The following articles and resources support leaders in understanding their roles within the leadership of SEND.
10 Principles for Inclusive Leadership
This is a visual aid to outline some key principles for inclusive leadership. https://asset.nasen.org.uk/10%20Principles%20for%20Inclusive%20Leadership.pdf
Leadership and SENCO toolkit: SUPPORTS PRACTITIONERS IN ESTABLISHING INCLUSIVE CULTURES.
This toolkit is designed for SENCOs and other Senior Leaders who want to ensure the delivery of high-quality, inclusive practice in their settings. It is an interactive toolkit to navigate resources and guidance for developing effective SEND provision across a school. Click on the relevant block to access each resource by opening in a new window.
https://www.wholeschoolsend.org.uk/resources/senco-toolkit (A free login is required to download this resource)
Special Educational Needs in Mainstream Schools: Creating a positive learning environment for pupils with SEN
This guidance report from the Education Endowment Foundation guidance offers five evidence-based recommendations to support pupils with SEND, providing a starting point for schools to review their current approach and ideas they can implement. https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/education-evidence/guidance-reports/send
The SEND Key questions tool: ‘Every school leader is a leader of SEND’ Pupils with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) have the greatest need for excellent teaching. These questions for reflection link to the 5 recommendations from the EEF’s guidance report on ‘Special Educational Needs in Mainstream Schools’. These questions offer a starting point for senior leaders (aside from the school’s SENCo) and governors/trustees to review their own knowledge, skills and impact on outcomes for all pupils with SEND.
WE SEND Programme: Dr Nicola Crossley: Features of an inclusive curriculum
In this 30-minute webinar, Dr. Nicola Crossley emphasises the critical role of subject leads in curriculum design, with SENCOs assisting in adaptations. Key topics include maintaining curriculum breadth and accessibility, especially during transitions from primary to secondary education. The discussion covers evaluating curriculum effectiveness through targeted questions, utilising curriculum maps and planning tools, and adopting SEN-friendly pedagogical approaches.
https://wholeeducation.mn.co/posts/send-leadership-dr-nicola-crossley-features-of-an-inclusive-curriculum-january-2024 (Please request a login for the WE SEND Digital Network from your SENDCo or the Trust SEND Lead)
EEF Blog: Assess, adjust, adapt – what does adaptive teaching mean to you?
EEF Blog: Assess, adjust, adapt – what does adaptive teaching… | EEF (educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk) In this blog Kirsten Mould explores the concept of adaptive teaching.
EEF blog: Moving from ‘differentiation’ to ‘adaptive teaching’ What does adaptive teaching mean for Education South West?
Jon Eaton, Director of Kingsbridge Research School and Research Lead at Kingsbridge Community College, reflects on what adaptive teaching has meant for their Trust, Education Southwest. https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/news/moving-from-differentiation-to-adaptive-teaching
Maximising the Impact of Teaching Assistants:
‘The evidence is clear: poor teaching assistant deployment has a negative impact on attainment; effective teaching assistant deployment can have positive impacts.’ In this blog, Sally Franklin outlines 7 tips to maximise the impact of teaching assistance. Sally is the project coordinator of the Maximising the Impact of Teaching Assistants project https://blog.irisconnect.com/uk/blog/maximising-the-impact-of-teaching-assistants-why-the-status-quo-is-no-longer-an-option These are linked to the EEF Guidance Report Making Best Use of Teaching Assistants https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/education-evidence/guidance-reports/teaching-assistants
There is also a Making Best Use of Teaching Assistants online course with 6 short Modules between 4-6 minutes long. This course takes you through the EEF guidance. Using a combination of text, video, curated links and downloadable documents, you will gain a clear understanding of what the guidance advocates, and how to make change happen in your school. https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/courses/making-best-use-of-teaching-assistants-online-course?utm_source=/courses/making-best-use-of-teaching-assistants-online-course&utm_medium=search&utm_campaign=site_search&search_term=blog%20TA
EEF blog: The role of the SENCo in developing teaching practice
In this blog, Gary Aubin explains how to embed high-quality teaching strategies in daily practice to benefit pupils with SEND. https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/news/eef-blog-the-role-of-the-sendco-in-developing-teaching-practice
Maximising The Impact of Teaching Assistants In Line With Implementation
ELE and Headteacher at Honeybourne Primary Academy, Dom Davis, writes on the importance of TAs within implementation https://researchschool.org.uk/billesley/news/maximising-the-impact-of-teaching-assistants-in-line-with-implementation
SENDCO Induction Pack
The SENCO Induction Pack supports SENCos are the start of their journey, and it can provide useful information to those working with SENCOs or who are interested in taking up the post in the future. https://asset.nasen.org.uk/SENCO%20Induction%20Pack.pdf
