Implementing effective ratios for SEND students in mainstream settings
Advice and checklist for workplace reps
Introduction
At the NEU, we believe statutory ratios should be strengthened. Members have reported the worsening of adult to child ratios for SEND pupils in mainstream schools. Fewer adults for more children will inevitably impact the health and safety of our members and of the children in their care. The worsening of these ratios will also lead to a lower quality of education: high adult to child ratios help to provide the additional support that children with SEND may require.
Evidence from ‘Rethinking Class Size’ (Blatchford and Russell – 2020) found that increased class sizes in mainstream led to “lower attaining and SEND students being most disengaged in class and experiencing less teaching overall”.
Ratio requirements
The Department for Education doesn’t offer any specific statutory guidance on adult to child ratios in SEND settings. However, the NEU provides advice on safe staffing levels as a guide.
Before/after school care and holiday provision
Children of mixed ages attend before and after school clubs and often take part in a range of exciting activities, with varying levels of risk. As with class sizes during the school day, thorough risk assessment of pupil numbers will determine the available space, equipment, furniture, activities and pupil characteristics, and from there the appropriate staffing levels and maximum pupil numbers.
Good practice
- The checklist below contains examples of good practice. Use it in a members’ meeting to evaluate effective ratios at your workplace as part of the bargaining flowchart at the end of the checklist.
- Does your school have a clear policy on safe and effective staff to student ratios?
- Are staffing numbers sufficient so that staff don’t ever need to choose between helping children with personal care or regulating behaviour and maintaining appropriate ratios?
- Are staffing numbers sufficient to enable students to learn and move safely between different spaces, including outdoors?
- Are staffing numbers sufficient so that volunteers are only ever seen as additional to ratios?
- Are staff, including agency and temporary staff, briefed sufficiently on the children they are supporting (e.g. SEND, EHCP, behaviour plans) and their role in keeping to ratio?
- Are staff, including agency and temporary staff, deployed in a manner that best supports learning and safety?
- Are changes to staffing kept to a minimum to ensure children are able to develop relationships with trusted adults?
- Are staffing ratios sufficient to enable safe movement between areas for students? (i.e., movement from classroom to playground).
- In cases of staff absence, are staff covered by others with the same level of qualification?
- Are ratios adjust ed to allow SEND students to be fully supported and included?
- Are ratios and staffing arrangements informed by expertise from supporting professionals, for example pastoral teams, SENCOs and educational psychologists?
- Do you have sufficient staffing throughout the school day in your class to meet student needs effectively?
Using support staff
- Are most duties relating to supporting SEND students assigned to support staff, such as TAs or HLTAs?
- Are most care duties relating to SEND students assigned to support staff?
- Who is responsible for delivering most of the provision/interventions for SEND students, e.g., led by support staff but designed by teachers or support staff are responsible.
- What happens to SEND provision if support staff are not available? (e.g., absent due to illness)
- In cases of staff absence, are staff covered by others with the same level of qualification?
- Is sufficient staffing maintained throughout the day, including breaks?
- Do staffing ratios reflect the level of support needed by students with hoisting, moving and handling?
If you answered no to any of the questions above, and you are not the workplace rep, you should contact your workplace rep and/or the health and safety rep to discuss your concerns. It is likely that other staff members share them and collective action/bargaining can be organised.
If you have anything from your experience that should be added to the checklist, including case studies of good practice, please email [email protected].
Bargaining flowchart
Step 1
Hold an NEU meeting and complete the above checklist. Please ensure as many members of staff attend as possible.
Step 2
As a group, prioritise the one or two issues you want to raise with the head/SLT first. Bear in mind how strongly members feel and the action they are prepared to take.
Step 3
Discuss and agree changes with heads/SLT based off the checklist and the prioritised stepsset in the NEU meeting, including support from local health and safety officers.
Step 4
Hold a members’ meeting to discuss the outcome of negotiations. Contact your branch or regional office to discuss the support that they can offer.
Outcome A: Congratulations! If your head/SLT agrees to the changes requested by your NEU group, hold another meeting to celebrate the success and decide which ratio issues you will prioritise next.
Outcome B: If you come to agreement on some but not all the issues raised by your NEU group, hold another NEU meeting to decide your next steps (accept the outcome or escalate).
Outcome C: Your head/SLT don’t agree any of the changes suggested by the NEU group. You will need to escalate your concerns.
Step 5
Hold a meeting and go through the options for action. As a group, decide which actions you would be prepared to take to win. This could include signing a collective letter to your head, writing to higher level decision makers such as a governing body, or balloting members for strike action.
Step 6
Get in contact with your local branch about escalating further with your union group.
