The Federation of the Church Schools of Shalfleet and Yarmouth

Achieving Together for a Brighter Future

ACCESSIBILITY PLAN

A STATEMENT OF POLICY

Approved by	CW
Portfolio	Inclusion
Approved on	Autumn 2018
Review date	Summer 2021
Review Cycle	3 Year
Policy Type	Statutory
Ratified/FGM Date

Signed___________________________ Date ___________________

School Aims and Implementation

The Federation of the Church Schools of Shalfleet and Yarmouth aims to provide children the opportunity to develop towards their full potential; academically, emotionally and socially:

Providing the highest standard of education to enable children to acquire the skills, knowledge and concepts relevant to their future.

Promoting an ethos of care, mutual respect and support, where effort is valued and success celebrated.

Enabling children to become active, responsible and caring members of the school and wider community.

The federation works towards these aims by:

Promoting high quality learning and attainment.

Providing a high quality learning entitlement and environment.

Valuing each other and ourselves.

Working in partnership with parents and the community.

Introduction

The SEN and Disability Act 2001 extended the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA) to cover education. Since September 2002, the Governing Body has had three key duties towards disabled pupils, under Part 4 of the DDA:

not to treat disabled pupils less favourably for a reason related to their disability;

to make reasonable adjustments for disabled pupils, so that they are not at a substantial disadvantage;

to plan to increase access to education for disabled pupils.

This plan sets out the proposals of the Governing Body of the federation to increase access to education for disabled pupils in the three areas required by the planning duties in the DDA:

increasing the extent to which disabled pupils can participate in the school curriculum;

improving the environment of the school to increase the extent to which disabled pupils can take advantage of education and associated services;

improving the delivery to disabled pupils of information which is provided in writing for pupils who are not disabled.

It is a requirement that the federation’s accessibility plan is resourced, implemented and reviewed and revised as necessary.

Definition of Disability:

Disability is defined by the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA):

‘A person has a disability if he or she has a physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long term adverse effect on his or her ability to carry out normal day to day activities.’

The purpose and direction of the federation’s plan: vision and values

At The Federation of the Church Schools of Shalfleet and Yarmouth we are committed to giving all of our children every opportunity to achieve the highest of standards. We do this by taking account of pupils’ varied life experiences and needs. We offer a broad and balanced curriculum and have high expectations for all children. The achievements, attitudes and well-being of all our children matter. The Federation of the Church Schools of Shalfleet and Yarmouth promotes the individuality of all our children, irrespective of ethnicity, attainment, age, disability, gender or background.

Our Federation aims to be an inclusive. We actively seek to remove the barriers to learning and participation that can hinder or exclude individual pupils, or groups of pupils. This means that equality of opportunity must be a reality for our children:

girls and boys

minority ethnic and faith groups

children who need support to learn English as an additional language

children with special educational needs

more able children

children who are vulnerable of under achievement or social exclusion.

The main priorities in the Federation’s plan

Our key objective within the Accessibility Plan is to reduce and eliminate barriers to access to the curriculum and so lead to a full participation in the our community for pupils, prospective pupils, staff and visitors with a disability.

We take advice on support needed for children with disabilities and work to ensure they have the support necessary to fully include them in the life of the school.

The action plan ensures that:

The federation draws on the expertise of external agencies to provide specialist advice and support.

The Inclusion Manager has an overview of the needs of SEND pupils.

There are high expectations.

There is appropriate deployment and training for staff.

Successful practice is shared within the federation.

The federation works with other schools.

Disabled pupils have access to extra-curricular activities.

The Accessibility Audit

Red	Amber	Green	Super Green
Inclusion/ exclusion	Disabled young people are actively or passively excluded e.g. parents being told that the activity is not suitable	Disabled young people are included, but actively not adapted to optimise involvement Needs of disabled young people not adequately considered or planned for	Disabled young people are included and activity adapted, when required, to optimise involvement Needs of disabled young people considered and planned for	Pro active approach to including disabled young people by all staff Effective inclusion plans in place and in regular use by all staff
Policies & procedures	No recognition of inclusion in policies or procedures	Recognition of inclusion policies in place but no evidence of implementation	All staff aware of and implement inclusion is all policies Staff contribute to reviewing and up-dating inclusion policies	All staff aware of and actively implement inclusion policies Staff, parents and disabled young people contribute to reviewing and updating inclusion policies
Safeguarding	Safeguarding or child protection policies not in place or up to date Staff unaware of procedures or protocols DBS checks not done for any or many staff	Safeguarding and child protection policies in place, but not universally adhered to Inconsistent staff awareness of procedures and protocols DBS check are completed for some staff	Safeguarding and child protection policies in place, adhered to and regularly updated Staff aware of procedures and protocols DBS checks are completed for all staff Management mindful of safer recruiting legislation School committed to keeping young people safe	Safeguarding and child protection policies in place, actively adhered to and regularly updated Staff aware and adhere to procedures and protocols DBS checks are completed for all staff and are regularly updated All staff mindful of safer recruiting legislation School and all staff are committed to keeping young people safe
Risk management	No recognition of inclusion aspects in risk assessment	Staff consider ways to work with disabled young people with specific individual needs on arrival and manage risks accordingly	Prior to arrival risk assessments are discussed with the disabled young people and their parent/guardians and are managed accordingly	Dynamic individual risk assessments are done for high risk users prior to arrival Standard risk assessments include specifics of working with people both with physical and learning difficulties Strategies are recorded for managing groups with challenging behaviour
Wheelchair accessibility	No access to building or surrounding/outside areas for wheelchair users No accessible toilets available	Limited access to building or surrounding/outside areas for wheelchair users Room layouts restrict manoeuvrability Accessible toilet available Some doors can be opened independently by wheelchair users	Good access to building or surrounding/outside areas for wheel chair users Room layout provide reasonable to good manoeuvrability Accessible toilets are available Most doors can be opened independently by wheelchair users	All areas are fully accessible for wheelchair users Room layouts provide excellent manoeuvrability Accessible toilets with changing tables and hoists are available All doors can be opened independently by wheelchair users
General accessibility	Environment not suitable for physical and sensory difficulties (e.g. no ramps, signage, induction loops)	Some disabled young people’s specific physical and sensory needs are met	Most disabled young people’s specific physical and sensory needs are met Visual and aural support available	All disabled young peoples specific physical and sensory needs are met Sound absorbing resources, visual and aural support available Raised letter signage/Braille throughout facilities Fully functional hearing systems in place where appropriate
Promotion	No positive images of disabled people or other groups within school promotional materials No mention of site/activity accessibility within promotional materials	Limited images of disabled people within in promotional materials Limited site/activity accessibility information is included within promotional materials Promotional material only available in standard paper format	Some positive images of disabled people within promotional materials Site/activity accessibility information is included within promotional materials Promotional materials available in other formats if requested in advance Concessions available (e.g. Carers go Free Policy)	Many positive images of disabled people within promotional materials Site/activity accessibility information easy to find in promotional materials Promotional materials are presented in an accessible, easy to understand way Promotional materials readily available in other formats Concessions actively promoted (e.g. Carers go free policy)
Community / partnership working	No work with outside agencies (e.g. schools and support workers)	Infrequent working with outside agencies; only when requested by customer or agency	Regularly working with outside agencies to support staff and develop their skills as and when required	Regularly working with many outside agencies to support staff and develop their skills in a proactive manner Empowers staff to share their skills and knowledge with others Signpost parents to outside agencies
Participation	School does not seek or take account of feedback from disabled young people or parents Feedback that is provided has no influence on practice or policy School does not liaise with disable young people or parents	School takes feedback from disabled and of other groups of young people when it is offered There is no organised process for collection of feedback Feedback is used to influence selected elements of practice Some communication (formal and informal) with disabled young people and parents to identify individual needs	School encourages disabled young people and parents to provide feedback and consult on all aspects of provision There is an organised process for consultation Feedback is used frequently to adapt practice and policy as required Regular communication with disabled young people and parents to share information and to jointly plan for the needs of the young person (methods include both formal and informal conversations)	Disabled young people and parents are involved in all aspects of the design, assessments and evaluation of practice, delivery and policy Feedback is sought via a wide range of creative and inclusive consultation and is published in all appropriate methods Feedback is constantly used to adapt practice and policy Pro-actively involving disabled young people and parents through regular communication (e.g. home visits and support groups)
Staff training /approachability	Staff receive no disability awareness training	Some staff receive disability awareness training Staff generally display a positive attitude towards inclusion	All staff receive disability awareness training Staff are friendly and approachable and work towards finding positive solutions for everyone to ensure involvement	Specific training offered to staff which includes condition specific training to meet the individual needs of the people attending Staff are friendly and approachable and work towards finding positive solutions before issues arise All staff are regularly trained and certificates are kept up to date
Communication / visual support	No evidence of visual support available (e.g. picture cues, Makaton, use of props)	Inconsistent use of visual support, used only as a resource for individual young people Staff have limited awareness of alternative communication systems available	Consistently, clearly labelled and well presented use of visual support Makaton available and used during sessions Staff have good knowledge of alternative communication systems available	Range of visual support in place (variety of visual aids resources available and used) Evidence of signing environment Staff have excellent knowledge of alternative communication systems available Environment adapted to suit child’s needs e.g. low distraction areas
Autism/Asperger’s awareness	No awareness or understanding of young people with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD)	Staff have some awareness of ASD	Some staff have received ASD awareness training Staff use a variety of approaches to meet the needs of young people with ASD Consideration given prior to sessions on how to reduce potential anxiety of young people with ASD when running activities	All staff have received ASD awareness training Activities delivered in a way that considers different users specific needs Consideration and implementation of inclusion methods specific to young people with ASD (provided by parents prior to sessions), on how to reduce potential anxiety of individuals

Accessibility Action Plan

Lead Area	Area for Development	Strategy	Outcome	Timeframe	Achievement
Promotion	Limited images of disabled people within promotional materials.	To find appropriate opportunities to communicate and promote the schools as an inclusive community i.e. in media publications.	The school will be correctly perceived as an inclusive community where all are welcome and valued.	On-going over the next year.
Risk management	Limited input from pupils in any risk assessment discussion.	To identify an appropriate strategy for collecting input from disabled pupils. When formulating any risk assessment.	The schools will gain valuable input from disabled pupils, which will assist in identifying areas for risk so that practice and environment can be modified accordingly.	On-going over the next year
Wheelchair Accessibility	Door within the school may hinder independent movement by young people in wheel chairs,	To find appropriate systems for independent movement within the schools	The schools will identify opportunities when and where doors can be modified to allow independent movement.	On-going over the next 3 years.
Participation	There is no organised process for collection of feedback from disabled pupils.	To identify an appropriate strategy for collecting feedback from disabled pupils.	The schools will gain valuable feedback from disabled pupils, which will assist in identifying areas for improvement, adapting practice and policy as required.	On-going over the next year
Communication / Visual Support	Inconsistent use of visual support, used only as a resources for individual young people. Staff have limited awareness of alternative communication systems available.	Staff will learn how to produce and use visual support and social stories as appropriate, for children and within the school environment.	Staff have a good knowledge of alternative communication systems available and the school environment is adapted to suit children’s needs	On-going over the next 3 years.
Autism	Staff have some awareness of ASD	All staff will receive ASD awareness training.	Staff use a variety of approaches to meet the needs of young people with ASD. Consideration is given prior to sessions on how to reduce potential anxiety of young people with ASD when running activities. Positive impact upon standards and well being for ASD pupils.	2014 - 2016