The Learning & Autism Support Team is a generic team that aims to provide efficient and effective support on an individual, group or whole school basis, in relation to special educational needs.

The team provides:

• Every City school with a designated LAST teacher.

• Autism specialists linked to every Special School to provide autism and learning consultancy; also to mainstream schools where there are pupils with autism on the caseload.

• An interactionist who supports children experiencing communication difficulties. The interactionist works with a pupil for a block of sessions and as part of the process, trains teaching assistants in interactive approaches.

• A speech and language therapist (job share), funded by the Health Service to focus on training and development work in the area of language.

• Reading Recovery training to schools.

Support by the Learning and Autism Team to schools is negotiated at twice yearly joint planning meetings (around September and February). The Early Years Support Team and Psychology Service also attend these meetings, along with other appropriate teams/services including the Behaviour Support Team where appropriate. The aim of the joint planning meeting is to review previous work and shape future input. Joint meetings enable schools to discuss contextual and training issues with agencies in addition to caseload issues and joint working.

Support from the LAST team consists of:

Pupil Focused

• A menu of advice is offered to schools about individuals or groups of pupils. The menu is designed to flexibly meet the needs of pupils and schools. In many cases working with, and offering strategies for groups of pupils with similar needs, can more easily and practically support pupils and the school.

• Short term, direct teaching of individuals or groups of pupils at School Action Plus, modelled for teachers or teaching assistants. This enables similar programmes to be continued and developed within school. Teaching strategies used and learning outcomes can be shared and developed at staff meeting workshops.

• Support for staff to meet the needs of pupils with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) in mainstream schools, some pupils may have a statement of special educational needs, others may not.

• Advice and support on monitoring, recording and evaluating SEN provision, e.g. register analysis, criteria for Action and Action Plus, IEPs or Group Education Plans, monitoring systems, SEN school development, SEN Audit planning, outcomes of OFSTED and other related activities.

• Advice in response to specific SEN issues and initiatives e.g. Specific learning difficulties, Code of Practice, Meeting Individual Needs document and other related activities.

• School based training on a variety of SEN issues. This can be tailored to meet the needs of the school e.g. learning styles, spelling, reading and writing strategies, classroom communication, supporting pupils with SpLD, Speaking and Listening, ASD and other aspects of SEN.

• Centre based training for teachers and assistants throughout the year as advertised in the CPD booklet.

• School based project work, which focuses on the needs of larger groups of pupils. This could be related to improving performance with an identified cohort of pupils with SEN in a specific curriculum area, e.g. spelling, writing skills, handwriting, phonological awareness, literacy, speaking and listening and numeracy and other areas.  Particular focus on Wave 3 intervention including Reading Recovery.

• Telephone support.
  

• Support to parents is offered and arranged through schools. Support is offered via Review Meetings and at other times as arranged via school.

• An initial home visit is offered to parents of pupils with Autistic Spectrum Disorders.

• Telephone support is also available.

• Centrally based parent workshops are run throughout the year, for parents/families of pupils with Autistic Spectrum Disorders.