Welcome to Victoria College Learning Support Portal

The Learning Support Department aids all members of our school community. This can be through individual advice and one-to-one assistance, group or whole class support, training of teaching and support staff including classroom assistants or testing students to facilitate exam access arrangements. Some students will join Victoria College in Year 8 with diagnosed difficulties while other pupils may be identified as needing support while at Victoria College though a process of screening, careful observation by our teachers, monitoring and actioning appropriate support. In addition to a range of pastoral and curricular support within the college, the Learning support Department will support pupils with additional needs by:

  • Signposting parents to parental advice and information on medical issues such as ADHD, Autism and Mental Health

  • Supporting pupils on the SEN register about subject choice at GCSE/GCE through dialogue and discussion in the PLP process

  • Organise and facilitate CPD and staff training for teachers and classrooms assistants in a wide range of areas to help support the needs of our pupils

  • Referral to Educational Psychologist and other EA services

  • Provide access to EA support services

  • Testing for Access Arrangements

  • Access to Learning Support Mentor

  • Access to sixth form mentors in Junior school

  • Suggest implementing support for pupil learning as outlined in the SEN policy which can be found here

  • Facilitating Annual Reviews for statemented pupils

    Please refer to our FAQs section below, which may provide further helpful information.

Learning Support

 Reading Recommendations

Autism (fiction)

  • Frankie's World by Aoife Dooley

    Frankie knows she's not like anyone else in her class: she's different, but she can't quite figure out why.

    Is it the new freckle on her nose, or the fact she's small for her age? Or that she has to go to the hospital sometimes? Everyone else seems to think she's weird too, and they make fun of her at school.

    Frankie's dad left when she was a baby - maybe he was different too? It would explain why she always feels like an alien. So she and her best-friend Sam, embark on a mission to track him down.

  • Finding My Voice by Aoife Dooley

    Frankie is different, and so is her best-friend, Sam. So when they both start secondary school, it's tough. Particularly when there are so many rules to follow, like: No talking in class! Be quiet in the hallways! Silence for assembly!

    Frankie doesn't know how she'll manage, because constantly talking is how she copes. So when she gets the chance to compete in a Battle of the Bands contest, Frankie couldn't be more excited. Except, to have a band, you need to have band members. And to have band members, you need to be good at making friends...

  • A Kind of Spark by Elle McNicoll

    A Kind of Spark tells the story of 11-year-old Addie as she campaigns for a memorial in memory of the witch trials that took place in her Scottish hometown.

    Addie knows there's more to the story of these 'witches', just like there is more to hers. Can Addie challenge how the people in her town see her, and her autism, and make her voice heard?

  • Keedie by Elle McNicoll

    As Keedie and her twin Nina approach their fourteenth birthday, they seem to only be growing further apart.

    Keedie instead feels drawn to, and fiercely protective of, their quiet younger sister Addie – who on the surface is the opposite of loud and fiery Keedie, but in fact they have more in common than anyone knows.

    Prequel to A Kind of Spark

Autism (Non-Fiction)

  • A Different Sort of Normal by Abigail Balfe

    Hi! My name is Abigail, and I'm autistic. But I didn't know I was autistic until I was an adult-sort-of-person*.

    This is my true story of growing up in the confusing 'normal' world, all the while missing some Very Important Information about myself.

    There'll be scary moments involving toilets and crowded trains, heart-warming tales of cats and pianos, and funny memories including my dad and a mysterious tub of ice cream. Along the way you'll also find some Very Crucial Information about autism.

    If you've ever felt different, out of place, like you don't fit in . . . this book is for you.

  • The Spectrum Girl's Survival Guide: How to Grow Up Awesome and Autistic by Siena Castellon

    This essential go-to guide gives you all the advice and tools you'll need to help you flourish and achieve what you want in life.

    From the answers to everyday questions such as 'Am I using appropriate body language?' and 'Did I say the wrong thing?', through to discussing the importance of understanding your emotions, looking after your physical and mental health and coping with anxiety and sensory overloads, award-winning neurodiversity campaigner Siena Castellon uses her own experiences to provide you with the skills to overcome any challenge.

  • Shake It Up!: How to Be Young, Autistic, and Make an Impact by Quincy Hansen

    This inspiring book by autistic blogger Quincy Hansen encourages autistic teens to find their voice and make a difference in the world around them.

    Featuring interviews with young autistic change-makers and addressing issues like self-image, harmful stereotypes and communication barriers, Shake It Up! aims to build readers' confidence, and inspire them to take action to change the world to be a better place.

  • Different, Not Less: A neurodivergent's guide to embracing your true self and finding your happily ever after by Chloe Hayden

    Growing up, Chloé Hayden felt like she'd crash-landed on an alien planet where nothing made sense. Eye contact? Small talk? And why are you people so touch-oriented? She moved between 10 schools in 8 years, struggling to become a person she believed society would accept, and was eventually diagnosed with autism and ADHD. When a life-changing group of allies showed her that different did not mean less, she learned to celebrate her true voice and find her happily ever after.

  • The Secrets of My Spectrum by Callum Knight

    For years, Callum struggled to navigate the world he lived in and meet social expectations before being told he was autistic at age thirteen.

    Wishing others understood more about the challenges of being on the spectrum, the teen shares his insights, perceptions, reactions, and experiences, from the triggers that lead to anxiety and shutdowns to tips for coping with stressful situations such as travelling, socialising, and communicating.

ADHD (Non-Fiction)

  • The Teenage Girl's Guide to Living Well with ADHD: Improve your Self-Esteem, Self-Care and Self Knowledge by Sonia Ali

    ADHD can impact your life in many ways. This positive, self-affirming guide will increase your knowledge about ADHD and empower you in your daily life.

    The chapters are full of tips, tricks and life hacks so you can better manage your time, harness your creativity, energy and enthusiasm, and make more time for fun! Reflection activities and quizzes will help you better understand yourself and learn strategies on how to manage the intense emotions of rejection sensitivity. You'll learn the fundamentals of great self-care and how to look forward to life beyond school.

  • ADHD Is Our Superpower by Soli Lazarus and Adriana Camargo

    If you have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), you might struggle with things like concentrating in school, or sitting still, or remembering lots of instructions. But ADHD is also a superpower.

    In this book you will meet different girls and boys with ADHD who can do amazing things. You might recognise some of these strengths as things that you can do too! Some of these strengths help with everyday life, like being able to hyper-focus on a task or having boundless energy to try new things. Some strengths are superpowers for interacting with others, like having a strong sense of what is fair or entertaining friends and family to make them feel happy.

Dyslexia

  • Barrington Stoke

    A great publisher which specialises in books for children who struggle to read due to dyslexia or visual stress. They work with the best writers and illustrators to publish super-readable, accessible books that help every child experience the joy of reading.

    Click Here

Dyslexia (Non-Fiction)

  • Can I tell you about Dyslexia? A guide for friends, family and professionals by Alan M. Hultquist

    Meet Zoe - a young girl with dyslexia. Zoe invites readers to learn about dyslexia from her perspective. She helps readers to understand the challenges faced by a child with dyslexia, explaining what dyslexia is and how it affects her at home and at school.

    Zoe describes exactly why she finds reading, writing and words so difficult, and how other people can help her in these areas.

  • Creative, Successful, Dyslexic: 23 High Achievers Share Their Stories by Margaret Rooke

    23 very well-known people reveal the difficulties they faced, the strength required to overcome them, the crucial importance of adult support, and how `the different way the brain is wired' in dyslexia has enabled them to see something different in the world and to use their creativity in an exceptional way.

    They talk about `thinking sideways', and the ability to look at a bigger picture, the often strong visual strength, and the ability to listen, and to grasp simplicity where other people see only complexity. They also talk about how dyslexia continues to challenge them, and the ways they have found to work around this

  • Dyslexia is My Superpower (Most of the Time) by Margaret Rooke

    In more than 100 interviews, children and young adults reveal their personal tips and tactics for honing the creative benefits of dyslexia, enabling them to thrive in school and beyond. Strategies include ways to develop confidence and self-belief.

    The contributors have outlined specific approaches they feel have helped them, and others that haven't. The book contains stunning illustrations by 8-18 year olds with dyslexia.

  • The Self-Help Guide for Teens with Dyslexia by Alais Winton

    In this book, Alais lets you in on the learning techniques which work for her, and which you may not be taught at school.

    Offering solutions to common problems students with dyslexia face, Alais describes tried-and-tested techniques for succeeding with reading, spelling, memorising information and time management, and even a simple method to ensure you never misplace your learning tools (such as pencils and books) again. The strategies are ideal for use in the run-up to exams, helping you to become more organised, less stressed and better prepared.

 

FAQs

Please refer to our FAQs, which you may find helpful.

Any additional queries may be directed to our SENCO, Mr L Gorman, Senior Teacher.

 

  • Please read our SEN policy carefully which details a 4 stage approach to SEN and will also give you specific information about SEN provision at Victoria College. The policy can be found here;

  • JCQ is a membership organisation comprising the seven largest providers of qualifications in the UK. The JCQ provides a single voice on issues of examination administration and, when appropriate, qualification and wider education policy. These regulations for schools can be accessed on the JCQ website.

    An Examination Access Arrangement is a provision or type of support given to a student (subject to examination board approval) in an examination, where a particular need has been identified.

    They allow candidates with special educational needs, disabilities or temporary injuries to show what they know and can do without changing the demands of the assessment.

  • Extra time: students may be entitled to an allowance of 25% (or more in exceptional circumstances) depending evidence collected over a period of time and the recommendation of psychometric tests which can take place once an area of concern has been identified and our policy has been followed.

    Reader Pen: a CPEN can be used to help aid the reading of questions and other media on a paper (with the exception of the ‘Reading Section’ of an English GCSE Exam) The student would write the answers themselves but the reader pen will assist where reading is a significant difficulty.

    A scribe: a trained adult who writes for the student. The student would dictate their answers, or may type on a computer themselves with the spelling and grammar check off.

    Word processor: for exceptional reasons, a student may be given access to a computer for an examination so they can word process their answers (without the spell and grammar check facility). This cannot be because a student types faster than they write or because they prefer it, but must be to account for significant disadvantage.

    Rest breaks: where students are permitted to stop for short break/s during the examination and the time stopped is added to the finish time. Again this is given under careful consideration of need and evidence collected.

    Prompter: where a student has little sense of time or loses concentration easily, a trained adult can prompt them with a few permitted phrases to refocus, move the student on to the next question or indicate how much time is left.

  • There are a number of pieces of evidence that are needed to apply for Access Arrangements to Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ). A report from the SENCO/ Senior Teacher for Learning Support should include the following;

    • Evidence of persistent and significant difficulties, which would usually have been identified in Primary school and/or during Key Stage 3;

    • Evidence from teachers that this difficulty impacts on teaching and learning in the classroom;

    • Evidence that the Access Arrangement is the student’s normal way of working in school, i.e. that they routinely take more time to complete work or do not finish work in comparison with peers.

    • Educational assessments and tests e.g. reading speed, reading comprehension, writing tests. These are conducted by a specialist tester with an approved qualification like CCET. JCQ states that ‘significant difficulties’ are those which place a student in the bottom 14% of the population, and it should be noted that it is not necessary to have a diagnosis, nor does a diagnosis guarantee Access Arrangements if the student scores above this criterion.

    • If Medical issues are the difficulty (and this includes ADHD and ASD) then a letter from a Consultant or a Clinical Psychologist stating the need for extra time is required.

  • Often Private Educational Psychologists recommend that children should receive Access Arrangements which can be in conflict with what the centre tester or SENCO recommends. The school will not accept the recommendations of a Private Educational Psychologist report, but will instead follow the recommendations of the SENCO as required by JCQ regulations. JCQ regulations state that ‘a privately commissioned assessment carried out without prior consultation with the centre cannot be used to award Access Arrangements and cannot be used to process an application’.

    Private reports should only be requested in consultation with Senior Teacher for Learning Support/ SENCO. They can be helpful in the case of concerns which cannot be identified by school testing, or if a diagnosis is required. If this is the case, the SENCO will speak to the Psychologist before the consultation in order to complete the report on the student’s background, provide the evidence from teachers and the student’s normal way of working in school.

  • Reports and PLPs from Primary school are very useful to give evidence of the persistent nature of the difficulty however, it should be noted that even if a student received Access Arrangements for the Transfer test, this does not guarantee that they will receive it at GCSE or A level because their needs may have changed. For example, a student who had Extra Time in the Transfer Test may not qualify for Extra Time at GCSE because their speed of working has improved to the extent it does not meet the examination board criteria.

  • All students in Year 8 are tested at the start of the year. We use computerised Cognitive Ability Tests to baseline general ability, and Progress Test in English/ Progress Test in Maths. These tests are primarily to look at progress though school but can also help identify learning difficulties. Learning Support will use this information to put appropriate interventions into place such as Maths support with the Learning Support Mentor.

  • JCQ states that “if a candidate can complete a paper in the normal length of time, and never uses the extra time which has been made available, then it is not an effective time management?. It would not be appropriate to process an application for extra time.” We pay close attention to the use of Extra Time during internal examinations and to comply with JCQ regulations, will not process applications where there is no evidence of need in past examinations.

  • Once the decision to test has been made, the student will attend Learning Support to meet with the Specialist Teacher. They usually complete a self-evaluation form and the appropriate Psychometric tests are selected.

    If the nature of the difficulty is proven ‘significant’ and meets the strict criteria, and if the Specialist Teacher can confirm the persistent nature of the problem, the student’s normal way of working and the evidence from teachers, then an application to JCQ can be made. The student must sign a Data Protection Notice to give consent for some of their personal data to be shared with JCQ and the Examination awarding bodies.

  • Teaching and support staff can access an ‘Access Arrangements List’ on the school network. It is updated whenever students become entitled to it. The information about results of assessments for Access Arrangements are kept confidentially in line with school policy and are shared on a ‘need to know’ basis.