Tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today
Name of School
Towers Junior School
Policy review Date
November 2014
Date of next Review
November 2015
Who reviewed this
policy?
Governors
Promoting Equality at Towers Junior School
Vision/Values
The Governing Body and the Staff of Towers Junior School celebrate the
diversity of our school community and seek to ensure that all members of our
School community, pupils, parents, staff and the local community are able to
access our provision.
We value all pupils and we strive to ensure that they are able to access the
full range of activities available in the school thus allowing all pupils to strive
towards achieving personal excellence.
At Towers Junior School we encourage all children to develop an ‘I can do it’
mentality. In the case of pupils and users with a disability we extend this ‘I
can do’……’I may need help’…..’I may need adjustments’……..’but I can do it’.
Equality of access hinges not on treating all in the same way, but on taking
positive action to make reasonable adjustments to redress the inequalities
faced by some pupils and to promote positive attitudes towards people with
disabilities.
We recognise the important role of parents and our community in the
education of our pupils. We seek to offer equal access to all of our
stakeholders.
This scheme and action plan set out how the Governing Body will promote
equality of opportunity for disabled people.
The Equality Act
The Equality Act (October 2010) replaced the Disability Discrimination Acts of
1995 and 2005. It defines a disabled person as a person who has
‘a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term
adverse effect on his or her ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.’
‘Substantial’ means more than minor or trivial. ‘Impairment’ covers, for
example, long-term medical conditions such as;
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Asthma
Diabetes
Rheumatoid arthritis
Motor Neuron Disease
HIV/AIDS
Multiple sclerosis
Mental impairments include;
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Bipolar disorder
Depression
Learning difficulties and disabilities include;
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Dyslexia
Autism
Down’s Syndrome
Consultation/Involvement
We regularly consult inviting children and parents who live with a disability to
discuss existing provision, barriers they might face and strategies that could
be put into place to alleviate any difficulties.
How we use the information
The outcomes from the consultation are included in our Disability Equality
Scheme and Accessibility Plan. The Accessibility Plan is publishedon our
school website. Our admission data information proforma includes the
opportunity to highlight individual accessibility needs. Individual meetings will
follow to ensure any adjustments are made to remove any barriers for either
child and / or parent.
Recruitment and retention of disabled people
Towers Junior School follow LA guidelines on the recruitment and retention of
staff. On application, prospective employees are invited to disclose a
disability. The school makes clear that the purpose of this disclosure is to
ensure that the school can make and sustain reasonable adjustments required
for the employee to fulfil their role so that their skills and talents can be fully
utilised. Any disclosures remain confidential and are under the legal
protection that is offered by the Equality Act.
Tracking the achievements of disabled pupils
On entry to Towers Junior School, parents are asked via a data collection
proforma if their child has any learning difficulty, medical condition or
disability. Where appropriate Towers Junior School will make contact with
other agencies, including previous schools, and speak directly to parents in
order to seek to meet the specific needs of any pupil living with disability.
We have a caring ethos for all pupils and pupils are encouraged to share their
views on their education with their class teacher. Class teachers take time to
ensure that any pupil with a disability has the opportunity to share their views
on their education. Where appropriate, pupils on our SEN register are
encouraged to make comments about their education and support at review
meetings.
Impact Assessment, pupil progress end of year
End of year tests and teacher assessments are analysed with reference to
children with learning disabilities and also to pupils living with disabilities as
defined by the equalities act.
Education opportunities available to disabled pupils
Pupils with a disability are given full access to our curriculum through a
differentiated curriculum and additional support. Where appropriate
nominated staff attend relevant training sessions in order to ensure that
support given is effective.
Provision is also made for pupils with a disability to participate in our extracurricular activities including trips and clubs. Staff ensure that arrangements
and facilities for trips take into account the needs of our pupils by ensuring
that suitable facilities and activities available at the destination of the trip and
that transport arrangements allow for the movement of our disabled pupils.
Satisfaction and enjoyment levels across a range of school activities have
been measured by means of pupil interviews with members of the SLT.
These interviews involved a sample of disabled pupils so that we ensure their
views are represented.
The Accessibility Plan
The accessibility plan includes three focus areas these are increasing access
to the curriculum, improvements to the physical environment and improving
the delivery of information to disabled pupils. This plan is reviewed on an
annual basis. The plan is available on the school website.
Information on other people with additional needs using our
services
We liaise with the wider community who use our school premises. We ask for
their opinions about how we could develop access to our site to meet the
needs of their groups.
Assessment of the impact of our school policies and practices
In future, all new and reviewed policies will be considered in the light of the
Equalities Act and information gathered by SLT. Where appropriate, policies
will include a section that directly explains how the policy promotes equality
of access.
The impact of our actions on our accessibility plan will be evaluated as shown
on the plan.
Review
The Equality Plan will be reviewed by the SENCo and SEN Governor on an
annual basis. A new accessibility plan will be published every three years.