SEN and Disability
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SEN and Disability The Local Offer: Kidderminster College Setting Number: UPIN 107111 COLLEGE SETTING Name and Address Kidderminster College Market Street Kidderminster Worcs DY10 1AB Telephone Number 01562 820811 Website Address www.kidderminster.ac.uk What age range of 14-16 learners attend as part learners does the of a schools’ partnership college setting provision, with the main age cater for? range being 16+. Name and contact Di WIlletts details of the College Learning Support and Equalities Manager Learning 01562 512069 Support lead [email protected] The Local Offer 2 INTRODUCTION We are a general further education college based in the Wyre Forest district of Worcestershire. We are known for our ethos of respect, as well as our supportive culture. The College’s continuing focus is on learners’ needs and is the ‘driver’ in everything we do. We are realistic in what we can provide and avoid making promises we cannot keep. Our ‘can do’ approach ensures that learners’ challenges are dealt with in a positive way, with the aim of overcoming barriers wherever possible. The following information highlights the range of support that can be provided to our learners. The Local Offer 3 ACCESSIBILITY & INCLUSION WHAT KIDDERMINSTER COLLEGE PROVIDES · PAGE 1 OF 4 · Modern and up-to-date building design that is fully wheelchair accessible. · Lifts to all floors. · Area for safe drop-off close to the rear entrance. · All of our toileting facilities comply with the Disability Discrimination Act. · Automatic doors to the outside at the main entrance. · Communication systems at all refuge points for safe emergency evacuation of the building. · A personal evacuation plan for appropriate learners. · Braille and accessible signage/language throughout including the lifts. · Open-plan atrium area which promotes inclusivity at break and lunch times. · TV monitors around the College displaying up-to-date information. · Access is regularly reviewed and monitored at the College. · Any issues highlighted during monitoring processes are dealt with immediately or in an appropriate timescale. · The College is audited on an annual basis. · Information available on the College intranet, website (www.kidderminster.ac.uk) and in a variety of formats upon request. · Height-adjustable tables can be provided in classrooms and study areas. · Support practitioners provide a wide range of support including personal care when appropriate. · Range of adaptive assistive technology, including: · Dolphin text-to-speech software · Voice recognition software · My Study Bar and other Jisc TechDis promoted technology · Accessible keyboards · Digital voice recorders · All additional reasonable requests are considered. · Laptops and/or Netbooks made available to learners on an identified needs/loan basis. · Other specialist equipment, such as · Specialist keyboards and other hardware · Coloured overlays · Coloured screen overlays · Coloured ruler bars · Coloured paper · Writing boards · Talking jugs · Talking measuring scales · A range of other specialist equipment can be provided for those with sensory impairments following specialist assessment of need. SENThe andLocal Disability Offer 4 ACCESSIBILITY & INCLUSION WHAT KIDDERMINSTER COLLEGE PROVIDES · PAGE 2 OF 4 · The provision of individual specialist resources based on student need can always be discussed prior to enrolment - please contact Di Willetts or Lisa Bradbury-Knight on 01562 512069. · Details of accessibility can be found on the Kidderminster College website. · Regular communications, such as the Learner Voice, Facebook, Twitter and other methods keep learners up-to-date on important issues and offer the means to communicate important messages to others across the College. · The College offers a broad range of programmes at a variety of levels, with learners placed on an appropriate level of study to support progression, taking into account diagnostic levels of English and Maths, GCSE results, interview and previous experience and/or training. · Examples of vocational programmes are: Uniformed Public Services, Health and Social Care, Childcare, Travel and Tourism, Hair and Beauty, Electrotechnical Studies, IT, Games Design, Creative Industries including Creative and Media Studies, Acting, Stage Make-up etc, Bricklaying, Carpentry and Motor Vehicle programmes, Business, Sport and Exercise Sciences, Horse Care. · A comprehensive list and description of programmes available can be found on the College website; if preferable, College prospectuses are available from Learner Services and on-line. · Foundation programmes of learning are offered from pre-entry through to Level 1, focusing on literacy and numeracy, employability skills, independent living skills and personal progress/development. Information is available in the prospectus, the College website and from Learner Services. · Initial/diagnostic assessment is used to assist in the identification of an appropriate level of programme on entry. · All full-time vocational programmes include opportunities for learners to further develop their literacy and numeracy skills and knowledge, with the aim of progressing eventually to GCSE English and Maths or Level 2 functional skills in English and Maths over a period of time, in line with current Government policy. Full-time study programmes are between 570 and 600 hours across 3 terms. Study hours and days depend on the course chosen. SENThe andLocal Disability Offer 5 ACCESSIBILITY & INCLUSION WHAT KIDDERMINSTER COLLEGE PROVIDES · PAGE 3 OF 4 · The College offers a range of support for learners on programmes of study, including 1:1, small group, in-class support, mentoring, counselling, working with a learners with wide range of difficulties and disabilities. We also support learners during lunch and break times where appropriate. · When considering the most appropriate course to suit a learner, the College works with tutors to identify areas where the learner may have difficulties accessing and completing elements of the curriculum, then work together to provide solutions where possible. · The College uses a range of specialist resources to make the curriculum more accessible to learners with disabilities and difficulties. Staff are trained to promote independent working wherever possible. · The College provides a team of well qualified and experienced teaching staff with a range of specialist knowledge, including autism/asperger’s syndrome, severe and moderate learning difficulties, who also have vocational experience in performing arts, cookery, horticulture, animal care and creative industries, for example. · The College works closely with external specialist organisations, using a multi-agency approach to provide relevant and appropriate supported work experience programmes to support learner development. All full-time Foundation students have supported work experience opportunities built into the curriculum offer. In addition, the College can offer supported Internship programmes where possible. · Staff training days provide opportunities to develop staff skills on a regular basis. Internal and external training programmes are designed to meet specific and identified needs of individual teaching and support staff teams. · The College observation, walk-through and performance review systems demonstrate that quality of delivery is at the forefront of everything we do. Tutors work closely with the Learning Support department to minimise the impact of learning difficulties and disabilities and provide suitable adjustments to overcome these. For example, coloured paper is provided for learners with scotopic sensitivity; large font size on handouts is provided for those with visual or learning difficulties; use of specialist equipment is available for learners with hearing impairments. SENThe andLocal Disability Offer 6 ACCESSIBILITY & INCLUSION WHAT KIDDERMINSTER COLLEGE PROVIDES · PAGE 4 OF 4 · Methods of teaching are adapted to ensure that all learners are able to access the curriculum. For example, the use of images and text, taped interviews, music, guest speakers, trips and visits, etc are provided to enhance learning. · Support in exams in the form of readers/scribes/extra time, rest breaks, read-aloud facilities, etc. is provided to learners whose needs have been assessed and applications accepted by the examination boards. · The College policy covering trips and visits, has a focus on safety of learners and staff. Learners are required to complete a health questionnaire and parental/guardian consent is required for learners below 18 years of age or those classed as vulnerable adults. The College tutors carry out risk assessments to ensure that safety levels are maintained on all trips and visits. SENThe andLocal Disability Offer 7 PROGRESS MONITORING AND REVIEW WHAT KIDDERMINSTER COLLEGE PROVIDES · PAGE 1 OF 1 · Learner progress monitoring takes place on a continuous basis, with formal parents’ evenings and the production of reports forming the main communication methods for all 16-18 year olds and vulnerable adults. · In the area of learning development, the individual learning plan is regularly reviewed and revised individual learning targets are set. These main targets and objectives are broken down into appropriate lesson targets to support learners to achieve their overarching individual learning targets. Learning Support Practitioners review progress in the context of support and action plan accordingly in order to support the identified curriculum targets. The Local Offer 8 SAFEGUARDING