Well done for making it through the toughest year that I have known in my 42 years of working within the education sector. The challenges and difficulties have been unprecedented and even as I write this, with less than a week to go until the end of term for many of you, we are still seeing bubbles collapsing and more and more staff and students having to self-isolate. The DfE …
Department for Education 2021 Reception baseline assessment: assessment and reporting arrangements (ARA) – 6th May This statutory guidance contains information for assessing and reporting the reception baseline assessment in the 2021 to 2022 academic year. All the assessment resources should have been delivered to schools at the beginning of June. Schools and colleges to benefit from boost in expert mental health support – Press Release – 10th May Gavin Williamson …
Since school fully opened on March 8th we have seen a number of new reports published about pupils with SEND. In this blog I share with you five of these reports and their findings and recommendations. It is hoped that the Department for Education (DfE) take into account some of the findings in these reports as part of the SEND Review which is currently taking place. Identifying pupils with SEND …
Dear Colleagues I hope you are all well and have enjoyed a pleasant long weekend. BBC Bitesize The BBC has said that it will continue to provide learning support for teachers and pupils into the summer months. A three-hour Bitesize Learning Zone will be launched on CBBC and BBC iPlayer on school days, including new episodes of Bitesize Daily. This means that the Bitesize Learning Zone will continue to be …
As all schools plan to fully reopen from the 8th March I thought it would be a good time to look back over lockdown and share with you some of the key SEND information, guidance and documents that have been published during this time. I would firstly like to say a huge thank you to everyone for your hard work and commitment during these very difficult times. Trying to juggle …
SEND Update – What have you missed during lockdown? Read More »
Welcome to my December News Update. Congratulations on getting to the end of a very challenging year. I do hope that you are all going to have a restful and relaxing winter break to ensure that you are fully recharged for the year ahead. This is my final update for 2020, outlining some the documents and information published in the last month. What maintained schools must publish online – Updated …
On the 3rd December Gavin Williamson, Secretary of State for Education made an announcement about end of KS1 and KS2 assessment arrangements in Summer 2021. The DfE and STA have published a number of guidance documents to support these arrangements. 2021 early years foundation stage: assessment and reporting arrangements (ARA) PLEASE NOTE: These assessment and reporting arrangements (ARA) do not apply to schools participating in the EYFS reforms early adopter …
EYFS, KS1 and KS2 Assessment Arrangements for Summer 2021 Read More »
Welcome to the November SEND News Update. I have included some more general educational updates as well as those for SEND as they may impact on you and your setting. REMINDER: The virtual SEND Conference will take place on 27th November. You can be part of the conference on the day, or watch the sessions later on when you have time. The videos are always available. This year there are …
As we get closer to half-term, I am sure that you are all looking forward to a well-earned break. This half term has been very tough and extremely challenging and I congratulate you all on your perseverance and commitment to supporting the children and young people in your schools and colleges. There have been a significant number of documents circulated during the last few weeks. I have brought them all …
Lorraine has recently had an article published in collaboration with TTS, where she reflects on what children have experienced during lockdown, how this might affect their return to school and what teachers can do to support them. Lorraine uses TTS’ “Calming Cat” as an example of new strategies which can support children and their different needs at this challenging time. Read more Here
I hope that you have all managed to have a summer break although for many of you it will have been very different from other summers. I know many of you will have spent some time planning for the new term and trying to get to grips with what the “new normal” might look like. Over the summer there have been new documents, information and guidance from a number of …
I hope that you are all keeping safe and well and are coping with all the challenges that lockdown has given us. I am sure many of you are now back at school and living in your ‘bubbles’ and if you are not then you are continuing to support your pupils through home learning and regular catch-ups. I have been amazed at the way schools have gone the extra mile …
In the last few weeks life has changed considerably for everybody but for those working in a school it has changed beyond recognition. At the beginning of next week it may all change again as we begin to see schools opening up to a larger group of children. There is so much speculation at the moment about is it safe to open? Will there be enough space in schools? …
Supporting the Mental Health and Well-Being of pupils, staff and families Read More »
On Sunday 10th May the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, set out the government’s “route-map” for bringing everyone out of lockdown. There were an awful lot of ifs, buts and maybes and a great deal of ambiguity in what he announced especially around the re-opening of schools. On Monday 11th May the Government published its 60 page UK Government’s COVID-19 Recovery Strategy(Roadmap) while the Department for Education (DfE) published two documents …
I hope you all had a good half term. Halloween, Bonfire Night and Diwali are behind us and we are on the countdown to a General Election and Christmas. Although it is easy to reflect on what has happened in the world of SEND over the last half term it is far more difficult to predict what will be happening after December 12th. Watch this space! House of Commons Education …
Welcome back to a new school year. I hope you have all had an enjoyable and restful summer and are fully prepared for the year ahead. In this back to school update I hope to bring you all the news, documents, policies and information that was published over the summer break. Major review on SEND announced On the 6th September the DfE announced they were going to carry out a …
Welcome back – I hope you all had a relaxing half term and ready for the final push to the end of the school year. Statements of SEN and EHC Plans: England 2019 – DfE – May 30th This document outlines the statistics and analysis on statements of special educational needs (SEN) and education, health and care (EHC) plans in England based on census data collected in January 2019. Key …
Some of you reading this will already be on your Easter break but many of you will be counting down the hours until Friday when you will get your well – deserved Easter holiday. I hope you all manage to get some rest and relaxation after a very long term. I have brought together the key SEND documents and information that have been launched this term (probably less than normal …