What is a 'Special Educational Need'?

Children who experience a 'significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of others of the same age' or where his or her disability 'prevents or hinders him or her from making use of facilities of a kind generally provided for others of the same age in a mainstream school.' This definition comes directly from the statutory document, the SEND Code of Practice. This goes hand in hand with the notion that these are children who need provision over and above that which can be met through good quality teaching and differentiation.

There are broad areas of need which help us to identify the needs and provision for our pupils:

• communication and interaction
• cognition and learning
• social, emotional and mental health difficulties
• sensory and/or physical needs

Special educational needs may be for a short period of time, or last throughout a child's educational journey. They may be identified before a child has started school or may be recognised at a specific point in their education. 

They may be for a short period or throughout a child’s educational life. They may be identified before a child has even entered school or they may come to be recognised at a specific point in their education.