Accessibility Plan
Adoption – November 2022
Review frequency – three yearly
Next review – November 2025
Status – Non-statutory
Committee – Resources

Accessibility Plan for Elthorne Park High School

Aims of the plan
The purpose of this plan is to show how our school intends, over time, to continue to increase
accessibility to the curriculum, the physical environment and written information, so that all
students/students with a disability can take full advantage of their education and associated
opportunities in the school community. We are determined that all students will have access to appropriate qualifications and will develop the skills and resilience to meet the demands of adult life. Students will demonstrate the empathy and confidence to work with others to achieve a better future.

Objectives of the plan

• To ensure all disabled students are fully involved in school life and are making good progress.
• To identify barriers to participation and find practical solutions to overcoming these.
• To work with disabled students and their parents or carers to create appropriate provision,including education health and care plans where relevant.
• To increase the confidence, sensitivity and expertise of staff when teaching or supporting a wide range of disabled students/students.
• To meet the requirements of the Equality Act and the SEND code of practice in respect of disabled students.
• To reduce or eliminate where possible the barriers to adults with a disability, be they staff, parents, carers, governors or other users, to ensure their full potential in the life of the school and enable full use of the facilities available.

Legislation and guidance
This document meets the requirements of schedule 10 of the Equality Act 2010 and the Department
for Education (DfE) guidance for schools on the Equality Act 2010.
Under the Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Code of Practice, ‘long-term’ is defined
as ‘a year or more’ and ‘substantial’ is defined as ‘more than minor or trivial’. The definition includes
sensory impairments such as those affecting sight or hearing, and long-term health conditions such as
asthma, diabetes, epilepsy and cancer. Schools are required to make ‘reasonable adjustments’ for pupils with disabilities under the Equality Act 2010, to alleviate any substantial disadvantage that a disabled pupil faces in comparison with non-disabled pupils. This can include, for example, the provision of an auxiliary aid or adjustments to premises.

The Equality Act 2010
Compliance with the Equality Act is consistent with our school aims and equal opportunities policy as
well as our SEND policy. The governing body has full regard to the Equality Act 2010 when carrying out their duties and responsibilities.

All those who work in the school as employees or volunteers recognise their duty under the Equality
Act 2010:
● Not to discriminate against disabled students in admissions or exclusions, or in the provision
of education and associated services.
● Not to treat disabled students less favourably.
● To take reasonable steps to avoid putting disabled students at a substantial disadvantage.
● To publish an accessibility plan.
Key staff and governors
● The member of the senior leadership team with oversight of special educational needs and
disabilities is Katy Reeves
● The SEND coordinator is Tracey Carvey White
They are responsible for
o The Special Education Needs Register.
o The welfare of all SEN and disabled students/students.
o Appropriate training for staff.
o Ensuring that the accessibility plan is implemented.
o Monitoring its effectiveness in meeting disabled students’ needs.
● Each year group has a named member of staff whose particular responsibility is SEND.
● All teaching and support staff involved in the teaching and learning of SEND students receive
regular specialist training as part of our CPD programme.
● A named governor (Nick Armstrong) is responsible for ensuring that the governing body has a
termly update on SEND students at a full GB meeting and an annual report on the
improvements achieved for disabled students under the accessibility plan.
Our plan is based on the three main tenets of the DFE statutory advice 2014
Increased access to the curriculum
Ideally, all areas of the curriculum should be available to all students/students, regardless of their
disability. We make every effort to educate students with disabilities alongside their peers in a
mainstream classroom setting. Where this is not possible the Inclusion Lead or SENCo consults with
the student and their parents about proposed flexible alternative arrangements.
The school curriculum is regularly reviewed to ensure it is accessible to students of all levels and
abilities and supports the learning and progress of all students as individuals. This includes learning
outside the classroom through activities such as after school clubs and wider opportunities
Areas on which we intend to concentrate in 3 years include:
● Better early identification of the needs of disabled students/students and staff awareness of
these.
● Regular training of staff on aspects of SEN and disability in the school and developing
appropriate teaching and learning strategies.
● Specific specialist intervention where needed for all SEND students.
● Special access arrangements for internal/external exams.
Improved access to the physical environment of the school
The school carries out an accessibility audit every three years in advance of reviewing this policy. The
audit is carried out by the Governors’ Resources committee as part of their monitoring visits.
Teachers are given advice on how to move and arrange furniture and how to manage lighting, noise
and visual stimulus, etc. We also give attention to how students/students’ needs can be met on school
events and visits.
Areas on which we intend to concentrate in 3 years include:
● Improved toilets
● Improved access for Sixth Form study areas
Improved delivery of information to disabled student/students
Teachers and Support Staff consider the needs of each disabled student/student and provide
accessible learning resources for them. The increased use of interactive whiteboards and other digital
technology have diversified the ways in which all students/ students received information.
Areas on which we intend to concentrate in 3 years include:
● Raising awareness of font sizes and page layout for students with visual impairments and
dyslexia.
● Readers (electronic and human), prompts and scribes in examinations.(use of assistive
technology)
● Coloured overlays for texts.
● Auditing the school library to ensure the availability of large font and audio books.
● Auditing signage around the school.
Adult users
Many of these improvements will also benefit disabled adults working at or associated with the school
as well disabled family members of students, staff and governors. They will also enable more disabled
adults to have access to the school premises through wider use.
Review
The accessibility plan has the status of a policy of the governing body and must be reviewed every
three years. The views of disabled students and adults will feed into the review.