SEND support in mainstream schools

SEND stands for Special, Educational Needs and Disabilities.

A person is considered to have SEND if they have a disability or a condition that makes it harder for them to learn, and they need more support than other pupils who are the same age.

A diagnosis of a specific condition is not needed.

By law, all mainstream schools must provide support for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).  

They should take what is known as a graduated approach , shown in the diagram at the top of this page.

The SEND Code of Practice says that parents and carers should be involved in any discussions and planning about what support their child is receiving.  

This means that you should know if your child’s school thinks that they have SEND and know what support is being put in place to help them. You should be able to discuss your views and concerns.  

The graduated approach is a cycle, this means it should be repeated throughout your child’s education.  

Support could include things like: 

• extra help from a teacher or a learning support assistant
• making or changing materials and equipment
• working in small groups
• observations in class or at break time
• support to take part in class activities
• helping other children to work or play with them
• supporting them with physical or personal care needs
• one-to-one help with literacy, maths or speech and language

What is available may differ from school to school, but all schools have a legal duty to support children with SEND and make reasonable adjustments for them.  

Reasonable adjustments mean making changes to learning approaches and/or physical resources and equipment to support your child to access their education, learn and make progress. 

Schools get money from the government to provide support and resources to pupils with SEND. This is often called an inclusion or notional budget.

You can ask your child’s school how they are using this budget to support your child and for a copy of their SEND Information Report.

If the support and resources a pupil is accessing costs more than £6000 the school or setting may be able to apply for some additional top up funding. Read more about SEND funding.

• If you feel that your child may need SEND support, is not responding to the help that they are already getting, or don't know what is already in place, you could ask for a meeting with the class teacher and/or school SEND co-ordinator (SENCO) to discuss this. Read our guidance on preparing for a SEND support meeting.
• If your child is not making progress despite having SEND support in place, you could think about whether an EHC needs assessment might be helpful. This is a closer look at your child's SEND and support that they may need. Read more about EHC needs assessments.
• You could also visit the Leeds Neurodiversity Hub for more information and support.

It is important to plan and prepare for transition as part of a child or young person's special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) support. Transitions should be planned for as early as possible so that all relevant information can be shared to prepare the new class, school or setting. Read more about transitions.

If your child is aged 13 or above, any SEND support planning should look at preparing for adulthood. This means planning to support for your child with their to transition from childhood into adulthood and becoming more independent. Read more about preparing for adulthood.

It is not uncommon for children with SEND to behave differently in different environments. 

They may learn to behave a certain way in some situations, to feel liked or to please those around them. This is often referred to as masking. This is because it is like they are wearing a mask and pretending to be ok, when inside they might be feeling worried, anxious and distressed. 

Often home is felt to be a safe space where they feel they can just be themselves and do not need to wear this mask. As a result, home is often where their most challenging behaviours can be seen. Some parents describe it as being like a bottle of coke, that has been shaken up all day and then the lid comes off once the child is back home. All of the days stress and emotion come flowing out and it can feel overwhelming.  

It can also be the other way round, with the child being calm and settled in the home, likely because their needs are being met and demands are kept to a minimum, but within the learning environment they struggle to cope and become anxious, upset, angry or shut-down. 

SEND support should look at the child and their needs as a whole, across all environments. As masking is often a coping strategy, this should be looked at further to see what the root causes might be and allow support to be put into place to meet them.  

Wraparound care is before and/or after school provision offered by schools. It can be provided directly by the school, or by an external company or provider. 

The Equality Act (2010) says that school services must be made accessible to all children without the need to charge extra for the provision of support or any other reasonable adjustments. 

This means that schools must plan for their wraparound care to be accessible to all pupils, including those with SEND. 

If you feel your young person has been refused this service due to their SEND, you could appeal the decision to the SEND Tribunal. The tribunal will rule the refusal as discrimination unless the school can prove that the adjustments needed for your child are unreasonable. Read more about disability discrimination.

Leeds City Council have commissioned Barnardo’s to provide a Portage Service to children and families living within Leeds.  

Portage is a home visiting teaching service for families of pre-school children with additional needs, that aims to help children learn in all areas of their development e.g. physical, communication, social, play and learning.  

Children can be referred to Barnardo's Portage Service between the ages of birth and two and a half years old if they have a 50% delay in two areas of their development. 

Watch a video about the Leeds Portage Service.

Sometimes it can be really helpful to ask for, or attend, a meeting to discuss your child's SEND, any concerns you have and become involved in any decision making or planning to support them. Read our guidance on preparing for a SEND support meeting.