School action/school action plus
When children do not respond to normal classroom teaching and do not make sufficient
progress there is a need for the school to do something additional or different.
School Action stage is when a class teacher will look for ways to support a
child in class. They will work with the Special Educational Needs Coordinator
to identify strategies to assist the child's learning.
Where School Action has not been able to help the child make sufficient progress
the child is placed at School Action Plus stage. The school will seek outside
advice from the council's support services, the local Health Authority or from
Children's Services or other professionals. The school has the resources to
provide additional support at School Action and School Action Plus stages.
Statements
At this level of activity, the council provides a statement of Special Educational Needs (SEN). This determines how these needs should be met and may provide additional resources to fund the actions specified in the statement. This is funded from the delegated cash values attached to the different bands of learning difficulty in a statement.
Additional funding for pupils with statements
The majority of pupils with a statement receive additional funding to meet their specified needs. Funding is allocated to schools by means of a banding structure. The cash value attached to each band allocates the amount of extra funding to the school. This funding will be spent by the school in order to meet the provision specified in the child's statement. The school receives money from the first of the month in which the statement is confirmed. This continues until the child leaves the school unless the statement ceases to be maintained.
The cash values for each band are available from the Special Educational Needs Section.