Unsworth Primary School has been granted the SEND Inclusion Award (SENDIA), a national award that helps schools deliver high-quality education for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
The application process is rigorous and includes a detailed assessment, including observations across school, assessors meeting with pupils, parents, staff and governors and the submission of a portfolio of evidence.
Mrs Jo Grundy, Headteacher at Unsworth Primary School, said: “We are absolutely thrilled to have won this award. Inclusion is at the heart of our school and we have worked hard to create an enhanced provision for SEND students.
“We work very closely with parents and students so that our teaching is adaptive and responsive, and we have a robust monitoring system in place to ensure that students receive the interventions they need.
“I must say a big thank you to all of our staff, especially Mrs Marshall, who is our SEND Co-ordinator, for ensuring that inclusion is steeped into the daily practice of all staff.”
One parent, who spoke to the assessor, said: “My son adores this school – we never thought he would be able to function in a mainstream school, we always face challenges, but we all work together and he is doing things I never thought he would do.”
The assessor’s report highlighted a huge amount of work being undertaken at the school to support students with SEND needs. Some of the strengths they highlighted included:
- A strong emphasis on inclusion in the curriculum principles
- Weekly training to support staff on SEND
- An open-door policy for parents and visibility of staff to help address any issues
- A very strong senior leadership team with a SEND background
- Speech and language support and an adaptive curriculum that is tailored to the needs of individual students
- Strong support from the school’s Trust, Oak Learning Partnership, which has two large special schools and an in-demand outreach service to provide training and support for SEND