We are working with Special Partnership Trust to help year six pupils with Special Educational Needs move to year seven.
It’s part of our wider county-wide Special School Outreach programme to help year six pupils with Special Educational Needs move to year seven.
The move from primary to secondary school is a big deal for all pupils, and with it a mixture of emotions ranging from excitement to nervousness, through to anxiety.
Together, we and Special Partnership Trust have been working on a transition project to make the move from one school to another as easy and as smooth as possible for all students.
The programme particularly focuses on working with schools to best support those with special educational needs so they can feel confident and ready to move onto the next phase in their education journey.
The programme started last month and is continuing through to October.
They are working with five Trusts and over 26 schools across Devon to provide specialist advice and guidance, making sure that every student gets the support they need during this important time.
Schools work hard to put plans in place, and work closely together to help pupils with the transition. Good planning – planning built around individual pupils’ needs – is key. And time dedicated to understanding pupils’ needs and feelings before, during and after the move is indeed time well spent.
The sort of advice and guidance available to schools includes professional development; working alongside schools’ SENCOs to help them support specific groups of pupils; and working with school staff to look at planning and resourcing.
Previous work has found that many schools have wanted support on practical implementation of advice or training they’ve received around autism, sensory awareness, trauma informed practice.
Special Partnership Trust’s Chief Executive Officer, Guy Chappell, said:
“This is a really exciting programme to be a part of. It is an opportunity to work with a range of schools and Devon County Council to co-produce action plans that enhance inclusive practices and build inclusive communities that better meet the needs of children and young people.”
Although early days, schools have been welcoming the support available, with one headteacher saying:
“We are keen to be involved in this project, and it will support us to ensure we have excellent ordinarily available inclusive practices.”
In addition to the transition project, Special Partnership Trust is also partnered with Education South West, and is developing a new special educational needs hub in the Newton Abbot area.
It’s expected to be open by Spring 2026, and the intention is that it will provide specialist support and resources to schools across the area to help them improve their special educational needs provision.
The hub will also offer new places for children with Education Health and Care Plans and training to staff in schools. These children will be placed through our Special Educational Needs (SEN) admissions process.
The hub aims to support local schools to help them improve their SEN provision by ensuring that they have all the tools they need to succeed, similar hubs will be created in other areas across Devon.