Overview
The Graduated Response Framework provides guidance to schools and educational settings on how to identify and support children and young people with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).
Children/young people and their families will be involved at each stage of the graduated response journey. Listening and responding to their views through open communication between home and school is central to this process. If a child/young person has been identified as having a special educational need, the graduated response will be documented through a Personal Learning Plan or Individual Education Plan.
The Framework outlines a six -part continuous cycle process to identify, plan, action, monitor, evaluate and review in response to the progress the child/young person makes with their learning.?This is referred to as the IPAMER cycle.
Six Part IPAMER Cycle
- Identify
When a child/young person is experiencing difficulties with learning, the teacher will assess their needs, drawing on observations, professional judgement, formal and informal testing, and their experience of the pupil. This will help the teacher identify the child or young person’s priority need(s).
- Plan
All teachers and support staff who work with a child or young person should be made aware of their needs. Planning should include the support needed to help them make progress.
- Action
Actions which include high quality teaching and/or planned provision should be implemented to support the child or young person in making progress.
- Monitor
Within an agreed timeframe, actions and support need to be monitored closely, to establish if effective progress is being made. Schools should use evidence, observations, data for example to assist with monitoring.
- Evaluate
School staff will analyse the impact of the actions/provision put in place for the child or young person. They will evaluate the progress they have made, examine improvement, and consider further areas to be addressed.
- Review
School staff should review, refine, and revise their decision about the support required as they gain more of an understanding of the child or young person’s needs. Review decisions should be made in consultation with the child or young person and their parents.
Stages of SEND support
Sometimes children and young people’s needs can be met by the school (whole school provision). For example, the school can make reasonable adjustments such as adapting their teaching methods to help with inclusion.
Some children/young people may have a significantly greater difficulty in learning which calls for enhanced special educational support. In this instance they will be placed on the school’s SEN register.
There are three stages of special educational provision:
Stage One: school-delivered special educational provision.
Stage Two: school- delivered provision plus external provision from EA and or Health Trusts
Stage Three: the child has a statement of Special Educational Needs and is receiving support as set out in their statement.
The special educational support for each child/young person will be outlined by schools using the Personal Learning Plan (PLP) or an Individual Education Plan (IEP).
The school will continue to monitor the child or young person’s progress and using the Graduated Response Framework, the child or young person may move up and down these stages (of the SEN Code of Practice), depending on their progress or support needs.
