Woodland Corner
Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities (SEND)
Local Offer
Experience of including people with special educational needs and disabilities
- How will Woodland Corner know if young children need extra help and what parents/carers should do if they think their child may have SEND?
At Woodland Corner we treat every child as an individual. Your child will be allocated a key person who will be responsible for monitoring your child’s progress and development through the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). Through the use of observations and planning for their next steps, we are able to identify any concerns which we will share with you and, with consent we will contact other professionals if required.
If you have any concerns about your child prior to them starting at Woodland Corner, this can be discussed with the manager at your initial visit or your child’s settling in session. Once your child has settled in, you can also speak with your child’s key person, the pre-school leader or Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCo).
- .How will Woodland Corner support your child?
Your child’s key person and the setting SENCo will work with both you and your child with regular meetings to identify your child’s needs, progress and current interests. The key person together with the SENCo will plan next steps for your child, based on their interests which they will share with you.
Woodland Corner can call on a Suffolk County Council Area SENCo for additional support where necessary (with your permission). They will come to the setting to meet with you and observe your child. They can give advice to staff and suggest further strategies to support your child.
- How will Woodland Corner create learning and development opportunities for individual children with SEND?
Woodland Corner is an inclusive setting and will make adjustments to enable every child to be included in our daily activities whenever possible. Our adult focused activities include differentiation for the needs of children with varying abilities and stages of development. For children with SEND, an individual learning plan will be created based on your child’s needs and interests, the key person’s observations and information received from you. This will be shared with you and monitored on a regular basis. Next steps will be planned based on progress and in consultation with you.
- How will both Woodland Corner and you will know how your child is doing and how will we help you to support your child’s learning?
All individual learning plans will be shared with you at regular meetings as they are developed and assessed for progress. This will also be an opportunity to discuss progress at home and to share experiences. Staff will share strategies and learning opportunities they are using for you to continue at home if you wish. Your child’s Electronic Learning Journey "Tapestry" record is available for you to view on line on a regular basis for you to see and to make comments. Staff are available at every session for short discussions and to pass on information, however for longer conversations it may be necessary to make an appointment.
- How will Woodland Corner support the well-being of children with SEND?
We carry out daily risk assessments on the indoor and outdoor environment including security. Equipment is checked for safety and damage. All off site activities are risk assessed. We will discuss individual needs with parents to ascertain any adjustments that need to be made.
We offer ‘settling in’ sessions which will familiarise your child with the setting and give you the opportunity to discuss your child’s individual needs before they commence. This may include nappy changing and toilet training. We are able to administer prescribed lifesaving or long term regular medication once the appropriate permission forms and/or care plans are complete. We store medication in a dedicated cupboard. We will access further training if necessary to enable us to administer the medication.
We promote positive behaviour and all staff attend Positive Behaviour training. Staff provide a consistent approach to behaviour concerns and will share strategies with parents.
Relationships between children and key persons encourage children to share their feelings through discussion, sharing books or using symbols and pictures.
- What training and experience do staff supporting children with SEND have?
All staff are qualified within Early Years. One of ur joint Pre-school Leaders is a QTA and the other is currently completing their Early Years Degree. Our SENCo has level 3 training in working with parents with children with SEN. The manager has Suffolk County Council accredited training in SEN. Staff have training in First Aid, Positive Behaviour, Speech,Language and Communication, English as an Additional Language, Makaton and Allergies and Asthma. We have Every Child a Talker accreditation.
Staff are experienced in working with children with language and communication difficulties, cystic fibrosis, cognitive and physical development delay.
- What specialist services and expertise are available to or accessed by our setting?
We work with all professionals as required for each child and encourage visits to the setting. Where necessary we will refer children to the appropriate professional service for further support. We will use recommendations such as Speech and Language exercises to work to support the child.
We seek support from the SCC Area SENCo for advice and strategies.
- How will Woodland Corner include children with SEND in activities outside the setting including trips?
All children are invited to join activities and trips outside the setting. For all children, there is an expectation that parents accompany their child on trips. We ensure any outside activity is accessible to all children that currently attend the setting. For short local activities we ask for volunteers to ensure high ratios and sufficient adult support for all children’s needs.
- How accessible is Woodland Corner?
There is disabled parking at the front of Nayland Primary School. Woodland Corner is accessed along a path to the school playground and then up a gentle slope. The entrance to the building is level with the path and the setting is on one level. Entrance to the covered decking area is also level and there is a small slope down to the grass play area. There is an accessible toilet in the lobby area.
- How will Woodland Corner support your child prepare and support to join the setting and transfer to a new setting and/or school?
All children have a settling in session with their parent to familiarise them with the setting and staff. We discuss children’s individual needs with the parent and how we will be able to support the child in the setting. We complete a care plan to address a child’s personal needs where required. We encourage parents to continue the settling in process by staying with their child at their first sessions until the child is confident and happy to be left. We feed back to parents about how their child has settled and some of the activities they have accessed.
For children with SEND who are due to start school, we arrange a meeting with the school reception teacher, the parents, where possible any professionals involved, the area SENCo and the Woodland Corner SENCo. We pass on the child’s Learning Journey record, current learning plans and all relevant information to the new setting/school.
- How are the setting’s resources allocated and matched to children’s special educational needs?
We are a registered charity with limited funds, however for children with high level needs we are able to apply for some additional funding to access specialist equipment and resources or to provide an additional member of staff to work with your child. Where possible we will adapt our environment and provision to support the needs of individual children.
- How is the decision made about what type and how much support my child will receive?
The manager, SENCo and key person will work closely with you and other professionals to determine your child’s needs. We will carefully assess, monitor and review individual needs. Regular staff meetings ensure all staff are involved in providing support.
- How are parents involved at Woodland Corner? How can I be involved?
We ask all parents to contribute to their child’s Electronic Learning Journey with observations and comments.
All parents are members of Woodland Corner and are encouraged to join our Committee of Trustees. We regularly invite parents into the setting to share skills with the children and to participate in celebrations. Parents support our fundraising activities which help ensure our fees are affordable and we are able to replace old equipment or purchase new resources.
- Who to contact for further information.
Parents can contact the setting manager for an initial chat on 01206 263054. We encourage prospective parents to visit the setting for more detailed discussion. Our setting SENCo is Abbie Rush.
