and social potential
- Appropriate learning challenges, matched the National Curriculum guidelines
Differentiated learning challenges through:
- Extending or reducing challenges
- Varying the amount of adult or peer support given to complete the challenge
- The way a learning challenge is delivered, completed and achieved. E.g. visually (looking), practically (doing), orally (speaking), aurally (listening).
- Different resources to complete learning challenges
- Different outcome of the challenge
- Multi-sensory approach to learning challenges
- Visual aids to support attention and listening skills, classroom organisation and language and concept development
- Reward systems
- Modelled language through repetition, emphasis and expansion
- More thinking time
- Writing slope boards, pencil grips and coloured overlays for reading
- Appropriate seating plan
- Talking partners & Peer support
- Early identification of needs through a graduated approach to teaching and learning
- Effective Accessibility, Anti-bullying, Behaviour Policy, Equalities, SEND & Inclusion and Teaching & Learning Policies
Additional Support
Your child may benefit from:
- Small group work with adult support
- Keep-up work in class with LSA
- Reading interventions
- Visual support for learning new words
- Support for sequencing skills
- Recordable devices to support memory for writing
- Supported reading
- Phonics intervention
- Speaking & Listening intervention
- Elklan’s Blank Level Questioning approach
- Technologies to support class work
SEN Support
You child may access:
- Pre teach and post teach learning sessions with LSA
- Small group interventions
- 1-1 or small group LSA support
- Phonics interventions
- 1-1 support using Speaking & Listening intervention
- Handwriting intervention
- Toe by Toe Programme
- Power of 2 Programme
- In class adult support
- 1-1 Pastoral Support
- Multisensory Dyslexia Intervention programme with Specialist Teacher
- Exam Access arrangements
- Advice and training for staff from specialists
If your child has Sensory and/or Physical Needs (including medical needs), they may need support with:
- Vision
- Hearing
- Gross-motor co-ordination
- Fine-motor co-ordination
- Medical needs
Your child may have conditions such as diabetes, epilepsy, cerebral palsy, Down’s Syndrome, dyspraxia or Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD) (please see our section for Communication and Interaction).
All pupils at St Nicholas are entitled to, and receive Inclusive Quality-First Teaching though a broad and balanced academic and social curriculum, which is appropriately differentiated to meet individual learner needs.
This is achieved through:
- Highly skilled teachers and well-trained support staff who are dedicated to your child’s academic, personal and social potential
- Appropriate learning challenges, matched the National Curriculum guidelines
- Differentiated learning challenges through:
- Extending or reducing challenges
- Varying the amount of adult or peer support given to complete the challenge
- The way a learning challenge is delivered, completed and achieved. E.g. visually (looking), practically (doing), orally (speaking), aurally (listening).
- Different resources to complete learning challenges
- Different outcome of the challenge
- Multi-sensory approach to learning challenges
- Visual aids to support attention and listening skills, classroom organisation and language and concept development
- Reward systems
- Modelled language through repetition, emphasis and expansion
- More thinking time
- Writing slope boards, pencil grips and coloured overlays for reading
- Appropriate seating plan
- Talking partners & Peer support
- Jigsaw programme delivered through our PSHE curriculum
- Early identification of needs through a graduated approach to teaching and learning
- Effective Accessibility, Anti-bullying, Behaviour Policy, Equalities, SEND & Inclusion and Teaching & Learning Policies
Additional Support
Your child may benefit from:
- Individualised resources to support vision and hearing within class
- Amplification of sound for pupils with hearing aids
- Makaton sign language
- Access to specific technologies to enhance individual learner needs
- Health Care Plan
- Intimate care plans
- Handwriting support
- Fine and gross motor skills intervention
- Keyboard skills support
- In class adult support
- Small group support
- Advice from specialists such as doctors, paediatrician, school nurse
SEN Support
- Health Care plans
- Intimate care plans
- 1-1 support in class
- Amplification of sound for pupils with hearing aids
- Makaton sign language
- Handwriting intervention
- Fine and gross motor skills intervention
- Specialist equipment for visual and hearing impairments and physical disabilities
- Individualised Keyboard skill training & resources
- Exam Access arrangements
- Regular support from and reviews with other specialists
- Advice, support and training for staff from audiology specialists, occupational therapists, physiotherapists
We use Makaton in our school to support and promote communication in children who have communication difficulties. We use Makaton signs and symbols around school and encourage our pupils to use it with each other.
We are now have Makaton Friendly status, certifying the school as a member of the Makaton Friendly scheme. Well done to everyone for all their hard work in achieving this. The benefits can be seen within the school with the children and staff using Makaton.
Dyslexia is a learning difficulty that primarily affects the skills involved in accurate and fluent reading and spelling. Below are some resources and advice to support learners with this difficulty.
Autism is a developmental disability, For people who have the condition, It affects the way that they communicate and how they relate to other people. It also affects how they make sense of the world around them. Autism is a ‘spectrum condition’. This means that some people are severely affected, whereas others are only mildly affected, and all levels in between. All people with autism share certain difficulties, but all are affected in different ways. Below are some sources of information to help families who need support with autism. If you require further information or are concerned about your child in relation to ASD symptoms, please contact Mrs Baines to discuss your concerns.
Autism – NHS
National Autistic Society
The Isabella Trust
ADDvanced Solutions
Speech & Language can affect lots of children, difficulties can include: incorrectspeech sound production, communication and vocabulary difficulties and stammering.
Below are some information details about speech and language and how you can support your child. If you require further information or feel your child needs a referral, please make an appointment to see our SENCO Mrs Baines who will be happy to support you.
