SEND

Welcome to our SEND Support at Sir John Talbot’s School. Our supportive and knowledgeable team aims to provide support for students with additional needs so they can achieve well and enjoy all aspects of school.

Our Learning Support department is a facility within school which aims to promote inclusion and remove the barriers to learning experienced by many students.

There is wide a range of support available from our Learning Support Department and wider school including:

• The Helm, a quiet nurture-based environment where students with a range of needs can access their learning when they cannot go into mainstream lessons.
• IDL Intervention to develop literacy and numeracy skills
• ELSA (Emotional Literacy Support Assistant) students can access ELSA support and Interventions support from our team of ELSA trained Access Leaders.
• Laptops to support students to record their learning in class.
• Organisational and mentoring support
• Students can utilise the Learning Support Department at social times – before school, at break and during lunchtime to provide additional support for students to ease worries and provide a supportive environment for them to socialise.

The Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Coordinator (SENDCo) and Deputy SENDCo are based in the Learning Support Department alongside a team of Teaching Assistants known as Access Leaders who are on hand to support and help children within the school with their educational and social development.

If you have any concerns about your child, their progress or support at SJT you can contact the SENDCo or Deputy SENDCo via email: Katherine.Edmonds@sjt.mmat.co.uk  Jayne.Barlow@sjt.mmat.co.uk or via the school email: Admin@sjt.mmat.co.uk

Sir John Talbot’s School also has a Specialist Resource Provision (Nest) The Nest is also housed in part of the Learning Support Department and is run by Mrs Unwin and a team of Teaching Assistants known as Access Leaders. The focus of this provision is for students with an Education, Health, and Care Plan (EHCP), who have Social, Communication and Interaction based needs as their main area of difficulty with some additional Cognition and Learning needs.

The vision of the Nest is to enable students who otherwise would not be able to access mainstream school, to gain a personalised education in a supportive, caring, and safe environment.

Further details of how we support students with additional needs at Sir John Talbot’s can be found in our Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) Information Report (SIR): SJT SEND Information Report 2025 2026.

The Local Authority Local Offer can be found here – there is a wealth of information regarding groups/activities/organisations and services that can support professionals and parents in Shropshire.