A student may be identified as having a Special Educational Need or Disability (SEND) at any stage during his/her education.  This may be a long term difficulty requiring continuing support or a short term difficulty requiring a specific intervention.

Information about your child’s special educational needs comes from a number of sources:

• Primary School liaison for Year 6 transfer
• Cognitive Abilities Tests
• Screen tests for reading and spelling
• Observations
• Learning Support Assistant/teacher feedback
• Parental concern
• Student self-referral
• Pastoral Leader concern

If you think that your child may have special educational needs that have not been previously identified then you should contact the school and ask to make an appointment with the Special Education Needs Coordinator. (SENCo)

If you have any concerns about your child’s special educational needs, please contact our SENCo:    Mrs E Willett

ewillett@worthinghigh.net
01903 237864

School staff will support individuals at a level appropriate to their needs through effective differentiation in the classroom.

The Inclusion Team aims to ensure the fullest possible access to the curriculum for students on the Inclusion Register with Special and Additional Educational Needs.

The provision is reviewed every year to ensure it addresses the needs of current students.

Please see the school website for more detailed information about the many different interventions which are in place to support our students.

In addition to the normal school reporting process, all students on the Inclusion Register have a Keyworker. Students who do not have an ECHP will also have a Link Keyworker (usually an LSA or HLTA). They will meet with the student at least twice a year to discuss the wellbeing and progress of the student, and invite the student to make adaptations to the list of strategies shared with teachers to support them in mainstream lessons. Any updates will then be shared with parents/carers who will be invited to make contributions themselves. Students with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) in place will have an Individual Learning Plan (ILP), which will be updated if necessary in these meetings in conjunction with parental/carer input.

The Keyworker will also initiate and attend multi-agency meetings, as necessary.

Students with an Education, Health and Care Plan will also have an Annual Review Meeting and outside agencies may be invited to attend.

Reports you may receive would include:

• ILP Reviews
• Annual Review
• Social Skills/Social Communication Evaluation
• School reports: Interim and full reports
• Personal Education Plans
• Individual Behaviour Plans
• Contact with Keyworker, Pastoral Leader, Group Tutor, Community Leader
• Rewards & Sanctions system

How does the school know how well my child is doing?

Teachers regularly perform formative and summative assessment in lessons to establish the progress of their students. This ensures that there is always relevant and up-to-date information on the level that is currently being achieved by each student. In addition to this, students who have ILPs have their targets and progress monitored.

How will I know what progress my child should be making?

Parents will receive a report about their child’s progress twice a year. In addition to this there are the Subject Review Evenings which provide an opportunity to meet with subject staff and discuss progress.

The Inclusion team aims to ensure the fullest possible access to the curriculum for students with Special and additional Educational needs. The provision is reviewed every year to ensure it addresses the needs of current students.

In Key Stage 4, the school offers different pathways to ensure that students are able to achieve their maximum potential by being matched to the pathway which addresses their learning needs while presenting some challenge.

Differentiation is seen as a priority in all lesson planning and in additional provision, and is supported by Inclusion staff who are working alongside their subject colleagues.

Effective differentiation will enable your child to participate fully in all aspects of learning and to make the best possible progress. 

All students are supported by their Pastoral Leader who works within their community. In addition, students with SEND or AEN may be included in social skills programmes and also offered break and lunchtime support. Other interventions include:

• Mentors
• HLTA support
• Clubs
• Rewards
• Behaviour Plans
• Celebration Assemblies/Breakfasts
• Liaison with outside Agencies

Training for teaching students with special educational needs is considered essential.  There is an on-going programme of whole school training in teaching and supporting students including:

Specific Learning Difficulties, general learning difficulties, Autism, Attachment and trauma informed practice, Hearing Impairment, and English as an Additional Language, Sensory Support, Disability Awareness, and First Aid.

In addition there is regular training in:

Emotional Literacy, Child Protection, First Aid, Outstanding Teaching, Looked After Children, Managing Challenging Behaviour, Child Protection.

Specific training for the Inclusion team includes:

Bereavement Counselling, Meditation, Anger Management, ME/Chronic Fatigue, Speech and Language, Self-harm, Access Arrangements, Diagnostic Assessment.

All students in the school have regular reports and an annual Subject Review Evening. There are also regular meetings for Parents/Carers to inform them about events for relevant Year groups. These include, for example:

• Year 7 Induction Evening
• Year 9 Option Evening
• Year 10/11 Study Skills

Parents/Carers may also contact any of their child’s teachers directly using the email address given on the school website.

If your child has SEND he/she will be placed on the Inclusion Register. The Keyworker or Link Keyworker will make contact to advise you of any changes to support strategies and invite you to make suggestions.

In addition students with an Education, Health and Care Plan will have a multi-professional Annual Review which looks carefully at progress towards the EHCP targets.

There is advice and resources for supporting your child with independent study on the school website.

Most students with additional needs are supported and encouraged to be fully involved in all areas of school life. All clubs and trips are open to them and individual arrangements are planned in advance to ensure that they are able to participate.

For students with medical/physical needs, any issues around trips and activities will have been discussed and addressed with parents/carers in the Care Plan.

For students with AEN/SEND, individual issues will have been discussed with the parents/carers, Keyworker and Pastoral Leader. 

All corridor walls have a visual line to support students with Visual Impairment in their movement around the school.In addition, signage is very clear and advice has been taken from the Sensory Advisory Service to ensure that as high a standard of safety as possible.

The school is on two floors in several unconnected areas which are inaccessible to wheelchair users as there are no lifts.Entrances to the school have ramps; therefore only the ground floor is accessible to wheelchair users.

Disability toilets are available.

We gather a lot of information about your child in order to make the best possible preparation for joining Worthing High School from the following sources:

• Close liaison with Primary School during the Summer Term
• Primary School records
• Additional transfer visits with staff from the Primary School in the Summer Term
• Screen Testing on Intake Day in July, and in September
• Reports from agencies that are already supporting your child
• Contact with parents/carers

Students who are on the Inclusion Register may see the Careers Advisor throughout Year 10 & 11 who will guide them through the transition process. The Careers Advisor and the SENCo co-produce the Transition Plan which provides the new setting with information about the student’s SEND and requirements. 

As an academy, Worthing High School receives its school budget directly from the Education Funding Agency, rather than West Sussex County Council.

We allocate specific funding from this school budget share to cover the work of our inclusion team. This is in addition to funding provided for the Special Support Centre based within the school which is funded separately, based on the number of students supported.

The decision making process is informed by the data and information received from the previous setting. This, alongside current assessments, is discussed with the student and parents/carers at a meeting with the Keyworker. As a result of the meeting, a programme to address the child’s needs is agreed until the next review period. The programme will have targets specific to your child which are central to the ensuing review: future provision is decided on how far these targets are being met.

The needs of each student on the Inclusion Register are very carefully reviewed and considered for the coming year. This information is placed on the Provision Map which informs our timetabling and budgeting. In this way, we endeavour to address the needs of each individual with a specific programme of support and teaching.

The school endeavours, wherever possible, to ensure that an interpreter is available for parent meetings. Any written communication is sent by email so that parents/carers, for whom English is not their first language, may use a translation facility.

If your concern is about well-being, behaviour or medical issue then you need to speak to your child’s Pastoral Leader.

If you wish to discuss any educational concerns then you should contact your child’s Keyworker.

For more serious concerns, you will need to contact your child’s Community Leader.

 

The West Sussex Local Offer helps you find information about local services, support and events for children and young people aged 0 - 25 years who have special educational needs or disabilities (SEND).

https://westsussex.local-offer.org/ 

Worthing High School has an SSC with a designation of Social Communication Needs. We have 18 planned places which are allocated in consultation between Worthing High School and West Sussex SENAT. For a student to be placed within the SSC they must have an Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP) and have social communication as their primary area of need. The aim of the SSC is to provide additional support for our students to enable them to access mainstream education. Provision is allocated on an individual basis and may include:

• Interventions relating to social skills, emotional regulation, literacy, numeracy and SaLT.
• LSA support.
• Additional lessons within the SSC.

All students with an SSC placement will attend mainstream lessons and will be fully integrated into the schooling community.

If you would like to apply for an EHC Needs Assessment, please make a parental request. To aid with this, we have created a letter as a guide for applying for an EHCNA. All parts of the letter in bold will need to be changed or deleted so that they are relevant to your child. 

Once completed, please email a copy to EHCNARequest@westsussex.gov.uk and inform SENDCO@worthinghigh.net of your application.

The letter can be found as a PDF at the bottom of this page called 'Model Letter for requesting EHCNA'

There is further guidance and advice on the following websites:

westsussexsendias.org/ehc-needs-assessments

www.ipsea.org.uk/making-a-request-for-an-ehc-needs-assessment

Please find details of different assessment routes here:

westsussexsendias.org/right-to-choose-assessment-and-or-diagnosis/

Contact information: sendco@worthinghigh.net

Exam Access Arrangements & Reasonable Adjustments

At Worthing High School, we are committed to ensuring that all students can access examinations fairly and demonstrate what they know and can do. We follow the JCQ Access Arrangements and Reasonable Adjustments (AARA) 2025-26 guidance and the requirements of the Equality Act 2010.

What are access arrangements?

Access arrangements are adjustments agreed before an examination to support students who have:

· Special educational needs or disabilities

· A medical condition

· English as an additional language

· A temporary illness or injury

Examples include extra time, rest breaks, use of a reader or scribe, assistive technology, or modified papers.

Access arrangements do not change what is being assessed and do not give students an unfair advantage. Their purpose is to remove barriers so that students are not placed at a substantial disadvantage.

What are reasonable adjustments?

Reasonable adjustments are required under the Equality Act 2010 for students who meet the legal definition of disability. These may sometimes be individual to the student and are considered based on:

· The student’s needs

· How effective the adjustment would be

· Practicality, cost, and time

· Impact on the integrity and security of the assessment

Adjustments cannot be approved if they compromise exam security or fairness.

How are decisions made?

As with other UK secondary schools, decisions about exam access arrangements are made by the school, in line with JCQ AARA 2025-26 and JCQ General Regulations (GR 5.4). External reports (e.g. Educational Psychologist or specialist assessments) are advisory and do not automatically result in exam arrangements.

The process is coordinated by the SENCo, working closely with teaching staff and the school’s qualified assessor.

Informal support and “normal way of working”

Before access arrangements are formally approved, students may receive informal support in lessons and internal assessments. This allows strategies to be trialled and helps us build a clear picture of need.

At this stage:

· Support is not an official exam access arrangement

· It is used flexibly and appropriately in class

· Access arrangements only become formal once assessment and evidence are complete, usually during Year 10

JCQ requires that any exam arrangement reflects a student’s normal way of working. This does not mean the support must be used all the time. For example:

· A student who may need a scribe does not need an adult writing for them in every lesson

· Support may include LSAs assisting when needed, writing frames, key vocabulary, structured notes, or the use of a laptop

· Assistive technology (e.g. reading pens or laptops) is encouraged where possible instead of human readers or scribes

These approaches still count as normal way of working if they are used regularly and appropriately.

Identifying need and assessment

· Teachers monitor progress from Key Stage 3 and raise concerns where needed

· Evidence is gathered from lessons, classwork, and internal assessments

· Where difficulties are ongoing, screening and formal assessment may take place in Year 10

· Assessments are carried out in school by our appointed, qualified assessor

· A JCQ Form 8 is completed to evidence need and confirm appropriate arrangements

Students must have opportunities to practise using arrangements before any external exams.

Evidence for extra time (25%)

In line with JCQ AARA 2025–26, evidence must include:

· Annotated internal tests and/or mock exam papers

· Teacher comments explaining why extra time is needed

· Evidence that alternatives such as rest breaks have been considered or trialled

Key dates for parents

To ensure sufficient time for assessment and evidence gathering:

· Internal deadline for new assessment requests: June of Year 10

· Requests after this date will only be considered in exceptional circumstances (e.g. significant change in need or new medical evidence)

Early identification is essential and reflects standard practice across UK secondary schools.

Private assessments

Privately commissioned assessments can only be accepted if:

· The assessor has consulted with the school before testing

· The assessment meets JCQ AARA 2025–26 requirements

Reports obtained independently without prior consultation cannot be used to award exam access arrangements.

Private candidates and home-educated students

The same JCQ regulations apply. The school remains responsible for:

· Gathering evidence of need

· Conducting an in-house assessment

· Confirming normal way of working

Record keeping and compliance

All evidence is securely stored and may be inspected by JCQ. This ensures that access arrangements are fair, appropriate, and fully compliant with national regulations.

If you have concerns

If you are concerned about your child’s access to exams, please contact the SENCo as early as possible. We strongly advise against arranging private assessments without first speaking to the school.