SEND Assessment: A Strengths-Based Framework for Learners with SEND

Part of The Essential SENCO Toolkit series, this invaluable resource offers practical ideas and materials to allow SENCOs and SEN practitioners to capture learning, demonstrate the impact of SEN support, and analyse whether provision is effectively tackling barriers to learning.

Chapters introduce a shared language of learning and move through seven key components: cognition, communication, creativity, control, compassion, co-ordination and the curriculum.

Key features include:

• A framework for the holistic assessment of skills and attributes that contribute to accessing the curriculum, and a framework for intervention that is additional to, or different from, the differentiated curriculum
• A unique strengths-based progress tracker that establishes a baseline to inform intervention and determine progress over time
• A photocopiable and downloadable programme of materials, trialled and tested in both primary and secondary settings, that can be shared with teachers, senior leaders and support staff, as well as with parents/carers and pupils

Providing a framework to create a holistic profile of the child and their needs, SEND Assessment empowers professionals to confidently demonstrate progress for barriers to learning that are otherwise difficult to measure. It will support SENCOs in their day-to-day roles and become a vital tool for those interested in providing effective SEN provision in educational settings.

Table of Contents

Introduction

1. What is Assessment?
2. A Strengths-based Approach
3. Who has SEN, SEND and or Medical Needs?
4. Developing a Shared Language of Assessment
5. The 7 Cs Learning Portfolio
6. Using and Applying the 7 Cs Learning Portfolio
7. The 7 Cs Progress Tracker
8. Collaborating with Learners and Families
9. Intervention
10. Getting Started

"The structured format and simple, non-jargon, language is a real strength of this book. It doesn’t just focus on what the child can’t do, but instead ensures the assessors are actively looking for the child’s strengths too, something that can often be overlooked when a child presents with SEND. The 7 distinct areas are all linked by the letter ‘C’ making them memorable. The Tracker also generates a quantifiable number, so the impact of additional support can be measured."
- Nadine Avenal, SEND Lead,Sapientia Education Trust

"We are just starting to use Judith's '7 C's' and can already see that it has immense potential for tracking and measuring progress in areas that cannot be tracked using traditional methods. I think it will be very helpful in allowing us to support the child in their wider personal development and will allow for a more individualised and collaborative approach."
- Cherie Pointon, SENCO, Dell Primary School

"The 7C's are just wonderful! The material is so great!"
- Hannah Powley, St Nicholas Priory

"We are just beginning to explore the 7 C’s and attempting to pull it in to our own support plans. It’s great because it allows us to use it as its own support plan but is also incredibly adaptable meaning we are able to transfer it to our own support system. It has been such a valuable tool to enable staff to broaden their language around the children’s barriers to learning and enabled us to be specific in the support that we implement. It supports the children in understanding their barriers and ensures that they are part of the process when planning their next steps and allows them to take the ownership of their progress. The 7 C’s has also provided us with a clear baseline for our children and enables us to demonstrate those smaller more specific steps of progress related directly to their area of focus."
- Maria Hodges, SENCO, Millfield Primary