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Overton Grange Statement of Provision

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Overton Grange Statement of Provision

A. School/base Expertise and Capacity

Student numbers

The base is currently funded for five HI EHCP students; this funding is given to the base regardless of the numbers of HI EHCP students actually in school.  There are an additional two part funded HI EHCP places; these places are part funded and attract full funding if they are filled by a HI EHCP student.

We currently have six EHCP students and two students with HI who are not at the EHCP level.  We support these using their notional £6K with the ability to access the specialist services which the full and part funding has already paid for.

We do not run a class dedicated to HI students.  Each student attends mainstream lessons for as many lessons as possible with additional support as required.  Some students do attend Teacher of the Deaf sessions but this is decided in conjunction with the student/parent(s) and, therefore, each student's level of support differs.

Aims and Outcomes

To allow HI students to make academic progress against their own targets.  

To offer HI students better access to their classroom and curriculum with extra in class support and pre and post teaching. The aim is to have the students in as many mainstream lessons as possible.

To allow understanding of the deaf communities, organisations and understand Deaf culture and identity.

Curriculum adaptations

We run a KS4 option block, replacing a GCSE, for HI students.  This allows a level of pre- and post-teaching, a chance to investigate what strategies are working and not working, consolidation and interleaving and a break from the demands of academic pressure (which is more demanding for most HI students as they have to work harder to receive the information). This option is not just for HI students with an EHCP, although they do form the vast majority of the places taken.

At KS3 we put in place discreet ToD lessons, normally in place of some music or MFL classes.  We do not remove students from all of these lessons to try to keep as broad and balanced curriculum as possible.  This offer is not just for HI students with an EHCP, although they do form the vast majority of the places taken.  These lessons are primarily used for pre/post teaching with the added benefit of giving the student a ‘friendly face’ to speak to if there are barriers to learning in the mainstream lessons.

B. Provision

Provision includes:

  • A Teacher of the Deaf (ToD).

  • British Sign Language (BSL) trained Teaching Assistants (TA).

  • Acoustically sympathetic infrastructure.

  • Note taking for the Deaf - both in terms of TA support and external professionals with the specific qualification.

  • Higher level BSL professionals bought in to support specific students.

  • A ‘Deaf Aware’ setting where the mainstream teachers are both capable in their own right but also able to seek advice and support from experts in the field.

  • Equipment checks and assistance.

  • Liaison with parents for EHCP AR, termly reviews, ad hoc meetings.

  • Deaf Aware school – HI students talk to their peers in a formal setting (tutor periods) to explain deafness and how to help.

  • Explanations and guidance on how to use Radio Aids for students.

Therapies Provision

Speech and Language Therapy – provided by / bought in from COGNUS.  The utility of a BSL trained therapist with experience of working with HI students is incalculable.

Scheduled SIS reviews – this is of both EHCP and SEND students with an ability to call for additional advice or assessments where we believe there may be a gap in our knowledge.

Local Authority peripatetic ToD visits, both for specific teachers and general advice around improving practice.  These visits also help our ToD, who is not yet qualified, to ensure that we’re providing the most suitable level and type of support.

We facilitate the EHCP requirements for one student who needs BSL Level 6 support in tandem with a Note Taker for the Deaf.  This is achieved by bringing in external professionals.

Preparation for Adult Life

Social communications and interaction audits – we use both the SaLT and the ToD to assess social communications and interactions skills, in both a formal and informal manner, to determine what (if any) actions are required to bring the HI student up to the level of their peers.

Social communications and interaction training.  This is determined by the audit (see above) and can be delivered either by a BSL trained TA, in a group setting with other HI students, the ToD (normally as part of the ToD extractions) or as part of a time-limited SaLT programme.

Introduction to deaf community and organisations.  We signpost, facilitate and arrange meetings with groups and organisations.  We are hoping in 2021-22 to host the BSL courses for the Local Authority. 

Careers advice – although this seems somewhat self-evident we offer the same careers advice to students with HI barriers at both KS4 and KS5.  This is significant because we are finding that some KS5 students have had no careers advice prior to coming to us.

Enrichment / social activities

  • BSL courses

  • Facilitating access to deaf societies and clubs outside of school

  • Pen pal connections

  • smiLE therapy (SaLT)

  • Deaf Awareness training for whole school

  • Deaf role models into school

  • Boccia club / Panathlon

  • Deaf social club

Support staffing (per week per class, on average)

  • We have a ToD at 90% full time (remainder spent as English teacher)

  • We have two BSL trained Teaching Assistants who spend all their time with HI students 

  • We have one BSL trained Teaching Assistants who spend 30% of their time with HI students (remainder spent with non-HI students)

C. Admission Process

Criteria for Admission

  • Not provided,

D. Review of student provision

  • We use the Assess-Plan-Do-Review cycle where the provision for each student is looked at and reviewed in light of the student's progress.

E. Outreach Commissioned

Not at the moment and no plans to do so.

F. Funding and moderation processes

The funding process will remain on a per pupil basis, as a whole school methodology would not be appropriate for those settings with very low numbers of commissioned places.

G. Funding and moderation processes

We meet with primary schools to ensure that we replicate their provision where possible.  We have links to most colleges in the area and help students with their college applications where possible with follow-up visits for some students.  We also have a strong tradition of Hearing Impaired students going on to our Sixth Form.