Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND)
At Woodcroft Nursery School we support many children with a wide variety of additional needs or disabilities.
Funding to support children’s additional needs is either through our internal budget or via Essex County Council’s additional SEN Premium funding stream.
If we are aware of a child’s additional needs before they start with us, we liaise with other agencies such as Speech Therapists, Specialist Teachers and Health Visitors to aim to get support in place as soon as the child starts. If you do have any concerns, please do pop along to see us so that we can plan to support your child’s needs before they arrive.
"Staff share high expectations for helping every child to thrive. This begins the moment children join the school, or earlier if they attend the family group. Adults have secure knowledge and expertise to know how children develop and grow. As a result, they swiftly identify children who have special educational needs/or disabilities (SEND). The support and resources provided to help children with SEND are high quality. Consequently, children with SEND achieve well alongside their peers." (Ofsted May 2023)
Once children have started in either Little Woodcroft or Big Woodcroft, classroom staff will assess and monitor all children’s attainment and progress. Should they have concerns about how children are developing, they will talk to parents about ways to help them both at home and in nursery.
If it is felt your child does need extra support in nursery then there is a graduated level of support. This starts with classroom staff differentiating their teaching and learning strategies to suit your child’s individual needs, such as simplifying their instructions or using pictures to help your child understand what is being asked of them.
If it is felt that your child needs a bit more support, then you will be invited to speak to our SENCO Louisa Battersby. Your child’s needs will be looked at closely to see if further referrals to other agencies such as Health professionals may be useful. Outcomes will be agreed with you that are important to and for your child and we will discuss what is or isn’t working. There are termly opportunities for you to formally meet with the SENCO and classroom staff to review your child’s outcomes.
At Woodcroft Nursery School, we see the support we offer to ALL children as an ongoing and ever-changing process, and we often meet with parents informally for quick chats as and when situations or questions arise.