SEND
SEND Provision at Rudheath Senior Academy
We are very proud of our approach to supporting pupils with additional needs at Rudheath Senior Academy. We proudly say that every teacher is a teacher of SEND and this is reflected in how we structure our lessons in a very consistent way, across all ages and all curriculum areas.
Currently, we have a team of staff in our SEND team, led by our SENDCo, Mrs Katy Davies. Katy is also the SEND Lead for the North West Academies Trust.
Katy is supported by a growing team of highly skilled Teaching Assistants, with many years of experience between them.
The team support our Sanctuary provision and also support learners in their lessons. We are pleased to offer our Sanctuary as an option to students that need it, right from the time school opens to the time it closes – including offering a quieter space for break and lunchtimes.
The Sanctuary provides an area for pupils to come and regulate, catch their breath and prepare themselves to return to their timetabled lessons.
Our SEN Team are consistent and familiar to the pupils that access the Sanctuary and work hard to support them in every possible way.
We have recently moved our Sanctuary to it’s own building, bringing it more central to the school and closer to our new on site resource provision – The Warnock Centre.
The Warnock Centre is opening in January 2026, providing a specialist provision for 15 students with difficulties in Communication and Interaction.
The Warnock Centre is led by Mr Steve Jardine, a highly experienced teacher of pupils with these needs. Steve is working hard to develop a bespoke curriculum to meet the distinct needs of these learners. This will include skills to enable the pupils to be part of society – life skills, social skills and communication skills – all vital to be a member of our local community.
All places for the Centre are allocated by Cheshire West and Chester (CWAC), so please discuss with the SEN Team if you are interested in a place in this provision. All students who access this provision must have an EHCP and a place allocated by the CWAC SEN Team.
Alongside all of this, our team also support in mainstream lessons. They support Teachers to ensure that all pupils are able to access their learning across all curriculum areas. Our Teaching Assistants are skilled at scaffolding work and making specific observations which are fed back to the class teacher and the SENDCo so that they can work together to reduce any barriers to learning for all of our students. These observations are also used to evaluate progress in preparation for EHCP Review meetings – our Teaching Assistant team are vital cog in our SEND wheel!
If you have any questions or comments regarding our SEND provision, please contact Mrs Katy Davies – kdavies@rudheathsenioracademy.org.uk and she will gladly arrange a time to meet you and answer you questions.
The link to the local offer for Cheshire West and Chester Local Authority is here.
Further information about SEND within the Cheshire West and Chester area is available by following the link – www.livewell.cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk
SEND Information Report
Detailed information about our SEND provision is outlined in our SEN Policy and Information Report and the NWAT Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Policy.