Learning Support
The learning support department at Crookhorn believes passionately that all students are equal and deserve the opportunity to learn and succeed.
Our guiding principle is one of inclusion and we are driven by the desire to break down any barriers to learning and facilitate progress across all subject areas. The Learning Support department at Crookhorn College is privileged to have an effective SENCO and Assistant SENCO alongside a large team of experienced, enthusiastic and engaging Teaching Assistants (TAs).
At Crookhorn we believe
- All the pupils in our school deserve to be treated equally.
- All students deserve equal access to a broad, balanced curriculum which is differentiated to meet individual needs and abilities.
- The aims of education for students with difficulties are the same as those for all students.
- It is the responsibility of all teachers to identify and meet the SEN students. In this they can draw on the resources of the whole College.
- Every student is entitled to have his or her particular needs recognised and addressed.
- All students are entitled to success.
- Consideration of SEN crosses all curriculum areas and all aspects of teaching and learning.
- The views of the student and parents are important, and we take them into account when making decisions about support.
What support do we offer?
At Crookhorn College we believe in providing a holistic level of support for students on the SEN register and work closely across all areas of the College to ensure the support they are provided with helps them in all aspects of College life. This is all organised to ensure students are making progress and succeeding in their education.
All students on the SEN register have a ‘student plan’ which is shared with their teachers via ClassCharts. This includes a summary of the needs of each student and provides teaching strategies which can be used to help them in the lesson. It also summarises interventions that students have undertaken and the progress made on these. The student profile allows teachers to offer discreet and timely support to students and tailor their lessons to the needs of all members of their class.
The progress of all students on the SEN register is also monitored regularly and students may be selected for an intervention to help boost them in the area they are struggling with. Interventions are offered in the morning at the start of the school day as well as during school hours.
Keeping contact and working in partnership with you, as parents, is central to what we do. You will be sent a log in for Provision Map, where you can view your child’s SEN plan and comment on this. You will also be offered opportunities to meet with the SENCO or Assistant SENCO at Parents Evenings. Appointments can be made at other times if you have a concern or want to discuss any changes to your child’s needs.
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Exam Support
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Interventions
At Crookhorn College we are proud to offer some interventions focussing on different areas students may be struggling with. For example, reading, maths and handwriting. From our data tracking, we identify students who are not making sufficient progress and select them for an appropriate support programme. Below is a short explanation of each of the interventions we offer.
Handwriting
Handwriting tuition is given by a Teaching Assistant (TA) and takes place in small groups of 8–10 students. Students complete hand-gym activities to strengthen muscles and learn how to use their fine motor skills to shape letters correctly and progress towards joined writing using the cursive style.
Touch Typing group
The typing club is a web-based programme which is run by a TA to help students with their touch-typing skills. This consists of several different levels which students work through at their own pace.
Reading Plus
Students complete a web-based programme called Reading Plus. Students complete a placement test and are then allocated texts to read.
The programme focusses on comprehension, vocabulary, analysis and inference. Students are supported by our Reading Coach during this session, although they are able to work independently through the programme.
The Reading Coach is available to read with students individually or as a group if they prefer.
Maths groups
Students work in a small group of between 5-10 to focus on basic maths skills, such as addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. The aim is to embed these skills to ensure that they are automatic.
These sessions are run by our maths TA.
Nurture Group
During the College day, we offer Nurture Support for a small group of Year 7s. Nurture groups are aimed at children whose emotional, social or behavioural needs cannot be met in a mainstream class alone.
We enable children to express their feelings in a safe environment; this means we teach social skills, appropriate behaviour and understanding empathy. We also include basic level maths and literacy. The group learn to take turns whilst playing games and take responsibility for their environment.
Parental communication
We fundamentally believe that working in partnership with parents and sharing information is several opportunities to communicate with parents throughout the academic year.
| Student Plans Each student has a plan which details their summary of needs, strategies for teachers and interventions which they have completed. These will be updated twice a year in the Spring and Summer terms and will be available to parents via a log-in through Provision Map, which you will be sent via Parentmail. |
| Intervention letters Letters will be sent home each time your child has been allocated a space on an intervention so you can see what intervention they have been allocated to this term. The interventions will also be recorded on Provision Map. |
| Newsletter Every half-term, a newsletter is sent home to parents with links to resources and reminders of upcoming events e.g. Parents Evening. |
| Parents Evening The SENCO and Assistant SENCO are available at each Parents Evening for you to book appointments with. |
| Meetings and phone calls Meetings and phone calls with the SENCO and Assistant SENCO can be requested at any time throughout the year if you have concerns or would like to discuss changes to your child’s needs. |
| Emails The SENCO and Assistant SENCO can be contacted at the College via email if you have any questions you would like to ask them about support for your child. |
Learning Support Staff
Within the Learning Support department there are a number of staff who take on various roles and contribute to the support of children on the special educational needs register. An outline of staff are listed below:
| Mrs Vicci Geddes Assistant Headteacher & Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCO) Email: Vicci.Geddes@crookhorn.hants.sch.uk |
| Mrs Nicola Smith Assistant SENCO Email: Nicola.Smith@crookhorn.hants.sch.uk |
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Mrs Bethan Gallaugher SEN Administrator |
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Miss Cheryl Robson SEN Teacher |
Learning Support Structure
At Crookhorn, we believe that students make the best progress, and their needs are best met with the input and support of the subject teachers and specialist subject TAs. We have the equivalent of 22 full-time TAs, two HLTAs a Reading Coach and two Resilience Room Leaders. 15 TAs are based in departments and the equivalent of 7 TAs are part of a SEMH team who support our highest-needed students across the school. Basing the majority of TAs in departments enables them to work collaboratively with the teachers to plan support for students with SEN.
Each Head of Subject works alongside the SENCO and Assistant SENCO to effectively deploy TAs to lessons where there are a high number of students who require specialist additional support. We also believe that it is important to encourage students to become independent. Classroom teachers and TAs use the SEN plans to put support in place within the classroom to enable students to make good progress.
Transitioning from Year 6 to 7
A comprehensive transition programme is organised by a team of staff during the summer term to ensure that students will get the right level of support on joining Crookhorn.
The process involves:
- An initial visit to the junior schools to collect information about individual students from the class teacher and SENCO.
- An afternoon visit for all students to Crookhorn to help them get to know the site and some of the staff involved in the transition process.
- A specialist transition profile is created for each student who has additional needs and requires support above the usual level provided.
- Some students are invited to the College prior to starting in September to receive an additional tour of the College and to meet the Learning Support team.
- Parents are able to meet with or telephone the SENCO to discuss any concerns that they may have prior to their child starting at Crookhorn.
More general information on the transition process for all students, including start dates and times can be found on our Year 6 to 7 Transition page:
What do the students say?
“There is someone to turn to when I need help. They are not there to blame you but there to care for you. I think that Learning Support respects me and they are trying to help me get my GCSEs. There is always an TA to help me with my learning and help me feel happy.” - Year 10 student
"Learning Support is nice and helpful. I like educational games. The Teaching Assistants help me with my reading and writing." - Year 8 Student
“The nurture group is fun. We wish it could last all day.” - Year 7 student
Please find below a link to Hampshire's Local Offer Directory: