Introduction

Mrs Susan Firth
our school DHT and SENDCO.

Our SEN Information Report – which is part of Durham County Council’s Local Offer – provides details about how we support children and young people with Special Educational Needs and/or disabilities in our school.

The SEN Information Report was reviewed and updated on 12th September 2023.

At West Rainton Primary School, we recognise, and are passionate in ensuring, that all pupils are entitled to a quality of provision, that will enable them to achieve their potential. We believe in positive intervention, removing barriers to learning, raising expectations and levels of achievement and working in partnership with other agencies in order to provide a positive educational experience for all our pupils, including those with a special educational need or disability. All pupils deserve this level of ambition, and it is part of the ‘thread that runs through the cloth’ of West Rainton Primary School.

Our dedication to this is proven through our second accolade, ‘Inclusion Quality Mark – Centre of Excellence’ award from November 2020, as well as our most recent Ofsted (February 2023) report, which states that ‘Pupils feel at home at West Rainton Primary School. It is a small school with a strong culture of inclusivity. Pupils work well together in lessons. Pupils from different year groups get on well with one another. They support each other with learning. Everyone is made to feel welcome.’

As part of the commitment that our school SENDCO has to the role of inclusion leader, she is now a trained assessor for Inclusion Quality Mark, and this involves advising and assessing other schools in regards to inclusive practice. Our dedication is also shown through the inclusion steering group formulated by the local authority, in supporting other schools on their inclusive journey, of which Mrs Firth is a key part of.

During the school closures due to COVID-19, provision for pupils with an EHCP was offered within school, to ensure that these pupils and parents received the support that they need, to access home learning at home, and access their home learning in the childcare provision in school. This support was highly monitored, and additional measures were put in place to ensure that these pupils received the very best support.

Our school recognises that there are particular groups of pupils whose circumstances require additional consideration by those who work with them, to support their SEN. We actively support pupils who need a ‘second chance’ and we firmly believe that ‘one size does not fit all’, and it is part of our ethos that we do what we can to ensure that we make appropriate provision for our pupils. If a pupil needs to access the provision in another classroom, we do our very best to accommodate this. Part of the inclusive journey at West Rainton Primary School is the ongoing ethos that our staff will do what they can to ensure that our pupils are well catered for.

At West Rainton Primary School we have appointed a ‘Designated Teacher for Looked after Children’ who works closely with the SENDCO, to ensure that all teachers in school understand the implications for those children who are looked after and have SEN or/and disabilities.

This SEND Information report should be read alongside the school’s SEND Policy, the Equalities Information and Objectives and the Accessibility Plan.

Key Contacts

  • Mrs Alison McDonough – Headteacher
  • Mrs Susan Firth – SENDCO/Deputy Headteacher      0191 5843805
  • Rev. Michael Beck – SEN link governor

SEND Admissions

For information on the admission of pupils with a disability, please visit the School Admissions section of our website and view the Accessibility Plan in our School Policies section.

If you would like to discuss your child’s SEN in more detail please contact the school to arrange an appointment. Mrs Firth is more than happy to discuss with you the excellent provision that we can offer at WRPS.

The full range of local support available for children/ young people with SEND and their families within and outside of school can be found in the County Durham Local Offer