SEND

Hello and welcome to the SEND section of the website.

My name is Julie Hudson and I am the SENDCO at Thirsk School & Sixth Form College.

I have worked in the school for over 18 years, so I like to tell the students I have been here longer than they have been alive, I think that they think I am 100 (I'm not!)

During my time here, before taking on the role of SENDCO, I have worked as a maths teacher and as part of the pastoral team, and we all know every teacher is a teacher of SEND. I didn't hesitate when the role of SENDCO became available and I was delighted when I was offered the role. It is such an important role in the school, as all students have different needs and all students deserve to have those needs met in every lesson, this is even more important for those students who have a learning difficulty or disability, which makes it harder for them to learn.

The SEND department offers support to students through in-class teaching assistant support as well as support out of lessons, running various programmes of intervention to help our students develop skills and resilience to enable them to become confident, independent learners. We have our own area in school, in F Block, that offers a quiet, focused and productive atmosphere where students get individual and bespoke support. In addition to F Block, we also have a building that is dedicated to supporting students with social, emotional and mental health needs. Our staff in the Inclusion Unit provide invaluable support to students, dealing with a vast array of needs.

Overview of the SEND provision mapping across the setting

In addition to our teaching staff following the graduated approach to deliver quality first teaching, we run several different interventions and provision for individuals who require additional and different support, examples of which are below. As part of our monitoring the impact of provision, each term teachers complete an SEND Review where they record strategies that have been helpful for the student with SEND, and intervention is monitored. These reviews are then discussed with the parent and student who voice their thoughts on the impact of provision.

Nurture

Here at Thirsk School & Sixth Form College we use the pivotal approach for a number of years. Using the Boxall Profile for Young People helps us to ensure we have a full picture of the social, emotional and mental health needs of out students. We believe that applying nurture as a whole school approach we can ensure that we are able to identify the strengths and needs of students. This allows us to set targets, plan interventions and review progress in all areas of student development.