What happens when my child changes class or school?

We recognise that transitions can be difficult for a child with SEND and take steps to ensure that any transition is as smooth as possible.

If your child is joining our nursery or reception class:

The Foundation Stage Staff work closely with other pre-school settings to ensure a smooth transition for all children.  Pupils identified with SEND will be part of a transition process that includes working with parents, other settings and professionals to make sure the best arrangements are made to meet their needs.

A transition plan will be created so everyone involved with your child understands what the difficulties and strengths are prior to them starting at the school. If appropriate our staff will visit the child at home or another setting so they become familiar to the child before they join their new school.

If your child is moving to another school:

We will contact the school SENCO and ensure he/she knows about any special arrangements or support that need to be made for your child.

We will make sure that all records about your child are passed on as soon as possible.

When moving classes in school:

Information will be passed on to the new class teacher in advance and in most cases, a planning meeting will take place with the new teacher. All IEPs will be shared with the new teacher.

Additional support to take account of children’s individual needs can be arranged, e.g. a child friendly book of photos and additional information to support the transition from one setting to another.

Moving onto Secondary School:

Many secondary schools hold open evenings for parents to attend in order to support your decision making process about which school is the right choice for your child. If you would like advice and support about choosing the right school for your child you can speak to your child’s teacher, the SENDCo or the Family Support Advisor. You can also contact Parent Partnership and School Admissions.

A member of staff from the secondary school your child will be attending comes to visit and meets with the children. Where possible your child will visit their new school and in some cases staff from the new school will visit your child in this school. Transition paperwork is completed for all Year 6 pupils to ensure information is transferred.

If your child has already been identified as having special educational needs, then the Staff at our school meet with secondary school staff during Year 6. Details of the pupil's needs are passed on to the new SENDCo, along with details of what support has been in place at our school to help them. Our SENDCo passes on information about any outside agencies that have been involved and all the paperwork is passed on, including documents such as IEPs and outside agency reports.

For some children we can arrange enhanced transitions that could include extra visits to their new school, accompanied visits with staff from our school, targeted work with a learning mentor or TA to prepare them for secondary education and multi-agency meetings with parents to ensure everything is in place. Some of these children opt to hold a Person Centred Planning Meeting where they have a say in what information they would like to share with their new school, who should attend and what is discussed. Some children use this as an opportunity to talk through some of their anxieties about transition and ask questions about what the new school can offer them.