# data[].attributes.body
A starting point to give you further information about dysgraphia

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Dysgraphia is a learning disability that results in impaired handwriting, impaired spelling, or both in someone of normal or above-average intelligence. It is not a mental health disorder, but rather a brain-based learning disability marked by difficulty forming letters, spelling words correctly, staying within lines, writing legibly, or organizing and expressing one's ideas on paper.

Dysgraphia is frustrating for children or adults and can cause great emotional difficulty and distress. Someone with dysgraphia may have trouble spelling written words or writing at a normal speed, but will not necessarily have problems reading or speaking. Dysgraphia can occur in isolation or with other learning disabilities such as dyslexia, which is an impaired ability to read and comprehend written words. It can also co-occur with selective language impairments that cause additional problems with learning written and oral language skills.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Dysgraphia is a learning disability that results in impaired handwriting, impaired spelling, or both in someone of normal or above-average intelligence. It is not a mental health disorder, but rather a brain-based learning disability marked by difficulty forming letters, spelling words correctly, staying within lines, writing legibly, or organizing and expressing one's ideas on paper.

# data[].attributes.body
Irlen Syndrome doesn't get the same level of press as some other SEND needs but it's one that I see a lot in school. This is a good starting point for some basic information.

# data[].attributes.body
Some strategies as a starting point for helping those who have Irlen Syndrome

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Our parent and educator toolkits are designed as takeaway documents for you to download, print, and share. They offer helpful information and answers to questions on how best to support children an...

# data[].attributes.body
Informative video about Irlen Syndrome

# data[].attributes.body
A great springboard site to start your own research

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Irlen Syndrome

Irlen Syndrome is a perceptual disorder.

Irlen Spectral Filters are only available through an Irlen Centre.

Please contact your nearest Irlen Centre for information and appointment in your local area.

Irlen® Spectral Filters are not available through any opticians in the UK . Irlen® Spectral Filters should not be confused with colorimetry lenses, they are very different.

Irlen Syndrome is a condition that affects the quality of life for around 14% (some estimates are higher) of the population but that is easily treated through assessment and Irlen® Spectral Filters.
Assessment process
The assessment and treatment of Irlen Syndrome is usually carried out in two stages.

Stage 1: Screening assessment - this is the overlay determination stage

Screenings are carried out by specialist Irlen® screeners. They will carry out a screening to identify symptoms and determine how symptoms are impacting upon daily life. Irlen Screeners are trained to determine whether an individual has a profile consistent with Irlen Syndrome or not and advise accordingly.
Stage 2: Full Tint assessment
A referral for a Full Tint assessment may be made if an individual has been screened as having a profile consistent with Irlen Syndrome.

At the Full Tint assessment the individual will choose their preferred combination of Irlen® Spectral Filters.

Irlen® Spectral Filters can be worn as glasses or contact lenses to reduce symptoms of Irlen Syndrome.

Prescription glasses can also be tinted if CR39 tintable, plastic, uncoated lenses are provided by an optician.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Irlen Syndrome Irlen Syndrome is a perceptual disorder. Irlen Spectral Filters are only available through an Irlen Centre. Please contact your nearest Irlen Centre for information and appointment in your local area. Irlen® Spectral Filters are not available through any opticians in the UK .

# data[].attributes.body
Mindfulness exercises for teens and older children.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
10 Minute Mindfulness Meditation for Teens

# data[].attributes.body
A good starting point for your own research and ideas

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The children who need love the most will always ask for it in the most unloving ways Welcome to SEMH.co.uk, a site designed in 2016 to bring education staff together on the topic of SEMH and explore the best methods to support children and young people with social, emotional and mental health needs.

# data[].attributes.body
Great charity offering support and advice

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
We’re Mind, the mental health charity | Mind

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
We're Mind, the mental health charity. We're here to make sure no one has to face a mental health problem alone.

# data[].attributes.body
This is a good infographic encompassing some of the diagnosis and experiences classed under the umbrella of neurodiversity.
It is not everything encompassed however it is a good start. There is a growing 'neurodiversity' movement and, if your child falls under this umbrella, it is a good thing to research and learn about in order to give your child appropriate support.

# data[].attributes.body
Helpful short video explaining the term in more detail.

# data[].attributes.body
A really informative and inspiring video about Neurodiversity and its application in life.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Neurodiversity:  The New Normal | Cynthia Coupé | TEDxOcala

# data[].attributes.body
A helpful and well researched article explaining what neurodiversity is for those of you who like to take in their information by reading.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Parents of children with severe autism argue that portraying the autism spectrum as just "different" minimizes the challenges that many autistic individuals and their caretakers face. They point out that those with extreme neurological differences are simply not capable of caring for themselves. The opposing argument says that neurodiversity can help the severely autistic, not hurt them. They propose that seeing severely affected individuals from a traditional medical perspective hurts everyone.

High-functioning Asperger's syndrome and low-functioning autism disorder have been removed from the DSM, which now lists only one category, autism spectrum disorder. However, the gap between high-functioning and low-functioning can be wide. Some experts, including researcher Simon Baron-Cohen, argue that a middle ground could be reached between the two views, with better explanations of what constitutes different and disabled, and what it means to have a "normal" brain.

The term Rain Man is a derogatory term that identifies a mentally and, or, socially impaired individual; it's also a term that often refers to autistic individuals. The term was highlighted in the 1988 film of the same name. The story was based on the life of Kim Peek, who was considered a megasavant but was not known to be autistic. He had a prodigious memory even at the early age of 16 months. In later years, he was able to read an entire book in an hour and retain the information in it. He could also read the left page of a book with his left eye, as well as the right page with his right eye. Peek was thought to have FG syndrome, whereby one or more recessive genes are located on the X chromosome.

To increase the diversity of its workforce, Microsoft developed a hiring program geared solely toward those on the spectrum-people who would never make it through a standard phone interview. Some of the roles filled at Microsoft include software engineer, lab engineer, data analyst, and data scientist. The company has hired more than 100 people on the spectrum. In Germany, the technology company SAP moved on an initiative to hire hundreds of individuals on the spectrum as software engineers and product-testers. Other companies that hire the neurodiverse include Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Dell, among others. With big corporations taking this lead, perhaps smaller organizations will follow.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Neurodiversity refers to the idea that neurological differences, such as those seen in autism or ADHD, reflect normal variations in brain development. Neurodiversity is often contrasted with the "medical model," which views conditions like autism or ADHD as disorders to prevent, treat, or cure.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Sparking new ideas for your classroom
Malcolm Alexander, the acclaimed dyslexic sculptor, tells a story about one of his teachers who made a difference. According to Malcolm, that teacher said, "When I teach, when I look at a student's work, I always try to find something nice in it. And then go into the rest of it."
This is a gift you can give all students, but particularly those who are dyslexic: find something positive, something they have done well, and acknowledge it. They will remember that comment - and you.

As a teacher, you most likely already have a print-rich environment in your classroom. We know that all teachers, whether they are new to the profession or seasoned veterans, continue to look for suggestions and tweak their skills so they are better able to help their students.

The following suggestions may spark a new idea for your classroom. The good news about honing one's teaching for individuals with dyslexia is that many of the strategies will be helpful to the typical learner as well. And, of importance, the strategies will be particularly helpful to any struggling readers and writers in your classroom.

In addition to general recommendations, there are suggestions to promote phonological awareness skills, reading comprehension and fluency, vocabulary development, oral reading, comprehension of written directions, spelling, and writing. As always, choose the strategies and activities that best fit your students, your classroom, and you.

Some general recommendations for teachers of beginning readers and writers

1. Make personalized books and stories with the student's name and photos. Alternatively, have him or her dictate a story and draw pictures, which an adult can then transcribe and bind with a cover.

2. Increase print awareness by asking your student to look for everything he/she can find with writing (i.e. McDonald's sign, labels, and packages).

3. Provide multisensory experiences for students related to each book that they read, such as using stories and coloring pages (available with a story teller guide).

4. Choose rhyming books with high repetition of words and phrases.

5. Dramatically pause to allow students to fill in the refrain as you are reading.

6. Play sound matching games. For example, say, "Let's think of as many things as we can that start with Mmmm." Your student might say "Mouse, moo, milk." If your student has difficulty, give him or her clues. Say: "We drink mmmmm." Wait two seconds and then provide the answer ("milk").

7. Increase the repertoire of shapes your student draws to include circles, triangles, squares, and various facial features, such as eyes and a mouth.

8. Increase the repertoire of letters your student writes to include all the letters in the alphabet and numbers up to 10.

9. Guide your student's drawing and writing by placing your hand on top of his or her hand. Gradually fade the level of assistance.

General recommendations

1. During times when other students are independently working on class work, the student should have the option to work in a study carrel with headphones to eliminate distractions.

2. Allow extra time to complete tests.

3. Provide a regular study buddy whom the student sits next to in class.

4. Give "THINK TIME" before answering a question. This can be done by presenting a question and then pausing or by coming back to the student after a little while and repeating the question. Alternatively, have multiple students answer the same question. In this way, several models are provided.

5. Provide opportunities for writing and spelling every day, in a variety of formats, such as writing in a journal, sending an email, writing or copying a list of homework activities, writing on a large wall calendar, writing thank you letters, or archiving items in a collection.

6. Explicitly teach organization and planning skills for completing and tracking homework. Instruct students how to break down large projects into smaller tasks.

7. Improve word retrieval for naming through participation in one or more of these games: Scattegories, Taboo, Guesstures, Password, Scrabble, logic puzzles, rebus puzzles, Catch-Phrase, UpWords, Tribond, Plexers, crosswords and other word puzzles.

8. Give manipulatives (things to touch and move around) whenever possible to work on math related to time, money, or fractions.

9. Explicitly and systematically teach math to students with dyslexia (including models of proficient problem solving, verbalization of thought processes, guided practice, corrective feedback, and frequent cumulative review). Dyslexia and Mathematics Second Edition edited by T. R. Miles and Elaine Miles, 1992, and The Institute of Education Sciences (IES) Guide for Assisting Students Struggling with Mathematics: Response to Intervention (RtI) for Elementary and Middle Schools provide more information.

Recommendations to support reading comprehension and fluency for classroom materials

Before reading

1. Preview the title, pictures, chapter names, and bold-faced words in order to make a prediction.

2. Connect new information to previously learned information by talking about a personal experience related to the theme.

3. Verbalize or write questions prior to reading the text.

4. Discuss reading schemas for different types of textbooks (i.e. compare math and history). Highlight salient information that each genre addresses. Visual webs are useful for the student to preview and complete as they encounter key information.

5. Pre-teach key vocabulary for a particular unit or chapter before introducing the text.

6. Pre-teach themes or background information (i.e. historical context) for reading fiction.

7. Explicitly teach "how to use" the table of contents, glossary, index, headings, sidebars, charts, captions, and review questions in a text book.

During reading

1. Provide a set of textbooks for the student to take home and to highlight.

2. Assign class readings a week ahead of time for students to preview. This will improve attention and comprehension.

3. Provide audio recordings for the student to use while reading the text.

Books on tape and audio equipment may be obtained, free of charge, through the National Library Service.

A large range of books are already scanned and available for free through Bookshare.

4. Give the student a choice of what to read within selected genres, topics, and themes. High interest reading facilitates comprehension and reading for pleasure. In addition to classroom learning, the "curriculum" should cultivate the students' interests and strengths (both in and outside of the classroom). The Time on My Hands and Affinities checklists at All Kinds of Minds may be helpful in guiding the student to high-interest reading materials.

5. Make texts at a variety of reading levels available so that students can read fluently but also be slightly challenged (the appropriate instructional level).

6. Allow the student to use text-to-speech software for information on the computer.

This may be established by setting preferences on a Macintosh computer.

Text-to-speech software is available through a free trial over at CNET.

A scanner with OCR (optical character recognition) may be used to scan textbooks onto the computer.

7. Model self-monitoring skills with the following questions: "Does what I'm reading make sense?" "What do I think will happen next?" "Are there any words that I don't know?" "Can I figure out what the words mean from the sentences around them?"

8. Encourage sub-vocalization of the text and self-monitoring questions.

9. Model active engagement with the text through visualization of the scene (i.e. trying to make a "photograph" of the word in his/her mind's eye while enhancing visual features), highlighting, note taking, or jotting down a question.

10. Train students to silently read at various rates depending on the purpose; for example, skimming to find a particular term or to get the main idea or gist vs. reading more carefully for directions or comprehension of key concept.

11. Encourage multiple readings of a text.

12. Provide templates for students to jot down notes and key concepts as they read (i.e. a story line, visual web, or list of WH-questions).
If a student is reading a chapter book or novel, one template should be completed for each scene or chapter.

13. Bolster comprehension of idioms and more abstract language through reading the scripts of everyday conversations on Randall's Listening Lab. Students can listen to the conversation as they read. Key vocabulary is highlighted and defined.

Supporting vocabulary while reading

1. Log unfamiliar words in a personal dictionary that includes the sentence that contains the word, page number, a guess about the meaning, the pronunciation, a dictionary definition, and a new sentence using the word.

2. Improve vocabulary for written and verbal expression by forming associations between words, paraphrasing, and elaborating on an idea.

3. Teach prefixes, suffixes, and root words to students to improve spelling, decoding, and comprehension.

4. Give ample opportunities to practice writing target words. The student might be asked to say them, or use them in sentences or a story.

5. Look up unfamiliar words with an electronic speller that has speech output (such as the Franklin Speller) or a web-based dictionary. For example, Dictionary.com provides the pronunciation and definition of a word.

After reading

1. Verbalize or write the answers to the pre-reading questions and share the answers with a friend or family member.

2. Compose an alternative ending for the story or write a sequel.

3. Act out key scenes from a text or give "How To" demonstrations for kinesthetic learners.

4. Challenge students to draw inferences from the text (i.e. "How do you think the main character feels?" "Do you think it will be harder to stop a heavier or lighter object traveling at the same velocity?").

Oral reading

1. Increase reading fluency through a "reading apprenticeship" incorporating the following elements:

1. Models of fluent reading.

2. Repetition of the same passage, until reading is fluent.

3. Dramatic readings (i.e. skits, poetry, and speeches).

4. Regular tracking and graphing of reading rate and fluency.

2. See Read Naturally for a systematic program that incorporates choral reading (reading at the same time as a fluent reader), repetitions, and tracking of reading fluency.

3. For more information on reading apprenticeships, see The Fluent Reader: Oral Reading Strategies for Building Word Recognition, Fluency, and Comprehension, by Timothy Rasinski.

Supporting comprehension of written directions

1. Present less written material per page with no more than two directions in a sentence. Double spacing and bullets or numbers are also helpful.

2. Provide additional time to take tests.

3. Assist the student in breaking apart the written directions into smaller steps.

4. Check for comprehension of the directions.

5. Both auditory and written instructions should be provided.

6. Sub-rehearse (quietly or silently repeating) the directions to keep them in working memory long enough to complete them.

Recommendations to support writing in school

1. Increase phonetic spelling of unfamiliar words by counting the number of sounds in a word, and then correlating the sounds with letters.

2. Explicitly teach phonics rules and review them multiple times.

3. Provide a disproportionate amount of positive feedback for writing (relative to correction). Students should be praised for words that are spelled phonetically and accurately.

4. Institute delays that require the student to wait 5 minutes before starting a writing task. The student should be instructed to spend those 5 minutes planning.

5. Explicitly teach the elements of writing narratives or essays.

6. Brainstorm key vocabulary prior to writing.

7. Provide a focused spelling program such as Spellography to work on learning specific morphological, semantic and mental orthographic spelling rules.

8. Group words into word families with multiple exemplars of each phonetic pattern.

9. Provide models of "good essays" for struggling writers to use as a template.

10. Dictate stories with an audio recording or dictation software.

11. Emphasize the need to write in "stages" rather than completing a long narrative in one sitting. The stages should include: planning, writing, and revision.

12. Teach mnemonic devices for editing such as: SCOPE (spelling, organization, order of words, punctuation, and expresses a complete thought)

13. Instruct students to create an alternate ending for a familiar story, make a modern day story historic, or create a comic strip of two of the characters having a conversation.

14. Use word prediction software such as Co:Writer for improving spelling and complex sentence structure.

15. Text-to-speech software and word processing should be available for editing written work.

16. Encourage students to keep a journal. To increase motivation, visual images should be added to each page (i.e. "things found" throughout the day: maps, photos, or clippings from a magazine or the internet).

17. Improve penmanship with a larger pen or pencil grip and raised-line paper.

18. Practice handwriting using the following low-tech strategies: pencil grips, paper with raised lines and a slant board.

Recommendations for students with visual deficits

1. Encourage students to use a line guide as he/she is reading, to avoid skipping lines.

2. Use cut-out window for completing math worksheets.

3. Give visual pictures for commonly reversed or flipped letters: (i.e. "Which way does the "b"/ "d" go in "bed?").

4. Utilize a highlighter for key words, concepts, and/or directions when presented with written material.

5. Give visual images to associate with problematic sounds such as "short a" and "e" (i.e. Does the "e" in "bed" sound like a "short e" in "elephant" or a "long e" in "eagle?" "Does the "a" in "angel" sound like the "short a" in "alligator" or the "long a" in "ape?").

6. Encourage students to keep a copy of a "letter shaping card" in his/her school supplies and homework supplies for an easy reference.

For additional information, download our document below, which summarizes teaching tips from Tutor House. Also download MindShift's PDF, Teachers' Guide to Using Videos.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Upon completion of this section, you will Acquire general recommendations for the classroom that enrich learning for beginning readers and writers Identify tips for the different parts of the reading process that enrich comprehension, fluency, and vocabulary Have idea

# data[].attributes.body
A great charity link for you to use as a spring board to your own research.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
This website places cookies on your computer to improve your experience. By continuing to browse the site, you are agreeing to our use of cookies. For more details, see our privacy policy. I agree

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The British Dyslexia Association is the voice for the 10% of the population that are dyslexic

# data[].attributes.body
There's always room for more TED talks.. a lovely one here discussing some of the strengths Dyslexic people have.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The Creative Brilliance of Dyslexia  | Kate Griggs | TEDxBrighton

# data[].attributes.body
A really handy little infographic showing some of the difficulties associated with Dyslexia

# data[].attributes.body
Additude is a great resource for all things ADHD and other neurodiverse diagnosis. This is a good starting point for your own research.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Never underestimate the power of a teacher who recognizes and harnesses the power of structure, communication, and interactive learning - especially for students with ADHD. Share these 11 powerful ideas with your child's teacher to help build a lifelong love for learning!

A student pays close attention in class thanks to ADHD strategies for teachers that increased her focus.

1 of 11

A boy with ADHD watches his teacher write strategies for learning on the chalkboard

3 of 11

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The 3 Rs of ADHD at School: Routines, Rules, Reminders

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Never underestimate the power of a teacher who recognizes and harnesses the power of structure, communication, and interactive learning - especially for students with ADHD. Share these 11 powerful ideas with your child's teacher to help build a lifelong love for learning!

# data[].attributes.body
A fantastic video giving an insight into the struggles associated with ADHD

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
What Don't You Understand? - A Short Film about ADHD

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
ADHD is a very complicated thing, and it is very hard to explain, especially to those without it. This film takes you through common experiences that come with the disorder.

# data[].attributes.body
Link to ADHD UK Charity webpage - a great starting point for your own research

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
We’re here to help people with ADHD Thrive. Positively changing what it means to have ADHD in the UK if not the world.

# data[].attributes.body
Purple Ella is a great Autistic advocate - she was diagnosed with Autism and ADHD as an adult and uses her platforms to spread information about how to help, support and understand autistic and ADHD people. She speaks very well about the interaction between these two diagnosis and their contrasting effects. She can be found on most social media platforms. Discretion is advised as there may be some strong language!

# data[].attributes.body
A very basic indication of some of the symptoms associated with ADHD

# data[].attributes.body
A great website as a starting point for your own research and to support your teaching.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Autism is a lifelong developmental disability which affects how people communicate and interact with the world. There are approximately 700,000 autistic adults and children in the UK.

# data[].attributes.body
Purple Ella is a fantastic advocate for people with autism and / or ADHD. She was diagnosed later in life and is able to speak from experience about various areas of life and ways to support young people through these. Her platforms ( available across social media) are a wealth of experience and ideas. Discretion is urged as there may be some strong language.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Helping your autistic child with school anxiety - presented by Purple Ella

# data[].attributes.body
An inspirational TED Talk about the importance of championing every child's needs. This is good to watch with a cuppa after a hard day!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Every kid needs a champion | Rita Pierson | TED

# data[].attributes.body
The education endowment foundation is great resource for looking at the impact of strategies and for information about evidence based practice. This is a great resource for taking your time to have a good look through.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The best available evidence indicates that great teaching is the most important lever schools have to improve pupil attainment. Ensuring every teacher is supported in delivering high-quality teaching is essential to achieving the best outcomes for all pupils, particularly the most disadvantaged among them.

It is important that schools consider how children learn, how they develop knowledge and skills, and how they can be supported to lay firm foundations for later learning. Teaching approaches that ensure long-term retention of knowledge, fluency in key skills, and confident use of metacognitive strategies are crucial. These are fundamental to learning and are the ​'bread and butter' of effective teaching:

Cognitive strategies include subject-specific strategies or memorisation techniques such as methods to solve problems in maths.

Metacognitive strategies are what we use to monitor or control our cognition, for example checking whether our approach to solving a mathematics problem worked or considering which cognitive strategy is the best fit for a task.

The explicit teaching of cognitive and metacognitive strategies is integral to high-quality teaching and learning, and these strategies are best taught within a subject and phase specific context. Approaches such as explicit instruction, scaffolding and flexible grouping are all key components of high-quality teaching and learning for pupils.

Teachers should be mindful of the differing needs within their classes - it is just as important to avoid over-scaffolding as it is to ensure all pupils are adequately supported. Similarly, we know that retrieval practice supports knowledge retention, but it is important to think carefully about how that is implemented in individual subjects across the curriculum to ensure it supports learning.

It is also important to take account of the prior knowledge that children bring to lessons and to help them to build upon this understanding. Additionally, anticipating common misconceptions, and using diagnostic assessment to uncover them, is an important way to support pupils.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Evidence indicates that great teaching is the most important lever schools have to improve outcomes for their pupils.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
High quality teaching: The 'five-a- day' principle

# data[].attributes.body
SEND code of practice highlighting all of your statutory duties in relation to SEND

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Skip to main content

Cookies on GOV.UK

We use some essential cookies to make this website work.

We'd like to set additional cookies to understand how you use GOV.UK, remember your settings and improve government services.

We also use cookies set by other sites to help us deliver content from their services.

You have accepted additional cookies. You can change your cookie settings at any time.

You have rejected additional cookies. You can change your cookie settings at any time.

Accept additional cookies Reject additional cookies View cookies

Guidance on the special educational needs and disability (SEND) system for children and young people aged 0 to 25, from 1 September 2014.

Applies to England

Documents

Details

This statutory code contains:

details of legal requirements that you must follow without exception

statutory guidance that you must follow by law unless there's a good reason not to

It explains the duties of local authorities, health bodies, schools and colleges to provide for those with special educational needs under part 3 of the Children and Families Act 2014.

The code, which applies to England, is for:

headteachers and principals

governing bodies

school and college staff

special educational needs (SEN) co-ordinators

early years providers

other education settings

local authorities

health and social services staff

Other SEND guides are also available.

Thank you for your feedback

Report a problem with this page

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Guidance on the special educational needs and disability (SEND) system for children and young people aged 0 to 25, from 1 September 2014.

# data[].attributes.headline
Chris Packham - Inside our Autistic Minds 

# data[].attributes.subject
Chris Packham - Inside our Autistic Minds 

# data[].attributes.body
This documentary series was aired recently and was a great insight into the autistic mind. Discretion is advised, given the nature for the show and its airing time - it may include strong language.
I would love to know your thoughts on this... add them in the your voice section

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Chris Packham helps autistic people connect with their friends and family in a new way.

# data[].attributes.body
Nice little infographic highlighting the 3 wave model of intervention.
It is important to use Quality First Teaching as wave 1 to ensure as many needs are met as possible in this first instance.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The Children and Families Act 2014 was a landmark law in the UK. It changed and enhanced a lot of laws and rules that were already in place. Lots of elements of how children and families interact with the state were brought together into one piece of legislation. It became law after receiving royal assent on 10 th March 2014.

Lots of different professions are covered by the law. It affects people who work in family law, health and social care, education, and human resources, primarily. Since the law is so far-reaching, it's worth getting to grips with the provisions and how that can affect your day-to-day working.

To ensure that you've got all the information you need about the Children and Families Act, we're going to cover:

A general summary of the Children and Families Act.

How the Act brought in changes to safeguarding systems.

The main elements of the law.

How each of the points relates to your work.

This will give you the information you need to comply with the rules and implement the Act safely.

Brought in under the coalition government, the Act is broad in its scope. It brings together lots of different areas of law that affect children, especially vulnerable children, and codifies how they are protected in law.
To give you a summary of the main impact of the Act:

Adoption processes have been updated and made faster.

Children in care get more rights.

The family justice system has been reformed to be faster and fairer on children.

Rights of children with special educational needs have been strengthened.

Child welfare in care and in school has been improved.

The childcare sector should see a growth in participation.

Shared parental leave has been introduced so new mums and dads can split time off.

A new Children's Commissioner role has been introduced to provide advocacy.

Inside these changes are lots of details that will have an impact on many different sectors. Even if you are not directly affected, it's worth understanding the full scope of the law.

For example, as a teacher there will only be a few sections of the law that will directly impact on your responsibilities around safeguarding. However, understanding the rules on how children who live in care are dealt with could help you support a pupil in an informed way.

The legislation is mainly aimed to protect vulnerable children or those at risk. These children are going to interact with local government agencies and bodies much more often, so how professionals work with them needs to be set out. Children have new rights to fast and fair processes and must get more consideration in the legal system, for example.

With such a wide-ranging set of laws, plus rules and regulations that go along with them, we need to break it down to make it easier to understand. Your professional role will determine which section of the law is applicable to you, but it's good practice to familiarise yourself with all elements.

We're going to break down each of the nine important elements of the Children and Families Act, summarising what the law means for children and families, as well as the workers they will encounter.

Historically, the process for adoption in the UK has been slow and sometimes cumbersome. Within the Act, the government aimed to make adoption faster so that more children could get out of care and into permanent family arrangements.

In the year up to March 2019, 3,570 children were adopted in England and Wales. This was a decrease on previous years, around one third lower than 2015 when adoption numbers were at their peak.

A new principle in the law is "foster to adopt", whereby people already approved to foster can take a child into their home whilst waiting for the adoption process to go through. This should lead to children going into a long-term, stable family faster and remove them from the short-term foster care system.

Previously, there had also been a requirement in adoption to consider matching ethnic backgrounds of adoptive parents with their new children. The Act recognises that this caused delays in adoption and removed this provision.

Allocation of personal budgets to adoptive families was also introduced. New parents have strong right to access information about everything that they are entitled to in terms of government benefits and support.

One final important part of the law is the ability for courts to demand or prohibit contact with the adopted child by certain people. In reality, this means that birth parents or other relatives can seek the right to see the child being adopted and the new parents aren't able to stop it. The access must be facilitated by local authorities where necessary.

How does this affect my work?

These sections of the law will mainly affect people working within local government. If you cover any part of the adoption process, from working with children and parents to working with budgets for social care departments, you need to be aware of the changes.

Everything that is in the law should already be part of your departmental procedures and guidelines. You can request more information and even training from your supervisor if you feel like you need more details.

If you've ever had to work alongside family court you will know it used to be a drawn-out and painful process for all involved. The Second part of the Children and Families Act aimed to resolve the issues within the system and make things better for children. The number of children being looked after increased by 4% in 2019, adding new pressures to family law systems.

When children are going through the process of being placed in care, the law says the proceedings shouldn't take more than 26 weeks, with a judge deciding if an extension is needed. The welfare of the child must be taken into account when considering any change in the timetable.

Further, a single Family Court was created to streamline processes. This is meant to ensure the right judge, in terms of seniority, hears the case first time. Whether a judge can hear expert testimony has been changed from "reasonably required" to "necessary".

In terms of parental contact, the previous regime of contact and residence orders have been superseded by child arrangement orders. The intent was to remove the idea of a parent "winning or losing" a battle, although the same things are covered in the child arrangement orders.

How does this affect my work?

If your role works with children going through proceedings that could end in them being taken into care, you need to be aware of the time frames. You may also be called on less frequently to offer expert testimony now than before the Act came in, with the requirements having changed.

Anyone who works with children should be aware of child arrangement orders. These are court mandated orders about parents getting contact and where a child lives. It's important you're aware of things like who will pick a child up from school or if a parent has restricted contact.

The third part of the Children and Families Act 2014 has lots of provisions and changes many elements of how local authorities work with children and young people with disabilities and special educational needs (SEN). Here, we'll give you a summary of the information that will be useful for everyone; seek guidance and training from your supervisor if you feel you need it.

The legislation lays out that local government needs to pay attention to the wishes and feelings of those being worked with, allow for participation on processes and offer support so that can happen, and work to achieve the best possible educational outcomes.

There is a presumption that children will be educated in a mainstream setting, unless the child or their parents are against it.

Schools and nurseries are required to use their "best endeavours" to meet the needs of the children they educate, including those with SEN. There must be a qualified SEN coordinator in each school and a SEN report must be published regularly.

How does this affect my work?

This part of the law affects child services in local government as well as anyone working in a school or nursery setting. Those who work in juvenile criminal justice should also be aware of the provision for children and young people with SEN under their care.

Many different things are touched on in this section and there is more detailed guidance available from government ministries and the local authorities or departments that you work under or with.

Part 4 of the Act is brief. It allows schools and other providers to set up childminding agencies, which should increase provision of childcare after school hours. There had previously been an obligation for local authorities to carry out an assessment of sufficiency of childcare provision every three years - this has been removed.

Further, nurseries and schools can no longer actively request for an OFSTED inspection.

How does this affect my work?

Any role that was involved in the three-year sufficiency assessment will no longer need to complete their tasks. It's still necessary for the local authority to know the information, just not assess it every three years.

If you work in a nursery or after-school childcare, you should be aware of the frameworks for provisions as well.

This part of the Children and Families Act 2014 deals with some health and wellbeing elements for children. Within the Act, there are rules about tobacco packaging not being appealing to young people and a new offence of buying tobacco for anyone under 18. It's also an offence to smoke in a car where there are children.
Other elements of this part include:

Reception, year one, and year two children having the right to free school meals.

Children in foster care have the right to "stay put" with their family until they're 21 years old.

Young carers have the right to receive support from their local authority.

Local authorities must appoint a "Virtual School Head" to ensure looked-after children achieve at school.

How does this affect my work?

Anyone who works with children in a local government setting should be aware of these provisions. It's also important for teachers and other staff in primary schools to be aware of the free school meal provision so that they can direct enquiries to the right place if a parent asks about it.

The role of Children's Commissioner was set up in the wake of the abuse and death of Victoria Climbié, with the office being instigated following a 2004 report. The commissioner originally had data-gathering powers and the remit was to be the eyes and ears for children; to represent their needs to government.

With the introduction of the Children and Families Act in 2014, the role of the Children's Commissioner was strengthened. The commissioner was given responsibility for protecting the rights of children who leave care, who live away from home, and who are in receipt of social care services.

Details about term limits and recruitment of the Children's Commissioner were also added to the legislation.

How does this affect my work?

The Children's Commissioner has powers to collect data, so they could ask your department for data and help connecting with children. The commissioner's work can cover a whole range of issues to do with children. If you work with children it's important you know about this role and it could be helpful to follow updates from the department.

The regime for parental leave in the UK was updated under the Children and Families Act 2014. The key provisions of shared parental leave (SPL) are:

Parents can share up to 50 weeks of leave and 37 weeks of paid leave between them.

SPL needs to be taken within the first year of birth or adoption.

Adopting parents have the rights to time off work, too.

How does this affect my work?

If you have a baby or choose to adopt you have the right to take both paid and unpaid time off work, and share that with the other parent. Further, if you work in HR, it's important that you know what the rules are around shared parental leave to ensure it's applied correctly.

The eighth section is also rather brief in the Children and Families Act. It confirms the right to time off for antenatal appointments, including the father having the right to attend two appointments.

For parents looking to adopt, when you need to attend meetings, time off work to go to these is also guaranteed.

The right to request flexible working in the UK has been law since 1996, as long as the worker has been employed for at least 26 consecutive weeks. The initial right was only for people who had to care for children or other dependants.

The Children and Families 2014 updated this so that anyone had the right to make a flexible working request. The employee still needs to have been employed for at least 26 weeks. The procedures for processing the request was removed and employers' responsibility became the need to deal with the request in a reasonable manner.

How does this affect my work?

If you're a HR professional, you need to understand the meaning of looking at a request in a reasonable manner. Guidance on this should come from your employer and there's information on government websites, also.

Anyone who works should also be aware that they have this right. You no longer need the justification of having someone to care for to be able to make a flexible working request.

There is a lot packed into the Children and Families Act 2014. This summary gives you a good grounding on the main points that you need to know, whatever your work and level of seniority. If you're unsure whether you need to go deeper into any area, speak with your employer.

Children are the main focus of the law, protecting those who are vulnerable and giving them the right to have a say in their education and care situation. The changes to family justice should also make a change in family circumstances easier, too.

For families, access to shared parental leave and for both parents to go to appointments gives more equality. There is no longer the need for the mother to take all the time away from her career. Rights for adoptive parents are also stronger, which should make things easier along with more streamlined adoption and fostering rules within Part 1.

Be sure to familiarise yourself with the laws. It will make sure that you are compliant in your role and that you can offer the right professional support and guidance where needed.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Lots of different professions are covered by The Children and Families Act, it is worth having clear knowledge on the act.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Information and guidance on the Equality Act 2010, including age discrimination and the Public Sector Equality Duty.

# data[].attributes.body
JCQ information regarding access arrangements and reasonable adjustments for exams

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Access Arrangements are pre-examination adjustments for candidates based on evidence of need and normal way of working. Access Arrangements fall into two distinct categories: some arrangements are delegated to centres, others require prior JCQ awarding body approval.

Access Arrangements allow candidates/learners with special educational needs, disabilities or temporary injuries to access the assessment without changing the demands of the assessment. For example, readers, scribes and Braille question papers. In this way Awarding Bodies will comply with the duty of the Equality Act 2010 to make 'reasonable adjustments'.
Reasonable Adjustments
The Equality Act 2010 requires an Awarding Body to make reasonable adjustments where a disabled person would be at a substantial disadvantage in undertaking an assessment.

A reasonable adjustment for a particular person may be unique to that individual and may not be included in the list of available Access Arrangements.

How reasonable the adjustment is will depend on a number of factors including the needs of the disabled candidate/learner. An adjustment may not be considered reasonable if it involves unreasonable costs, timeframes or affects the security or integrity of the assessment.

There is no duty on the Awarding Bodies to make any adjustment to the assessment objectives being tested in an assessment.
Special Consideration
Special Consideration is a post examination adjustment to a candidate's mark or grade to reflect temporary injury, illness or other indisposition at the time of the examination/assessment.

Forms

Within this section you will find JCQ forms for Access Arrangements, Reasonable Adjustments and Special Consideration.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Access Arrangements, Reasonable Adjustments and Special Consideration - JCQ Joint Council for Qualifications

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Access Arrangements are pre-examination adjustments for candidates based on evidence of need and normal way of working. Access Arrangements fall into two distinct categories: some arrangements are delegated to centres, others require prior JCQ awarding body approval. Access Arrangements allow candidates/learners with special educational needs, disabilities or temporary injuries to access the assessment without changing the demands of the assessment.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Webinar: High-Quality Teaching - Targeting Areas of Need (Session 1 of 2)

# data[].attributes.body
Chris Packham is autistic and is a great advocate for spreading understanding and sharing autistic voices. This is a cute little infographic which could be nice to share with your child.

# data[].attributes.body
This area is constantly evolving so it is a good idea to check the terms you're using are relevant and meaningful to each individual.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Our guidance for journalists and producers is designed to help make sure that the reporting is as accurate and sensitive as possible.

# data[].attributes.body
Handy tips to get you started.