Admissions and policies
Special Educational Needs Policy
Oliver House School’s Specialist Educational Needs Policy references the DCSF document Code of Practice on the Identification and Assessment of Special Educational Needs. Oliver House School is a specialist educational setting for children and young people with a Statement of Special Educational Need.
We recognise that, for some children, their special educational needs may appear to be outside of the regular level of style of intervention. Following identification of a specific cause, strategies will be agreed which extend beyond the general day-to-day practice within the school. In addition, staff may be temporarily redeployed to support young people’s needs that are recognised as complex. Close collaboration with parents and multidisciplinary teams would be sought to determine the effectiveness of alternative strategies.
Admissions procedure
Oliver House School believes that all children with special educational needs, whose parents or local authority wish it, should have the right to be considered as appropriate for assessment for admission. Students will be assessed against the admission criteria for Oliver House School.
Assessment criteria
The purpose of the assessment is to determine the specific needs of the young person and whether these can be met by our educational and care approach.
The initial assessment includes:
- Education and performance levels
- Physical skills assessment
- Communication assessment
- Self-help and independent skills assessment
The first full individual education plan (IEP) and individual learning plan (ILP) baseline assessment are based on this initial assessment. It includes a detailed programmed designed to enable each young person to work towards specific attainable goals.
Admissions criteria
Students are usually referred by their local authority, education, social services or health department. The criteria for admission to Oliver House School and its services are a combination of individual, family and school environment factors and include the following:
- A diagnosis of autistic spectrum disorder or evidence of behaviours which are in accordance with such a diagnosis
- Learning difficulties within the moderate to severe range
- Students will have at least a draft Statement of Special Educational Need
- Be aged 6 to 25 years
- Have funding agreed with their local authority
- Appropriate family commitment to supporting and maintaining programmes at home
Oliver House School can provide emergency and respite residential placements.
Policies
Information about the school’s policies and procedures regarding the welfare of children is available upon request and includes:
- Academic performance in preceding years
- Anti bullying
- Child protection
- Complaints procedure
- Complaints records in preceding years
- Curriculum
- English as an additional language
- Equal opportunities
- Exclusion
- Health and safety
- Ofsted reports
- Physical intervention
- Promotion of good behaviour and sanctions
- Protection from abuse (students)
- Protection from abuse (adults)
- Policy for protection from abuse
- Safeguarding
- Sex and relationships in education
- Staff list and qualifications