Special educational needs and disabilities

Mental Health Provision

At Cheadle Primary School, we are fortunate to have a team of staff both in school, and externally who ensure the positive mental wellbeing of our children. We have access to a Mental Health in Schools practitioner, a trained Emotional Literacy Support Assistant and two trained Mental Health First Aiders. All staff are trained in Attachment and Trauma practices, plus Emotion Coaching, equipping them with the necessary skills to support all children.

We have a bespoke nurture space, affectionately known as, ‘The Treehouse’. Our team of Y6 Peer Mentors operate from here every lunchtime, supporting their peers with a range of concerns. Our Peer Mentors train for several weeks alongside our Mental Health in Schools Team and always operate professionally and with integrity beyond their years.  We are very proud of them! Every year, we have many children who apply for this role which showcases their commitment to supporting one another.

A child has special educational needs if they have a learning difficulty or disability that requires extra educational support beyond what is generally provided for their age group. These needs are categorised into four broad areas (SEND code of practice 2015) :

Cognition & Learning

Support for children who are experiencing some difficulties with their learning and who may require additional support or intervention. Learning difficulties cover a wide range of needs, including moderate learning difficulties (MLD), severe learning difficulties (SLD), where children are likely to need support in all curriculum areas and specific learning difficulties (SpLD).

Who to contact for support:

·    Your child’s class teacher
·  
·    Georgina Smith  Dyslexia Assessor Leek

Communication & Interaction

Children and young people with speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) who may experience difficulty when communicating with others. These children may experience difficulties saying what they want; difficulties understanding what is being said to them; difficulties understanding or using social rules of communication, ASD – Asperger’s Syndrome, Autism, etc.

Who to contact for support:

·         Your GP
·         Speech and Language therapists
·         CAMHS

Physical & Sensory

Some children and young people require special educational provision because they have a disability which prevents or hinders them from making use of educational facilities generally provided. Specialist support and/or equipment will be required to support access to learning. VI – Visual Impairment, HI – Hearing Impairment, MSI – Multi-Sensory Impairment,  PD – Physical Disability

Who to contact for support:

·         Ann Ratcliffe – Physical Disability Support Service
·         Hearing and Visual Impairment Teams
·         Occupational Therapy
·         Physiotherapy

Social Emotional and Mental Health

Children and young people may experience a wide range of social and emotional difficulties which manifest themselves in many ways. These may include becoming withdrawn or isolated, as well as displaying challenging, disruptive or disturbing behaviour. These behaviours may reflect underlying mental health difficulties such as anxiety or depression, self-harming, substance misuse, eating disorders or physical symptoms that are medically unexplained. Other children and young people may have disorders such as attention deficit disorder, attention deficit hyperactive disorder or attachment disorder. 

Who to contact for support:

• Your child's class teacher

•  Mrs Satongar (SENDCo) who may refer you to our ELSA

• CAMHS

• Staywell

• Dove

• Mental Health in Schools Team