The Manual for the Early Years SENCO

Collette Drifte

• Publisher: SAGE Publications Ltd
• Year: 2010
• Print ISBN: 9781849201582, 9781849201575
• eBook ISBN: 9781446245729
• Edition: 2
• Topic: Bildung
• Subtopic: Inklusive Bildung

Written with both new and experienced practitioners in mind and packed with practical advice, suggestions, case studies and useful photocopiable materials, this new edition of a much-loved book will help all SENCOs (Special Educational Needs Co-ordinators) succeed in what is often a very demanding role.

Providing plenty of help with planning and time-management, this book contains everything you need to know about your role, information on the current government policies such as Every Child Matters (ECM) and the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) and meeting the Early Years Professional Status (EYPS) standards for supporting children with additional needs.

New to this second edition are:

- a CD-ROM containing photocopiable materials

- PowerPoint presentations for delivery of in-service training

- advice on inter-agency working and inter-professional practice

- more guidance on working in partnership with parents

- guidance on implementing the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) for all children

- case studies including several in the Birth to 3 age range

A must-have for new and busy SENCOs working in reception classes, nursery schools, playgroups or any other early years setting working with the Birth to 7 age range, this book is also useful for those studying for a Foundation Degree in Early Childhood Care and Education and for those working towards Early Years Professional Status (EYPS).

1

The SENCO year – a bit of forward planning goes a long way

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The key points covered in this chapter are:

• Practical strategies for making life as a SENCO both organised and easier.
• Planning the year ahead.
• Statutory assessment – following the timetable.

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INTRODUCTION

By taking time to plan an overview of the year ahead, you’ll be giving yourself an easy-reference, set-out agenda that will make your life as a SENCO much easier, especially once you’re into the busy roll of activities that are woven into the life of an early years setting.

The Special Educational Needs (SEN) Code of Practice has an inbuilt timetable for implementing Individual Education Plans (IEPs),* holding reviews (whether of Differentiated Learning Plans [DLPs], IEPs or of Statements of Special Educational Needs) and carrying out statutory assessments. For example, it states that everybody involved in a review must have a fortnight’s notice of the review date; they must also have sufficient time to prepare their reports or comments, and to submit or circulate these beforehand.

Keeping up to date with these timed commitments can be difficult and stressful, particularly if your setting has several children whose programmes are operating at different times across the year. Here we’ll explore how to plan well ahead of time, enabling you to have a ‘glance-at’ system that keeps you up to speed.

PRACTICAL STRATEGIES FOR MAKING LIFE AS A SENCO ORGANISED AND EASIER

Assuming you’re starting from scratch, it’s a good idea first to have a look at your position as SENCO, in the context of your setting. As we discussed in the Introduction, no single book can address the needs of every early years setting, since there’s such a variety of provision on offer. However, have a look at the following questions – cherry-pick those that are relevant and appropriate to your situation – and use your answers to focus your thoughts on what you already have and what you might need.

• Are you confident and comfortable in your role as SENCO?
• If not, can you say for what reason(s)?
• Have you received sufficient training?
• Have you received effective training?
• If not, can you access training of the type and standard you require?
• Does your daily/weekly routine enable you to have sufficient dedicated SENCO-time? If not, can you address this?
• Does your setting acknowledge your position as SENCO, e.g. by awarding you recognised status, influence, time, resources, finances, support, etc.?
• Do your setting’s resources, equipment, facilities and structure enable you to support children with differing needs effectively?
• Do they enable you to practise inclusion fully and effectively?
• If not, can you address the reasons why not?
• Are you confident in your abilities to support your colleagues and meet their needs in relation to including children with differing needs?
• If not, why not? And what can be done about it?
• Have your colleagues received sufficient and effective training?
• If not, can they access it, or can you access it for them?
• Do you feel supported and valued in your setting by (a) your management team, (b) your colleagues, (c) your Local Authority (LA) or another authority’s provision and facilities?
• Do you feel ineffective and/or unable to carry out your role as SENCO? If so, make a list of the reasons why, and decide what can be addressed immediately, and what’s short term, medium term and long term.
• Do you have the opportunity to meet with other SENCOs regularly for mutual support, exchange of ideas, sharing of best practice, etc.? If not, can you do something about it?

Keep your answers on file, and revisit them after nine months or so (remember to date your original answers). If you find that you’re making progress with your situation, that’s fine. If, however, you find that your answers seem to be the same, or haven’t changed much, it might be a good idea to review your situation with your management colleagues, highlighting the areas you feel need to be developed. Use the questionnaire above to support your case.

Nuts and bolts (well – maybe a filing cabinet and photocopier/printer/scanner)

Let’s have a look now at the down-to-earth stuff. If you’re a newly appointed SENCO and wondering where to start, don’t despair – just start at the beginning, decide what you need and ask for it!

Here’s a starter list:

• An efficient, confidential and lockable filing system. Depending on your needs, this could be a filing cabinet with two or three drawers, a small cupboard or even a dedicated drawer within the main, larger filing system. But stake a claim to some SENCO and/or SEN-only space. If you’re really lucky, your setting may even give you an area of your own (dare I say an office? …). Some practitioners prefer to keep their records on the computer and print hard copy only when required. If this is the case with you, do make sure that all data are protected or encoded/anonymised to ensure absolute security and confidentiality. This is especially important if you keep records on a shared and/or open computer which can be accessed by personnel who are not authorised to view these files.
• Folders for the children’s records. Here you should decide as a staff whether to incorporate a section that’s designated for their SEN documentation within the child’s main folder, or whether you want a separate SEN folder. As a team, decide how you want to file the folders, e.g. by level of the SEN Code of Practice, by age group, by setting group, by key worker, in alphabetical order, etc. Don’t forget to decide on the type of folder, e.g. ring binders, manila wallets, plastic folders, etc. Your budget will probably help in making this decision!
• Coloured stickers. You can use these on the outside of each child’s folder, to show at a glance what stage of the SEN Code of Practice the child has reached, e.g. a blue sticker for ‘Expression of Concern/Differentiated Learning’, a green sticker for ‘Early Years Action’, a yellow sticker for ‘Early Years Action Plus’ and a red sticker for ‘Statutory Assessment’. As the child moves through the different levels, simply put a sticker in the next colour onto the front of the folder.
• Ring binders and clear plastic insert-wallets. Use these to file summary sheets, forms, registers, etc. that are currently in use – in other words, the everyday working documents containing information you may want to check frequently and quickly. You might decide as a setting that everybody should have duplicate files with copies of the same information. Make sure that all colleagues keep such files and records in secure and confidential places.
• Wallets for blank pro forma, record sheets, letters, etc. Keep these well stocked up – there’s nothing more irritating than needing a form or review sheet only to find the wallet is empty. Have a rule that says whoever takes out the last form should make several more copies and leave them in the wallet for future users.
• A wall calendar with every day on it. Depending on your setting, you’ll need one that shows either the calendar year (January to December) or the academic year (September to August). Keep it displayed so that all staff can see at a glance what’s happening in relation to the ‘additional needs events’, but display it in a confidential place and position.

The paper chase

By definition, you’ll probably have a lot of paperwork to store. Much of it will be record forms – blank ones, completed ones, and ‘sleeping’ ones waiting to be finally discarded – but which ones should you keep? Here’s a list:

• Observation forms
• Assessment sheets/baselines/checklists, etc.
• Expression of Concern forms
• Differentiated Learning Plan (DLP) forms (or chosen equivalent)
• Play Plan forms
• Home/setting communication forms or system
• Activity report sheets
• Individual Education Plan (IEP) forms (or their chosen equivalent)
• Review forms
• Summary sheets
• Referral forms (a) to outside agents, (b) for Statutory Assessment
• Educational advice forms – these are usually supplied by the Local Authority (LA)
• Statements of Special Educational Needs
• Letters.

You’ll also need to keep in the file your setting’s SEN documents and information, and all the documentation from the LA, outside agents, voluntary bodies, etc., that your colleagues may need. What documentation? you might ask. The answer is

• your SEN policy (long and short versions, where appropriate)
• the LA’s SEN policy and all relevant circulars, directives and documentation issued locally
• Parent Partnership documents
• SureStart documents (or their equivalent) relating to additional needs
• contact details of parent support groups, translators, alternative communication agents, etc.
• the SEN Code of Practice and the SEN Toolkit, plus any other relevant and current government circulars regarding additional needs
• contact details, prospectuses, policies, etc., of outside agents and/or other departments, e.g. social services, health, etc.
• In-service training (INSET) materials and other relevant copiables, documentation, etc. (where relevant).

If you keep the logistical aspects of the job organised and easy to use, life as a SENCO will be less fraught. It is a demanding job, and you don’t need the added stress of trying to find records, contact details, local procedures, etc. which have been lost and are now in a heap of damp documents piled up on a work surface in the Water Play area!

Planning the year ahead

It will depend on your setting what you will need to plan and how. For example, if you’re a SENCO in a large primary school, you’ll have more manpower, time and resources than if you’re SENCO in a pre-school or for a group of childminders. You’ll need to assess what you have to hand and how you can exploit it, in order to do the job effectively. There’s no doubt that the role of SENCO involves plenty of paperwork, so getting this under control must be one of your priorities. If you and your computer have a close relationship, use a good spreadsheet program to plan the year ahead. Setting up the calendar at the beginning may involve a bit of a time-investment on your part, but once the job’s done, all you’ll need to do in future years is tweak the fine details.

Divide your jobs into less frequent ones (the annual or biannual happenings) and frequent ones (the ongoing daily, weekly or monthly st...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• Acknowledgements
• About the author
• Introduction
• 1 The SENCO year – a bit of forward planning goes a long way
• 2 Policy and practice – the unbroken circle
• 3 Supporting colleagues – giving help where it’s needed
• 4 Supporting the children – making sure their entitlements are met
• 5 Keeping track – ensuring effective record keeping
• 6 A parent thing – maintaining a collaborative partnership
• 7 Coming together – the teamwork approach
• Powerpoints
• Standards for the award of early years professional status
• List of abbreviations
• Further reading
• Index