SEND Information Report

Tara Dakin | May 2025

At the heart of our inclusive practice is a commitment to identifying and meeting the diverse needs of all learners. We adhere closely to the SEND Code of Practice, which categorises Special Educational Needs into four broad areas of need:

1. Cognition and Learning (C&L)

This area encompasses difficulties in curriculum-related learning. Cognition refers to a child or young person’s learning skills – their ability to process, reason with, and retain information. Challenges may include:

  • Sequencing information

  • Making inferences

  • Grasping coherence in tasks

  • Using elaboration techniques

These needs may present as general learning difficulties or specific learning difficulties (e.g. dyslexia, dyscalculia).

2. Communication and Interaction (C&I)

These needs relate to a child’s ability to understand and engage in effective communication. This can involve:

  • Speech and language development

  • Use of non-verbal cues (facial expressions, body language, gesture)

  • Understanding social language and conversational rules

A child may have difficulty with one or multiple aspects of communication, and the impact of these needs may vary over time.

3. Sensory and Physical Needs (SPN & PD)

This is a broad area that includes:

  • Visual or Hearing Impairments (VI/HI) – Children may require specialist equipment or support to access the curriculum.

  • Physical Disabilities (PD) – These may require additional or ongoing support and adaptive equipment to ensure equal access to learning opportunities.

We acknowledge that this is an area where we have limited specialist expertise. We advise contacting your local County Council for further support and guidance where specialist input is needed.

We recognise that Sensory Processing Needs (SPN) can be significant barriers to learning. With support from the SENCO, staff use Derbyshire County Council’s Sensory Processing Toolkit to identify needs, adjust environments, and better understand behaviour that may have a sensory basis.

4. Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH)

SEMH needs relate to difficulties with emotional wellbeing, social development, and mental health. This may manifest as:

  • Challenging or disruptive behaviour

  • Withdrawal or social isolation

  • Difficulty managing emotions or relationships

These needs can significantly impact a child’s ability to access the curriculum and their overall happiness and stability.

Provision: The Three Waves Model

All children receive Quality First Teaching (QFT) – high-quality, inclusive teaching tailored to individual needs. Provision is structured in three levels:

Wave 1: Universal

Inclusive, well-differentiated QFT for all children

Clear objectives, vocabulary support, interactive teaching

Wave 2: Targeted

Short-term, group-based interventions to support access to the curriculum

Pre-teaching, catch-up or keep-up sessions, group interventions

Wave 3: Specialist

Personalised, often 1:1, interventions based on specific needs

Involvement of external specialists, bespoke strategies, intensive support

Progress Monitoring:
For Waves 2 and 3, interventions include clear entry and exit criteria and are reviewed using data to monitor impact and inform next steps.

Our Areas of Specialism

We specialise in Wave 2 and Wave 3 provision in the following areas:

  • Cognition and Learning (C&L)

  • Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH)

  • Sensory Needs (SPN)

  • Speech, Language and Communication Needs (SLCN)

For further information or to discuss support options, please contact:

taradakinpsychologist@gmail.com
Specialist in Inclusion, SEND & Child Support