ii. the school has formulated, implemented, monitored and evaluated individual education plans to support full access to the curriculum and has given consideration, for example, to the child's space requirements in the classroom and such matters as the storage and maintenance of equipment

iii    the school has fully applied the access provisions of its SEN policy in the case of the individual child concerned and has taken all reasonable steps to improve access to independent learning and the physical environment of the school for the child, seeking external advice on basic adaptations from, for example, the LEA, the local authority's social services department, health and safety experts and voluntary organisations

iv. the school has, with the parents' consent, notified and sought the assistance of the school  doctor and/or the child's general practitioner as appropriate.

3.74 Where the balance of the evidence presented to and assessed by the LEA suggests that the child's learning difficulties and/or disabilities:

- are significant and/or complex

- have not been met by relevant and purposeful measures taken by the school and external specialists, and

- may call for special educational provision which cannot reasonably be provided within the resources normally available to mainstream schools in the area

the LEA should consider very carefully the case for a statutory assessment of the child's special educational needs.


Sensory impairments: hearing difficulties

3.75. A significant proportion of children has some degree of hearing difficulty.  Hearing losses may be temporary or permanent.  Temporary hearing losses are usually caused by the condition known as 'glue ear' and occur most often in the early years.  Such hearing losses fluctuate and may be mild or moderate in degree.  They can seriously compound other learning difficulties.  Schools should be alert to such evidence as persistently discharging ears.

3:76. Permanent hearing losses are usually sensori-neural and vary from mild through moderate, to severe or profound.  Children with severe or profound hearing loss may have severe or complex communication difficulties.

3:77. Early recognition, diagnosis and treatment, and specialist support for pupils with hearing difficulties, are essential to ensure the child's language acquisition, academic achievement and emotional development do not suffer unnecessarily.


The child's learning difficulty/disability

3:78. The LEA should seek clear recorded evidence of both the child's academic attainment and the extent and nature of his or her hearing difficulty, asking, for example, whether: