| Word or term | What does this mean? |
| Additional learning support | Extra help or support given to children, so they can get the most out of their education. A child is said to have ‘additional support needs’ if they need more, or different support, from what is normally provided in pre-schools to children of the same age. |
| Advocate | Someone who helps children make decisions in their lives |
| Annual Review (AR) | An education, health and care plan (EHCP) must be reviewed every year to make sure the child is making progress and getting the support they need |
| Appeal | To argue against something or question a decision you don’t agree with using the law |
| Assessment | A review to find out what extra support a child needs. For example to decide if a student needs extra support in school |
| Carer | A person who cares for a child for whom they have parental responsibility |
| Children’s Services | The NCC team who works with and supports children and their families |
| Code of Practice | A guide to tell us what we need to do to work within the law and provide support for children with special educational needs and disabilities |
| Complex health needs | Children who have severe health conditions that require ongoing health intervention. They need support to carry out activities of daily living. This could be a severe disability |
| Complex needs schools | These schools were formerly known as special schools and they are for children with special educational needs |
| Direct Payments | Allow people to receive money directly from NCC, so they can pay for their own services and live more independently |
| Disagreement resolution | A way of trying to come to an agreement when people disagree. For example to help resolve disagreements between parents of a child with special educational needs, and a school |
| Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) profile | An assessment of children’s achievement at the end of the academic year when they turn 5 |
| Education, health and care plan (EHCP) | A document that sets out what support children with special educational needs should get, to help them learn, grow and develop. It brings together education, health and social care services |
| Family support process | An approach to support children and families, through a coordinated action plan of different services. It puts the family at the heart of decision-making |
| Early Years Foundation Stage | The name given to the curriculum for children age 3 until the end of the Reception (age 5). There is statutory guidance for settings to follow |
| Free school | Schools for children of all abilities, which were set up due to parental demand for more choice in local education. They have the same Ofsted inspections as all state schools and will be expected to maintain the same high standards |
| Graduated approach or response | This approach recognises that children learn in different ways and can have different kinds or levels of special educational needs. Increasing specialist help should be asked for, depending on the needs of the individual child |
| Inclusion | The practice of educating children with special educational needs in mainstream settings, wherever possible |
| Independent school | A school not maintained by a local authority. These are also known as private schools |
| Individual education plan (IEP) | A plan of the support to be provided for a child with special educational needs. It records key short-term targets and has teaching and learning strategies different from, or additional to, those in place for the child’s peers |
| Key Stage 1 (KS1) | The stage of the National Curriculum between ages 5-7 years (Year groups 1 to 3). Pupils at KS1 generally sit their KS1 tests aged 7 |
| Key Stage 2 (KS2) | The stage of the National Curriculum between ages 7- 11 years (Year groups 4 to 6). Pupils at KS2 generally sit their KS2 tests aged 11 |
| Key Stage 3 (KS3) | The stage of the National Curriculum between ages 11-14 years (Year groups 7 to 9). |
| Key Stage 4 (KS4) | The stage of the National Curriculum between 14-16 years (Year groups 7 to 9). Pupils at KS4 generally sit GCSEs and equivalents aged 16 |
| Local Authority | The local government responsible for managing services in our area – Norfolk County Council |
| Local Offer | One place that brings together information about all the support and services for children with special educational needs and disabilities. In Norfolk, this is www.norfolk.gov.uk/SEND |
| Looked after children (LAC) | Children that have been taken into care and are looked after by the Local Authority |
| Mainstream | Services that all children use |
| Mainstream school | A school which is for all children, not just those with special educational needs. A mainstream school could be a maintained school or an independent school |
| Maintained school | A Government-funded school which provides education free of charge to children in either mainstream or special settings. Maintained schools are generally community schools, community special schools, foundation schools, foundation special schools, voluntary aided schools or voluntary controlled schools. Academies are not maintained schools |
| Mediation | A way of trying to come to an agreement when people disagree over an education, health and care plan. An independent mediator brings together the two parties in an informal way to try and resolve the disagreement through discussion |
| Named officer | A person at the Local Authority who liaises with you about your child if they are undergoing an education, health and care assessment. In Norfolk this will usually be an education, health and care plan coordinator |
| National Curriculum | This sets out a clear, full and statutory entitlement to learning for all children, determining what should be taught and setting attainment targets for learning. It also determines how performance will be assessed and reported. |
| Non maintained special school | Schools that provide education for children with special educational needs but are not under Local Authority control. These schools charge fees on a non-profit making basis. Most maintained special schools are run by major charities or trusts. |
| Norfolk SEND Partnership Information, Advice and Support Service (SENDIASS) | They provide free, impartial advice and support to parents whose children have special educational needs. |
| Note in Lieu (NIL) | A document produced if the Local Authority decide not to issue an education, health and care plan following a statutory assessment. The document sets out how your child’s needs can be met through school based or early years setting provision, with external support if necessary |
| Ofsted | The organisation that makes sure that all schools, early years settings and social care services are doing a good job |
| Person centred planning | A way of planning services, based on what the person using them wants and cares about |
| Personal budgets | Money that people can use, and decide themselves how to spend, to pay for support |
| Personal health budgets | Money that people can use to spend on things to help them improve their health condition |
| Portage | Home based education for pre-school children with special educational needs |
| SEN Support | When a child is identified as having special educational needs, interventions will be provided that are additional to or different from those provided as part of the setting’s usual differentiated curriculum. An Individual Education Plan or Support Plan will usually be written |
| Short breaks | Opportunities for disabled children (over age 5) to spend time away from their family and do something fun. For example a day, evening, overnight or weekend activity, or activities during the school holidays |
| Special educational needs coordinator (SENCO) | A member of staff who has responsibility for coordinating the special educational needs provision within a school or early years setting. In a small school the head teacher or deputy may take on this role. There are Early Years SENCOs, primary school SENCOs and secondary school SENCOs |
| Special educational needs (SEN) | A child has special educational needs (SEN) if they need extra support, because they find it harder to learn than the majority of other children of the same age |
| Specialist resource base (SRB) | Specialist resource bases (SRBs) are facilities hosted by mainstream schools. They provide additional support and intervention to children with special needs |
| Specialist support | Services specifically designed to support disabled children, for example speech and language, or short breaks |
| Statutory assessment | An investigation of a child’s special educational needs which may or may not lead to an education, health and care plan. |
| Statutory services | Services that the government provide, for example education, health or social care services |
| Transition | In education, this means moving between school stages, for example, from preschool to a primary school, or from junior school to a secondary school. At 16-years-old it can mean moving on to college, work, training or to living independently |
| Transition plan | A plan following the Year 9 annual review. It will be updated at subsequent annual reviews. The purpose of the plan is to draw together information from a range of individuals within and beyond the school, in order to plan together for the young person’s transition to adult life. Transition plans may also be drawn up at other times, for example when planning a move between schools |
| Virtual School | Children in a Virtual School will be in a mainstream school or specialist provision, but they are also on the roll of the Virtual School. This means they get additional support and encouragement if needed |
