Enabling a pupil to have a successful transition is an extremely important part of our role.

 

For those children moving from infants to junior school, the class teachers, SENDCo and the Pastoral Team meet with the infant staff in the Summer term to obtain all relevant information regarding a pupil’s needs to ensure successful transition. All pupils are invited to visit the school on Transfer Day which is usually during the first week in July. This enables the child to meet with their new class teacher and also to get to know their peers who will be in their class. For those children who may require additional visits, if they are feeling particularly anxious or would benefit from a more personalised visit, we welcome parents to contact the school to arrange a visit.

 

For those children moving from our school to secondary school or to another setting, we have similar systems for transition. Class teachers, the SENDCo and the Pastoral Team meet with staff at the receiving school to share any strengths or particular needs that a pupil may have. We also run a ‘Transition Group’ for both children and their parents who may be particularly anxious about moving to Secondary School. The sessions are designed to enable a child to feel prepared for moving on and include discussions, role play, a visit to the school, meeting children who have already been through transition and also producing a booklet which details the needs of the child. These booklets enable the child and their parents / carers to share their child’s needs prior to starting the school. Many of the children invited to take part in the group have SEND but it also includes children who are not on the SEND register but whose parents have expressed concerns regarding how anxious they are feeling about moving to secondary school.

 

If a pupil has Communication and Interaction needs and is involved with the Advisory Teaching Service, then we take part in Transition Conferences involving parents, primary and secondary school staff. The conference involves building a picture of the pupil and their needs so that provision can be planned before the pupil starts.