Primary Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND)

Adaptive Teaching Leaders

 COST: £500 + VAT per school for 3 people (once you have booked 1 colleague from your school, please email cpdadmin@hackney.gov.uk with the emails and names of your other 2 colleagues)

Free for schools who have bought into the package.

In order for a school to attend, this course requires a senior leader, middle leader and classroom teacher to be in attendance. 

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 In Hackney’s current context of rising SEND demands, supporting school staff with Adaptive Teaching strategies is crucial. Amid school closures in London, we are increasingly seeing children with complex needs transition to unfamiliar settings, underscoring the need for adaptive expertise across all levels of your school community. Creating a supportive and responsive learning environment helps students build confidence, resilience, and a positive self-concept, while also fostering a more equitable learning experience for all.

Building on the work from our previous adaptive teaching cohort and adapted to Hackney schools, this new programme will target both leadership and pedagogy to ensure a more sustainable long-term impact on learners, namely through curriculum development. 

Much of the material will continue to prioritise evidence-based learning, alongside exploring models and techniques for their efficient implementation, whether through school-wide initiatives or classroom-centred methods. A deeper exploration of adaptive expertise will permeate all stages of the programme. This would encompass aspects like adaptive mindset, cognitive and metacognitive habits, adaptive problem-solving, as well as teacher-to-teacher collaborative learning and coaching. 

The programme will run from November 2024 through to the end of the summer term 2025 and is punctuated by training followed by school action, coaching and school implementation and development. The Adaptive Teaching Leader roadmap is laid out chronologically steps 1-8 below.

Engagement: 

3 members from each school who need to attend this training will become Adaptive Teaching Leaders:

1. School leaders who have oversight of school improvement (headteacher / assistant headteacher / SENCo) 

2. Middle leader

3. Classroom Teacher

Programme Outline

Reviewing Current Practice

Step 1	Wednesday, 4th Dec 9.30am to 12.30pm The Tomlinson Centre		Face to Face half day training of Adaptive Teaching Leaders Introduction to the programme:  Towards adaptive expertise: Adaptive mindset; Cognitive and metacognitive habits; Adaptive problem-solving; Teacher-to-teacher collaborative learning and coaching.	Adaptive Teaching Leaders
Step 2	Autumn 2 - Spring 1		Quality of teaching and learning for inclusion Reviews: Evidence collected by Adaptive Teaching Leaders and involving as many stakeholders as possible and added to your T&L for Inclusion Review tool. Set a date for an Audit visit with a member of Hackney's SEND team involved in the programme to visit and work with Adaptive Teaching Leaders to triangulate the evidence collected. This involves a day visit. Expert reviewers will act as a critical friend and support the process of evidence collection and identifying priorities for change. An example timetable for the day will be found on the padlet.	Adaptive Teaching Leaders

Adaptive Teaching Action Planning

Step 3	Monday, 27th Jan 4.00pm to 5.00pm Online	Twilight Workshop to reflect on the evidence collected in the review and session will support SEND Champions to identify strengths & 3 priority actions for improvement.	Adaptive Teaching Leaders
Step 4	Monday 3rd - 14th Feb Online via Invitation per school	Coaching session.  Individual 30 min session for each school	Adaptive Teaching Leaders – bring additional relevant staff you want to involve in the process e.g. Teaching & Learning lead / Headteacher

Implementation of Adaptive Teaching Action Plan

Step 5	Wednesday 5th Mar 8.30am to 10.30am The Tomlinson Centre	Second face to face half day training for senior leaders.  Evidence informed approaches to implementing action plans.	Senior Leaders
Step 6	Tuesday, 18th Mar 4.00pm to 5.00pm Online	Capacity building twilight and mobilising middle leadership/Adaptive teaching	Middle leaders
Step 7	Tuesday, 25th Mar 4.00pm to 5.00pm Online individual sessions  28th Apr - 5th May	Online twilight to prepare for coaching session   Coaching for sustainability – embedding into every day practices	Adaptive Teaching Leaders

Review of Progress & Professional Learning Community Development

Step 8

Monday, 9th Jun 9.30am to 12.30pm The Tomlinson Centre

Final face to face half day training for Adaptive Teaching Leaders.  Systemic change to support adaptive practice

Agents of ongoing change

• Target audience:
• Primary
• Post 16
• Early Years
• Secondary

• Included in package:
• Primary

Adaptive Teaching to Inclusive Learning

Led by Margaret Mulholland: DfE Advisor, SEND advocate, TES columnist. 

 

This programme will support teachers in developing inclusive, responsive classroom practices that ensure all learners - including those not meeting curriculum expectations - are supported in ways that foster agency, access, and progress. This programme de-links inclusion from being solely about SEND, encouraging a school-wide shift in mindset.

 

20th January 2026, 3.45pm to 5.15pm - online

• Inclusive Teaching ≠ SEND Teaching & When Pupils Don’t Access the Curriculum

• Reframing the narrative: Inclusion is not an add-on.

• Discussion of case studies (including non-verbal pupils).

• Exploring learning behaviours, memory, and communication.

• Tools for better planning and early intervention.

• 17th March 2026, 3.45pm to 5.15pm - online

• Speech & Language Strategies for Every Classroom & Memory and Recall Supports (are they using Verbo? - yes, increasing use. Starting with hardest to reach children  How are they using it and sustaining support?)

• Practical supports for communication barriers.

• Techniques for supporting pupils with working memory needs.

• 21st April, 3.45pm to 5.15pm - online

• Planning for Inclusion: Test Before You Refer

• Whole-class adaptations before SEND referral - graduated approach 

• Date tbc - June - in person at St John the Baptist Primary School

• Learning Walk: What to Look For in Inclusive Classrooms

• Observational frameworks and feedback strategies (look at a learning walk)

• Date tbc June, 3.45pm to 5.15pm - online

• Peer Coaching and Sharing What Works

• Host school staff share learning from pilot classrooms.

• Collaborative review sessions.

 

Programme Resources

• SEND Handbook and Inclusion Toolkit

• Case studies (including non-verbal learners)

• Speech, language, and memory support resources

• Target audience:
• Primary
• Secondary
• Post 16

• Included in package:
• Primary
• Secondary
• Post 16

Autism in Schools

A 1 hour training session focused on understanding the strengths and differences of autistic learners. There will be opportunities to reflect on your current knowledge, share experiences and explore strategies that could support autistic learners in the classroom, starting with an effective One Page Profile.

This session is suitable for individuals who work directly with autistic children and young people and who wish to understand autism from a neuro-affirmative perspective.

Emotional Literacy Support Assistants: ELSA Training

The Educational Psychology Service is offering the ELSA training programme in Hackney.  This is for any member of staff working with vulnerable children and young people, for example, Teaching Assistants (TAs), SEN Learning Support Assistants (LSAs), Learning Mentors, Family Liaison Workers, etc.

Who should attend?

Any member of staff working with vulnerable children and young people, for example, Teaching Assistants (TAs), SEN Learning Support Assistants (LSAs), Learning Mentors, Family Liaison Workers, etc.

Course structure:

• 6-day Training Course to enable support staff to develop and deliver emotional literacy interventions for their students. 
• 4 Supervision session in Summer Term 2027
• A Copy of the book “Emotional Well-Being: An Introductory Handbook for Schools".

Course benefits:

• The ELSA project is an evidence-based initiative where teaching assistants receive six days of special training from EPs related to emotional literacy and well-being of children and young people in school.
• By becoming a registered ELSA in their school, staff receive ongoing professional supervision from EPs to help them deliver individual and small group support programmes in schools.
• ELSAs can help with a range of issues, including loss and bereavement, self-esteem, motivation, social skills, issues with friends and relationships, anger management, behavior in class, bullying, anxiety, exam-related stress, etc.
• This preventative, inexpensive initiative can build on schools’ current resources, delivering quality support to students.
• Beneficial outcomes have been found to be: increased staff confidence in supporting vulnerable pupils and a significant improvement in the emotional well-being of students

Note

• The Ongoing Supervision sessions are led by specialist Educational Psychologists to help with planning and delivery of interventions. These Supervision sessions will run half-termly after the academic year 2026/27 after the initial training is completed. Please be aware there is an additional cost to attend the Supervision sessions (£150). A separate booking link will be provided in Summer Term 2027.

• Target audience:
• Primary
• Secondary

• Included in package:
• Not Included

Makaton Level 1

Course overview

Makaton signing and symbols can be used to support a range of learners to develop their expression and understanding. This nationally accredited one-day Level 1 course (replacing the first part of Makaton Foundation Workshop) provides a detailed introduction to Makaton’s place in supporting communication as well as practical sign vocabulary and an introduction to using symbols. Videos show how Makaton can be introduced at home or in an education setting. 

Course objectives

• To learn signs and symbols of the Makaton language programme (stages 1-2).
• To understand how Makaton can be used to help pupils with communication difficulties to access learning and social interaction at school.

Who should attend?
SENCOs, teachers, learning support assistants and teaching assistants in primary and secondary mainstream and special schools responsible for using and teaching.

 

• Target audience:
• Early Years
• Primary
• Secondary
• Post 16

• Included in package:
• Not Included

SENCO Forum

Course overview 

The forum provides an opportunity to exchange information with other SENCOs in the borough and discuss national and Hackney Education policies and initiatives.

Course objectives

• To create a network of expertise.
• To continue to develop the role of SENCOs in Hackney.

Who should attend?
SENCOs, teachers, teaching assistants in primary and secondary mainstream and special schools

• Target audience:
• Primary
• Secondary