Durrington C of E VC Junior School

Support and Information for families and parents

of Pupils with Additional Needs and/or Mental Health difficulties

Please scroll down the page to find any information that may be useful to you and your family.  The most current posts are to be found at the top of this page.   

Term 3 2023

Happy New Year to you all, 'A New Year stands before us, like a chapter in a book, waiting to be written'. I hope you all had an enjoyable Christmas and found some time to rest a little.  Please continue to use this site to support your needs and your child's needs.

I will continue to post new and relevant materials linked with Additional Needs, Mental Health and SEND Wiltshire support materials   I encourage you to scroll down to the bottom of the page again as there are a number of materials from last year which continue to be useful. 

As usual if you have any queries or questions about SEND at Durrington CE Junior School which can't be answered from reading our website, Facebook page or by reading our SEND Information Report, please don't hesitate to contact me at school Monday to Wednesday. 

Mrs Jessica de Vries

SENDCo and Senior Mental Health Lead

Please remember the county Local Offer website when looking for Wiltshire SEND information too.

Education (primary) - Local Offer (wiltshire.gov.uk)

EHCP (primary) - Local Offer (wiltshire.gov.uk)

Also don't forget the WPCC (Wiltshire Parent Carer Council)

 www.wiltshireparentcarercouncil.co.uk/en/Home_Page

Place2Be is a great site for support to 'improve children's mental health'.  We support the organisation and make use of its many resources. This is a resource I came across that may be of help to parents, please take a look. 

Place2Be: Parenting Smart: Articles

Dyslexia Awareness 

British Dyslexia Association (bdadyslexia.org.uk)

Dyslexia - NHS (www.nhs.uk)

Mical (2020) | OFFICIAL FILM | Dyslexia Film - YouTube

Understanding Dyslexia Home Edition FREE for Dyslexia Awareness Month | Nessy – British English

Please encourage children to visit this page and watch the video if you feel your child needs support with their feelings and thoughts at present. 

Thoughts and feelings getting you down? When to seek help - BBC Bitesize

Here is a really good site for parents/carers with children who have additional needs.

https://www.scie.org.uk/care-providers/coronavirus-covid-19/learning-disabilities-autism/carers-family

Please open the letter below (dated 22nd January) to parents and carers of children who have EHCPs.  Please continue to communicate with the school about your child's progress at this time. 

Please use the NSPCC site for support at this time...

www.nspcc.org.uk/keeping-children-safe/support-for-parents/coronavirus-supporting-children-special-educational-needs-disabilities/

Please do check out Wiltshire Parent Carer Council, WPCC for guidance and support for parents who have children with additional needs.  They are able to sign post for all types of support and they have their finger on the pulse with regard to lots of opportunities for young people with additional needs.  

Below is a specific page you may find useful at this time.  Do check out the rest of their website for other support. 

http://wiltshireparentcarercouncil.co.uk/en/Signposting_-_Support_for_families_-_Support_for_parents_%26_carers_-_SSENS_Team_Support_and_Information_Resource_Pack_for_Parent_Carers

https://www.elsa-support.co.uk/

Many free resources can be found on the ELSA Support Website.  In schools an ELSA is an Emotional Literacy Support Assistant. ELSAs support children with their social skills, emotions, bereavement, anger management and self-esteem by using social stories, therapeutic stories and counselling skills. 

https://www.sibs.org.uk/about-sibs/sibs-services/

Sibs is the only UK charity for children and adults who are growing up with or have grown up with a disabled brother or sister. We provide information, support and training on sibling issues for adult siblings, young siblings, parents and professionals.