SEN and Disability (Admissions) Policy

This is a copy of the policy published in the school website. It should be read in conjunction with the school's Learning Support policy.

This aim of this policy is to ensure compliance with the Special Educational Needs and Disability Act 2001 and follows guidance issued by the Disability Rights Commission and the Independent Schools Council.

Admission
Admission to Reigate Grammar School depends upon a prospective pupil meeting the criteria required to maintain and, if possible, improve the educational and general standards for all its pupils, commensurate with the school's ethos and aims. The school must also feel reasonably sure that it will be able to educate and develop the prospective pupil to the best of his or her potential and in line with the general standards achieved by the pupil's peers.

The school's criteria for admissions are
a) that a prospective pupil achieves a sufficiently high mark in the school's entrance examination to satisfy the Headmaster that he or she can cope with the general pace of learning at Reigate Grammar School;
b) that a prospective pupil, in the judgement of the Headmaster, shows sufficient aptitude, commitment and willingness to benefit from the educational opportunities on offer at Reigate Grammar School;
c) that the school is able to meet the needs of a prospective pupil without impairing the education of other pupils;
d) that there are sufficient vacancies in the appropriate year-group.

The school is open to applications from any prospective pupil with a physical and/or mental impairment. The school's policy is to apply the above criteria to all pupils and potential pupils regardless of any disability* of which it is aware, and not to put any disabled pupil or potential pupil at a substantial disadvantage compared to any pupil who is not disadvantaged because of a disability. All applications will be judged fairly and the school will consider any reasonable adjustments that may need to be made to cater for the child's disabilities.

* For the purposes of this policy, 'disability' includes any pupil or prospective pupil whose mobility, hearing, sight or other physical functions are impaired, or who exhibits other special educational needs, such as dyslexia or dyspraxia, or significant behavioural or emotional problems.

When applying for a place, parents are asked to write to the Headmaster setting out the nature and extent of any disability, and whether or not they wish the school to take any disability into account during the admissions process. The Headmaster may request a meeting with the parents in advance of the entrance examination and may also request copies of any assessments or relevant medical reports. Subject to this, the school will be sensitive to any requests for confidentiality.

In assessing a prospective pupil with relation to criterion (c) above, the school will consider each case on an individual basis and make any reasonable adjustments. The school is happy to consider any pupil with sufficient aptitude for a place at the school and no group is excluded per se. However, parents may wish to be aware of certain factors before deciding whether Reigate Grammar School will be a suitable school for their child.

Physical lay-out of the school
In common with many other schools, Reigate Grammar School consists of many separate and historic buildings which cover a wide area and many of which are not provided with lifts. In order to provide specialist facilities, all subjects are taught in subject areas and pupils therefore move from classroom to classroom and building to building between each lesson. However, large parts of the school are accessible to those with impaired mobility and the school is therefore happy to consider such prospective pupils. Long-term plans are being made for the introduction of lifts into some areas of the school currently inaccessible to those with impaired mobility, but it is unlikely that 100% access can be achieved within the next ten years.

Sport and physical education and activities
Sport and physical education are a significant part of the programme at Reigate Grammar School. However, there is no requirement for any pupil to take part in any or all such activities if, by reason of disability, parents do not wish them to or they are advised not to. In such cases, the school will endeavour to provide appropriate alternatives (e.g. swimming instead of rugby) but cannot guarantee such provision. If extra staff are required to supervise such provision, a charge will be made.

Alternatively, parents may (with the Headmaster's permission) wish to take their child out of school on their designated games afternoon, for example, to attend physiotherapy. No refund of fees will be made under such circumstances.

Every effort will be made to accommodate a pupil with a disability on school trips and expeditions, especially those which form a part of the academic curriculum. However, each case will be judged separately and the school reserves the right to refuse a place on a trip if it considers that it cannot provide for the welfare of the pupil concerned or if other pupils or staff might be placed in a position of danger.

Specific disabilities:

Sight- or hearing-impaired pupils
Prospective pupils who are sight- or hearing-impaired are welcome to apply for admission. An enlarged-print version of the entrance examination papers can be provided. However, there are no plans to install a 'loop' hearing system in the school, as the cost would be prohibitive. The school has a pupil who needs to use an individual hearing system, and time has been allowed for appropriate staff training.

Specific learning difficulties
The school currently engages a part-time learning support tutor, who is available to work with pupils on a one-to-one basis. This service is designed to assist those pupils with mild learning difficulties such as dyslexia or dyspraxia. However, the tutor's time is limited and this service is not suitable for pupils who need more help than one session each week can provide. The school is not able to provide a designated classroom assistant for an individual pupil. A charge may be made for any learning support provided.
See Learning Support policy for further details.

Behavioural or emotional problems
Pupils with a history of behavioural or emotional problems can be accepted into the school. The school may require a medical examination to be carried out and, if any medication is prescribed (e.g. Ritalin), parents must ensure that medical advice is followed. As with all disabilities, each case will be considered on an individual basis. However, the over-riding consideration in this case will be whether the presence of a pupil with behavioural or emotional problems in the school will impair the education of other pupils (for example, by occupying large amounts of staff time) or put other pupils or staff directly or indirectly at risk.

Entrance Examination and Specific Learning Difficulties
Parents sometimes ask if children with specific learning difficulties are allowed extra time in the entrance examination to complete the papers. We have considered the situation carefully.
Parents are asked to advise Reigate Grammar School at the time of application if their child has a specific learning difficulty and to send the Educational Psychologist's report to the school in advance of the examination. However, children will not be allowed additional time in the examination, although we will take any learning difficulties into consideration when the papers are marked. We consider that any benefit such children would gain in being given extra time would be more than offset by the disadvantages in being seen as different from their peers, and consequently socially isolated on the day of the examination.

Disclosure
In order for the school to consider what reasonable adjustments it may need to make for each individual pupil, full disclosure by parents of any medical reports, educational psychology or psychiatric assessments, or any other relevant information, in advance of any application is essential. In cases of doubt, parents should consult the school well in advance of any application. If they wish, they can request the pupil's current school to undertake this consultation on their behalf.

In the event of parents disclosing relevant information (of which they were already aware) after accepting a place, or being discovered to have deliberately withheld such information at any stage during or after the admissions process, and the school is unable to make reasonable adjustments to cater for the pupil, the school reserves the right to withdraw the offer of a place or, if the pupil has already joined the school, to ask the parents to withdraw the child.

January 2002 rev June 2008 MAC