Professional networking and development
This article describes a professional development initiative for teaching assistants being developed as a strand of work within a small and newly- formed Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) network in East- Central Bristol. The network currently includes St Werburgh’s Park Nursery School, one other local nursery school and five local primary schools, with hopes that this will expand to additional primary schools. The initiative is at a very early stage and the article describes the background to the formation of the group and some of the emerging findings relevant to the professional development of teaching assistants working with SEND children.
Support for the most vulnerable
Pressures on all professionals working with vulnerable children were explored by others in a range of contributions in a previous issue of Professional Development Today, together with the potential gains from encouraging better sharing of skills among staff from different agencies through professional development (Hughes, Durrant and Le Moine, 2016). The school- based initiative described here, in this article, is supported by the active participation of two staff from the Child Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHs).
Blandford and Knowles (2016) have discussed in PDT the responsibility that early-years settings have in securing a fully-inclusive environment in which all children can learn and thrive. A key trigger for initiating a new network was dissatisfaction among members about the difficulties experienced by a small number of children transferring from a nursery-school setting to the Reception year in the primary school. Children with high behaviour- support needs, who had been successful in a nursery-school environment, found it difficult to adapt to the additional demands of school and a Reception-year curriculum which is designed to help children transition to more formal modes of learning. There were some specific examples of children becoming violent and needing to be excluded from school for the safety of staff and other children. It was felt that there were opportunities for sharing expertise and practice which would help these children and the staff working to support them. In the longer term, it is envisaged that there may be opportunities for extended transition arrangements from the nursery setting to school for a small number of very needy children.
Schools missing out in an Academy landscape
In common with all local authorities, Bristol City Council is facing significant funding challenges in supporting those schools which have chosen not to convert to academies. Professional Development opportunities have been reduced drastically and access to ‘top- up’ funding for children with additional support needs has become increasingly difficult. At the same time, changes to thresholds for additional funding for schools with high proportions of children living in disadvantaged circumstances has reduced school budgets in areas like East-Central Bristol, where many families live in sub-standard accommodation and face considerable challenges.
Quality expertise, systems and partnerships
However, the area is fortunate in having two stand- alone nursery schools, serving 2-5 year-olds. Overall, Bristol has 12 Local Authority Maintained Nursery Schools and faces challenges common to the sector in funding these at a level consistent with the high quality of education provided (NAHT, September 2016). Staff in these nursery schools have high levels of expertise, particularly in working with SEND children and their families. Good systems are in place for liaison between nursery and primary schools to support the transition of children with Special Educational Needs or Disabilities, with a meeting between the school and nursery-school SENCO always taking place, to discuss the support needs of each child. This meeting may be supplemented by additional meetings involving parents and other representatives from both schools.