Record keeping

2:25. Schools should keep a register of all children with special educational needs.  They should also record the steps taken to meet the needs of individual children.  The school's SEN coordinator should have responsibility for ensuring that the register and records are properly kept and available as needed.  Records at each stage will inform the school's approach at the next.  If schools refer a child for a statutory assessment, they should make available to the LEA a record of their work with the child.  LEAs and schools should consider the use of agreed pro-formas for recording work with children with special educational needs at stages 1, 2 and 3:  this can be particularly helpful in ensuring that information effectively transferred between schools.

The in-service training of staff

2:26. The school's SEN policy should describe plans for the in-service training and professional development of staff to help them work effectively with pupils with special educational needs.  The SEN in-service training policy should be part of the school's development plan and should, where appropriate, cover the needs of non-teaching assistants and other staff.  Schools should consider the training needs of the SEN coordinator and how he or she can be equipped to provide training for fellow teachers.  Schools and LEAs should consider governing bodies' in-service training needs in the light of this Code.  A school contemplating a particular special educational needs in-service training programme may wish to inform itself of the LEA's in-service training policy and may also wish to consult other schools in the area with a view to securing economies of scale and sharing expertise.

Working with others

2:27. The effective implementation of the school-based stages of assessment and provision will be possible only if schools create positive working relationships with parents, pupils, the health services and the local authority social services department (SSD), as well as with LEAs and any other providers of support services.  Many children with special educational needs have a range of difficulties and the achievement of educational objectives is likely to be delayed without partnership between all concerned.

Partnership with parents

2:28. The relationship between parents of children with special educational needs and the school which their child is attending has a crucial bearing on the child's educational progress and the effectiveness of any school-based action.  Most schools already have effective working relationships with parents, including the parents of children with special educational needs.  School-based arrangements should ensure that assessment reflects a sound and comprehensive knowledge of a child and his or her responses to a variety of carefully