Our focus is to provide an environment which allows our SEND students to grow into confident young adults who show kindness and respect to all others and truly enjoy their learning.

At our school, we are proud to offer The Meadow, a dedicated specialist space designed to support students with special educational needs in a calm, nurturing environment. This purpose-built area includes a sensory room, providing students with a soothing space to self-regulate and manage sensory input, as well as an intervention area where focused, personalised support can take place in small groups or one-to-one sessions. Our goal is to create a supportive and inclusive setting that helps every student thrive emotionally, socially, and academically. This space reflects our commitment to meeting the diverse needs of all learners in a respectful and caring way.

SEND Policy
School Information Report
Accessibility Plan
Leeds Local Offer

Meet the send team

MISS WILSON

Director of SEND

Contact

MS PINE

Assistant Leader of SEND

Contact

Mrs Harrop

SEND Administration Assistant

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Miss Shooter

SEND Student and Family Liaison Officer

Contact

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

At the heart of Boston Spa Academy’s values is the belief that every child has the right to make good academic progress and achieve their potential. We believe that all students are entitled to a broad, balanced and differentiated curriculum. Students are valued equally and regardless of ability; we are committed to supporting them through their learning. The achievements, attitudes and well-being of all students are important to us and we aim to ensure students’ needs are met and their potential barriers to learning overcome. If you are new to our school and would like more information or a tour please contact our SEND team on 01937 846636.

We are committed to a personalised approach to support students’ individual needs. We can use some screening testing to assess the areas of difficulty your child may be experiencing, we may also consult their teachers to get an overall picture, or we may refer to an outside agency that can offer specific assessment and support. The Director of SEND plans and oversees the implementation of any additional support for individual students. Some students need short-term extra intervention to support their learning in key areas; others will need a more sustained programme of support. This support may be delivered using teaching staff or our Teaching Assistant. Parents are always informed of the support their child is accessing, and will be updated regularly. Our intervention programmes are outcome based and specifically designed to support individuals’ needs. For students whose needs are acute or complex, we may write a Pupil Passport (Individualised Education Plan). This outlines your child’s difficulties, the targets or areas of development they are current working towards and outlines strategies for effective support, teaching and learning. This may be in addition to short or longer term intervention. All Pupil Passports and short-term plans are written in consultation with parents and are reviewed regularly.

We offer inclusive teaching; teachers differentiate their lessons to match learner needs. From year 7, students are set by ability, academic performance is monitored carefully to ensure groupings are efficient and enable students to make the best academic progress they can. We have flexible Pathways, which allow for a personalised curriculum, which some of our SEND students benefit from.

There are regular Parents’ Evenings for each year group, additionally; parents are welcome to contact subject teachers for an update on their child’s progress. We also publish progress data throughout the year to keep you informed of your child’s progress and how well they are working. The Student Planner provides parents/carers with regular contact with teachers, as does SIMS. We communicate with parents in a number of ways; via the home – school planner, telephone, email and we celebrate with postcards home and telephone calls.

We are proud of our pastoral care support; for all students this is primarily given by their Form Tutor and Head of Year. Attendance is monitored by the Heads of Year and the Attendance Welfare Officer. We have a dedicated team of Child Protection Officers and a team of First Aiders.

Following consultation, we access the Educational Psychology Service, Speech and Language Therapy, the Deaf and Hearing Impaired Team, the Visually Impaired Team, STARS, Local Authority Complex Needs Team and CAMHS.

All staff in school have specific training and have worked alongside professionals to develop their skills, knowledge and expertise. Our in-house and trust wide training programme is tailored to reflect the needs of our students.

If assistance is needed for a student to participate in an activity outside the classroom, we make every effort to facilitate this. If there are specific medical or physical needs that may affect participation, the trip leader will consider this in their planning, and parents are invited to contribute to this if relevant.

The ground floors of all buildings are accessible by wheelchair and we have ramps in place. We have accessible toilets on the ground floor and a series of lifts across the school site to allow access to upper floors. For parents/carers whose first language is not English, we will try to provide translators/assistance at Parents’ Evenings. Any parents/carers who think that they may require such assistance should contact their child’s Head of Year. If specialist equipment is required for hearing or visually impaired students, we work closely with the relevant teams to ensure students’ needs are met.

The member of staff responsible for transition and the SEND team liaise with primary schools regarding students who will require support when they start at Boston Spa Academy. Parents are invited to speak to the SEND team during Open Evening at the beginning of Year 6 and again in Year 7.

We carefully consider the type and extent of support needed by students to make academic progress. The type, extent and duration of support will be discussed with parents on an individualised basis, following meetings with key staff (Director of SEND and Head of Year). Interventions are tracked and monitored, and their efficacy analysed. The impact of support for SEND students can vary but generally we judge success by teacher assessment, reading age data, spelling age data, stamps and negative comments in the planner, feedback from teachers and other staff in school.

Parents/carers are kept informed about teaching and other events through the planner, email, our website, parents’ evenings and our social media accounts (Instagram and Facebook). Parents/carers are invited into the school for information sessions, celebration assemblies and various performances and concerts throughout the year.

If you have a concern related to Special Educational Needs or Disability, contact the SEND team. If you have a more general query relating to admissions, pastoral support, welfare, your first point of contact is the your child’s Head of Year. Parent Partnership can provide information and advice, and can be contacted at: www.leedsparentpartnership.co.uk. Leeds City Council’s local offer can be found here.

If you have a concern related to Special Educational Needs or Disability, contact the SEND team.

If you have a more general query relating to admissions, pastoral support, welfare, your first point of contact is the your child’s Head of Year. Parent Partnership can provide information and advice, and can be contacted at: www.leedsparentpartnership.co.uk. Leeds City Council’s local offer can be found here.