My child has a physical impairment

Guidance for parents and carers about help in school.
Guidance for parents and carers about help in school.

Schools have a responsibility to make provision for pupils with special educational needs (SEN).

We provide funding through normal school budgets to help schools to support pupils with special educational needs. We have produced The Derbyshire Descriptors of SEN Provision.

The Descriptors offer guidance and advice to primary and secondary schools about the level and type of support they should provide for pupils with additional needs. They are used by us to monitor provision for pupils with SEN without a statement. They outline how schools should:

  • Assess, plan and review provision.

  • Arrange teaching groups.

  • Adjust the curriculum and teaching methods.

  • Provide resources, such as access to additional support from a teaching assistant for up to three hours per week for pupils at School Action or up to eight hours a week for pupils at School Action Plus.

Your child may:

  • Have difficulties with co-ordination and mobility.

  • Use specialist aids relating to their disability.

  • Need equipment to enhance their access to the curriculum.

  • Require adult help with practical or self care tasks.

  • Require help with changing for physical education (PE).

  • Need supervision for safety reasons when moving around at busy times or in PE lessons.

  • Become tired and find it hard to concentrate.

  • Tend to give up easily if they find the school day hard to cope with.

  • Need support and encouragement with self-esteem and social relationships.

What can your school do?

  • Identify your child’s strengths and weaknesses.

  • Make sure your child is included in all school activities.

  • Make reasonable adaptations to the classroom and school environment to maximise access.

  • Provide individual and small group support e.g. in PE and practical subjects.

  • Involve specialist educational and health services as required.

  • Carry out regular physiotherapy and occupational therapy programmes under the guidance of health professionals.

  • Provide access to specialist equipment and learning materials.

  • Involve you and your child in educational planning and review.

  • Support your child in developing independence.

Who else can help?

Schools have access to a range of professionals who advise on arrangements for supporting pupils with a physical impairment. These include:

Your GP can make a referral for physiotherapy and occupational therapy.

You or your child’s teacher (with your permission) can ask a speech and language therapist to see your child.

If your child has other difficulties as well as physical impairment, all schools have access to county services which can offer support and advice for pupils with:

Your GP can advise on Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services and voluntary services such as Barnardo's.

What other advice is available?

Derbyshire has published comprehensive files of advice and information on speech and language difficulties, dyslexia and autism.

Contact details

Derbyshire Educational Psychology Service
County Hall
Dale Road
Matlock
DE4 3AG
Tel: 01629 580000

Local Inclusion Officer Service
Chesterfield Area Education Office
Sheffield Road
Chesterfield
S41 7LU
Tel: 01246 204851

Derbyshire Parent Partnership
The Community Centre
School Board Lane
Chesterfield
S40 1DD
Tel: 01246 273154/5

The full version of the SEN Descriptors (opens in a new window) is available in every school.

If you require this and other local inclusion officer service leaflets in large print or another format, please contact the head of LIO service listed above. 

Related documents

The following documents are in Portable Document Format (PDF). You can download the PDF software for free from the Adobe website (opens in a new window)

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