Dr Anne-Marie McBlain
Specialist Senior Educational
Psychologist
What is Psychology?
• Psychology – exploring
and understanding
individuals, the
interactions between
people, their
environment and each
other.
B = f(P x E)
Environment
Person
Person
What is Educational Psychology?
• Educational Psychology is
concerned with supporting
CYP experiencing difficulties
that are hindering their
chance of learning (BPS,
2013).
• Educational Psychologists
(EPs) strive to improve and
optimise the learning and
development of all CYP
(HCPC, 2012).
Education
Children and
young
people
Families/
communities
What Do EPs Do?
EPs offer a wide range of support & advice
to:
• Children & young people (CYP) aged 0-25
• Families
• Professionals in a wide range of settings
(including: EY settings, schools, colleges, YOIs, Health &
Care facilities)
• They have a statutory role in providing advice or
information to local authorities for CYP who have SEND and
are undergoing a statutory EHC needs assessment.
EP Training & Experience
Historically (pre-2006)
• Psychology degree
• Teaching
qualification
• At least 2 years
teaching experience
• Masters degree in
Educational
Psychology (1 year
full time)
Currently (post-2006)
– Psychology degree
– At least 2 years
relevant experience
working with
children or young
people
– Doctorate in
Educational
Psychology (3 years
full time)
AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE EDUCATIONAL
PSYCHOLOGY SERVICE
Support for
Bereavement & critical
incidents
Positive
Psychology
Develop policies &
procedures
Provide training
for schools &
other
professionals
Member of Life Chances
Team
Vice Chair of Foster
Panel
Develop policies and
procedures
Support in setting up
R:Vue
Monitoring and
tracking of all LAC
Video Interaction Guidance
Brief therapeutic
work (solution
focused, CBT)
Provide training to
Early Years
Settings
Attendance at EP
interest groups for
LAC
LOOKED
AFTER
CHILDREN
Liaise with CAMHS
ELSAs
Attend PSTC/SEN meetings &
feed back to relevant EPs
Provide training for
foster carers
Provide training on
Attachment
Mental Health
Projects
MENTAL
HEALTH/
EMOTIONAL
LITERACY
Supporting
residential care home
staff
Attendance at out
of area reviews –
PEPs, ARs, LAC
reviews
EDUCATIONAL
PSYCHOLOGY
SERVICE
Support, advice,
training to schools
Develop policies
and procedures
Locality Networks
Attending parent drop-in
sessions
Sharing knowledge
& skills with EY
settings & parents
EARLY
YEARS
Liaising with other local authorities
with a view to sharing good practice
BEHAVIOUR
Support, advice to parents
EXCLUSIONS
Developing protocol for joint
PSTC/EPS work in conjunction
with PSTC Co-ordinator
Involvement with children's Centres
including facilitating EPs' direct
involvement with parents and staff
Working with partner
agencies
Keep up to date with
policies, procedures
and research
Liaise with EY SIA in relation to supporting
targeted Foundation settings to
implement the social skills programme
and
Ongoing casework –
assessment /intervention/
problem solving
Support &
training of
SENCos
Annual
reviews
YOT Panel
Consultations
Attend Pupil at Risk Panel –
monitoring primary pupils at
risk of exclusion
Statutory
assessmt
Tribunals
SEN and
LEARNING
Planning &
supporting
interventions
Out of area reviews
Training
teachers &
support
assistants
Inclusion
Development
Programme
Close work with
other agencies –
PRU/SEN /BST
Advice and
evaluation of
interventions
Support with
provision/
intervention
management
Tracking of
primary
exclusions – for
risk
What do EPs do?
• Holistic approach – consider school,
family and community systems:
–
–
–
–
CYP
Parents/Carers
Education staff
Multi-agency professionals (e.g.
social workers, paediatricians,
S&LTs)
• Explore strengths & needs
• Support development of provision
& interventions to meet needs
• Apply psychology – formulations,
evidence-based practice
School
Family
Community
What do EPs do?
• Levels of work:
– Individual
– Group
– Organisational
Social,
Emotional &
Mental Health
Cognition &
Learning
Communication
& Interaction
Health &
Physical
• 0-25 years
• Complex needs – severe
and persistent
• Vulnerable groups –
statements of SEN/EHC
plans, at risk of exclusion,
children in care
Casework
Research
Training
EPS
MultiAgency
working
Community
working
Settings
EPs:
i
Act as consultants for school staff, other
professionals & parents and contribute
to the development of direct work with
CYP.
ii Carry out assessments, develop interventions,
monitor progress & write reports.
iii Contribute to multi-agency planning processes for
CYP by attending meetings and/or providing
reports.
The Special Educational Needs And Disability Code
Of Practice: 0 To 25 Years - January 2015
Provides statutory guidance:
• For organisations which work with
& support CYP who have SEN or
disabilities
• On duties, policies and procedures relating to Part 3 of the Children
and Families Act 2014 and associated regulations and applies to
England.
Associated Legislation
• The Children and Families Act 2014 (Transitional & Saving Provisions)
(No 2) Order 2014.
• The Special Educational Needs & Disability Regulations 2014
• The Special Educational Needs and Disability (Detained Persons)
Regulations 2015
• The Special Educational Needs and Disability
(Personal Budgets) Regulations 2014
This Code of Practice is statutory guidance for the following organisations:
• Local authorities (education, social care and
relevant housing and employment and other
services)
• All early years providers in the maintained,
private, voluntary and independent sectors that
are funded by the local authority
• Governing bodies of schools, (including nonmaintained special schools), FE colleges & 6th
form colleges
•
• Proprietors of academies (including free
schools, university technical colleges and studio
schools)
The NHS Commissioning Board
• NHS Trusts Clinical commissioning groups
(CCGs)
• NHS Foundation Trusts
• Local Health Boards
• Management committees of pupil referral
units
• Independent schools and independent
specialist providers approved under
Section 41 of the Children and Families Act
2014
• Youth Offending Teams & relevant youth
custodial establishments
• The First-tier Tribunal (Special Educational
Needs and Disability)
The main changes from the SEN Code of Practice (2001) reflect
the changes introduced by the Children and Families Act 2014.
These are:
• It covers the 0-25 age range
• It relates to disabled CYP as well as those with SEN
• Has a clearer focus on the participation of CYP & their parents in decisionmaking at individual and strategic levels
• Has a stronger focus on high aspirations and on improving outcomes for
CYP
• Includes guidance on the joint planning and commissioning of services to
ensure close co-operation between education, health and social care
• Includes guidance on publishing a Local Offer of support for CYP with SEN
or disabilities
• Promotes a graduated approach to identifying and supporting pupils and
students with SEN (to replace School Action and School Action Plus)
• Education, Health & Care plans (EHC plan) replace statements and
Learning Difficulty Assessments (LDAs)
• A greater focus on support that enables those with SEN to succeed in their
education and make a successful transition to adulthood
• Information is provided on relevant duties under the Equality Act 2010
& relevant provisions of the Mental Capacity Act 2005
• There is new guidance on supporting children and young people with SEN
who are in youth custody.
The CoP definitions of Special Educational
Needs (SEN)
• xiii. A CYP has SEN if they have a learning difficulty or disability which calls
for special educational provision to be made for him or her.
• xiv. A child of compulsory school age or a young person has a learning
difficulty or disability if he or she:
- has a significantly greater difficulty in learning than the
majority of others of the same age,
OR
- has a disability which prevents or hinders him or her from
making use of facilities of a kind generally provided for
others of the same age in mainstream schools or post-16
institutions
5.32. CYP’s SEN are generally thought of in the
following four broad areas of need and support:
• Communication and interaction
• Cognition and learning
• Social, emotional and mental health
• Sensory and/or physical needs
The Graduated Approach
• Is a 4 part, assess, plan, do & review process.
• As a part of this process, medium & long-term
outcomes may change.
• Is a continuous data collection which
monitors the success of interventions.
1.24 High quality teaching that is
differentiated and personalised
will meet the individual needs of the
majority of children and young
people (approx. 80%)
• 6.38 In deciding whether to make SEN provision,
the teacher and SENCO should consider all of the
information gathered from within the school
about the pupil’s progress, alongside national
data and expectations of progress.
• This should include high quality and accurate
formative assessment, using effective tools and
early assessment materials.
Stage 1 of the Graduated Approach
Where a CYP needs educational provision
that is additional to or different from this
to enable them to access independent
learning and the curriculum.
(Approx. 18-19%)
Stage 1 SEN provision
• This is special educational provision under
Section 21 of the Children and Families Act
2014.
• Schools and colleges must use their best
endeavours to ensure that such provision is
made for those who need it.
SEND Support Plans
• At stage 1 the teacher(s) & SENCO with parents/carers
and CYP create a SEND Support Plan.
• The outcomes, interventions & support should be
agreed by all parties
• The expected impact on progress, development or
behaviour should be considered
• A date for review should be set
Stage 2 SEN Provision
• 5.48 Where a child continues to make less than expected progress,
despite evidence-based support and interventions that are
matched to the child’s area of need
• Builds on the arrangements
for Stage 1
• Involves more frequent review & more specialist expertise in
successive cycles in order to match interventions to the needs of
the CYP.
Stage 2 SEN Provision
Involves specialists eg:
• CAMHS
• GPs
• Paediatricians
• OTs &/or Physios
• Health visitors
• School nurses
• Speech & language therapists
• Portage workers
• Educational psychologists
• Specialist teachers
• Support services.
• Such specialists can help to
identify:
• Needs
• Effective strategies
• Equipment
• Programmes
• Support/Resources
• Other interventions
to enable the CYP to make
progress towards the desired
learning and development
outcomes.
• Review progress
An EHC Needs Assessment
• Builds on arrangements for Stage 1 and Stage
2
• Is only appropriate for CYP with complex,
persistent & long-term needs in 1 or more of
the 4 broad areas (ie. the most complex cases
(approx. 1-2%)
In these cases,
• The severity of the CYP’s SEN indicates a need
for the Local Authority to become more
actively involved.
• It is likely that there will be prolonged multiagency involvement.
EHC Needs Assessment
• A request for an EHC assessment is likely to
happen where there is a perception that SEN
provision currently being made for the CYP by
the setting from their own resources, is not be
enabling them to make adequate progress.
• Settings or parents can request an EHC needs
assessment
EHC Needs Assessment
• Before considering a CYP for
an EHC Needs Assessment,
careful consideration should be given to
the circumstances,
• This may reveal good progress from a low
base & not all CYP are expected to progress
at the same rate.
The evidence provided when
requesting an EHC Needs Assessment
should indicate how additional
support has been targeted at each
stage.
It should show either that:
• the CYP is not making adequate progress despite
appropriate support at Stage 2;
or,
• that there will be a clear need to provide longterm support over and above that which can be
reasonably provided at Stage 2 to ensure the CYP
continues to make appropriate progress.
Advice and information required for EHC Needs Assessments
Relevant legislation: Section 36 of the Children and Families Act 2014 and Regulations 6, 7, and 8
of the SEND Regulations 2014 9.49
Advice & information from:
• 9.45 The CYP (using appropriate
methods)
• 9.49 The CYP’s parent’s/carers
• 9.46 Relevant professionals about the CYP’s
education, health and care needs, desired
outcomes & provision required
Most importantly……..!!
9.49 Psychological advice and information from
an educational psychologist who should
normally be employed or commissioned by the
local authority.
EP ASSESSSMENTS
Assessment In Context
Includes:
– Observation
– Discussion with staff, parent/carer, CYP
– Curriculum-based assessment
Assessment over time
Eg. Assessment through teaching
- Establishes a baseline
- Teaching is based in the CYP’s needs as
identified
- Testing follows teaching to determine
the CYP’s progress
(This data should have been collected at stage 2)
Normative Assessment
Eg. British Ability Scales-III; Nepsy-II; WISC-V;
WIAT-III
- Provides information about the CYP’s
cognitive abilities compared to other CYP
of the same age
Questions?
Scenerio
• What stage of the SEN Code of Practice is Tom currently at?
• Is this appropriate?
• What reasons would you give for Tom’s behaviour?
• Think about what might affect Tom at home, in the
classroom and at playtime
• Have some ideas to share with your colleagues.
REMEMBER – There are no right or wrong answers for this
THANK YOU FOR
LISTENING!