Promoting inclusion, preventing exclusion - Barriers to Education

Universal provision and inclusive practice

Strong universal provision helps create inclusive environments where children and young people can participate, belong and thrive.

• Therapeutic Thinking - Guidance and resources to help develop a whole-school approach to inclusion.
• Graduated Response - Information and support to help identify, assess and meet children and young people's needs.
• Suffolk Inclusion Toolkit - Resources, tools and guidance to support inclusive practice.
• Suffolk Mainstream Inclusion Framework - Guidance to help schools review and strengthen inclusive practice.
• Trauma informed practice - Information and resources to support trauma-informed approaches in your setting.

Inclusion Facilitation resources

When concerns emerge, a reflective and collaborative approach helps schools better understand a pupil's needs, strengths and barriers to engagement.

The following resources to support inclusion have been developed by Suffolk’s Inclusion Facilitator Team.

Direct therapeutic involvement

• Listening and relationships intervention
• Meeting emotional needs

Person centred planning

• PATH and PATH experience video
• Mini-PATH
• One Page Profile
• Team PATH/MAP

Working with a child/young person and their key adults

• Sensory Profile
• Circle of Friends

Working with the key adults

• Team Pupil
• Insight Solution Circles
• Therapeutic Timetable

Training and workshops

• Mini-PATH training
• Competency Profiling training
• Sensory workshops

Online support and guidance

Inclusion Facilitation online support series - Access the Inclusion Facilitation online support series.

Inclusion Facilitation resources - Find out more about the resources listed above.

Other resources

Applied Trauma Responsive Classroom - When planning reintegration support for a young person who has been out of education, it can be helpful to consider the Applied Trauma Responsive Classroom model (Dr Jemma Carter, 2023) to support planning and intervention.

• Applied Trauma Responsive Classroom observation schedule - Access the observation schedule developed to support practical use within schools.

Virtual School

The Suffolk Virtual School - Supports the educational progress of children in the care of Suffolk County Council

• Children in Care - Please contact the Virtual School.
• Post Looked After - Please contact the Virtual School.
• Children with a Social Worker (CiN or CP plan) - Please ask the social worker to attend a Virtual School Education Consultation.

Outreach Services

Outreach services provide advice, modelling, coaching and problem-solving to help schools build capacity and meet increasingly complex needs within mainstream settings. They work with specialist professionals to strengthen inclusion.

• Education Access Team - Supports children and young people who are unable to access full-time education due to permanent exclusion or who are vulnerable to permanent exclusion.
• Inclusion Facilitation - Part of the Psychology and Therapeutic Service, working alongside the Educational Psychologist Team. Support is provided using person-centred approaches, including One Page Profiles.
• Early Help - Supports children and young people with barriers to education through tailored interventions, school consultations, and direct work with pupils and families. The service also facilitates referrals through CAF and MASH to promote joined-up support and access to learning.
• Psychology and Therapeutic Services (P&TS) - Works with children and young people aged 0 to 25, as well as the adults who care for and work with them.
• Suffolk Youth Justice Service - Works with young people aged 10 to 18 who are at risk of offending or who have offended.

Alternative provision

Alternative provision may form part of a planned package of support where additional intervention is required. The focus should remain on improving engagement, participation and successful education outcomes.

What is Alternative Provision?

• Alternative provision (AP) is provision in which a pupil participates as part of their regular timetable that is not led by staff from their educational setting.
• Educational settings may use alternative provision to help prevent suspensions, permanent exclusions, or to re-engage pupils in education.
• Alternative provision may also support pupils with long-term medical conditions and help educational settings respond to behaviour, attendance, mental health and other needs.
• Early intervention can reduce the likelihood of children becoming persistently or severely absent, reduce preventable exclusions and minimise the need for longer-term alternative provision placements.

Alternative provision support

Alternative Provision Team - Provides children and young people with access to an alternative education setting that meets their current needs. The service offers early and short-term intervention to support engagement with the curriculum.

High Needs Funding - Information and guidance about High Needs Funding.

Off-site directions

Off-site directions can form part of a behaviour support package where additional intervention is required.

What is an off-site direction?

• An off-site direction can be used by an educational setting as part of a behaviour support package.
• An off-site direction requires a pupil to attend another educational setting to improve their behaviour.
• Off-site directions should be time limited.
• Pupils may be directed to attend an alternative provision provider or another mainstream school or academy.
• An off-site direction may be used when interventions and targeted support have not been successful in improving a pupil's behaviour.

Guidance and support

Off-site direction guidance - Department for Education guidance on suspensions, permanent exclusions and off-site directions.

In Year Fair Access Protocol (IYFAP) – The IYFAP is the process to operate the Fair Access Protocol, which considers the re-integration of permanently excluded children, those returning to a mainstream school from an AP or PRU, and supports the process of Off-Site Directions (OSD) and Managed Moves (MM).