SEN Provision

At Horizons Academy Bexley, we cater for students with a variety of special educational needs whose behaviour in school has resulted in a referral to our services for outreach and preventative support. We offer twelve-week programmes at primary and Key Stage 3 and long-term placements for pupils in Years 10 and 11. We provide education in the short term for pupils who have been permanently excluded from mainstream schools.

Some of the pupils who arrive with us have undiagnosed SEN or are in the process of being assessed through the EHC process. However, this is not the case for the majority of pupils and many of them come to us due to difficulties with boundaries and social issues which have impacted on their ability to engage appropriately in school.

During their placement with us, some pupils clearly display behaviours and learning issues which alert us to possibly unmet needs. These are discussed with parents / carers and with the home school. Our SEN team will work collaboratively with the pupil’s home school to make the necessary referrals and to advise on EHC applications. The ultimate responsibility for any referral or EHC application rests with the home school with Horizons offering support via  focused intervention.

Where a pupil is permanently excluded, again the responsibility lies with the excluding school to initiate any processes or follow through on those in existence. We would always support and chase any referrals and contribute to documentation as part of this work. The Educational Psychology report for any pupil permanently excluded from school must be provided by the mainstream school. The PRU has a Service Level Agreement with the Local Authority for Educational Psychology support and this is, in the main, used to support statutory assessment applications.

Once a pupil has an EHC Plan it is the responsibility of the Local Authority to name an appropriate school within a reasonable timeframe.

At Horizons Academy Bexley we make provision for every kind of frequently occurring special educational need without an Education, Health and Care Plan. Although not exclusive, this includes dyslexia, dyspraxia, speech and language needs, autism, Asperger’s syndrome, learning difficulties and behaviour difficulties. There are other kinds of special educational need which do not occur as frequently and we seek to work closely with our mainstream colleagues to share expertise mutually.

Pupils who have accessed the PRU sometimes present with the following kinds of special educational need: SEMH; ASD; ADHD; Oppositional Disorder; Conduct Disorder

The admission arrangements for pupils do not discriminate against or disadvantage disabled children or those with special educational needs. All pupils access the same induction and assessment processes, although special consideration may be given for a child whose SEN makes adjustment to new environments challenging. For students who access the Refocus programme, we offer targeted in class support in literacy and numeracy lessons to ensure that withdrawal from the classroom is minimal and to promote that students are accessing quality first teaching.

For students that are on a long term placement, we offer a range of interventions which take place both in and outside of the classroom. Full details of the interventions offered and assessments undertaken internally alongside referral routes are contained in our SEN Policy.

To read the SEND policy and SEND information report - Please click here.

For more information around SEND and what services are available, please visit the Bexley Local Offer website by clicking here.

The SEND Team