‘Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) do well. Staff are highly skilled in meeting the needs of pupils with SEND. Very well supported by the special educational needs coordinator, staff make sure all pupils are fully included in lessons and other activities. The school is truly inclusive’ – OFSTED 2020
At Hendal Primary we strive to support all children and enable them to achieve their full potential at school. In order to do this, many steps are taken to support them through their learning journey.
If you would like support and guidance on the process of identifying SEND and how to access further support and start the process for your child then please see the link below:
In the SEND Code of Practice, there are four broad areas of special educational needs, that should be identified and focused on within educational settings.
The four main SEND areas are:
- Communication and Interaction
- Cognition and Learning
- Social, Emotional and Mental Health difficulties
- Physical and/or Sensory Needs
Please use the link to see further information regarding the Four Areas of SEND:
Special Educational Needs and Disabilities – Kids
Teachers work closely with Our School SENCO who is Rachel Knowles, Assistant Headteacher. You can contact Mrs Knowles by contacting the school office or emailing rknowles@hendal.wakefield.sch.uk
Please see Hendal Primary’s SEND Report for 2025/2026 and SEND Policy
Kettlethorpe Community Partnership of school SEND core standards: KCP Core Standards
Interventions and External Support
Quality first teaching is vital, however for some children, there are some occasions when further additional support is needed to help them achieve their targets. This support can be given through intervention programmes which are tailored specifically to suit the children’s needs.
At Hendal Primary School we work closely with parents and external agencies to provide a wide variety of interventions. The interventions can take part as a small group or can be targeted to individual pupils following programmes provided by external agencies. The Learning Mentor and Behaviour Support worker carry out assessments to ensure they plan, do and review children’s progress over time. They also work closely to ensure the interventions support the academic and emotional development of children when in their classroom.
The interventions that take place include:
Talk About– An intervention aimed at primary school children for developing self-awareness and self-esteem. It also promotes children’s communication interaction through group activities.
Lego Therapy– Social development programme for young people with social communication difficulties. It focuses on working as a team, developing team working skills, cooperating, social and communication interaction and the development of language skills.
Teadorescu– A programme for the development of fine motor skills to promote handwriting. Beneficial for children with visual perception problems.
Fit To Learn– A programme for developing fine and gross motor skills to support children with motor coordination difficulties.
Specific Learning Programme– A programme to help with handwriting, spelling and English language.
Zones of Regulation– An intervention to support the development of strategies for children to be able to use to help control and regulate their emotions.
Self Esteem– Groups to promote children’s self-esteem and confidence to develop their engagement within their classroom, work and peers.
Mindfulness for children – The purpose of teaching mindfulness to our children is to give them skills to develop their awareness of their inner and outer experiences, when we practice mindfulness, our thoughts tune into what we’re sensing in the present moment rather than rehashing the past or imagining the future.
Meditation for children– using breathing techniques to promote a state of calm whilst developing children’s own emotional control which then impacts on themselves and others.
ELSA- We are extremely fortunate to have 3 accredited Emotional Literacy Support Assistants that work across school starting in our Nursery and supporting children through to Year 6.
What is the Local Offer?
The Local Offer was first introduced in the Green Paper (March 2011) as a local offer of all services to support disabled children and children with SEN and their families. This easy to understand information will set out what is normally available in schools to help children with lower-level SEN as well as the options available to support families who need additional help to care for their child.
To visit the Wakefield Council Local Offer website click on this link LA Local Offer
Occupational Therapy
Children’s occupational therapists can support children with sensory processing, self-care, dyspraxia, developmental coordination disorder and fine motor skill development.
Mid Yorkshire Children’s Occupational Therapy Team have created a series of videos to help you understand and support your child’s sensory processing needs. It is a comprehensive resource, which explains what me mean when we talk about sensory processing difficulties, what happens in the brain and why a child with sensory processing difficulties responds and behaves in a certain way. Please see the link below:
Support your child’s sensory processing needs | Mid Yorks
Please find the link to the referral form to the Occupational Therapy service, this referral must be made by a health professional or parent (not school) however if you would like school to email the completed referral form please let Mrs Knowles know:
CAMHS support
Please find the link for the referral form to CAMHS:
Wakefield CAMHS-Parent Referral form
For further support regarding anxiety please see the link below:
Understanding Anxiety in Children with SEND | Kids
Techniques to Help your Child Manage Anxiety
Here are some practical strategies you can try at home to support a child with SEND who is experiencing anxiety:
- Keep a consistent routine – where possible, try to keep daily routines consistent, especially during times of transition, such as starting a new school year.
- Use visual supports – visual aids like schedules and social stories can help reduce anxiety by showing children what to expect. For example, using pictures to explain the steps of getting ready for school can make the morning routine smoother.
- Encourage communication – encourage your child to communicate in a way that works best for them, whether through words, gestures or assistive devices.
- Practice relaxation techniques – deep breathing, stretching or mindfulness exercises can be helpful to reduce feelings of stress.
- Break tasks into smaller steps – big tasks can feel overwhelming, so breaking tasks into smaller steps can help to make things seem more manageable.
Promoting Healthy Sleep
It is important that children have a healthy sleep pattern and routine. Please see below the links to resources that CAMHS have provided to support parents/carers.
Wakefield CAMHS sleep tips leaflet
Autism (ASD) & ADHD
Parents are able to make referrals to Mid Yorkshire Pinderfields Hospital for ASD/ADHD assessment. The referrals have a section that is to be completed by school and also a section for parents/carers. The decision to pursue a medical diagnosis of ASD/ADHD is led by the parent, it is also the parent’s responsibility to keep contact with the hospital and to arrange appointments etc. Detailed information about the process can be found on the Pindefields Hospital website below:
Children’s Autism Assessment Pathway | Mid Yorks
Information can be found on the NHS website:
How to get diagnosed as autistic – NHS (www.nhs.uk)
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) – Diagnosis – NHS (www.nhs.uk)
ADHD – Signs, Diagnosis, and Support for Parents | Kids
Autism – Signs, Diagnosis, and Support for Parents | Kids
The questionnaires can be seen below for your information. If you do wish to discuss ASD or ADHD then please do speak to the class teacher or Mrs Knowles.
Referral Form for Social Communication Assessment (Autism-ASD)
Speech and Language
Please speak to your child’s class teacher if you have any concerns regarding your child’s Speech and Language.
The link to the referral form for Speech and Language is below:
Childrens Speech and Language Therapy Referral form
Speech and Language UK (formally, I CAN), are a charity focused on helping children with their speech, language, and communication. The charity have a FREE enquiry service which can be found here: Talk to a professional (speechandlanguage.org.uk). The free enquiry service is a confidential phone call with an experienced speech and language therapist. During the 30-minute call, you will be given the opportunity to talk through your concerns and questions regarding your child’s development. Our speech and language therapists will be able to provide you with information on typical development, as well as advice on how to support your child’s skills. They will also be able to signpost you to other services. Following the call, you will receive an email summary with tips, techniques, and signposting to other helpful services.
School Nursing
What services do school nurses provide?
They provide a range of support, for example where children or young people have anxiety or concerns around their own health, or if concerns are raised in assessment and referral to other services. They work with a range of different people like the school, GP, or other health and social care professionals.
Where needed and in agreement with a child or young person and their parents or carers (depending on their age), we can make a plan of care which may include school, signposting to information for you or completing a referral.
The type of support our school nursing teams offer includes:
- Providing you with health advice and support.
- Encouraging and enabling you to adopt a healthy lifestyle to protect you against disease.
- Assessing the mental health needs of children and young people and providing advice and referring to specialist services as required.
- Promoting your confidence, self-esteem and mental health well-being.
- Providing information on a range of health related issues such as diet and healthy eating, special needs and emotional or behavioural problems.
- Providing support for young carers.
- Working with families and schools to deliver the National Child Measurement Programme (NCMP).
- Assessing your individual needs, offering health advice and making referrals to other services if necessary.
- Training and support to school staff so that they can help children and young people who may need medication during the school day such as Asthma inhalers and Epipens.
School Nursing – Wakefield – Better Lives Healthy Futures (betterliveshealthyfuturesbw.nhs.uk)
Support for Children
Wakefield Parent Carer Forum is an independent parent carer forum who work with families of children with special educational needs and/or disability, aged 0-25 years old, living in the Wakefield area.
Further information can be found here:
https://www.wakefieldparentcarers.co.uk/
As a school, we pride ourselves on supporting children to develop strategies to help at those times when they are finding things overwhelming or particularly difficult. In each classroom children have access to a ‘Mindful Toolkit’ which includes resources and strategies to support children and staff. We acknowledge that in some instances children need some further support and interventions. On some occasions children benefit from a referral to outside agencies. Please see below some advice, information and a referral form if this is something you feel would support your child best.
CAMHS mindfulness activities and strategies:
calm down kit cards for children
24 hour mental health helpline
Education Health Care Plan
Please see the link below to access further information about the EHCP process: