Meadowhead Community Infant School and Nursery Our School Motto is 'Learning, Caring and Growing Together'

School Logo Local Offer

Meadowhead Infant School and Nursery is situated in the Mill Hill district of South West Blackburn. Meadowhead Infants has a Nursery with part time places, five mornings each week. The Nursery class is situated within its own building within the school grounds and has a capacity of 39 part time places. We also offer 30 hour childcare provision too. The nursery is staffed with a fully qualified teacher and a Level 3 and Level 2 teaching assistant.

We currently have five classes in school, each with a capacity of 30 children. We have 2 reception classes, a  Year 1 class, a mixed year 1/2 class and one year 2 class. All classes have a fully qualified teacher and teaching assistant.

Our vision is to foster a love of lifelong learning, providing moments of joy everyday! As a school we promote 5 school values that are threaded through everything we do at school, these are Respect, Teamwork, Ambition, Friendship and Kindness. We give every child the opportunity to develop socially, academically, creatively, spiritually and emotionally.  We provide a broad, balanced and rich curriculum which will challenge children's thinking, encourage them to care for others and inspire them to fulfil their individual potential in order to achieve success.

At the end of year 2, the majority of our pupils apply to transfer to Meadowhead Junior school.

Who to contact

Contact Name
James Waddington
Contact Position
Headteacher
Telephone
01254 202600 01254 202600
E-mail
office@meadowheadinfants.blackburn.sch.uk
Website
www.meadowheadinfants.co.uk
Scan to visit this website
Notes

You can find us at www.meadowheadinfants.co.uk or on our Facebook page Meadowhead Community Infant School and Nursery!

Where to go

Name
Meadowhead Community Infant School and Nursery
Address
Shorrock Lane
Blackburn
Lancahsire
Postcode

BB2 4TT

View BB2 4TT on a map

Local Offer

Description
  • There is a disabled parking facility in the school car park.
  • Ramps are installed around the school so all children can reach a playground independently
  • There is a lift in school so children can access all areas of the school
  • There is a banister installed alongside the stairs in school (five steps in total)
  • All doors are wide enough to accommodate a wheel chair

Mrs Jennifer Strahan (SENCO) works closely with a wide range of professionals, including Paediatricians, Educational Psychologists, Advisory Teachers and Speech and Language Therapists to further support the needs of children within school.

In September 2022, Meadowhead Infant School became a Centre of Excellence within the Inclusion Quality Mark - an award that we a re very proud to hold!

Contact Name
Mr James Waddington (Headteacher)
Contact Telephone
01254 202600
Contact Email
james.waddington@meadowheadinfants.blackburn.sch.uk

Schools Extended Local Offer Response

How does the setting/school/college know if children/young people need extra help and what should I do if I think my child/young person may have special educational needs?
  • Speech therapists
  • Hearing Impairment service
  • Visual Impairment service
  • Motor Development service
  • Severe learning difficulties
  • Occupational Therapists
  • Autistic Spectrum Disorder Advisory Teacher
  • School nurse
  • Educational Psychologist
  • SEND support service
  • Early Years Advisory teachers
How will early years setting/school/college staff support my child/young person?

Meadowhead Infants school was recently awarded the Inclusion Quality Mark with Centre of Excellence!

Training for staff is on going, and all members of staff receive training in different areas.

Many staff have received speech and language training and are qualified to carry out RoSCo and ELAT language assessments and programmes. The majority of staff have received Makaton training. The SENDCo and some support staff are also able to support children through the use of PECS. Speech therapists work closely with our support staff to ensure speech programs are delivered effectively. School staff have undergone training delivered by the Educational Psychologists to further support the Social, Emotional and Mental Health of our children. 

All staff have received training on physical development and all teachers have received training on dyslexia-friendly strategies.

All staff have received training on behaviour management techniques, attachment and trauma and nurture provision.

Support assistants receive direct training in areas relevant to the children they support.

Our SENDCo, Mrs J Strahan has received the National Award for Special Educational Needs qualification.

How will the curriculum be matched to my child's/young person's needs?
  • When pupils have identified SEND before they start here, we work with the people who already know them and use the information already available to identify what their SEND will be in our school setting
  • If you tell us you think your child has a SEND we will discuss this with you and investigate (see next point). We will share what we discover with you and agree with you what we will do next and what you can do to help your child. Our school has an ‘open door’ policy and parents are welcome to discuss any aspect of their child’s development with their class teacher or the SENDCo at any time. Our Pupil Wellbeing Co-ordinator can also be involved in this process if you wish.
  • If our staff think that your child has a SEND this may be because they are not making the same progress as other pupils; for example they may not be able to follow instructions or answer questions. We will observe them; we will assess their understanding of what we are doing in school and use tests to pinpoint what is causing difficulty (i.e. what is happening and why). We will then access the expertise of different agencies e.g. SEND support service, paediatrician, educational psychologist if parents and school are in agreement about this. Everything will be done with parents knowledge and consent.
How will both you and I know how my child/young person is doing and how will you help me to support my child's/young person's learning?
  • Discuss your concerns with your class teacher. He/she will be able to advise you what action to take. The class teacher might involve the SENDCo for extra advice and perspective.
  • Medical knowledge could be needed and you might need to take your child to the doctors initially. School will write a letter of support outlining the concerns around the child to give the doctor a more complete picture of the child’s abilities. Opticians and audiologists can also provide good information
  • You can also speak to the Pupil Wellbeing Co-ordinator about any concerns about your child’s development
What support will there be for my child's/young person's overall well being?

Meadowhead Infants prides itself in being an inclusive school and all the staff are continually updating their knowledge and skills around supporting children with special educational needs.

  • There are visual behavioural cue cards displayed in all classrooms showing ‘good sitting’, ‘good listening’ etc
  • All teachers wear good behaviour cue cards to they can give instant positive feedback to children displaying good behaviour
  • A reward system operates in all classroom to acknowledge good effort, work or behaviour
  • Some Makaton sign language is used in all the classrooms regardless of whether children need to use it to communicate e.g. when wishing each other a ‘good morning’, during assembly etc
  • Where appropriate, children might be given a ‘first & then’ card with pictures showing them what they are going to do.
  • Each classroom displays a visual timetable
  • Table groups are given task boards with pictures on to show the children what they are learning that session.
  • All classrooms have a least two members of staff. We also have members of staff who provide extra support for individual children as needed. The SENDCo works closely with outside agencies and if it is decided that a child would benefit from a ‘Education and Health Care Plan’, parents permission will be sought and a submission will be made to the authority. This could result in a child being given his/her own support assistant for part of the day at least. 
  • We also run a variety of intervention groups to support the learning of children who need additional support with various aspects of learning.
What specialist services and expertise are avaliable at or accessed by the setting/school/college?

The curriculum at Meadowhead is planned to suit each child’s needs. All teachers in each of the year groups plan together so all children have access to the same skills and experiences. Individual teachers then adapt their delivery to suit the needs of the children in their class. At Meadowhead Infants we believe that young children learning from ‘doing’, so much learning is experiential. Outdoor learning also plays an important part in the children’s’ education, with groups of children making use of our Forest School with a qualified practitioner.

What training have the staff supporting children and young people with SEND had? Are any being trained currently?

All our staff are trained so that we are able to adapt to a range of SEND: - specific learning difficulties(SpLD) including dyslexia; autistic spectrum disorder (ASD); speech, language and communication needs (SLCN); and Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH).We are a dyslexia friendly school. We use a number of approaches to teaching that allow for a child’s different learning styles. We have a teacher who is trained in; PECS. Many staff have undergone training in Makaton, Physical Development and Speech and Language development.

How will my child/young person be included in activities outside this classroom including school trips?

School uses many strategies to inform how a child is progressing

  • We regularly use staff meetings to give all teachers the chance to assess an anonymous piece of work to check our judgements are correct (moderating)
  • We use a precise tracking system to ensure that the progress is good
  • We check how well a pupil understands and makes progress in each lesson
  • Our senior leadership team check the progress of pupils every term (more often if progress is slow) and we discuss what we are doing to make sure all pupils make good progress (is there anything else we can do?)
  • For pupils with SEND, teachers discuss progress with parents every term or more often if we believe this will help.
  • The educational psychologist can carry out assessments with the child in question to gain a fuller understanding of the child’s abilities
  • SEND support service will carry out observations to ensure progress is being made.
How accessible is the setting/school/college enviroment?

Our ‘open door’ policy means that there are many opportunities when parents can discuss ways in which they can support their child’s learning. Advice will also be given at Parents Evening. As well as the class teacher, the SENDCo and Pupil Wellbeing co-ordinator are also very happy to meet with you to discuss specific ways in which your child can be supported.

If children have an EHCP and a Special Support Assistant is allocated to support them, we ensure that independence and confidence are developed. 

How will the setting/school/college prepare and support my child/young person to join the setting/school/college or the next stage of education and life?

At Meadowhead Infants, a high priority is given to the pupils’ emotional, mental and social development. Weekly assemblies cover our Values of Respect, Kindness, Friendship, Ambition and Teamwork and these are reinforced daily in all we do. Staff use programmes such as ‘Box of Feelings’, and Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning to promote emotional development. Groups of children also take part in 'Jigsaw' lessons which covers social and emotional development in greater detail.

Bullying behaviour is not tolerated. Any incident is reported immediately to the headteacher who takes appropriate action. We teach the anti-bullying message through our School Values.

Our pupil wellbeing co-ordinator is available to help in any aspect of this area of development. She will work with parents and children on this subject.

We plan our curriculum to take account of British Values and we actively promote equal opportunities, diversity and respect for all. 

How are the setting's/school's/college's resources allocated and matched to children's/young people's special educational needs?

All school trips will be planned so that they are accessible to all (subject to risk assessments). After school clubs are also available for all children regardless of ability. All activities will be accessible to all children, although in some cases they might be slightly differentiated if that is of benefit to the child.

How is the decision made about what type and how much support my child/young person will receive?

All transition programmes are very carefully planned for all children. Children moving from one year group to another in school are visited in their classroom by their new teaching staff. They also make at least one visit to their new classroom. Activities and events are planned in order that they are familiar with all staff within the school. We have very close links with the junior school and a transition programme is devised between the year 2 and year 3 staff. Children visit the junior school on several occasions and the junior staff visit the year 2 classrooms throughout the year in order that the children become familiar with them e.g. reading sessions are arranged when the juniors read with the year 2 children etc. The year 2 watch the Christmas production at the junior school and so on.

The SENDCos from the infant and junior school meet to discuss the transition needs of the SEND children. Arrangements are made for the children to meet their new Special Support Assistant if applicable. They will visit the junior school on more occasions if appropriate, especially if photographs of their new teaching staff, classroom. playground etc need to be taken. If relevant, the infant SENDCo will visit the juniors with advisory teachers from the inclusion support service to ensure classrooms are appropriate for the special needs children.

The SENDCo and family worker from the junior school visit the infant school to run a transition programme for those pupils with SEND, and those that need reassurance about starting a new school. Any concerns and worries are addressed and pupils feel more confident about starting a new school after these programmes.

How are parents involved in the setting/school/college? How can I be involved?

The SENDCo works very closely with a number of outside agencies. The inclusion support service will provide equipment needed by a child and the school will also purchase any equipment or resources required by a child with additional needs. The speech and language service will provide programmes of work for support staff to carry out with the children.

The school pays for extra support and visits from the educational psychologist. 

Gallery

Actions

Save to shortlist
Is this information correct?

Last Updated

Last updated:

List your service/activity