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Podcast · Dale Pickles · The SENDcast is a weekly podcast focusing on Special Educational Needs, it is an amazing way to keep up to date with all the different areas within SEN, best practices and to improve your knowledge around SEND.

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Getting your class to behave - Georgina Durrant in conversation with Sue Cowley

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Podcast · Georgina Durrant · This podcast hosted by Georgina Durrant is all about teaching and supporting children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND). We aim to share the amazing things that our guests are doing to support children and young people with Special Educational Needs (SEND).*This Podcast is proudly brought to you by the SEND team at Twinkl. Please bear in mind, the views and opinions expressed are those of individuals, and may not represent those of Twinkl.

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Empowering relationships between SENCOs, teachers and parents with Andreja Stefulj

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Podcast · The SEND Network Podcast · The SEND Network Podcast is produced by the SEND Network, and provides expert insight to help practitioners in the special educational needs and disabilities sector to shape their practice. New episodes are released every Wednesday.

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Neurodiversity Natter: Dr Tony Lloyd, Jannine Perryman & Simon Neville | #1

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Podcast · ADHD Foundation · Welcome to Neurodiversity Natter: The Umbrella Project, where we will be podcasting everything ‘neurodiversity’, including guest interviews with leaders in the field of ND, Psychology, Education and beyond. We celebrate thinking differently.

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Podcast · Mike Bedford · Welcome to the Bee Brilliant People Podcast, where we speak to bold, courageous leaders who are not afraid to be vulnerable and share how they are changing the world. We often but not always talk about neurodiversity and why it is so important to embrace the principles of equity and belonging in all we do. Join the conversation and if you like what you hear, please subscribe and rate us.

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Buy SEND Strategies for the Primary Years: Practical ideas and expert advice to use pre-diagnosis by Georgina Durrant (ISBN: 9781801993661) from Amazon’s Book Store. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders.

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This comprehensive resource provides a range of perspectives on inclusion, giving Special Educational Needs Co-ordinators (SENCOs) the opportunity to consider the principles and practice that underpin their leadership role.

Offering a blend of academic and professional knowledge, each chapter explores different aspects of the role of the SENCO and supports areas that will be considered as part of the National Award for SENCOs. A variety of essential topics are covered, from the importance of SEND provision and multi-disciplinary practice, to the role of the SENCO and leadership.

Key features of this book include:

Contributions by leaders of the National Award for Special Educational Needs Co-ordinators working with trainee SENCOs across the country

A focus on encouraging SENCOs to think deeply about their own individual practice through engagement with cutting-edge research

A flexible structure that can be read as a whole, or dipped in and out of as professional learning needs require

This book provides an opportunity for readers to engage with a multiplicity of voices and approaches, allowing them to critically explore their role as leaders of SEND provision in schools. It is an invaluable resource both for students and those already within the role of Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator.

Dedication

Table of Contents

List of Figures

Acknowledgements

List of Contributors

Section 1: Why SEND is important

Chapter 1: Introduction - Mhairi C Beaton, Geraldene N Codina and Julie C Wharton

Chapter 2: Inclusive relationships - creating the space for each other - Jonathan Rix

Chapter3: The Language of SEND: Implications for the SENCO - Geraldene N Codina and Julie C Wharton

Chapter 4: The SENCO as a leader of professional learning for inclusive practice - Deborah Robinson

Chapter 5: The Future of SEND in England - What next? - Brian Lamb (OBE)

Section 2: The leadership role of the SENCO

Chapter 6: Inclusion and school exclusion - Key Issues for SENCOs in England - Lynda Kay and Tristan Middleton

Chapter 7: Inclusion in the Early Years - Angela Scott

Chapter 8: Social Emotional and Mental Health - Lisa O'Connor

Chapter 9: Pupils with Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH) Needs: The role of the Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCO) in meeting the Inclusion Challenge - Dennis Piper

Chapter 10: Medical Conditions - Lorna Hughes

Chapter 11: Person-Centred Approaches - Angela Scott

Chapter 12: The SENCO Role: Leading on Assessment - Tracy Edwards and Mhairi C Beaton

Chapter 13: Education, Health Care Plans - Louise Arnold and Janet Hoskin

Section 3: SENCOS' leadership role in multidisciplinary practice

Chapter 14: Multi-professional Meetings: SENCOs reflections on the empty chairs at the table - Helen Ackers

Chapter 15: Working with Families - Gianna Knowles

Chapter 16: Working in Partnership with Parents - Heather Green and Becky Edwards

Chapter 17: SENCOs and Social Workers: Working together - Julie C Wharton

Chapter 18: Hearing their Voices: the role of SENCOs in facilitating the participation of all learners - Mhairi C Beaton

Chapter 19: Developing SENCO resilience: understanding and meeting the challenge of the role - Helen Curran

Biography

Mhairi C. Beaton is a reader at the Carnegie School of Education at Leeds Beckett University, where she leads the MA in Inclusive Practice in Education. Her research focus lies at the interface of inclusion, teacher education and student voice.

Geraldene N. Codina is a senior lecturer at the University of Derby. She is the programme leader for the National Award for SENCOs, co-convenes the Derby City SENCO Forum and chairs the Derby Opportunity Area SEND Project Management Group. Prior to working in higher education, Geraldene was a SENCO.

Julie C. Wharton is the course leader for the National Award for Special Educational Needs (SEN) Coordination at the University of Winchester. Julie joined the university in 2014, having spent seven years working as a SEND Inspector in Southampton. Prior to this she was an Advanced Skills Teacher for SEN.

This is a book which if you are a SENCO, or are thinking of becoming one, will re-energise or ignite the passion you have for inclusion, and your belief in the right of every young person to be offered the highest quality education provision possible, whatever their need. The book promotes the professional agency of readers, encourages critical engagement, and provides the evidence and knowledge needed for valid and valuable discussion. Every chapter has been written by either practitioners or academics who have 'been there,' and as such there is a feeling of authenticity throughout, with each author sharing their own priorities and views. It is a book which highlights not only the uniqueness of being a SENCO, but also the resilience, knowledge, skills, and commitment that individuals need to fulfil this role. It is an empowering read.
Dr Sue Soan, Senior Lecturer in SENI, Canterbury Christ Church University
This book provides a unique collection of chapters authored by contributors with a wealth of experience in the field of special educational needs and disability as practitioners, teachers and academics. They bring an authenticity of practice to their texts that is both personal and engaging and will speak to readers interested in making thoughtful, effective provision for learners who face barriers to their learning of various kinds. While focusing on the leadership role of the SENCO in schools in England, the chapters offer the opportunity to engage in reflection on a range of key aspects of the SENCo role from a very thoughtful, well-informed position. This book will provide a very useful resource for those preparing to become SENCos as well as those more experienced in the field.
Professor Janice Wearmouth, University of Bedfordshire
A must-read for SENCOs who lead on inclusion, this book covers a range of timely topics with sensitivity to the experiences of children, young people, their families and the professionals who work with them.
Professor Lani Florian, Bell Chair of Education, University of Edinburgh

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Leading on Inclusion: The Role of the SENCO

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This comprehensive resource provides a range of perspectives on inclusion, giving Special Educational Needs Co-ordinators (SENCOs) the opportunity to consider the principles and practice that underpin their leadership role. Offering a blend of academic and professional knowledge, each chapter explores different aspects of the role of the SENCO and supports areas that will be considered as part of the National Award for SENCOs.

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Morph Mastery: A Morphological Intervention for Reading, Spelling and Vocabulary

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Morph Mastery is an accessible, practical guide designed to support learners with specific learning difficulties (SpLD) who are struggling with spelling, reading and vocabulary. It is an effective, research-based and fun solution for when phonics-based teaching has run its course.
Understanding the morphological regularities in English helps to support both spelling and reading comprehension, yet there are few practical interventions that take a morphological approach. Morph Mastery combines th

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The Teacher’s Toolkit: Promoting Variety, Engagement, And Motivation In The Classroom: Promoting Variety, Engagement, and Motivation in the Classroom US EDITION: 1

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Buy The Teacher’s Toolkit: Promoting Variety, Engagement, And Motivation In The Classroom: Promoting Variety, Engagement, and Motivation in the Classroom US EDITION: 1 Revised by Ginnis, Paul (ISBN: 9781904424581) from Amazon’s Book Store. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders.

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Fin O'Regan MA, PGCE BSc

He is currently a Behaviour and Learning Consultant and Trainer nationally and internationally.

He was the Head teacher of the Centre Academy from 1996 -2002, which was the first specialist school in the UK for students between the ages of 7-19 specialising issues related to ADHD, ASD and ODD.

He is an associate lecturer for Leicester University, the National Association of Special Needs, the Institute of Education, the Helen Arkell Dyslexia Centre and the former Vice Chairman of the UK ADHD Network and of the European ADHD Alliance.

He has written a number of books and published articles on the subject of ADHD, ODD and a range of Learning, Behaviour and Socialisation issues. (See below)

Fintan now works as trainer and consultant for schools and school support systems including, Social Services, Health, the Police and Foster carers with regards to providing behaviour management strategies for children and families struggling with SEND and behaviour issues.

Further details of training courses can be found on his website and he can be contacted through the following email address listed below.

www.fintanoregan.com

Fjmoregan@aol.com

Publications

* Cooper P and O'Regan F (2001) EDUCATING children with ADHD: Routledge Falmer Press

* O'Regan F (2002) How to teach and manage children with ADHD: LDA a

* O'Regan F (2005) ADHD : Continuum International

* O'Regan F (2005) Surviving and Succeeding in SEN Continuum International

* O'Regan F (2006) Challenging Behaviours Teachers Pocketbooks

* O'Regan F (2006) Troubleshooting Challenging Behaviours Continuum International

* O'Regan F (2008) The Small Change 2 BIG DIFFERENCE series Special Direct

* O'Regan F (2017) Successfully Managing Children with ADHD 2nd Edition:Routledge

* O'Regan F (2020/21) Supporting Behaviour for Learning: Sage

* Cave S and O'Regan F (2020/21) How to help : Attention Difficulties and Differences

* O'Regan F (2018) Supporting children with ADHD Strategies to help Learning Behaviour,

Ebook www.fintanoregan.com

* O'Regan F (2020) 100 Top Tips for Parenting and Supporting children with ADHD,

Ebook: www.fintanoregan.com

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Successfully Teaching and Managing Children with ADHD: A Resource for SENCOs and Teachers (nasen spotlight)

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Buy Successfully Teaching and Managing Children with ADHD: A Resource for SENCOs and Teachers (nasen spotlight) 2 by O'Regan, Fintan (ISBN: 9780367109998) from Amazon's Book Store. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders.

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'Emily's moving book is a powerful testimony that shines a light on the continued failure of health services to provide any kind of meaningful improvement for autistic people. Should be essential reading for mental health professionals and anyone with autism in their lives.' - FERN BRADY, author of Strong Female Character DEVON PRICE, author of Unmasking Autism is the extraordinary story of how she got there - and how she very nearly didn't.

'This book will bring so many readers self-recognition and comfort.' - Elle McNicoll, bestselling author Pete Wharmby, author of

'Vulnerable, affecting and deeply personal, this book will go from a message in a bottle to a rallying cry for many autistic women, girls and young people. We are not alone.' - Untypical

'A brilliant, thorough exploration of autistic experience, delivered with humanity, compassion and vivid clarity.' - Cathy Wassell, CEO Autistic Girls Network charity & author of Nurturing Your Autistic Young Person Sarah Gibbs, author of

'A magnificent read which manages to be informative, engaging, sad and uplifting all at the same time. Whether you're discovering that you're autistic yourself or you simply want to understand autistic people better, this is a must-read.' - Drama Queen Girl Unmasked

'The book I wish I'd been able to read when I was younger.' - Girl Unmasked is a remarkable insight into what it can be like to be autistic - and shows us that through understanding and embracing difference we can all find ways to thrive.

To the outside world, Emily looks like a typical girl, with a normal family, living an ordinary life. But inside, Emily does not feel typical, and the older she gets, the more she realises that she is different.
As she finally discovers when she is 16, Emily is autistic.

Still only 21, Emily writes with startling candour about the years leading up to her diagnosis. How books and imagination became her refuge as she sought to escape the increasing anxiety and unbearable stresses of school life; how her OCD almost destroyed her; how a system which did not understand autism let her down; and how she came so close to the edge that she and her family thought she would never survive.

In this simple but powerful memoir, we see how family and friends became her lifeline and how, post-diagnosis, Emily came to understand her authentic self and begin to turn her life around, eventually becoming a mental health nurse with a desire to help others where she herself had once been failed.

Ultimately uplifting,

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Girl Unmasked: How Uncovering My Autism Saved My Life

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Buy Girl Unmasked: How Uncovering My Autism Saved My Life by Katy, Emily (ISBN: 9781800961395) from Amazon's Book Store. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders.

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Conduct Disorders in Childhood and Adolescence

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The prevalence of conduct disorder in children constitutes a severe and persistent social problem. Conduct disorder - which encompasses antisocial behaviours such as aggressive acts, theft, vandalism, arson, running away, truancy and defying authority - is a common reason for referring children and adolescents for psychological and psychiatric treatment.

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Understanding Conduct Disorder and Oppositional-Defiant Disorder: A guide to symptoms, management and treatment (Understanding Atypical Development)

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Buy Understanding Conduct Disorder and Oppositional-Defiant Disorder: A guide to symptoms, management and treatment (Understanding Atypical Development) 1 by Vanzin, Laura (ISBN: 9780367232313) from Amazon’s Book Store. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders.

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Fin O'Regan MA, PGCE BSc

He is currently a Behaviour and Learning Consultant and Trainer nationally and internationally.

He was the Head teacher of the Centre Academy from 1996 -2002, which was the first specialist school in the UK for students between the ages of 7-19 specialising issues related to ADHD, ASD and ODD.

He is an associate lecturer for Leicester University, the National Association of Special Needs, the Institute of Education, the Helen Arkell Dyslexia Centre and the former Vice Chairman of the UK ADHD Network and of the European ADHD Alliance.

He has written a number of books and published articles on the subject of ADHD, ODD and a range of Learning, Behaviour and Socialisation issues. (See below)

Fintan now works as trainer and consultant for schools and school support systems including, Social Services, Health, the Police and Foster carers with regards to providing behaviour management strategies for children and families struggling with SEND and behaviour issues.

Further details of training courses can be found on his website and he can be contacted through the following email address listed below.

www.fintanoregan.com

Fjmoregan@aol.com

Publications

* Cooper P and O'Regan F (2001) EDUCATING children with ADHD: Routledge Falmer Press

* O'Regan F (2002) How to teach and manage children with ADHD: LDA a

* O'Regan F (2005) ADHD : Continuum International

* O'Regan F (2005) Surviving and Succeeding in SEN Continuum International

* O'Regan F (2006) Challenging Behaviours Teachers Pocketbooks

* O'Regan F (2006) Troubleshooting Challenging Behaviours Continuum International

* O'Regan F (2008) The Small Change 2 BIG DIFFERENCE series Special Direct

* O'Regan F (2017) Successfully Managing Children with ADHD 2nd Edition:Routledge

* O'Regan F (2020/21) Supporting Behaviour for Learning: Sage

* Cave S and O'Regan F (2020/21) How to help : Attention Difficulties and Differences

* O'Regan F (2018) Supporting children with ADHD Strategies to help Learning Behaviour,

Ebook www.fintanoregan.com

* O'Regan F (2020) 100 Top Tips for Parenting and Supporting children with ADHD,

Ebook: www.fintanoregan.com

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The Challenging Behaviours Pocketbook Focuses on three particular behaviour disorders: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) and Conduct Disorder (CD). This book demonstrates how different teacher responses can lead to different outcomes and contains...

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Being given the remit of Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCO) in a school can be an overwhelming task for any individual, with support channels and programmes now in place to ensure teachers understand the legal responsibilities thrust upon the school. Having support, and gaining your won individual knowledge and confidence can be difficult to gain, but The Perfect SENCO by Natalie Packer is full of support, guidance and tips for people enlisted in the SENCO role. With time limitations, SENCOs do not want to be bogged down trying to understand the responsibilities of the role, with this book concisely explaining the process to become as perfect a SENCO as possible. The importance of the role is discussed early on in the book, advocating that the SENCO is centre stage for school improvement, talking through the SEN code of practice; SEN in the OfSTED framework; and the challenges and opportunities for SENCOs in the role. Packer advocates that SENCOs lead the way, providing strategic direction and development, being well-placed to ensure all pupils in the school progress as best as possible; leading a development of an inclusive culture. Thereafter, chapters focus on providing high quality SEN provision; tracking and monitoring achievement; supporting teaching colleagues; working with parents; plus self-evaluation and inspection. This is a handy, up-to-date, practical guide to support current and/or new teachers in the SENCO role. For those wanting to ensure they are up to speed with current legislation, expectations and support, then get this book it is more focused on the processes rather than specific conditions you may come across. children, their outcomes being the main focus. --UK Ed Chat

This is a highly informative, up to date book, written concisely and clearly. The Perfect SENCO is one in a series of books addressing aspects of school identified as crucial by Ofsted. The role of the SENCO has changed quite considerably in recent years and is now regarded as central to the school improvement process. The SENCO will not only provide advice on carrying out statutory duties to identify, assess and make provision for children with special educational needs but will also give strategic direction and seek opportunities for development through coordinating provision, tracking progress and leading or developing others. The Perfect SENCO takes aspects of the role to look at in more detail in each chapter. It is very readable with frequent top tips , key aspects highlighted through bullet points and a really useful summary at the end of each chapter. I think that this would be a very valuable book for both newly appointed and experienced SENCOs either to read from cover to cover as I did, or to dip into to look at a particular area of practice. Highly recommended! --Jo Bowers, Associate Dean: Enterprise, Cardiff Metropolitan University

`The Perfect SENCO` is an absolute 'must' for head teachers and SENCOs. Natalie is highly skilled at explaining the 'big picture' and then providing practical strategies to ensure that what happens in school 'syncs' with national initiatives. If the advice in this book is followed, then schools can be assured that they are Ofsted ready and also that all statutory requirements are met. Included in the book are pro formas that can easily be adapted for each establishment or used as they are. Each chapter concludes with a 'mini' plenary which is useful to consolidate learning and also to use as a quick reference point. The Perfect SENCO is a special book: it ensures that it provides up to date advice which incorporates the changing landscape of SEN. It is also educational in that it can be used as a catalyst for school improvement and evaluation, meeting the requirements of Ofsted. --Carol Aspinall, Independent Education Consultant

This is a highly informative, up to date book, written concisely and clearly. The Perfect SENCO is one in a series of books addressing aspects of school identified as crucial by Ofsted. The role of the SENCO has changed quite considerably in recent years and is now regarded as central to the school improvement process. The SENCO will not only provide advice on carrying out statutory duties to identify, assess and make provision for children with special educational needs but will also give strategic direction and seek opportunities for development through coordinating provision, tracking progress and leading or developing others. The Perfect SENCO takes aspects of the role to look at in more detail in each chapter. It is very readable with frequent top tips , key aspects highlighted through bullet points and a really useful summary at the end of each chapter. I think that this would be a very valuable book for both newly appointed and experienced SENCOs either to read from cover to cover as I did, or to dip into to look at a particular area of practice. Highly recommended! --Jo Bowers, Associate Dean: Enterprise, Cardiff Metropolitan University

`The Perfect SENCO` is an absolute 'must' for head teachers and SENCOs. Natalie is highly skilled at explaining the 'big picture' and then providing practical strategies to ensure that what happens in school 'syncs' with national initiatives. If the advice in this book is followed, then schools can be assured that they are Ofsted ready and also that all statutory requirements are met. Included in the book are pro formas that can easily be adapted for each establishment or used as they are. Each chapter concludes with a 'mini' plenary which is useful to consolidate learning and also to use as a quick reference point. The Perfect SENCO is a special book: it ensures that it provides up to date advice which incorporates the changing landscape of SEN. It is also educational in that it can be used as a catalyst for school improvement and evaluation, meeting the requirements of Ofsted. --Carol Aspinall, Independent Education Consultant

The Perfect SENCO is the essential guide to supporting children
with special educational needs.
Real education isn't about a race to the top of the class or the league table. It isn't about being better than anyone else or accumulating as many qualifications as you possibly can. It's about being helped to be the best you can possibly be by professionals who are skilled enough to know how to do it and compassionate enough to take the time to do it well. Nowhere is this philosophy more important than when it comes to supporting children with special educational needs and this book, written for our Perfect series by a SEN consultant with many years' experience, will help you apply it to these children.
"The Perfect SENCO offers all of us in education, not just SENCOs, a fantastic, highly readable guide that ensures that the needs of our most vulnerable pupils and students are fundamental to all schools' philosophy, strategy, planning and practice. Most importantly, the book provides clear routes that determine effective outcomes for children and young people."
Jane Friswell, SEND Consultant, Education Development Officer, NASEN (National Association of Special Educational Needs)
"Natalie's wealth of experience of special educational needs strategy, coupled with her huge desire for equality for all children, gives a clear insight into how to develop an educational philosophy whilst enabling opportunities for any teacher to be confident in becoming The Perfect SENCO."
Chris Wheatley, Executive Head, The Cotgrave Candleby Lane School, C.E.O. Flying High Trust
Natalie Packer is an education consultant specialising in SEN and School Improvement. Having previously worked for the National Strategies SEN team and as an LA Adviser for SEN, combined with her recent headship experience, Natalie has had the opportunity to observe all manner of school practice, allowing her to assess the best catalysts for effective teaching and learning.

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Buy The Perfect SENCO by Natalie Packer, Jackie Beere (ISBN: 8601404455377) from Amazon's Book Store. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders.

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Get the highest quality CPD from experts at your convenience, with nasen's SEND CPD on Demand - The ultimate flexible training resource.

With individual and school subscriptions starting at just £199, boost your learning with convenient access to over 70 pre-recorded SEND CPD sessions tailored to meet the needs of the entire education workforce.

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Get the highest quality CPD from experts at your convenience, with nasen's SEND CPD on Demand - The ultimate flexible training resource. With individual and school subscriptions starting at just £199, boost your learning with convenient access to over 70 pre-recorded SEND CPD sessions tailored to meet the needs of the entire education workforce.

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nasen House
4/5 Amber Business Village
Amber Close
Amington
Tamworth
Staffordshire
B77 4RP

Tel: 01827 311500
Email: welcome@nasen.org.uk

Opening Hours:
Monday to Thursday 09:00 - 17:00
Friday 09:00 - 16:00

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nasen House 4/5 Amber Business Village Amber Close Amington Tamworth Staffordshire B77 4RP Tel: 01827 311500 Email: welcome@nasen.org.uk Opening Hours: Monday to Thursday 09:00 - 17:00 Friday 09:00 - 16:00

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The UK's leading magazine for special educational needs.

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Welcome to SENDCO Solutions, where expertise meets excellence in special educational needs support. Led by Abigail Hawkins, a seasoned SEN specialist with over 25 years of experience as a SENCO, our company is dedicated to ensuring that your school and staff stay fully compliant with the SEND Code of Practice while effectively addressing SEN challenges.

Abigail, renowned as both the "SENSible SENCO" on social media and the "SENDCOs SENDCO" in publications, possesses a unique ability to solve complex SEN issues while maintaining strict adherence to legal requirements. With her at the helm, we provide comprehensive guidance and support to SENCOs, governors, heads, and senior leadership teams in developing their school's SEN program.

At SENDCO Solutions, we understand that each school is unique and requires a tailored approach to SEN provision. Our flagship service, the Whole School SEN Review, offers a thorough evaluation of your school's current SEN practices and provides detailed recommendations for future development. We are frequently commissioned to deliver keynote speeches, CPD training sessions, and comprehensive SEN review packages for schools, local authorities, and multi-academy trusts.

In addition to supporting schools, SENDCO Solutions also collaborates with educational companies to develop and promote SEN products that have a meaningful impact on the targeted student population. Our expertise extends beyond the educational sector, as we have successfully assisted non-educational settings in crafting robust inclusion policies. Furthermore, we take pride in our partnership with United Learning, where we have played a pivotal role in creating one of the most esteemed teaching assistant apprenticeship programs available.

By choosing SENDCO Solutions, you are investing in a wealth of experience, knowledge, and a commitment to ensuring that every child receives the support they deserve. Together, let's navigate the intricate landscape of SEN provision, embracing compliance, and empowering excellence in education.

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sendcosolutions.co.uk | Making SENse of SEN

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Welcome to SENDCO Solutions, where expertise meets excellence in special educational needs support. Led by Abigail Hawkins, a seasoned SEN specialist with over 25 years of experience as a SENCO, our company is dedicated to ensuring that your school and staff stay fully compliant with the SEND Code of Practice while effectively addressing SEN challenges.

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The ADHD Foundation Neurodiversity Charity - an integrated health and education service.

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A one stop (free) shop of all the resources you lovely SENCOs need to get started in your roles.

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Teach Kids to Manage Big Feelings Through Effective Social Emotional Learning

Over 80% of U.S. public schools reported in 2022 on the negative impact of the pandemic on child well-being and self-regulation. Kids are:

Struggling to manage their feelings and mental health

More disruptive in the classroom

Needing additional social, emotional, and behavioral support

(source: National Center for Education Statistics)

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The Zones of Regulation is a complete social-emotional learning curriculum, created to teach children self-regulation and emotional control.

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Alison Knowles, author of the series of Ollie and his Super Powers children’s books and creator of the Ollie model is the joint owner of Subconquest Ltd which provides group coaching and individual therapy designed specifically for your needs, specialising in working with children. Subconquest also trains and manages Ollie Coaches across the UK.

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Real Courses. Real Standards. Real Support. Real Experts. Real CPD

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This is a new service - your Beta feedback will help us to improve it.

Last updated

Release type

National statistics ?

This publication combines information from the school census (state-funded schools), school level annual school census (independent schools) and general hospital school census on pupils with special educational needs (SEN).

The publication includes breakdowns by type of SEN provision, type of need, age, national curriculum year group, gender, ethnicity, English as a first language and free school meal eligibility.

Local authority data on EHC plans is published in the Education, health and care plans publication. That data covers all children and young people up to age 25 with EHC plans, and includes those not captured in this publication in non-maintained early years provision, further education, home education or not in education, employment or training.

Related information

Releases in this series

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Methodologies

Headline facts and figures - 2022/23

Explore data and files used in this release

View tables that we have built for you, or create your own tables from open data using our table tool

Browse and download open data files from this release in our data catalogue

Learn more about the data files used in this release using our online guidance

Download all data available in this release as a compressed ZIP file

All supporting files from this release are listed for individual download below:

Pupils with special educational needs (SEN) are currently classified as follows:

SEN support

SEN support means support that is additional to, or different from, the support generally made for other children of the same age in a school. It is provided for pupils who are identified as having a learning difficulty or a disability that requires extra or different help to that normally provided as part of the school's usual curriculum offer. A pupil on SEN support will not have an education, health and care plan.

Education, health and care (EHC) plans

A local authority may issue an Education, health and care plan for a pupil who needs more support than is available through SEN support. This will follow a statutory assessment process whereby the local authority considers the pupil's special educational needs and any relevant health and social care needs; sets out long term outcomes; and specifies provision which will deliver additional support to meet those needs.

Independent schools
Guidance on how independent schools are advised to record pupils with special educational needs is available in section 2.5 of the School level annual school census.

The number and percentage of pupils with SEN has continued to rise

The percentage of pupils with an EHC plan has increased to 4.3% in 2023, continuing a trend of increases since 2016. Prior to this, the rate had remained steady at 2.8%. This is in line with local authority data on the number of EHC plans.

The percentage of pupils with SEN support has increased, from 12.6% to 13.0%, continuing an increasing trend from 2016.

Number of pupils with an EHC plan has increased by almost two-thirds since 2016

The number of pupils with an EHC plan has increased by 9% between 2022 and 2023 to almost 390,000, and by a total of 64% since 2016. The number of pupils with SEN support has increased by 5% from 2022 to 2023, to 1,183,000 and by a total of 19% since 2016. Over the same period, the total pupil population increased by 6%.

Pupils with an EHC plan made up one quarter (25%) of all pupils with SEN in January 2022.

Local authority data on EHC plans is published in the Education, health and care plans publication. The data covers all children and young persons up to age 25 with EHC plans, and includes those not captured in this publication in non-maintained early years provision, further education, home education or not in education, employment or training.

The number of pupils with an EHC plan has increased across all school types

In primary, 2.5% of pupils have an EHC plan and 13.5% have SEN support

In secondary, 2.4% of pupils have an EHC plan and 12.4% have SEN support

In state-funded AP schools, 25.5% have an EHC plan and 57.0% have SEN support

In independent schools, including independent special schools, 4.9% of pupils have an EHC plan and 15.2% have SEN support

The largest increase in EHC plans was in primary, with an additional 12,000 pupils with plans since 2022.

The number of pupils with an EHC plan in state-funded AP schools has increased, however the percentage of pupils with an EHC plan has decreased from 28.2% to 25.5%. This is driven by larger increases in the number of pupils in state-funded AP schools with SEN support or no SEN.

The percentage of all pupils with an EHC plan who are in mainstream schools (state-funded primary and secondary) has increased from 51.4% to 52.7% in 2023. The number of pupils in special schools continues to rise, the percentage of all school pupils with an EHC plan who attend state-funded special schools has dropped from 39.4% to 37.9%. These trends continue patterns seen since 2018.

Primary and secondary type of need are recorded in the school census and are available for state-funded nursery, primary, secondary and special schools, non-maintained special schools and state-funded AP schools. Data on type of need is not available for independent schools or general hospital schools and these are not included in totals in this section.

The most common type of need among pupils with an EHC plan is autistic spectrum disorder (ASD)

Almost one in three pupils with an EHC plan are identified with a primary need of ASD (116,000 pupils).

The most common type of need among pupils with SEN support are speech, language and communication needs

The primary need identified for 278,600 pupils was speech, language and communication needs. This is followed by social, emotional and mental health needs (229,700 pupils) and moderate learning difficulty (189,400 pupils)

These trends are similar to previous years.

Information on the characteristics of pupils with SEN are recorded in the school census and are available for state-funded nursery, primary, secondary and special schools, non-maintained special schools and state-funded AP schools. Data is not available for independent schools or general hospital schools and these are not included in totals in this section.

SEN is most prevalent at age 10
The percentage of pupils who have SEN support increases with age, reaching a peak of 15.7% of pupils at ages 9 and 10. This then steadily declines through secondary ages, to 12.4% at age 15.

The percentage of pupils with an EHC plan also increases with age, from 3.3% at age 5, up to a later peak of 5.3% at age 11 before slowly declining to 4.7% at age 15.

SEN continues to be more prevalent in boys than girls

72.4% of pupils with an EHC plan are boys, and 62.8% of pupils with SEN support are boys. Both of these rates have been slowly decreasing in recent years

The percentage of all pupils eligible for free school meals has increased sharply since the introduction of transitional protections which will continue to be in place during the roll out of Universal Credit. This has meant that pupils eligible for free school meals on or after 1 April 2018 retain their free school meals eligibility even if their circumstances change. In January 2023, the percentage for all pupils was 23.8%, compared to 22.5% in 2022, 20.8% in 2021, 17.3% in 2020, 15.4% in 2019 and 13.6% in 2018.

Pupils with SEN are more likely to be eligible for free school meals

41.1% of pupils with an EHC plan and 37.5% of pupils with SEN support are eligible for free school meals in 2023. This compares to 23.8% of all pupils in schools.

Pupils with SEN have higher rates of first language being English than the general school population

84.3% of pupils who have SEN support and 84.3% of pupils with an EHC plan have a first language known to be or believed to be English. This is unchanged from the previous year, and compares to 79.3% of all pupils in schools.

SEN is most prevalent in the Traveller of Irish heritage ethnic group

25.5% of pupils recorded as Traveller of Irish heritage ethnic group (1,760 pupils) had SEN support in 2023, and a further 6.1% had an EHC plan (418 pupils). The lowest rate for SEN is in the Chinese ethnic group, 4.9% of pupils in this ethnic group had SEN support (2,891 pupils) and 2.1% had an EHC plan (1,223 pupils). These groups are largely unchanged from 2022.

SEN units

SEN units are special provisions within a mainstream school where the pupils with SEN are taught within separate classes for at least half of their time. Units:

are designated by the local authority specifically for making SEN provision, and sometimes accommodate pupils registered at other schools on a part-time basis

receive funding of £6,000 or £10,000 per place, and usually top-up funding for any additional costs of support required by individual pupils

cater for a specific type or types of SEN (for example autistic spectrum disorder)

are usually for pupils with an EHC plan (but may also provide support for pupils with SEN support).

Schools should only use this indicator where the SEN unit has been formally recognised as such by the local authority where the school is located.

Resourced provision

Resourced provisions are places that are reserved at a mainstream school for pupils with a specific type of SEN, taught for at least half of their time within mainstream classes, but requiring a base and some specialist facilities around the school.

Resourced provisions:

are designated by the local authority specifically for making this kind of SEN provision

receive funding of £6,000 or £10,000 per place, and usually top-up funding for any additional costs of support required by individual pupils

cater for a specific area or areas of SEN (for example specific learning difficulties)

are usually for pupils with an EHC plan, but could include pupils with SEN support.

Schools should only use this indicator where the resourced provision has been formally recognised as such by the local authority where the school is located.

Most pupils placed in units will have an EHC plan. It is unlikely that a child would be placed in a unit and also receive support from resourced provision, but a school could have resourced provision for one type of need and a unit for another.

Following an exercise to investigate and improve the quality of data on SEN units and resourced provisions, additional validation checks on the recording of these provisions were introduced into the data collection from 2020. This has resulted in significant changes to the data series and as a result comparisons to previous years are not recommended. Full information on SEN units and resourced provisions is available in the school level underlying data file that accompanies this release.

Number of SEN units and resourced provisions has remained stable

The school level data shows that in January 2023, there were 373 schools in England with SEN units, a slight decrease from 377 in 2022, and 1,125 schools with a resourced provision, the same number as in 2022.

We would like to know more about our users and would encourage and welcome any feedback on how the data is used. Comments on any issues relating to this publication are also welcomed and encouraged. If you would like to be involved in future user engagement consultations then please do get in touch.

Please email us at: sen.statistics@education.gov.uk

Help and support

Methodology

Find out how and why we collect, process and publish these statistics.

National statistics

These accredited official statistics have been independently reviewed by the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR). They comply with the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics. Accredited official statistics are called National Statistics in the Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007.

Accreditation signifies their compliance with the authority's Code of Practice for Statistics which broadly means these statistics are:

managed impartially and objectively in the public interest

meet identified user needs

produced according to sound methods

well explained and readily accessible

Our statistical practice is regulated by the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR).

OSR sets the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics that all producers of official statistics should adhere to.

You are welcome to contact us directly with any comments about how we meet these standards. Alternatively, you can contact OSR by emailing regulation@statistics.gov.uk or via the OSR website.

If you have a specific enquiry about Special educational needs in England statistics and data:

Special educational needs statistics team

Email: sen.statistics@education.gov.uk
Contact name: Sean Gibson

Press office

If you have a media enquiry:

Telephone: 020 7783 8300

Public enquiries

If you have a general enquiry about the Department for Education (DfE) or education:

Telephone: 037 0000 2288

Opening times:
Monday to Friday from 9.30am to 5pm (excluding bank holidays)

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Special educational needs in England, Academic year 2022/23

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This publication combines information from the school census (state-funded schools), school level annual school census (independent schools) and general hospital school census on pupils with special educational needs (SEN). The publication includes breakdowns by type of SEN provision, type of need, age, national curriculum year group, gender, ethnicity, English as a first language and free school meal eligibility.

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SEN Data-'Age and Gender, by type of SEN provision and type of need - 2016 to 2024' for Autistic Spectrum Disorder, EHC plans, Hearing Impairment, Missing, Moderate Learning Difficulty and 12 other filters in England, Hammersmith and Fulham and Kensington and Chelsea between 2021/22 and 2023/24

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SEN Data-'Age and Gender, by type of SEN provision and type of need - 2016 to 2024' for Autistic Spectrum Disorder, EHC plans, Hearing Impairment, Missing, Moderate Learning Difficulty and 12 other filters in England, Hammersmith and Fulham and Kensington and Chelsea between 2021/22 and 2023/24

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‘Age and Gender, by type of SEN provision and type of need - 2016 to 2024’ from ‘Special educational needs in England’, Permanent data table

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Find, download and explore official Department for Education (DfE) statistics and data in England.

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What MUST be included in a SEND Information Report

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What MUST be included in a SEND Information Report

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SEND Information Reports Statutory Duty - What must be included

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Incorporating the SEND Reflection Framework

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Incorporating the SEND Reflection Framework

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SEND Information Reports - Incorporating the SEND Reflection Framework

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SEND Information/ SEN Policy and Local Offer poster

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SEND Information/ SEN Policy and Local Offer poster

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SEND Information Reports, SEN Policy and the Local Offer Poster

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About Accessibility Plan Statutory Requirements - What must be included

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About SEND Information Reports Statutory Duty - What must be included

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SENCo Responsibilities and Delegated Duties

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SENCo Responsibilities and Delegated Duties

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SENCO responsibilities and possible delegated duties (2) (1)

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Lots of SENCo Videos in Bite size chunks

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Lots of SENCo Videos in Bite size chunks

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Share your videos with friends, family, and the world

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Information and guidance on the Equality Act 2010, including age discrimination and the Public Sector Equality Duty.

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EEF: 5 a Day

This Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) work offers five evidence-based recommendations to support pupils with SEND, providing a starting point for schools to review their current approach and practical ideas they can implement.

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Special Educational Needs in Mainstream Schools

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Create a positive learning environment for pupils with SEN.

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The SEND Quality First Teaching Toolkit

Organised into numerous sections (for example, cognition and learning, organisation, concentration, time management, etc.), the toolkit provides teachers with a wide range practical QFT strategies

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Universal Design for Learning: Guidelines

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Universal Design for Learning: Guidelines

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Universal Design for Learning: Guidelines

UDL originated in America and is in many ways a synonym for QFP. UDL is fully embedded in the Irish early years context and also often used in the UK.

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The UDL Guidelines are a tool used in the implementation of Universal Design for Learning, a framework to improve and optimize teaching and learning for all people based on scientific insights into how humans learn. Learn more about the Universal Design for Learning framework from CAST. The UDL Guidelines can be used by educators, curriculum developers, researchers, parents, and anyone else who wants to implement the UDL framework in a learning environment. These guidelines offer a set of concrete suggestions that can be applied to any discipline or domain to ensure that all learners can access and participate in meaningful, challenging learning opportunities.

UDL Rising to Equity

Because the UDL Guidelines are meant to be informed by feedback from the field as well as new research, they have been updated several times in the past. We are in the process of updating the Guidelines once again in our UDL Rising to Equity initiative.

This update will focus specifically on addressing systemic barriers that result in inequitable learning opportunities and outcomes. CAST aims to develop a transparent, inclusive, and community-driven process. If you are interested in collaborating and staying updated on our progress, we invite you to complete a brief survey. Do you use social media? Join the conversation happening now in the #UDLrising hashtag.
Meet the UDL Rising to Equity Advisory Board Meet the UDL Rising to Equity Stakeholder Council

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The UDL Guidelines are a tool used in the implementation of Universal Design for Learning, a framework to improve and optimize teaching and learning for all people based on scientific insights into how humans learn. Learn more about the Universal Design for Learning framework from CAST.

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Evaluator's Cookbook

The Evaluator's Cookbook is a tool for gathering pupil voice. In relation to QFP, the activities can be a great way to find out what children are finding more difficult and then respond appropriately. For example, use the Lock and Key activity to support a child to identify the challenge (the lock) and think about what strategy they think might help them (the key)

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QFP survey

Quality First Practice Survey (MS Forms).

We used this survey with all teachers (including SLT) and Teaching Assistants to gain a baseline understanding of staff understanding of QFT.

This survey is freely available for any educational setting to copy and use.

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QFP and Inclusion: Curriculum Leaders

This observation schedule is used to conduct a SEND Climate Walk (the principle could be extended to inclusion more broadly). As part of the school's focus on inclusion, QFP is an area staff are looking for when on the 'Climate Walk'.

This tool could be used as a method for assessing existing practice or monitoring progress

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Quality Curriculum Walks which include a focus on QFP

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Quality Curriculum Walks which include a focus on QFP

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The curriculum walk was conducted by various school leaders. Members of the team focussed on a range of curriculum related elements, including some who made a note of QFP practice. Consider whether it should be the SENCO or the curriculum leader that focusses on QFP; perhaps the SENCO and a curriculum leader might do some preliminary work together and then the role is handed over to curriculum leaders entirely.

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SEND Skills Audit

This tool can be used as a baseline for assessing staff confidence in removing barriers and making reasonable adjustments for children with SEND.

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QFP INSET PowerPoint

Once staff had completed the QFP Survey, this PowerPoint was designed to meet staff CPD needs. The PowerPoint was presented as part of an INSET day.

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5 A Day Poster

Using the structure of the EEF 5 a day resources, staff used post-its to note down all the QFT strategies they were aware off. The post-it's were then typed up and put together to form this school QFP poster.

Staff completed this activity as part of an INSET day (see the Inset day PowerPoint above for more information).

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Addressing Barriers to Learning through QFP

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Addressing Barriers to Learning through QFP

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Addressing barriers to learning through QFP (child, group, class, Key stage, school)

This CPD activity is designed to get staff thinking about QFP at multiple levels, from: child, to group, to class, to Key Stage, to whole school.

The purpose of the activity is to reflect on the distinctions between 'quality first teaching' and 'quality first practice'.

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This form is part of a setting's process for for considering whether a child needs adding onto the SEND register. Through the embedding of QFP, the form requires teachers to reflect on what QFP strategies they have used with the child, what's worked and what has been less successful The form also builds in pupil and parent/carer voice.

This form was embedded into the setting's practice after the QFP inset CPD (see resources above).

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This form is part of a setting's process for for considering whether a child needs adding onto the SEND register. Constructed as a Microsoft 365 form, it is designed to be quick to complete. Through the embedding of QFP, teachers are required focus on what QFP strategies they have tried and whether they worked.

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Pupil Passport that requires reference to QFT

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Pupil Passport that requires reference to QFT

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The Pupil Passport requires staff to detail the QFP practice which supports the pupil.

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This booklet contains a few QFP 'quick fixes' that teachers should be routinely embedding into their practice.

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QFP and Inclusion: Curriculum Leaders

This PowerPoint slide contains questions for curriculum leaders that focus on their role in relation to QFP and SEND.

As curriculum leaders focus on their responses to the questions, the process of facilitating distributive inclusive leadership in your setting is strengthened.

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Peer-to-Peer Reflective Questions

This PowerPoint slide contains reflective questions that teachers might consider when observing one another's practice.

The questions could be used as part of peer-to-peer reflective CPD.

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Define QFP from the school’s perspective

There is no one set way to define QFP. Neil Almond has this definition:

Quality First Teaching is a style of teaching that emphasises high quality, inclusive teaching for all pupils in a class. Quality first teaching includes differentiated learning, strategies to support SEN pupils’ learning in class, on-going formative assessment and many others.

It can be a good idea to create your setting’s definition (the INSET day PowerPoint is designed to help with this). We recommend that however you choose to define QFP you ensure the word ‘inclusion/inclusive’ is embedded

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‘Quality First Teaching’ (QFT) has become one of those phrases that everybody uses, but not everyone agrees on how to define it.

Here we give you a broad introduction to what the term quality first teaching means and has come to mean, as well as a reliable quality first teaching checklist of strategies that every school leader should be aware of. How you choose to implement them (or even whether) depends on your own vision and school approach.

The quality first teaching strategies here have been chosen as those best suited to primary schools, but the advice is relevant to secondaries too.

What Is Quality First Teaching?

Quality First Teaching is a style of teaching that emphasises high quality, inclusive teaching for all pupils in a class. Quality first teaching includes differentiated learning, strategies to support SEN pupils’ learning in class, on-going formative assessment and many others.

Quality first teaching has existed in one form or another since 2010. Though the minutiae of what it involves has changed over time, some core principles have remained consistent – personalising learning to the individual needs of pupils, encouraging greater inclusion of pupils with SEN needs, and working to narrow the attainment gap.

The History of Quality First Teaching

Those who have been in the profession for some time or trained circa 2010 may know that the phrase ‘quality first teaching’ first appeared in several documents published by the then Department for Children, Schools and Families.

One such paper was titled Personalised Learning: A Practical Guide. This was produced as part of a drive to further decrease the attainment gap set out in the ‘Children’s Plan’.

The plan relayed the then-Labour government’s vision for ‘world class schools providing excellent, personalised teaching and learning, to help all children and young people to progress in their education and wider development.’

Indeed, the initial hope of the document as written by the Undersecretary of State for Schools and Learners was ‘that this document will support schools in evaluating where they are in the development of personalising learning and provide pointers for future development.’

It is important to note that when ‘personalised learning’ is discussed in the document, it is not referring to John Dewey’s philosophy that pupils should be free to engage only in what is interesting to them.

Rather it suggests that teachers should adapt instruction so that if pupils do not understand a new idea the first time, it is retaught in a different way or with additional support. We ‘personalise’ to the need of the pupils who did not understand by finding a teaching method that is more accessible for them.

The National Strategies Intervention

This interpretation is supported by the fact that quality first teaching makes another appearance as part of National Strategies Intervention – a program abandoned by the coalition government when the new national curriculum was brought in and one that can still be accessed through the National Archives online.

Here it is used in the context of interventions – particularly for those with special education needs – to ensure that teachers were being inclusive in their choice of pedagogy to enable all children, regardless of circumstances, to achieve to the best of their ability.

QFT & The ‘Three Waves of Intervention’ Model

For those seeking to benefit from the guidance within the National Strategies of implementing quality first teaching, you need to understand the three ‘waves’ of intervention that can be rolled out strategically by schools to minimise underachievement in all learners.

Wave 1: Quality First Teaching

The first wave was quality first teaching. The reasoning behind this was that good planning of well-sequenced and manageable lessons and class work coupled with effective pedagogical choices, and robust assessment for learning – which was used to change instruction so all learners could achieve –  was the first step in reducing underachievement.

Source: https://mabletherapy.com/2019/03/26/vocabulary-teaching-part2/

Wave 2: Additional Interventions

Wave 2 was meant to be delivered as well as Wave 1, not as a whole-sale replacement. The idea behind this was that those pupils who were just about falling behind could be identified and corrective instruction could take place in small groups that would quickly put the pupils back on track to meet age-related expectations.

This would not have to take place outside of a whole-class maths lesson but could be part of guided work within a lesson. Interestingly, the National Strategies made the case that these interventions should ‘take the form of a tight, structured programme of small-group support that has an evidence base of impact on progress.’

Wave 3: Personalised Interventions

The final Wave, Wave 3, was an increasingly personalised programme to really help those learners struggling to keep up and to narrow the attainment gap. Again, this was not calling for the removal of children from Wave 1, the Quality First Teaching, but rather accepting that some pupils would require even more support than Wave 2 offered.

Where Wave 3 differed from Wave 2 was the need to maximise and accelerate progress, perhaps through the use of specialist teachers or highly trained teacher assistants and support staff to achieve very specific targets.

Quality First Teaching & SEN

Finally, QFT is mentioned in the 2015 government document Special educational needs and disability code of practice: 0 to 25 years. This paper focuses on what schools can do to support those with additional needs particularly cognition and learning difficulties. On page 99, it mentions:

‘High quality teaching, differentiated for individual pupils, is the starting point in responding to pupils who have or may have SEN. Additional intervention and SEN support cannot compensate for a lack of good quality teaching.

Schools should regularly and carefully review the quality of teaching for all pupils, including those at risk of underachievement. This includes reviewing and, where necessary, improving, teachers’ understanding of strategies to identify and support vulnerable pupils and their knowledge of the SEN most frequently encountered.’

So when we talk about Quality First Teaching, we are talking about how we can make our teaching inclusive so that all learners can receive instruction from the teacher and not from a teaching assistant outside the classroom.

N.B. While Quality First Teaching encourages direct instruction from class teachers for SEN pupils, the ways in which this will be carried out should first be discussed with the SENCO and other relevant figures and adhere to the SEND Code of Practice.

It is also worth keeping in mind that what works well for pupils with SEN will also be beneficial for those without (albeit to a lesser extent).

10 Quality First Teaching Strategies To Implement In Your Lessons

1. Small Step Planning

2. Plan for Error

3. Assessment for Learning Strategies

4. Manipulatives and Representatives

5. Metacognition and Modelling

6. Explicit Teaching of Mathematical Vocabulary

7. Examples and Non-Examples

8. Ensure 100% Participation

9. Purposeful Practice

10. (Pedagogical) Content Knowledge

One of the issues with QFT was that everyone had different ideas as to what actually constituted ‘Quality First’ teaching.

For many years, ‘fun’ lessons were all the rage, particularly in primary maths, and fun was the measurement of the ‘quality’ of the lesson.

However, we now know from cognitive science that these types of ‘fun’ lessons cause episodic memories, which are heavily tied to their context and do not transfer well into novel situations. Superficially, it might have seemed as if pupils were engaged, but it was unlikely that the lesson would benefit pupils’ learning in the long-term.

Episodic memory: A maths lesson using sweets usually means pupils only remember sweets rather than numbers!

Read more

Learning and Memory in the Classroom: What Teachers Should Know

Making Maths Fun: The Best Way To Encourage Learning?

The Department for Children, Schools and Families, in Personalised Learning: A Practical Guide, offered their own interpretation of what constitutes as quality first teaching. On page 10, the document says that QFT:

‘… demands 100% participation from the pupils, and sets high and realistic challenges. It does not ‘spoon feed’, it is challenging and demanding; it expects pupils to be able to articulate their ideas, understanding and thinking by actively promoting pupil talk.’

On page 12, the guide summarises the key characteristics of QFT as:

Highly focused lesson design with sharp learning objectives

High demands of pupil involvement and engagement with their learning

High levels of interaction for all pupils

Appropriate use of questioning, modelling and explaining on the part of the teacher

An emphasis on learning through dialogue, with regular opportunities for pupils to talk both individually and in groups

An expectation that pupils will accept responsibility for their own learning and work independently

Regular use of encouragement and authentic praise to engage and motivate pupils

While it is difficult to argue with these characteristics, a good idea for all senior leaders is to use some time to talk through with staff what quality first teaching means to them, and develop a shared vision of QFT across the school.

Getting this shared understanding will be crucial as it gives staff clear targets for what leaders will be looking for and can have a say in the process.

This will prevent teachers from having to alter their practice when being observed, as they know what the observer is looking for – more often than not, this would just be the way that the observer teaches.

Below I will outline 10 strategies that could be used as a point of discussion when thinking about what quality first teaching looks like in your school. The examples given are drawn from primary maths but apply equally to other curricular subjects.

N.B. These do not constitute an order of importance or effectiveness.

1.    Small Step Planning

According to cognitive load theory, because of the limits of working memory it is very difficult for young children to juggle more than around 4 items in their working memory at any one time.

One way to overcome this limitation is by having plenty of information in our long-term memory. This allows the limits of working memory to be ‘chunked’.

This means that instead of seeing something like long multiplication as a process of small individual steps (with each step taking up a part in our working memory), this procedure is processed as one item in our working memory.

The benefit of this is that more working memory is freed up to put attention on other things. Small step planning aids in this process as it limits the cognitive load placed on pupils.

This in turn increases the probability of the new information breaking past the bottleneck of working memory and into long-term memory, improving pupils’ problem solving skills.

2.    Plan for Error

When planning our lessons, it is important that we not only plan for what our pupils should do but also plan for the errors that our pupils could make.

This way we can make these errors explicit through direct teaching, as well as the strategies that we can use to overcome these errors.

By considering these errors, we can also anticipate the prior learning that will be required for pupils to be successful in the lesson and plan for this knowledge to be retrieved back into working memory. This could be achieved through a short starter that will help make the links between the prior knowledge and the new learning more explicit.

3.    Assessment for Learning (AfL) Strategies

Much has been written about the impact of AfL and Professor Dylan Wiliam is the foremost expert of this strategy. In his latest book, Creating the Schools Our Children Need, he outlines five main features of short-cycle formative assessment: what teachers can do, minute-by-minute or day-by-day, to ensure high-quality formative assessment takes place.

1. Ensuring pupils know what they are meant to be learning

2. Finding out what the pupils have learnt

3. Providing feedback that improves pupils’ learning

4. Having pupils help each other learn

5. Developing pupils’ ability to monitor and assess their own learning.

Recent research conducted by the Education Endowment Fund has found that formative assessment has a positive effect on learning outcomes and those who were involved in the trial gained the equivalent of two months of additional progress.

The other interesting thing they found was that pupils in the lower third for attainment showed greater progress than those in the highest third.

Using assessment for learning to first establish what a student knows before teaching them something new, after we have taught something new through questioning in the classroom, and again after we have changed our practice as a result of the first wave of formative assessment is one way that we can ensure the whole class or whole school can be brought up to a high standard.

It is through AfL that we can see if our teaching is effective and if pupils may need the more individualised support of a Wave 2 intervention.

Read more: Your Intervention Must-Have: Formative Diagnostic Tests

4.    Manipulatives and Representations

In their guidance report on improving KS2 and KS3 maths education the Education Endowment Fund recognises the use of manipulatives and representations.

They recommend that one of the purposes of using these manipulatives is to ‘…reveal mathematical structures and enable pupils to understand and use mathematics independently.’

Manipulatives can be used across all key stages and are especially important in early maths as they provide concrete experiences which pupils can associate with mathematical ideas.

Common manipulatives found in the classroom include: Base 10, Dienes blocks and Cuisenaire blocks.

In the guidance report, the EFF lays out five recommendations for what effective use of manipulatives looks like:

Ensure that there is a clear rationale

Enable pupils to understand the links between the manipulatives and the mathematical ideas they represent

Try to avoid pupils becoming reliant on manipulatives

Manipulatives should act as a ‘scaffold’, which can be removed

Manipulatives can be used to support pupils of all ages

When discussing inclusive quality first teaching for learners with SEN, the use of concrete resources as part of the concrete, pictorial, abstract approach and other visual or kinaesthetic representations is one of the most powerful tools that teachers can use.

When combined with goal-free problems that help pupils identify the actual maths involved in a problem, manipulatives can help pupils make remarkable progress.

5.    Metacognition and Modelling

Another recommendation from the EEF, using metacognition in the classroom, refers to thinking about thinking. It has become widely recognised as one of the most important study skills for pupils, especially if it has been embedded early on. This means more than teaching generic thinking skills (though these too have their place in primary schools), but rather embed metacognition within the content of subject disciplines.

Recommendation 5 of the guidance report on Metacognition and Self-Regulated Learning suggests that metacognitive talk can ‘remain implicit and hidden’. One way to make this explicit is to use metacognitive talk when live modelling examples to pupils.

Not only do you clearly explain the ‘what’ about what needs to be done to be successful but also explain ‘why’ certain choices have been made.

Going further, we should also put the onus on the pupils to explain the ‘why’, first through shared talk e.g. in partners or in group work (or even role play exercises), before increasingly asking them to be more independent with their thinking.

6.    Explicit Teaching of Mathematical Vocabulary

Maths vocabulary can be challenging as there are key words which also have an everyday meaning that pupils may use regularly.

One such example might be the word ‘prime’. When teaching a lesson on prime numbers, pupils may initially assume you are referring to something to do with the Amazon subscription bundle and not a mathematical concept.

The explicit teaching of new vocabulary, which can be huge barrier to understanding, should be a fundamental part of our maths teaching, and to ensure inclusiveness even pre-taught to some learners so that their understanding during a lesson will be greater.

Maths Vocabulary List (96 words for KS2)

A simple and easy to use resource that can help your pupils improve their knowledge of crucial Maths vocabulary to help them prepare for SATs in Year 6.

One effective way of teaching mathematical vocabulary is through Frayer Diagrams.

Source: https://i.pinimg.com/originals/94/d0/56/94d05685a52f5c5758ce8e60950f1ea2.jpg

Here the word we mean to teach can go into the middle and we can fill out the corresponding section with relevant information.

Another means of teaching vocabulary is to look at etymology of root words, suffixes and prefixes.

This means that we can teach that the suffix ‘tri’ means 3 and so a triangle is a shape with three angles. Or tract comes from the Latin ‘trahere’, which means to pull, this can help pupils visualise that when we subtract, we pull the number apart to make it smaller.

7.    Examples and Non-examples

Linked to the above is the idea of non-examples. It is clear to teachers that one way to show new ideas is through examples. However, showing ‘non-examples’ can be more effective that just sharing examples.

Non-examples allow pupils to compare both side-by-side and find the boundaries and limits of the idea we are teaching.

An example of an example/non-example pair taken from
Third Space Learning’s online maths interventions.

For example when teaching odd numbers, you could depict sets of both odd and even numbers as visual representations in groups of 2 (e.g. drawing pairs of fruits); representations of odd numbers will always have one left over where even numbers do not. From this, pupils should be able to note the key difference between the sets of numbers, and therefore the core of what they’re learning.

8.    Ensure 100% Participation

We know that student participation is crucial to learning. If we don’t get pupils really engaged with their learning, they won’t remember it.

To that end, its important that we make certain pedagogical choices that ensure 100% of the pupils are participating in the lesson.

There are a variety of ways out there to achieve this – mini whiteboards being one example.

One of the most powerful ones comes from Teach Like a Champion and is called ‘Cold Calling’.

Effectively, we get rid of the notion of ‘hands up’, as this creates a culture where the less confident pupils or low ability students can hide behind the more confident pupils.

What cold calling does is create a culture in which the teacher may call on a student at any time to answer a question. There are a couple of key ways this is done.

Firstly, the question is asked and then pause time is given between the question and a student’s name being called. The idea being that once this is embedded all pupils will get used to the fact they might be called, and focus on answering the question.

The other thing to consider is that if a child does not know the answer, they can ask a classmate but then you return to the original student to repeat the answer. This is referred to as no opt out.

9.    Purposeful Practice

Not all practice is equal. The common phrase ‘practice makes perfect’ is of no use to teachers as if our pupils are practising the wrong thing!

Indeed, what may happen is that the pupils practise something incorrectly so often that this error becomes permanent. What we need to move to is a more ‘purposeful practice’.

Often referred to as ‘deliberate practice’, this is where the component parts that make a new skill are broken down and each component is practiced over and over again, with appropriate feedback from the teacher to ensure it is practiced to a point that pupils can’t go wrong.

This requires time to be provided by the teacher for the pupil to practice and effort from the pupil to practice it correctly.

To make this more effective, you could interleave similar content into the practice period so pupils have to retrieve broadly related but also slightly different information from their long-term memory to help them answer questions.

This must also be repeated regularly as retrieval practice to ensure that pupils have truly committed the topic to their long term memory. Perennial problems such as the summer slide become much less problematic if pupils have thoroughly absorbed new knowledge and practiced retrieving it.

10.  (Pedagogical) Content Knowledge

In 2014 Robert Coe at al produced a report called ‘What makes great teaching’. In that report they mention that there are clear links to the teacher’s understanding of the content (and how it could be taught) and the gains pupils made.

On page 2 they write’ The most effective teachers have deep knowledge of the subjects they teach, and when teachers knowledge falls below a certain level it is a significant impediment to students’ learning.’

It is therefore important that leaders identify the weaknesses of staff and offer appropriate CPD to ensure that all teachers are confident in not just understanding the content of primary maths but the best strategies, like the use of manipulatives, to teach the content effectively.

Being able to impart the knowledge you possess effectively is equally important, and a combination of direct instruction and independent work (with appropriate differentiation in the classroom) is central to achieving this aim.

Just as we hold pupils to high expectations, we should hold ourselves to high expectations as well.

Quality First Teaching Isn’t The Be-All End-All… But It’s A Good Start

Ultimately, closing the attainment gap is a task that needs more than just high quality teaching to achieve. Regardless of a teacher’s best efforts, some pupils will require even more support than they can provide alone.

This is where schemes like the Pupil Premium are most useful; they enable schools to find and make use of those resources that will help bridge the gap even further.

But ensuring that staff have a clear, unified vision of what constitutes quality first teaching – and providing them with the knowledge and tools to carry this out – makes the gap just that bit smaller.

Bibliography

Coe, R. and Aloisi, C. and Higgins, S. and Major, L.E.(2014) ‘What makes great teaching? Review of the underpinning research.’, Project Report. Sutton Trust, London.

Department for Education and Skills (2007). Pedagogy and Personalisation. London: Department for Education and Skills.

Education Endowment Fund, 2017, Improving Mathematics at Key Stage 2 and 3, accessed online: https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/tools/guidance-reports/maths-ks-2-3/

Education Endowment Fund, 2018, Metacognition and Self-regulated Learning, accessed online: https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/tools/guidance-reports/metacognition-and-self-regulated-learning/

Department for Children, Schools and Families (2007). Pedagogy and Personalisation. London: Department for Education and Skills. Accessed online at: https://dera.ioe.ac.uk/8447/7/00844-2008DOM-EN_Redacted.pdf

Do you have pupils who need extra support in maths?
Every week Third Space Learning’s maths specialist tutors support thousands of pupils across hundreds of schools with weekly online 1-to-1 lessons and maths interventions designed to plug gaps and boost progress.

Since 2013 we’ve helped over 110,000 primary and secondary school pupils become more confident, able mathematicians. Learn more or request a personalised quote for your school to speak to us about your school’s needs and how we can help.

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