Achievement for All

04th January 2010

This is a national programme to boost the educational achievement of children with special educational needs or disabilities (SEND). The programme runs from September 2009 to September 2011, and is operating in 10 local authority areas across the country; Nottinghamshire is the area for the East Midlands region.

£35m is being spent on the programme, divided between the 10 areas, to support the schools taking part to do three things:

1) Track the attainment over 2 years of all pupils in Years 1, 5, 7 and 10 with SEND (ie at School Action, School Action Plus or with a statement)

2) Engage with their parents in a focused way, listening to parents’ concerns and suggestions, planning and acting collaboratively to support the child

3) Improve the outcomes for these children in wider areas eg after school clubs, having friends, being involved in their local community, decreasing the impact and occurrence of bullying etc

Schools will be expected to be creative and to try out new ways of supporting these children. Parents of children with SEND should see their child become a more confident learner, more engaged with school and happy to be there. Parents should better understand their child’s attainments and achievements and the crucial role they play in supporting those. Schools should also develop a deeper understanding of children’s needs across academic and more social areas, and of the fruitful partnerships that can emerge with parents.

If you are a parent of a child with SEND in Yrs 1, 5, 7, or 10 in one of the schools taking part in the programme, you should already have had information about this exciting work. You can find 2 leaflets (one for parents and one for schools) with more information in our leaflets section. There is likely to be some consultative work with parents once the programme is properly underway, so keep an eye on our 'Events & Training' section.

Children without any additional needs will also be affected by this work – if the children with SEND benefit, then so will the whole class.