The Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Leader (SENDCo) at Sherwell Valley Primary is Debbie Gaywood (Hannah Sennett is currently on maternity leave). She oversees the provision and needs for all pupils within the school.

Mrs Gaywood will be happy to meet with you or talk over the phone should you have any queries or concerns about your child. To book an appointment, please ring the school office: 01803 613296 or email admin@svps1.com or mrs.gaywood@svps1.com

Who else can help if your child has SEND?

• Your child’s Class Teacher
• The Local Authority Website: http://www.torbay.gov.uk/schools-and-learning/send/  
  Tel: 01803 201201 main switch board
• Visit the SENDIASS Torbay website which provides information, advice and support for young people & parents/carers of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities aged 0-25.        http://sendiasstorbay.org.uk/

Our SEND Information Report

Please click on the link below to read our SEND Information Report to support our pupils with additional needs.

Our School Offer

Please click on the link below to find out what provision we offer all pupils, including those with Special Educational Needs…

To view the Torbay Local Authority Offer click here

Our SEND Policy

Please click on the link below to see how we provide for our pupils with Special Educational Needs.

Nurture Provision

Our nurture provision team provide an excellent environment for children that may find Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH) regulation difficult or have experienced trauma through a variety of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE’s).

For more information, please click on the link below:

To view our Accessibility Plan Policy, click here.

To view our Supporting Pupils at School with Medical Conditions Policy, click here.

Supporting Children’s Mental Wellbeing:

Attachment Awareness

We have several members of staff who have been working towards Sherwell Valley becoming an Attachment Aware School. Sharon Vallance has completed training with Louise Bomber, author of many books on the subject including ‘Inside I’m Hurting’. There are a number of staff members who have learnt about Attachment Based Mentoring, which combines knowledge of attachment with coaching skills. Our aim is for all members of staff to have an awareness of Attachment issues and how they impact on children’s learning in the classroom. We have had several success stories already!

Children’s Mental Health and Wellbeing

Our Mental Health and Wellbeing lead is Mrs. D. Gaywood. She has recently completed her level 4 Certificate in Mental Health Aware Leadership training and is currently completing a diploma in Trauma and Mental Health Informed Schools UK. Alongside Mrs. Gaywood we also have a Mental Health Support Team for School, as part of the Children and Families Health Devon Service. They work within school every Wednesday. 

Mental Health and Wellbeing can impact us all at different times during our life and for children this can be shown in many ways. There is lots of support available within school and also within our community that we can signpost you to. If you or your child need any support with a Mental Health issue please either come into the office and fill in a self referral form or email Mrs. Gaywood at: mrs.gaywood@svps1.com

Other Expertise in School

We have several members of staff who have been trained in Mindfulness techniques and they have been successfully passing these strategies on to children in many classes. As with the Thrive programme, the benefits of Mindfulness are supported by studies in brain science and enable children to focus more positively on their academic work and also to learn how to relax. Many staff also use Coaching in their work with children, which in turn supports our Growth Mindset ethos in developing resilience. The evidence can be seen in many classes as children are encouraged to work independently and to persevere when faced with a challenge.

Where can you find more information and support?

If you are interested in aspects of SEND, the following websites could be extremely useful:

http://www.sendgateway.org.uk/

https://www.gov.uk/government/policies/special-educational-needs-and-disability-send