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First concerns - stage one
- Assess
Observed emerging and/or fluctuating difficulties with some or all of the following:
Relationship & Interaction
- communicating and/or forming relationships
- expressing feelings and needs appropriately
- understanding and participating in relationships - generally seeking too little or too much adult or peer attention
- communicating appropriately - overly verbal behaviours that cause disruption
- coping with social situations or activities, leading to withdrawing, refusing, avoiding, lack of engagement and a need for space or time out
- maintaining positive relationships - teases/provokes other children and young people
- accepting responsibility - often lying or blaming others
Response to School & Classroom Expectations
- listening and attending - causing low level behaviours that provide distractions and task avoidance
- with social norms - behaviour that can be challenging and/or upsetting towards peers or adults, that is perceived to be intentional
- communicating appropriately - talking too much and/or frequently interrupts others
- engaging in a task
- following class and school rules
Self/Emotional Regulation
- controlling own emotions
- anxiety and/or low mood
- self-esteem and/or resilience
- self-harming behaviours
- attending and concentrating - active or restless, struggles to remain in seat
- controlling sudden urges
- personal organisation
- Plan
Class teacher liaises with parents/carers and child/young person on a regular basis – minimum of 3 meetings within a 12-month period.
- Obtain and record updated parent/carers views
- Obtain and record updated child or young person’s view
If necessary:
- Consider past teacher observations and views
- Collate current assessments related to area of concern – qualitative, quantitative and summative
- Consider any relevant health records that have been shared/provided (e.g. school health)
- Observe and compare potential barriers to learning and participation across a range of contexts
- Strategies
Continue with any relevant strategies from initial observation stage, plus:
Make Changes to Learning Environment
- Make tasks short and multimodal, with frequent breaks
- Appropriate adjustments to light, space, temperature and noise
- Ensure commands and instructions are clear
- Use displays and create a classroom atmosphere that promotes a positive ethos
Encourage Behaviour for Learning
- Use child or young person’s name when addressing them or gaining attention
- Clear system of positive reinforcement is used throughout out the school day. Utilise positive behaviour strategies, such as praising desired behaviour, separating behaviour from child or young person and reminding of expectations, eg.
- Say what you want him or her to do, rather than what you don’t
- Label the behaviour but not the child or young person
- Remind child or young person of a rule rather than telling them off, or make a point of praising a child or young person who is keeping the rule
- Remind child or young person of the consequences of the various behavioural choices open to them
- Make an effort to ‘catch the child or young person being good’ and praise them
- Have a range of simple, accessible activities that the child or young person enjoys to use as ‘calming’ exercise
- Plan lessons that are fun and engaging and have a clear structure
- Clear and consistent rules, routines and procedures in the classroom
- The classroom has a calm, productive feel
- Direct steps are taken to build the relationship between teacher and the child or young person
- Provide differentiated feedback and individualised instruction
- High but realistic expectations are evident and understood
- Recognise that mistakes are a valuable part of the learning process rather than failure
Build Social & Emotional Learning
Devise a private signal system to communicate with child or young person
- Use a buddy or mentoring system with another child or young person
- Take steps to build child or young person’s self-confidence, for example:
- Provide opportunities to share interests and skills
- Have them keep records of new things they learn and can do
- Photocopy good pieces of work for them to take home
- Celebrate resilience and mistakes
- Provide opportunities for reflection and reframing
- Provide opportunities for supported peer interaction to further strengthen social and communication skills, explicitly teach the child or young person specific social and communication skills e.g. how to ask for help
- Give child or young person opportunities to practice a range of social and individual self-management skills
Provide Emotional Supports
- Ask the child or young person what they like to do to relax, give them opportunities to use a range of simple, accessible activities that they enjoy to use as ‘calming’ exercises
- Help the child or young person identify an appropriate adult that they feel comfortable sharing concerns with
- Provide safe area for child or young person to calm down or concentrate when required
- All adults to make time and extra effort to develop a relationship with the child or young person and let them know they are held in mind when not teaching them
- Debrief of successful behaviours at the end of the lesson is done and positive messages are sent home
First concerns - stage two
- Assess
Observed ongoing and/or fluctuating difficulties with the following:
Relationship & Interaction
- communicating and/or forming relationships
- expressing feelings and needs appropriately
- understanding and participating in relationships - generally seeking too little or too much adult or peer attention
- communicating appropriately - overly verbal behaviours that cause disruption
- coping with social situations or activities, leading to withdrawing, refusing, avoiding, lack of engagement and a need for space or time out
- maintaining positive relationships - teases/provokes other children and young people
- accepting responsibility - often lying or blaming others
Response to School & Classroom Expectations
- listening and attending - causing low level behaviours that provide distractions and task avoidance
- with social norms - behaviour that can be challenging and/or upsetting towards peers or adults, that is perceived to be intentional
- communicating appropriately - talking too much and/or frequently interrupts others
- engaging in a task
- following class and school rules
Self/Emotional Regulation
- controlling own emotions
- anxiety and/or low mood
- self-esteem and/or resilience
- self-harming behaviours
- attending and concentrating - active or restless, struggles to remain in seat
- controlling sudden urges
- personal organisation
- Plan
Class teacher liaises with parents/carers and child/young person on a regular basis – minimum of 3 meetings within a 12-month period.
- Obtain and record updated parents/carers views
- Obtain and record updated child or young person’s views
If necessary:
- Strategies
SENCO discussion and classroom observation with Class teacher to follow up strategies from the initial observations and First Concerns 1 to ensure they are being implemented consistently.
Make Changes to Learning Environment
- Consider the use of positive role models
- Make tasks short, with frequent breaks
- to support child or young person to achieve, thereby strengthening self-esteem and avoiding frustration if child or young person is struggling with tasks
- Monitor your own body language, facial expression and tone to project calm and consideration, avoiding aggression or agitation associated with frustration.
- Appropriate adjustments to light, space, temperature and noise.
- Ensure commands and instructions are clear.
- Continually model desired behaviours
- Ensure work is appropriately differentiated in order the child or young person to feel a level of success.
Encourage Behaviour for Learning
- Use child or young person’s name when addressing them or gaining attention
- Utilise positive behaviour strategies, such as praising desired behaviour, separating behaviour from child or young person and reminding of expectations, eg.
- Say what you want him or her to do, rather than what you don’t
- Label the behaviour but not the child or young person
- Remind child or young person of a rule rather than telling them off, or make a point of praising a child or young person who is keeping the rule
- Remind child or young person of the consequences of the various behavioural choices open to them
- Make an effort to ‘catch the child or young person being good’ and praise them
- Have a range of simple, accessible activities that the child or young person enjoys to use as ‘calming’ exercise.
- Lesson planning ensure they are fun and engaging with a clear structure.
- Clear rules, routines and procedures in the classroom.
- The classroom has a calm, productive feel.
- Clear system of positive reinforcement is used throughout out the school day. Children and young people are aware when they have done something well.
- Praise / positive reinforcement occurs at least four times as much as highlighting negative behaviours.
- Direct steps are taken to build the relationship between teacher and the child or young person.
- Teacher differentiated by feedback and individualised instruction.
- High but realistic expectations are evident and understood.
- Making mistakes is seen to be alright and the classroom ethos conveys this.
Build Social & Emotional Learning
- Use available adults to model, coach and reinforce group work skills when the child or young person is working collaboratively with others
Devise a private signal system to let the child or young person know when they are off task or behaving inappropriately
- Use a buddy or mentoring system with another child or young person
- Take steps to build child or young person’s self-confidence, for example:
- Provide opportunities to share interests and skills
- Give them responsibilities or ask the child or young person to help others
- Have them keep records of new things they learn and can do
- Photocopy good pieces of work for them to take home
- Provide opportunities for supported peer interaction to further strengthen social and communication skills.
- Explicitly teach the child or young person specific social and communication skills e.g. how to ask for help
- Child or young person is given the opportunity to practice social and individual self-management skills.
Provide Emotional Supports
- Build in time for ‘emotional check-ins’ during the day, and listen without judgement
- Have a range of simple, accessible activities that the child or young person enjoys to use as ‘calming’ exercises
- Help the child or young person identify an appropriate adult that they feel comfortable sharing concerns with
- Provide safe area for child or young person to calm down or concentrate when required
- Provide access to ‘fiddle toys’ or similar items
- Make time and extra effort to develop a relationship with the child or young person and let them know they are held in mind when not teaching them
- Debrief of successful behaviours at the end of the lesson is done and positive messages are sent home.
SEN support - stage one
- Assess
Observed persistent and moderate difficulties with some or all of the following:
Relationship & Interaction
- communicating and/or forming relationships, regularly reluctant to share materials or attention, participate in social groups and distracts other children or young people, or self
- expressing feelings and needs appropriately
- understanding and participating in relationships - generally seeking too little or too much adult or peer attention
- communicating appropriately - overly verbal behaviours that cause disruption
- coping with social situations or activities, leading to withdrawing, refusing, avoiding, lack of engagement and a need for space or time out
- maintaining positive relationships - teases/provokes other children and young people
- accepting responsibility - often lying or blaming others
- Avoidance of new experiences/fear of failure despite strategies and additional support described at ‘First Concerns’
- Harmful or unsocial behaviour in different settings, which may be upsetting or pose a risk to self or others
Response to School & Classroom Expectations
- Verbal aggression to peers or adults which is high frequency and sustained
- High levels of disruption causing break down in group activities
- Removing self from environment due to dysregulation
Emotional Regulation
- Frustration and distress which may result in danger or damage to self, people or property
- Self removal from the environment posing a risk to self and others
- Risk taking behaviours may cause safeguarding concerns
- Unable to recognise and communicate their emotions
- Impulsivity
Emotional responses that are not typical of the majority of the age group
- Reduced ability to acknowledge or accept responsibility for his/her own actions in a heighted emotional state
- Mood changes adversely affecting participation, engagement, inclusion and concentration levels
- Self-harming behaviours
- Inability to independently regulate their own emotions
- Inappropriate level of response that may cause damage to self, people or property
- Hypervigilance
- Plan
SENCO, Class teacher, parents/carers and child/young person continue to liaise on a regular basis with the SENCo taking the lead having a minimum of 3 meetings within a 12-month period
At this time:
- Obtain and record updated parents/carers views
- Obtain and record updated child or young person’s views
- Review strategies used at First Concerns stages
- Complete (the appropriate support plan e.g. IEP, Pupil Passport etc. and review on a regular basis (e.g. at least termly)
- Place child or young person on register as SEN Support (Code K)
- Implement strategies (including targeted support and/or resources) up to agreed financial levels: Universal funding (AWPU) plus up to a maximum of £6,000
- Ensure all staff involved in the teaching of the individual child are aware of their difficulties
- Ensure class teacher and teaching assistants receive relevant Continuing Professional Development (CPD)
If available and/or appropriate
- Differentiate response to behaviours
- Complete Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) Checklist
- Refer parents to Young Carers to access appropriate training courses e.g. managing challenging behaviours and incredible years
- Complete a full sensory assessment
- Complete SDQ and/or Boxhall profile
- Suggest parents attend a CAMHs drop-in session
- Referral to school nursing team via single point of access
- Strategies
Continue with any relevant strategies from First Concerns Stages, plus:
Make Changes to Learning Environment
- As far as possible, take steps to increase stability and predictability of environment e.g. visual timetables
- Provide activities in a safe area for child or young person to calm down or concentrate when required
- Personalised seating and grouping of children and young people to meet their needs
- Make tasks short, with frequent sensory/movement breaks
- Support maintaining focus in a non-confrontational way at regular intervals using strategies such as using the child or young person’s name, touching the desk in front of them or their book, passing post-its of instructions, using an agreed card system such as the Incredible 5-point scale
- Access to sensory based activities
Encourage Behaviour for Learning
- Implement an appropriate and individualised behaviour management programme
- Provide individual task lists to enable child or young person to complete tasks to deadlines and reduce anxiety and/or anger
- Provide a plan and support for unstructured and/or transition times
- Promote Nurturing principles
Build Social & Emotional Learning
- Use appropriate emotional awareness and regulation workbooks or programmes within individual or a small group
- Implement an individual or small group tailored social skills intervention
- Use an anger scale with the child or young person, such as 5-point anger scale
- Individual or small group use of low level emotional health interventions such as: relaxation exercises, safe place imagery, positive affirmations, growth mindset, positive events log, anxiety scale, worry charts, motivational rewards, celebration book
- Give them responsibilities or ask the child or young person to help others
- Make communication skills and behavioural expectations a core focus – this should include ways to show you are listening
- Teach good mental health strategies either through Social and Emotional, mindfulness or similar therapeutic activities to calm and clear the mind.
Provide Emotional Supports
- Use appropriate interventions from self-harm pathway on an individual basis
- Use a buddy or mentoring system with another child or young person.
- Trauma and grief therapy
- Specialist therapeutic interventions e.g. play therapy, art therapy, interest based activities that facilitate reflective practice etc.
SEN support - stage two
- Assess
Observed persistent and moderate difficulties with some or all of the following:
Relationship & Interaction
- Difficulties with interpersonal communication or relationships, regularly reluctant to share materials or attention, participate in social groups and distracts other children or young people, or self
- Is withdrawn and isolated.
- Generally seeking too little or too much adult attention, which may often be negative attention
- Struggles to / will not communicate feelings appropriately
- Avoidance of new experiences / fear of failure despite strategies and additional support described at ‘First Concerns’.
- Harmful or unsocial behaviour in different settings, which may be upsetting or pose a risk to self or others.
Response to School & Classroom Expectations
- Verbal aggression to peers or adults which is high frequency and sustained.
- High levels of disruption causing break down in group activities.
Emotional Regulation
- Frustration and distress which may result in danger or damage to self, people or property
Emotional responses that are not typical of the majority of the age group
- Reduced ability to acknowledge or accept responsibility for his/her own actions in a heighted emotional state
- Anxiety and/or low mood adversely affecting participation, engagement, inclusion and concentration levels in multiple situations and requiring sustained and recorded adult intervention and support
- Self-harming behaviours
- Plan
SENCO, class teacher, parents/carers, child/young person and any external professionals involved liaise on a regular basis – minimum of 3 meetings within a 12-month period.
At this time, continue to:
- Obtain and record updated parents’ views
- Obtain and record updated child or young person’s views
- Complete a SEN Support Plan and follow the assess, plan do review approach reviewing on a regular basis (e.g. at least termly)
- Check child/young person on register as SEN Support
Consider further assessment under the following headings;
- Classroom / School environment
- Wider Environmental Factors – Family / community
- Strengths – Exceptions, What works?
- CYP skills – Academic and SEL
- CYP’s belief and Psychological constructs, self –esteem, resilience
- Bio- Physical / medical (Including vision, hearing….)
Make a referral as appropriate to external agencies:
Implement strategies (including targeted support and/or resources/ equipment this may include specialist seating, toileting and any other equipment as advised by professionals) up to agreed financial levels: Universal funding (AWPU) plus up to a maximum of £6,000
- Strategies
Continue with any relevant strategies from First Concerns level and SEN Support Stage One, plus:
Make Changes to Learning Environment
- Provide a regular and consistent safe area for child or young person
- Provide a personalised timetable that includes sensory breaks and an alternative curriculum if required
- Use available adults to coach and reinforce group work skills when the child or young person is working collaboratively with others
- Individualised support that will include curriculum content, group dynamics
Encourage Behaviour for Learning
- Implement and monitor a personalised behaviour plan with all parties involved including the child or young person
- Implement and monitor personalised timetables and task lists to enable child or young person to complete tasks to deadlines and reduce anxiety and/or anger
- Devise a discreet system of communication to support the child or young person
- Utilise a trauma informed approach and implement the nurturing principles
Build Social & Emotional Learning
- Provide a targeted Social Emotional Literacy programme with family support and training
Provide Emotional Supports
- Child or young person is involved in identifying a member of staff who is able to carry out close liaison between home and school to ensure consistency across settings
- Specialist therapeutic interventions e.g. play therapy, art therapy, interest based activities that facilitate reflective practice etc.
Complex
- Assess
Observed persistent and significant difficulties with the following:
Relationship & Interaction
- Withdraws or chooses not to participate in any interactions to a degree that requires continuing adult support within and outside the classroom context, e.g. a more personalised curriculum paying regard to specific areas of interest or strength and difficulty and differentiated
- Difficulties in forming and maintaining reciprocal peer and adult relationships leading to significant social isolation and disengagement
- Verbal and/or physical aggression to peers or adults which does not cease with de-escalation techniques and/or requires time out from the situation
- Will not communicate feelings appropriately. More likely to be communicated through negative behaviours.
- Child or young person displays apathy or desensitisation towards situations.
Response to School & Classroom Expectations
- Complete disengagement and withdrawal in a classroom setting requiring high levels of adult support to re-engage with and access
- Anti-authoritative behaviour
- Consistent high levels of disruption
Emotional Regulation
- Extreme emotional responses that are not age or situationally appropriate leading to an inability to engage with any formal learning situations and taking a significant amount of time and support to calm from
- Risk taking behaviour that has the potential to harm. Positive handling is necessary to safeguard the child/young person and others
- Limited ability to acknowledge or accept responsibility for his/her own actions in a heighted emotional state
- Anxiety and/or low mood adversely affecting participation, engagement, inclusion and concentration levels in the majority of situations and requiring specific and targeted interventions. May already have referral to mental health
- Emotional functioning affected to a level where regular self-harm is occurring and necessitating specialist mental health
- Difficulties in controlling own emotions and feelings of frustration or distress in response to social or environmental situations that requires emotional containment.
- Self-harming behaviours
- Plan
Class teacher, SENCO, parents/carers and child/young person continue to liaise on a regular basis – minimum of 3 meetings within a 12-month period
- Obtain and record updated parents’ views and child or young person’s views
If EHC Plan is not in place:
- Review SEN Support Plan (at least termly)
- Consider a request for EHC needs assessment (see section on EHC needs assessments)
If EHC Plan is in place:
- Change code on SEN register to indicate child/young person has EHC plan in place (code E)
- Refer to described outcomes and provision and implement - the class teacher, SENCo and assistant working with the child should have regular sight of the EHC plan
- Continue to plan, do, review against the specified outcomes in EHC Plan – the targets on assess plan do review will be broken down into smaller targets as the EHC plan outcomes are usually end of key stage
- Complete Annual Review of EHC Plan – The annual review process | (IPSEA) Independent Provider of Special Education Advice
- Continue to act on external advice from educational and health agencies as necessary, including Speech and Language Therapy (SALT) care plan
- Implement strategies (including provision of targeted support and/or resources) up to agreed financial levels: Universal funding (AWPU) plus up to £6,000 and any additional top-up as agreed based on the provision detailed in the EHC Plan
- Ensure Class teacher and Teaching assistants receive relevant Continuing Professional Development (CPD)
- Strategies
Continue with any relevant strategies from First Concerns stages and/or SEN Support Stages, plus:
Make Changes to Learning Environment
- Develop an individualised whole school approach that provides a consistent reward and sanction structure
Encourage Behaviour for Learning
- Implement an appropriately differentiated curriculum; this may incorporate a personalised/ alternative curriculum and/or timetable (facilitating SEMH skill development)
- Short term and focused alternative provision within school where appropriate
- Provide a safe and supervised area for calming and time away from triggers
- Adapt curriculum and allocated resources (adult support, or physical resources e.g. ICT or sensory items) to meet the individual SEMH needs
Build Social & Emotional Learning
- Use social stories to explore choices of actions and potential consequences
Implement specific lessons in social interaction that cover conversation, meal time etiquette, personal safety, manners etc. (It may be necessary to review facial expressions and body language as part of this). This should include giving and receiving compliments.
- Teach self-help strategies to minimise hypervigilance, such as not sitting next to or facing doors or windows, using noise cancelling headphones to block out sound
- Use reflective practice to support positives and successes and develop a ‘social toolkit’
- Use role play/verbal rehearsal before activities to reinforce behavioural expectations and reduce social anxiety
Provide Emotional Supports
- Discuss social boundaries for forthcoming activities explicitly to support social communication difficulties in preparation for events or changes to the normal school routine.
- Provide access to appropriate key adult support
- Support of parents to understand mental health and guidance on appropriate techniques and skills to use.
Specialist support
- Assess
Observed difficulties requiring consistent high levels of specialist interventions with the following:
Relationship & Interaction
- Cannot participate in any interactions without a specialist degree of adult support within and outside the classroom context. e.g. a bespoke curriculum, differentiated appropriately, to incorporate social and emotional strategies as well as academic
- Anti-authoritative behaviour in all environments
- Extreme difficulties in forming and maintaining reciprocal peer and adult relationships leading to significant social isolation and disengagement or total apathy
Response to School & Classroom Expectations
- Unable to communicate feelings appropriately, resulting in negative behaviours such as verbal and physical aggression which requires frequent specialist de-escalation and positive handling
- Complete disengagement and withdrawal requiring consistent, specialist adult support to attend, participate or to re-engage with and access learning
Emotional Regulation
- Regular and/or targeted risk-taking behaviour that is likely to harm without specialist intervention. Positive handling plan is necessary to safeguard the child/young person and others
- Erratic and potentially unsafe emotional responses leading to an inability to engage with any formal learning situations and taking a significant amount of time and support to calm down
- High levels of distress and an inability to engage with learning without a bespoke package.
- Self- harming behaviours
- Plan
Class teacher, SENCO, parents/carers and child/young person continue to liaise on a regular basis – minimum of 3 meetings within a 12-month period
Continue to:
- Refer to described outcomes and provision and implement - the class teacher, SENCo and assistant working with the child should have regular sight of the EHC plan
- Continue to plan, do, review against the specified outcomes in EHC Plan – the targets on assess plan do review will be broken down into smaller targets as the EHC plan outcomes are usually end of key stage
- Complete Annual Review of EHC Plan – The annual review process | (IPSEA) Independent Provider of Special Education Advice
- Continue to act on external advice from educational and health agencies as necessary, including Speech and Language Therapy (SALT) care plan
- Implement strategies (including provision of targeted support and/or resources) up to agreed financial levels: Universal funding (AWPU) plus up to £6,000 and any additional top-up as agreed based on the provision detailed in the EHC Plan
- Ensure Class teacher and Teaching assistants receive relevant Continuing Professional Development (CPD)
- Strategies
Continue with any relevant strategies from First Concerns, SEN Support and/or Complex levels, plus:
Multiagency approach
- Specialist, collaborative, multiagency interventions which could for example include the use of specific specially trained staff to meet the individual needs, or difficulties requiring admission to inpatient services which LA educational and health professionals agree will require ongoing mental health services and specialist interventions that can only be met in a specialist setting once