SECONDARY Transfer Booklet 2018 to Download an Electronic Version Visit
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Opportunities for Children with Statements of Special Educational Needs or Education Health Care Plans in Birmingham SECONDARY Transfer Booklet 2018 To download an electronic version visit: www.birmingham.gov.uk/senar A great city to grow up in 1 Introduction Transfer to Secondary School; Children with Statements of Special Educational Needs (SSEN) and Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plans in Birmingham 2018. Dear Parent/Carer, We know that your child’s move into secondary school education can be an anxious time, so this booklet has been put together to help guide you through the secondary transfer process for pupils with EHC Plans or Statements of Special Educational Needs. It tells you about secondary education in Birmingham, the secondary schools your child may be able to attend, and about how to express your preference for individual schools. A large number of children and young people with EHC Plans or Statements of Special Educational Needs attend, and have their needs met in, their local mainstream secondary school. If you are considering a placement for your child in a mainstream school, Section 16 of this booklet provides details about those secondary schools. For some children more specialist provision may be appropriate – please see Section 18. If you are interested in a particular secondary school, you should contact the school to arrange a visit. The Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCO) from your child’s current school will be able to help you with this. You may have already been given advice on the type of secondary school suitable for your child through discussion at an Annual Review meeting. It is still important that you visit potential schools and speak to their special needs staff to help you to make informed decisions about your preferences. If, after reading this booklet, you need further help or advice you should ask the SENCO at your child’s school and you can also contact the Special Educational Needs Assessment & Review (SENAR) Service on 0121 303 1888. SENAR will consider carefully your preferences and inform you of the September 2018 secondary school allocation for your child by 15 February 2018. I wish your child every success in their secondary education. Yours sincerely, David Bridgman SENAR Head of Service Children and Young People Directorate birmingham.gov.uk A great city to grow up in 2 Contents 1. Timetable Page 4 2. How the secondary transfer process will work Page 5 3. Meeting your child’s needs Page 6 4. Finding out about Birmingham schools Page 7 5. Entry to grammar schools Page 8 6. Completing the Preference Form Page 9 7. If you do not submit a completed preference form Page 10 8. Pupil’s home address Page 10 9. How places are allocated Page 11 10. Notifying you of the school we are proposing to allocate Page 12 11. Representations Page 13 12. Special Educational Needs and Disability Information, Page 13 Advice & Support Service (SENDIASS) 13. Travel assistance Page 14 14. LA Contacts Page 15 15. Mainstream Secondary Schools (including Resource Bases) Page 18 16. Map of mainstream schools (including Resource Bases) Page 36 17. Special Secondary Schools Page 39 18. Map of Special Secondary Schools Page 48 19. Your guide to data protection Page 50 birmingham.gov.uk A great city to grow up in 3 1. Timetable When? What Happens? From September 2016 Annual Review meetings held for Year 5 pupils to discuss the to May 2017 transition to secondary school placements with particular focus on necessary provision and planning. By end of May 2017 Completed Annual Review information sent to the SENAR Service for consideration. By end of Recommended that you make secondary school visits, with Summer Term potential support and involvement of primary school SENCO or other relevant professional. By 11 September 2017 Your completed preference forms should be returned to: • your child’s primary school; or • SENAR, Birmingham LA, PO Box 16289, Birmingham B2 2XN; or to • [email protected] If your child attends an independent school or a school outside of Birmingham, you should send the form back directly to Birmingham LA. By 18 September 2017 Primary Schools to return the completed forms they have collected to: • SENAR, Birmingham LA, PO Box 16289, Birmingham, B2 2XN; or to • [email protected] Autumn Term 2017 Birmingham LA formal consultation with the Governing Bodies of your preferred secondary school(s). This will include the maintaining LA for the school, if it is not in Birmingham. By end of Autumn Notice of Amendment and letter of intent will be sent you, Term 2017 / Beginning identifying any proposed amendments to and the intended Spring Term 2018 secondary school to be named in Section I of the EHC Plan. You will have an opportunity to make written representations to the proposals. birmingham.gov.uk A great city to grow up in 4 2. How the secondary transfer process will work As your child has a SSEN/EHC Plan and is due to transfer to secondary education in September 2018, you will have the opportunity to state your preference(s) for a school using the preference form with this booklet. What you need to know: • You must complete a Birmingham LA SENAR Preference Form, specifically for pupils with a SSEN/EHC Plan. • If any of your preferences are for a school in another LA you must still complete the Birmingham LA SENAR Preference Form and name the school(s) in Part 2 of the form; we will approach the school and other LA on your behalf in order to seek a view on the suitability and availability of a place. • A school place will be allocated to your child in accordance with the SEND Code of Practice (2015): • the school is suitable to the child’s age, ability, aptitude or SEN, or • the placement would be compatible with the efficient education of the other children with whom your child would be educated, or • the placement would be compatible with the efficient use of resources. • Should your child currently be educated in mainstream primary school setting, and you are asking the LA to consider a secondary special school placement, evidence will be required to indicate a significant change in needs or required provision in order to warrant such a placement. • If you are applying for a Birmingham grammar school place you need to apply by 4pm on 30 June 2017 at the latest for your child to be entered in the selective test; the test will be held in September 2017. Please see Section 5 for further general information on grammar schools. • You may also submit a preference to the LA for a place in an independent or non-maintained school. The LA is required to consider this preference, but can consider maintained schools also in line with the efficient use of resources. You will be given the opportunity to make representations and to discuss any queries you have with your SENAR Principal Officer about the school allocated or the content of the EHC Plan. birmingham.gov.uk A great city to grow up in 5 3. Meeting your child’s needs Birmingham LA aims to provide pupils who have EHC Plans with a range of opportunities in secondary education to appropriately meet their special educational needs (SEND Local Offer). We are committed to a policy of inclusion which means educating pupils in the most appropriate provision, and in accordance with their needs. Birmingham LA believes in the principle of pupils being able to be educated in their local community, as close to home as possible. There are different types of mainstream secondary schools that are maintained by Birmingham LA: • Community • Voluntary Aided • Foundation Some schools have become Academies and are not controlled by the LA, but have similar admission procedures. Some Free Schools have also been opened or are due to open in the city. Again, these are not controlled by the LA but also operate similar admission procedures to Academies. More specialist types of provision: In addition to mainstream schools, there are 17 special schools (three are co- located on mainstream secondary school sites). There are also 13 Resource Bases (three of which are fully-accessible schools) within mainstream schools that offer a range of specialist educational provision for different types of need. The specialist provision available in the city caters for the following special educational needs: • Cognition and Learning Needs - Moderate Learning Difficulties (MLD); Severe Learning Difficulties (SLD); Profound Multiple Learning Difficulties (PMLD) including associated health and/or medical needs; • Autism (ASC) including Speech, Language and Communication Needs (SLCN) • Visual impairment (VI) • Hearing impairment (HI) • Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH) needs • Physical Difficulties (PD) birmingham.gov.ukbirmingham.gov.uk A greatA great city cityto grow to grow up in up in 6 4. Finding out about Birmingham schools All schools have their own prospectus, booklet or school website that explains the curriculum, facilities and what they aim to achieve for their pupils, along with the school’s local SEND offer to pupils with identified special educational needs. We recommend that you visit those schools that you believe offer the type of provision that will meet your child’s special educational needs. It would be advisable to involve the SENCO from your child’s current school. Visiting schools and attending open days will give you the chance to talk to teachers and existing pupils before making your decision. Information on where schools are and how to contact them are available in the following sections of this booklet: • Mainstream - Sections 15 & 16 • Special schools – Sections 17 & 18 birmingham.gov.ukbirmingham.gov.uk Abi rgreatmingham.goA great city cityto growv to.uk grow up in up in 7 5.