Admissions

All pupils admitted to Briarwood will have an Education Health Care Plan (EHCP). All admissions will be dependent on places being available. All admissions will be dependent on places being available. In consultation with the local authority, the Head of Provision will comment on the appropriateness of the placement and the school’s ability to meet the child’s needs as outlined in the EHCP through a consultation.

At Briarwood the pupil’s identified needs will be complex and significant in the area of cognition and learning (severe learning difficulties or profound and multiple learning difficulties). As described in the SEND Code of Practice as per the broad areas of need, Briarwood will admit pupils who;

• Communication and interaction – have significant, severe speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) - have difficulty in communicating with others. They may have difficulty with one, some or all of the different aspects of speech, language or social communication at different times of their lives. Children and young people with Autism. However, these pupils MUST have an additional need under the area of cognition and learning.
• Cognition and learning - severe learning difficulties (SLD), where children are likely to need support in all areas of the curriculum and associated difficulties with mobility and communication, through to profound and multiple learning difficulties (PMLD), where children are likely to have severe and complex learning difficulties as well as a physical disability or sensory impairment.
• Social, emotional and mental health difficulties - These may include becoming withdrawn or isolated, as well as displaying challenging, disruptive or disturbing behaviour. These behaviours may reflect underlying mental health difficulties such as anxiety or depression, self-harming, substance misuse, eating disorders or physical symptoms that are medically unexplained. Other children and young people may have disorders such as attention deficit disorder, attention deficit hyperactive disorder or attachment disorder. However, these pupils MUST have an additional need under the area of cognition and learning.
• Sensory and/or physical needs - Some children and young people require special educational provision because they have a disability which prevents or hinders them from making use of the educational facilities generally provided. These difficulties can be age related and may fluctuate over time. Many children and young people with vision impairment (VI), hearing impairment (HI) or a multi-sensory impairment (MSI) will require specialist support and/or equipment to access their learning. Children and young people with an MSI have a combination of vision and hearing difficulties. However, these pupils MUST have an additional need under the area of cognition and learning.

The school caters for pupils aged 3 to 19. Pupils can be admitted at any age providing there is space in the appropriate class and that the balance of the group can be maintained. The needs of the learner will be considered alongside the needs of the whole school population, and the ability of the school, its facilities and working context to meet the learners identified needs.

For our full admissions criteria and processes, please read the Admissions Policy in the main policy library.