SENCo Support

I am Karen Smedley, the Special Needs Co-ordinator (SENCo) at the Hathershaw College. I have worked at the Hathershaw College since January 2017 and hold the National Award for Special Needs Co-ordination (NASENCo).

It is my job to:

Oversee the day-to-day operation of the school’s SEN policy
Advise teachers on using a graduated approach to providing SEN support
Advise on the deployment of support and other resources to meet the pupil’s needs effectively
Liaise with parents/carers of pupils with SEN
Liaise with and be a key point of contact for assessment, including referrals to external agencies
Ensure that the school keeps the records of all SEN pupils up to date
Work with the head teacher and school governors to ensure that the school meets its responsibilities with regard to reasonable adjustments and access arrangements.

Every member of staff in our school is responsible for SEND provision: Teachers, Learning Support Assistants, Year Managers, Cover Supervisors and Lunchtime Supervisors. Provision is not solely down to the SENCo, it is embodied, engendered, encouraged and facilitated by the SENCo. Ultimately it is a whole-school ethos of quality first teaching and inclusion.

The aim of our SEND provision is to allow teachers to feel empowered, trained, skilled and supported to differentiate across every curriculum area to enable learners to access work throughout subjects independently or with carefully-planned support.

All relevant information is available to teachers and to support staff in meeting the needs of the pupils in their classes. Equally, staff are asked to identify, refer and discuss any pupils causing concern with the school SENCo . This may be where SEN has not yet been highlighted, but it is felt that pupils may need extra support or a formal diagnosis.

If you have any concerns regarding your child’s educational, health and social development, please don’t hesitate to make an appointment to speak to me. You can contact me by;

Telephone: 0161 770 8555
eMail: ks@hathershaw.org.uk