A child or young person has to SEND if they have a learning difficulty or disability, which calls for special educational provision to be made for him or her.

Special educational needs can be categorised under four broad areas:

• Cognition and Learning – needs which include moderate, severe and specific learning difficulties. Specific Learning Difficulties (SpLD) encompasses conditions such as dyslexia, dyscalculia and DCD (also known as dyspraxia).
• Communication and Interaction – incorporating speech, language and communication needs (SLCN), social communication needs and Autism Spectrum Disorder.
• Social, Emotional and Mental Health – a wide spectrum of need that means some pupils may struggle with anxiety, sadness and withdrawal whilst other may show challenging or disruptive behaviours. Some may have a diagnoses of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) or demonstrate traits of the condition.
• Sensory and/or Physical – this includes visual or hearing impairments, multiple sensory difficulties, physical disabilities and medical needs.

More information can be found in the SEND Code of Practice 2015.

As a specialist setting, all places at Reach Academy are accessible for pupils with EHCPs only, and secured through Local Authority consultation.  Requests to consult for a place at Reach Academy can be made through annual reviews of EHCPs or when an EHCP is first issued. 

If a place at Reach Academy is secured, pupils will remain on roll at Reach Academy for the duration of KS3.  At the end of KS3, transitions to KS4 site Ethos College can be considered.   

Reach Academy accepts pupils from Kirklees and other neighbouring Local Authorities, which include Wakefield, Calderdale, Bradford and Leeds.

Transition to Reach Academy involve working closely with the previous setting and the relevant Local Authority.  We take a child centred approach to transitions prioritising SEMH needs to aid and support effective transition.  Parents/carers and young people are encouraged to visit and take part in an induction meeting where support is provided with transport applications and general admissions.   

Key staff are allocated and introduced to parents/carers and young people in the early transition phases to support relational development, which is a key priority for Reach Academy.  Parents/carers are also given direct access to group staff each day. 

Graduated and personalised interventions contribute to the positive outcomes for children and young people. Reach Academy is committed to the promotion of inclusive support, raising standards for children with SEMH needs through the Assess-Plan-Do-Review cycle linked to EHCP outcomes. 

Across Reach Academy the six principles of nurture are clearly evident within all aspects of the learning environment with a core offer of small group provision with a circle of consistent key adults who are present every day in the classroom and with all group activities.   

For some pupils, there is an added requirement to provide interventions outside of the classroom through targeted support and in alignment with EHCPs.  This may be deliverable through key staff within group or external specialists i.e School Nurse, Specialist Outreach, CAMHS, Speech and Language, Occupational Therapy etc.  

For a small minority, personalised provision is required as part of our graduated approach, which ensures bespoke support to meet complex SEMH needs. 

All pupils have their learning levels identified on entry into Reach to ensure learning ability is in alignment with their EHCP.  Once allocated to a group, key staff develop termly targets in alignment with EHCP outcomes to measure the impact of the support provided to promote both academic and SEND progress.   

Reach Academy ensures continuous CPD for all staff to enable training and skills remain in reflection of needs set out in EHCPs.  To find out more about staff training and the interventions we deliver as part of our graduated approach, please refer to the SEND Information Report. 

Annual reviews are held within a year from admission to monitor progress towards outcomes for pupils.  Reviews will be held in conjunction with parents/carers, local authority representatives, where possible and relevant professionals who are involved with the child and/or family. 

All Annual Review dates will be set at the start of the academic year or upon completion of a pupil induction. 

All of the school is accessible to children with a physical disability, due to access via a ramp to the student entrance.  We have disabled toileting facilities and class allocations are adapted to ensure rooms are accessible for children with disabilities. 

We ensure that the equipment used is accessible to all children regardless of their needs and that school has staff trained to suit children with a range of needs. 

If you require any further clarification please refer to our SEND policy or Accessibility Plan. If you have any further questions do not hesitate to contact your child’s class teacher or the SENDCo.