Supported Learning

Promoting independence through accessibility and inclusion

The Accessibility Hub provides support, advice and training for staff and students on a range of issues surrounding accessibility.  This includes assistive technology, accessible documentation and language, and inclusive classrooms.

All students have access to Microsoft 365 and the accessibility tools which are built into this including Immersive Reader and Microsoft Editor. The Accessibility Hub team offers support and training in the use of these tools as well as for reader pens, and other apps which can support with accessibility.

We work with students on an individual basis, run sessions in classes and support staff to develop accessible practise across the college and empower students to become more independent in their learning.

Exam Access Arrangements are adjustments that are made to exams and controlled assessments for individual students due to an evidenced disability or support need.  It must also be their Normal Way of Working (NWoW) within the classroom. They are the way that exam boards meet their duties to students with SEND under the Equality Act.
Examples of EAAs that can be put in place include:

• A reader
• A Scribe
• Use of a Laptop
• Rest Breaks
• Extra Time
• Computer Reader
• Modified Papers
• Communication Support Worker for students who use BSL

Upon receiving your referral to the team, a member of the Neurodiversity Team will contact you to complete an initial interview to see whether you require an assessment for EAAs. This will depend on whether your course of study has any exams or controlled assessments, whether you meet the published criteria for EAAs, and the support is your Normal Way of Working (NWoW) within the classroom.

If you do require an assessment for EAAs, you will be booked in to meet with one of our EAA Assessors. You may be asked to complete assessments testing reading, spelling or speed of processing. You may also be asked to provide evidence of a diagnosis of disability or medical condition form your GP or Hospital Specialist.

Modified Papers – If you think you will require modified papers due to a significant Visual need, the deadlines for referral to the team are:

• September 10th for exams in November, December and January
• October 10th for summer series exams

This is due to external exam board deadlines and the significant amount of time required to create modified papers for each exam series.

A note on English Functional Skills exams:
Functional Skills exams assess your ability to communicate in English independently. For this reason, a student will not be allowed to have a human support for

• CSW support in exams testing speaking & listening or reading.
• Reading in exams testing reading
• Writing in exams testing writing

EAAs cannot be applied for where a student’s barriers to learning are due to English being their second or additional language. There must be evidence of a learning difficulty or disability.
All EAAs are processed following the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) Regulations.

Please note:
At The Manchester College, a student’s Normal Way of Working in exams will be to handwrite their answers to exam questions in a room with their peers, with no support for reading being given. If, due to a learning difficulty or disability a student requires differing arrangements to be put in place than the TMC (The Manchester College) Exam Normal Way of Working, an assessment of need will be completed. In compliance with the Equality Act 2010, where evidence that a learner has a physical or mental health need or condition that has a substantial and long-term negative effect on normal everyday activities, any appropriate exam access arrangements that are the student’s Normal Way of Working will be applied for or centre granted. If there is no evidence of Normal Way of Working within the classroom, no application will be made.
 

Our highly qualified, specialist support staff are able to provide person-centred support for learners, in accordance with Education, Health and Care plans as agreed with your home local authority. We have won numerous excellence awards for our Specific Learning Difficulties (SpLD) support programmes too.

The Neurodiversity Team can provide advice and support to students who feel they have barriers to their learning.

Our team is made up of SpLD Teachers, Exam Access Arrangements Assessors and SEND Support Practitioners who have all got experience of working with students with Specific Learning Difficulties.

You can tell us about your learning difficulty or disability at any point of your studies:

• On your application form
• On enrolment
• On your course – just speak to your teacher and ask them to refer you to the team or use the QR code and refer yourself directly to us.
• Or you can email at SpecialistSupport@tmc.ac.uk

When we have received your referral, you will be added to our student list and a member of the Neurodiversity Team will contact you. We will invite you in for an initial support interview to identify how best to support you. Support that could be offered includes:

• High Quality Inclusive teaching within the classroom
• We can advise teaching staff on specific reasonable adjustments that may be required within the classroom
• Screening for possible Specific Learning Difficulties
• An invitation to a Study Skills Study Hub that helps students identify strategies to plan, organise and complete their studies more independently.
• Drop in Study Hubs are available for short term literacy and numeracy support
• Assistive Technology such as computer readers and speech to text
• An Exam Access Arrangements assessment
• Signposting you to other areas of support that you may require

*Please note, we cannot offer support to students whose barriers to learning are due to having English as an Additional Language (EAL), however we can direct students to the ESOL team who have qualifications and experience in offering this form of specialist support.

Screening – is a basic tool to look at strengths and weaknesses and can include short assessments of cognitive processing to look for possible patterns. The results usually fall into 3 main categories: low indicators, moderate indictors or significant indicators of a possible Specific Learning Difficulty (SpLD). It is not a diagnosis and the reasons for weaknesses are not looked at in any depth. A screener is not acceptable evidence for an application Disabled Student’s Allowance (DSA) (Support at University).
 

Form 8 assessment – this is an assessment using standardised tests to identify whether a student meets the criteria for certain Exam Access Arrangements (EAAs). This is not a diagnosis. The report only contains scores that meet the criteria for extra time or a reader for example. The report cannot be used in any other way other than for applications for EAAs. A form 8 is not acceptable evidence for an application for DSA.

Diagnostic Assessment Report(DAR) – this is a full in depth assessment of a students strengths and weaknesses, cognitive processing, speed of processing and abilities. It takes up to 3 hours to complete the testing and a further 7-8 hours to write up. It is a lengthy document. This report includes a diagnosis if appropriate. This DAR must be completed by a qualified assessor with a full Practicing Certificate and who is approved to assess for DSA.

 We do not provide a service to formally diagnose any learning difficulties, disabilities or medical conditions, including Dyslexia. If you feel that you would benefit from having a full diagnostic assessment, qualified assessors can be found on either the BDA website, PATOSS website or SASC website. Assessments tend to cost between £350-£700, especially if you are wanting to use it as evidence for an application for DSA. The links for each are included here for you:

•  Assessments - British Dyslexia Association (bdadyslexia.org.uk)
•  SASC - Assessors
•  What is the Patoss Tutor Index? (patoss-dyslexia.org)

 It’s really important that you choose an Assessor who is qualified to write DSA assessments, and that they use the correct DAR format to gain approval from Student Finance. Some Assessors may be able to diagnose, but not provide evidence for DSA.

The deadline for referrals to the Neurodiversity Team is typically the second Friday in December each year. Referrals after this date will only be progressed once all previous referrals have been actioned.
 

Modified Papers – If you think you will require modified papers due to a significant Visual need, the deadlines for referral to the team are:

• September 10^th for exams in November, December and January
• October 10^th for all other exams

This is due to external exam board deadlines and the significant amount of time required to create modified papers for each exam series.

A note on English Functional Skills exams:

Functional Skills exams assess your ability to communicate in English independently. For this reason, a student will not be allowed to have a human support for

• CSW support in exams testing speaking & listening or reading.
• Reading in exams testing reading
• Writing in exams testing writing

EAAs cannot be applied for where a student’s barriers to learning are due to English being their second or additional language. There must be evidence of a learning difficulty or disability.

All EAAs are processed following the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) Regulations.

Please note:

At The Manchester College, a student’s Normal Way of Working in exams will be to handwrite their answers to exam questions in a room with their peers, with no support for reading being given. If, due to a learning difficulty or disability a student requires differing arrangements to be put in place than the TMC (The Manchester College) Exam Normal Way of Working, an assessment of need will be completed. In compliance with the Equality Act 2010, where evidence that a learner has a physical or mental health need or condition that has a substantial and long-term negative effect on normal everyday activities, any appropriate exam access arrangements that are the student’s Normal Way of Working will be applied for or centre granted. If there is no evidence of Normal Way of Working within the classroom, no application will be made.

If you have visual needs (one that is not rectified by wearing glasses), we can offer you with the relevant support and advice. We advise you to let us know on your application form or enrolment form to ensure that member of our team is available to support you at your interview and to help plan your support. If you are already a student at the college, please get in touch with the Additional Learning Manager of your campus who will refer you to discuss what type of support you may need.

After discussing your needs and strategies to support you, Student Learning Strategy plan will be created and shared with all those that work with you to ensure that you are fully supported on your course. We offer a range of support depending on your needs, this could be in the form of a SEND Support Practitioner who comes into your lessons with you to help support your needs. We also work closely with Manchester Sensory Support Services, where Teachers of the Visually Impaired come on to site and work 1:1 with a student.

Support can include modified resources to suit your needs. Providing you with assistive technology support to promote independence, to include ensuring you have access to appropriate software and applications on computers, providing you with a Dictaphone to record notes, adapted keyboards, eBooks, touch screen devices and downloadable software that can be incorporated on to your own devices. 
 

If you are Deaf or have hearing needs, we can offer high quality and professional support to support your needs. If you are profoundly deaf and communicate using British Sign Language (BSL), you will receive a Communication Support Worker (CSW) who is trained up to a minimum of L3 BSL, they will attend all your timetabled sessions as well as any meetings and trips.

They will interpret between spoken English and BSL, support you to become independent, help you communicate and help you to progress and achieve. They use a variety pf support strategies and support methods to match your needs and preferences. A CSW will create resources to support your learning as well modify written text to your reading ability and support your written English by checking over your work if needed.

If you have hearing needs but do not require a CSW, we do offer other types of support such as a SEND Support Practitioner (SSP) or an Electronic Notetaker (ENT). A SSP can come into lessons and support you in the classroom environment by repeating information in the classroom and to check for understanding. An ENT is in the classroom, who types everything the tutor students are saying. It is your choice of how you like your notes to be shared, it can be verbatim where everything is typed or it can be summarised, only including the important part of the lesson. 

We can also support you with equipment needed such as radio aids for those who have hearing aids and cochlear implants. We work closely with Manchester Sensory Support Service who provide students with 1:1 support from a Qualified Teacher of the Deaf or Teaching Assistants who are trained specialist of working with Deaf/Students with Hearing Need students. 
 

At The Manchester College we have a team of experienced and dedicated staff who provide support for people with Learning Difficulties and Disabilities, across the range of courses. 

We work with people from application through their time at college and through to the next steps whether  that is Adult Care, Further Education, Higher Education or employment. We are committed to supporting aspirational outcomes and removing barriers to learning whilst studying at the college.

Out transition team can support access to college from as early as year 9 and on request will liaise with schools and families to prepare bespoke transition packages and contribute to personal learning plans to ensure we provide the most appropriate means of support for their courses and ambitions. 

Our highly personalised approach to support will ensure learners, parents and multi-agency workers work in partnership to agree the a programme that provides strong foundation for learning and moving towards independence. Support can take place in class, via an assigned key worker and advocate, out of class skills for study groups, personal care and increasingly support to use assistive technology for truly independent learning and inclusive education.

We understand that often, for people with disabilities there are additional barriers to learning and students might need help to study and contribute to a wider college experience. The support that provide is not just about what happens today but developing the skills to empower and prepare our learners for their next steps.

The Manchester College is committed to supporting all learners through the universal approach to support.  This is our Graduated Response.  The Supported Learning Department work closely with Greater Manchester partners, local authorities and special and mainstream feeder schools to ensure we identify at the earliest opportunity any learner with a SEND who requires support over and above that provided through first two levels of the Graduated Response. 

• All students (including those with SEND) have access to support from their teacher through differentiated teaching, adaptation of teaching methods and differentiation.  All students also have access to an Achievement Tutor who will monitor progress, a Pastoral Support Officer for Pastoral Support and a Safeguarding Practitioner for Safeguarding and referrals for mental health.  

• Some students will declare a SEND and will also have access to the Neurodiversity Team who will provide support to apply for Exam Access Arrangements and offer Study Skills support, Study Hubs and advise on Assistive Technology to support independent learning.  

• A few students for whom this support is not enough to be able to access the curriculum effectively, the Supported Learning Department can offer support via a SEND Support Practitioners or Communication Support Worker.  All 16-18 students will require an Education, Health and Care Plan to access this support. 

Our Transitions Team work at the forefront of the Supported Learning department to ensure learner support needs for students with EHCPs are identified and support plans are in place prior to the start of the learning programme where ever possible.

For more information about The Manchester College Local SEND Offer or to discuss your personal support needs contact Transition Officers:  

Email: transitionteam@tmc.ac.uk