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Recommended social media accounts (Twitter):

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Recommended social media accounts (Twitter):

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@SNAPCymru
@Cathryn_Knight
@TesResources
@TEDTalks
@WJEC_EdRes
@CommonsEd
@WG_Education
@Autism_Society
@LDAResources
@MrPhillips_edu

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Some of the courses are free to enrol and some require a fee.

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What are SEN courses?

SEN courses are designed to help teaching assistants, social workers and carers understand what's required of them in terms of supporting a child or young adult with special educational needs. Children with special educational needs may struggle to make friends, have difficulty with reading or writing or find it harder to understand the teacher.

SEN courses are available nationwide for those already in the field as well as for those looking to break into it. SEN courses will grant individuals the opportunity to make a fulfilling career out of their passion for helping those with disabilities pursue an education.

Special Educational Needs (SEN) in the UK

in the UK, special educational needs have been addressed through adapted subject curricula and learning methodology. Teachers and instructors working in SEN schools require special training that prepares them to effectively teach those under their care.

The SEND Code of Practice became effective at the beginning of 2002 and is designed to help education institutions throughout the UK make the right decisions regarding children with special educational needs. The goal of this code of practice is to enable schools and learning centres to get the best value from their human resources, expertise, and budget and invest in helping children with special needs.

Professional training aimed at teachers and instructors is part of the essential requirements stated in the SEND Code of Practice, which encourages teachers to improve their methodology with the latest pedagogical approaches available. SEN training and SEN courses are available in both the classroom and online and equip participants with the essential knowledge and skills for supporting teaching and learning in schools.

SEN Courses - Important Skills for Teachers, Teaching Assistants, and SEN Assistants

The term 'special educational needs' refers to children who have learning difficulties or disabilities that make it more difficult for them to learn than most children of the same age. These students that may need extra help include those with specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia and ADHD, pervasive disorders such as autism, and physical disability such as visual impairment and hearing impairment.

In a SEN course, participants will, above all, learn techniques for helping these students. Areas requiring help might include:

Schoolwork

Reading, writing, number work or understanding information

Expressing themselves or understanding what others are saying

Making friends or relating to adults

Behaving properly in school

Organising themselves'

Sensory or physical needs which may affect them in school

SEN training will often include a segment about how to determine which children need extra help. Any person involved with children can benefit from this kind of knowledge.

Teaching Assistants and SEN training

Teaching assistants are an invaluable part of the school environment, and one can often become a teaching assistant by taking a simple course and getting a certification even if they have no prior experience. Some courses enable participants to gain skills for a future career as a teaching assistant that includes training in SEN. After taking one of these courses, graduates should expect to understand:

Child and young person development

How to support disabled children and young people and those with specific requirements

How to support children and young people so that they can achieve their learning potential

How to support positive practice with children and young people with speech, language and communication needs

The speech, language and communication needs of children and young people with behavioural, social and emotional difficulties

Teaching assistant courses are also available without the SEN component. Many of these courses also include certification that is appealing to possible future employers.

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SEN Courses - Special Educational Needs Training

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SEN courses are designed to help teaching assistants, social workers and carers understand what's required of them in terms of supporting a child or young adult with special educational needs. Children with special educational needs may struggle to make friends, have difficulty with reading or writing or find it harder to understand the teacher.

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Filmed and published by Thornbury High School.

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Additional Learning Needs | Thornbury High School

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The TTS offers 'industry-leading special needs resources and multi-sensory equipment to help you maximise the potential of children with additional and special educational needs'.

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SEN Teaching Resources \x26 Special Educational Supplies | TTS

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View the full range of award winning SEN resources today! We stock a wide selection of resources to help children with Autism, ADHD, Dyslexia & Dyspraxia, as well as sensory & inclusion resources. Best price guaranteed & free delivery on all items - buy now!

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A simple guide prepared by SNAP Cymru.

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You will probably have heard that there are proposed changes to the way children and young people's special educational needs (SEN) will be identified, assessed and met in Wales.

The special educational needs (SEN) reforms in Wales are now a little under a year away from their introduction in 2020. The Additional Learning Needs (ALN) and Educational Tribunal Act was passed in January 2018 and will begin to be rolled out from the start of the new school year in September 2020. ( Further information on implementation )

What are the reforms?

There will be some significant changes. For instance, as the name of the act suggests, the term 'special educational needs (SEN)' will be replaced by 'additional learning needs (ALN)'. This in turn means the SENCOs will be known as ALNCOs. School/Early Years Action, School/Early Years Action Plus and Statements will disappear and every child with recognised ALN will eventually be issued with a new statutory document called an Individual Development Plan (IDP). This is not to be confused with individual education plans (IEP) which will also be phased out. Unlike statements, which stop when a young person leaves school, IDPs will continue up to 25 years of age if the young person goes onto further education. The Welsh Government has produced an overview of the new system and has compiled answers to some frequently asked questions: together they will give you a good idea of how the Welsh Government expect things to work.

What happens next?

As the transition to the new system will involve major changes for local authorities, schools and further education colleges it will be introduced gradually and the Welsh Government has produced guidance explaining the timescales involved. The Welsh Government is also drafting a new code of practice which was issued for consultation in Dec 2017. This is an extremely rather long document. However, it is very important as it sets out in detail how the ALN system will work in practice and the Welsh Government would like feedback from parents and carers as well as professionals so we will let you know when it is issued. The Code is likely to be finalised in Dec 2019. For more information on the code

Each region has an appointed Transformation lead who will play a:

Critical role in overall implementation strategy

Ensure LA's are prepared to deliver the new ALN system.

Support and challenge to local authorities, schools, early years settings and further education institutions

Coordinating role in the roll-out of implementation training on the Act, awareness-raising and facilitating improvements in multi-agency working.

Transformation Leads - Margaret Davies, North Wales region; Huw Davies West Wales region; Liz Jones Central South; Tracey Pead South East Wales; Chris Denham Further Education

In the meantime several concerned families have contacted us recently having been told their LA is no longer 'writing statements for children' in their area. Prior to the Bill becoming law the Welsh Government has repeatedly said:
"I want to stress, though, that, for the time being, all the responsibilities and requirements connected with the existing legislative framework for special educational needs remain in place. I will be writing to local authorities to remind them of this." (This includes statutory assessment and producing statements for children and young people who require them) Minister for Education
Many Local Authorities have told parents

" 'We're not doing anything because the Government's bringing out an ALN Bill. We're going to have independent development plans. Everything's going to change. So, we're not going to statement anything.'

The Minister has written to each Local Authority to ensure they act within the law and ensure they continue to follow current requirements and guidance to Statutory Assess a child where the child has learning difficulties which require SEN provision to be made for them. Please contact SNAP Cymru if you require independent advice.

If the reforms are to be a success, then schools in partnership with parents need to be at the heart of the implementation process. Transition from one system to another and replacing statements with IDPs, in particular has the potential to cause anxiety. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us through our helpline 0845 1203730 helpline @snapcymru.org or directly to amanda.daniels@snapcymru.org 01554778288.

The key changes proposed will include:

The term 'Additional Learning Needs' and 'Additional Learning Provision' will replace Special Educational Needs and Special Educational Provision.

The new legislation will set out the precise definitions. The definition of ALN will include all of those currently regarded as having SEN (i.e. children and young people supported through School/Early Years Action, School/Early Years Action Plus and with statements of SEN). In addition, the term will also be used for young people up to the age of 25 who are currently said to have Learning Difficulties and Disabilities (LDD)

ALN provision will not change significantly from the current definition of 'special educational provision' - it will apply to provision which 'is additional to,or otherwise different from, the educational provision made generally for children or young persons of the same age other than in special schools'.

The current system covers children to age 16 or age 19 (depending on post-16 provision. i.e. whether they stay in school or attend FE). The new system will support children and young people from 0-25.

Statements of SEN and Learning Difficulty Assessments (section 139a assessments for those in Year 11 currently) will be replaced with an Individual Development Plan.

This will provide statutory protection for children and young people with Additional Learning Needs across Wales. The new COP will include a detailed structure and minimum standards for an IDP and this is welcomed since there have been concerns regarding the over-simplification and a lack of specificity in an IDP

To be effective we feel an IDP should contain the following:

the child or young person's identified needs;

the agreed outcomes for the child or YP

the additional provision required to meet those needs;

an Action Plan that sets out how, when and who will deliver the agreed interventions and how the outcomes of interventions will be measured;

information that is sufficiently robust to form a legally enforceable document.

success criteria and review dates

Independent schools will be required as part of their registration to demonstrate that it can provide the required type of additional learning provision.

T he statutory duty for preparing and implementing an IDP will rest with local authorities, EY's Schools and Further Education Colleges to ensure that there is accountability for the delivery of ALN provision.

Schools, Colleges and PRU's will be required to use their 'best endeavours' (to do all they possibly can) to ensure that the additional learning provision set out in a child or young person's IDP is provided. This means that Welsh Government will expect local authorities to have effective governance arrangements in place to deliver, monitor and review their ALN duties. Evaluation and scrutiny will be particularly important when approx 85% of ALN funding is being delegated to schools

There will be a new ALN Code setting out the detail of the new legal framework. This will provide detailed guidance for professionals who work with children and young people with ALN. The Code must be accessible to families and accurately reflect what they expect of professionals who work with their children. It should be clear and contain mandatory requirements and be easily enforceable.

S ervices will need to work together collaboratively and flexibly in order to ensure that children, young people and their families and carers receive coherent, well co-ordinated support which helps them achieve positive outcomes

The proposals recommend arrangements for LA's t o provide access to information and advice for families 'as they see appropriate' and require the Welsh Government to set out guidance on disagreement resolution arrangements to provide effective solutions to disagreements about additional learning provision between children and young people, or their parents and school or local authorities.This would include advocacy and support for children and young people.

The right of appeal to the ALN Tribunal against:

a decision not to put an IDP in place;

a refusal of a request to review an IDP;

the content of an IDP, including the description of the child or young person's needs or the educational provision required to meet those needs;

a failure to make available the provision identified through the IDP;

the school named or the type of school named in the IDP

a refusal to review and IDP or to make changes following a review

a failure of the LA to take over responsibility for an IDP following a request to do so

a decision to cease to continue an IDP

all the above would be open to children and young people 0-25 and their families

Every child and young person deserves an education system that responds to their individual learning requirements and we are hopeful that the new proposals for ALN go some way to meeting these aspirations.

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You will probably have heard that there are proposed changes to the way children and young people's special educational needs (SEN) will be identified, assessed and met in Wales. The special educational needs (SEN) reforms in Wales are now a little under a year away from their introduction in 2020.

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Special Educational Needs (SEN), AdditionalLearning Needs (ALN) and AdditionalSupport Needs (ASN) Report 

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Special Educational Needs (SEN), AdditionalLearning Needs (ALN) and AdditionalSupport Needs (ASN) Report 

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Conducted by NASUWT, The Teachers' Union

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A database of resources from the Pembrokeshire Inclusion Service

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A database of resources from the Pembrokeshire Inclusion Service

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'The overall aim of the Inclusion Service is to ensure that all learners in Pembrokeshire reach their full potential.  In essence, this means making sure that all children and young people have access to the same opportunities and services as everyone else and receives a high-quality education which is broad, balanced and relevant to meeting their individual needs', (PIS, 2020).

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Pembrokeshire County Council's Inclusion Service provides information for parents, teachers and professionals who support children and young people with Additional Learning Need.

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'Based on the New York Times bestseller, WONDER tells the inspiring and heart-warming story of August Pullman. Born with facial differences that, up until now, have prevented him from going to a mainstream school, Auggie becomes the most unlikely of heroes when he enters the local fifth grade. As his family, his new classmates, and the larger community all struggle to find their compassion and acceptance, Auggie's extraordinary journey will unite them all and prove you can't blend in when you were born to stand out' (IMDb).
Wonder is also a feature on syllabus' across the UK.

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A list of BBC programmes available on the iPlayer

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A list of BBC programmes available on the iPlayer

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Louis Theroux, Extreme Love: Autism, (2012/20).
Louis Theroux: America's medicated kids, (2010).
A Special School, (2020).
Inside Autism: A tiny bit of magic, (2020).
Our School, (2014-).

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Watch live BBC TV channels, enjoy TV programmes you missed and view exclusive content on BBC iPlayer.

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Click the link to read what approaches the Welsh Government recommend educators take when approaching students with additional learning needs. It covers a range of topics such as visual and hearing impediments, autism, ADHD and more.

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