Demonstrating Effectiveness Background and Context

Ofsted Inspection of Maintained Schools and Academies from January, 2015 Inspection is primarily about evaluating how well individual pupils benefit from the education provided by their school. It is important to test the school’s response to individual needs by observing how well it helps all pupils to make progress and fulfil their potential. It may be relevant to pay particular attention to the achievement of: disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs

SEND CoP: 0-25 years As part of any inspection, Ofsted will expect to see evidence of pupil progress, a focus on outcomes and a rigorous approach to the monitoring and evaluation of any SEN support provided. Ofsted publish more detail about their expectations in their inspection guidelines.

Ofsted Inspection of Maintained Schools and Academies from January, 2015 Achievement Inspectors should: note whether pupils who receive additional intervention are demonstrating accelerated or sustained progress – this would indicate whether the intervention is effective

The Special Educational Needs and Disability Review, A Statement is not enough, Ofsted 2010 Across all the education providers visited, the keys to good outcomes were good teaching and learning, close tracking, rigorous monitoring of progress with intervention quickly put in place, and a thorough evaluation of the impact of additional provision.

The Special Educational Needs and Disability Review, A Statement is not enough, Ofsted 2010 Inspectors saw the similar needs of different children being met effectively in a wide range of different ways. However, what consistently worked best was a close analysis of their needs, often as they changed and developed, matched to a clear view of the impact of intervention on outcomes for them.

The Special Educational Needs and Disability Review, A Statement is not enough, Ofsted 2010 Over half the early years providers, schools, colleges and local authorities visited placed little emphasis on improvements in progress or other outcomes, including destinations, as a measure of the effectiveness of the quality of provision. However, in the areas where there was close evaluation of the outcomes of different types of provision, additional support for children and young people was correspondingly more effective. Evaluation of this kind also supported more effective initial assessments of need.

The Special Educational Needs and Disability Review, A Statement is not enough, Ofsted 2010 Inspectors found that the analysis and use of progress information for children and young people with the most complex needs were less well-developed than for pupils whose academic achievement could be measured using the levels of the National Curriculum.

The Special Educational Needs and Disability Review, A Statement is not enough, Ofsted 2010 Evaluation should focus on the outcomes desired for and achieved by children and young people with additional needs. It should not focus only on whether they have received the services prescribed. Schools and other services should give urgent attention to improving the quality of their evaluation of additional provision.

Why evaluate effectiveness and for whom?

The governing bodies of maintained schools and maintained nursery schools and the proprietors of academy schools must publish information on their websites about the implementation of the governing body’s or the proprietor’s policy for pupils with SEN. The information published should be updated annually and any changes to the information occurring during the year should be updated as soon as possible.

The information required is set out in the Special Educational Needs and Disability Regulations 2014 and must include information about: evaluating the effectiveness of the provision made for children and young people with SEN

What should be included? Include here the schools systems, processes and criteria for evaluating the effectiveness of its provision for pupils with SEN. How does the education setting know how effective its arrangements are? How are the Governors/Trustees involved in monitoring and evaluating effectiveness and what are their responsibilities? Include how the school judges whether any additional support offered has had an impact on the child’s/ young person’s educational progress.

Who needs the information? Senior Leadership Teams – to include as part of the school’s self evaluation record. Governors Parents/Pupils Ofsted You! The key purpose of the evaluation is to use the findings to inform next steps as part of the development planning process. An action plan should be in place which demonstrates how the school is planning to further improve the quality of its provision for pupils with SEND.