What we have to offer children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) at Startright Pre-School. Here you will find some FAQs.
How does Startright Pre-School know if children need extra help?
Each child is assigned a key person as soon as he/ she is registered to start at Startright Pre-School. The key person spends time with the child and if they notice any evidence of special educational needs, we will discuss our findings with you and put a plan in place to support the child.
What should I do if I think my child may have special educational needs?
If you think your child may have special educational needs, we advise that you speak to the manager who will arrange a meeting with the SENCO officer. Once it has been identified that your child has special educational needs, we will set up an individual education plan (IEP), working in partnership with you. This plan is unique to your child and identifies the areas of support your child needs, we will provide the support and monitor its effectiveness. Your child’s key person and SENCO will discuss the IEP with you and take your views into account.
How will the Early Years Curriculum be matched to my child’s needs?
Within the Early Years Curriculum you, your child’s key person and the SENCO will identify any areas that need to be adjusted in order to meet your child’s needs. To do this we may use alternative resources and request advice from external services.
How will my child’s progress and learning be monitored?
We will review your child’s IEP with you half termly and look at what the next step need to be. We also have an open door policy for parents and carers, so you will be able to speak to your child’s key person whenever the need arises. We will observe and assess your child’s development at regular intervals. Our observations and assessments will be available in the learning journal. We also have a Pre-School/ home communication book that is used for more specific communication between us. You can write about anything you feel we need to know to ensure we make every day appropriate for your child. We will also support your child’s learning by offering suggestions as to what you can be doing at home to contribute to your child’s next steps.
What specialist services and expertise are available at or accessed by the Pre-School?
Most of our staff have a wealth of experience of almost two decades as early year’s professionals and are passionate about children. We also have a designated SENCO officer who has been trained just to support children with special education needs. We regularly access a range of specialist services via specialist early years teacher and other multi-disciplinary services e.g speech and language therapists, paediatric services etc when required.
How will my child be included in activities outside the Pre-School, including school trips?
We take the ratio of adult to children very seriously and always make sure every outside activity is risk assessed with inclusion as focus. In order to ensure no child is excluded therefore, we engage extra staff and involve parent volunteers on such trips.
How accessible is the Pre-School?
Startright is not wheelchair friendly because of our facility. We advise that you make an appointment to see the space before deciding whether it would be appropriate to your child’s needs and whether it could accommodate their equipment. There are disabled changing and toilet facilities.
How are the Pre-School’s resources allocated and matched to children’s special educational need?
If your child requires one to one support, we will need to apply to the Local Authority for funding. If our application is successful, the funding will be used to meet the additional staffing costs. There are occasions when only part-funding is agreed and therefore we will discuss with you, how best to support your child.
How are parents involved in the Pre-School? How can I be involved?
We operate an open door policy where parents can come in and discuss their concerns. The manager is always at the door every morning to receive the children and also in the afternoon to give feedback to parents on what their child had done each day. We work in partnership with parents and carers and would like you to feel involved in Pre-School. We welcome parent volunteers. We will also keep you informed of general Pre-School news via our monthly newsletters.
Who can I contact for further information?
For further information about Startright Pre-School please contact us;
Mrs BJ (Pre-School Manager) Tel: 07903 565246
This offer is accurate at the time of this publication but services are regularly reviewed and could change. All information will be updated as soon as possible to reflect any new service offer. Date of publication: 25 August 2014.