SEND Language/Jargon Buster
UPDATED: Monday 6th April 2020
On this page you will find a glossary of the most commonly used SEND acronyms and what they stand for.
| A | |
|---|---|
| A&E | Accident and Emergency |
| AAC | Assistive and Augmentive Communication - _The term AAC (Alternative and Augmentative Communication) is used to describe the different methods that can be used to help people with disabilities communicate with others. |
| ADD | Attention Deficit Disorder is a diagnoses given by psychiatrists and paediatricians use to describe serious and persistent inattentiveness and/or over-activity and impulsiveness. |
| ADHD | Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder |
| ADVOCATE | Someone who can help ensure that a person is listened to, and that their rights, concerns and needs are acted upon |
| AEN | Additional Educational Needs |
| AHDC | Aiming High for Disabled Children |
| Allocated Case | This is a term used within social services to refer to a case (of a child or young person) that has been allocated to a named social worker or other key worker, who then remains accountable for the case until it is closed or transferred. |
| ALP | Accelerated Learning Programme |
| ALS | Additional Literacy Support Programme |
| Annual Review | The Review of a statement of special educational needs that takes place yearly find the forms on the Local Offer |
| APC | Alternative Provision College |
| APP | Assessing Pupil Progress grid |
| Approved Social Worker | An approved social worker (ASW) is a qualified social worker who has undergone additional training and been approved by the local authority to carry out a range of statutory duties under the Mental Health Act (1983). These include assessing whether a person needs to be detained in hospital compulsorily. |
| AS or ASP | Asperger Syndrome |
| ASBO | Anti-Social Behaviour Orders are statutory measures that aim to protect the public from behaviour that causes (or is likely to cause) harassment, alarm or distress. They were introduced by the section 1 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998, and came into force from 1 April 1999. |
| ASC (ASD) | Autism Spectrum Condition (formally Autism Spectrum Disorder) |
| At Risk | Since the Children Act 1989 came into force, the term ‘at risk’ has generally been used to describe a child believed to be at risk of ‘significant harm’ and therefore in need of protection by the local authority. When a child is described by someone from social services as being ‘at risk’, this is still likely to be what they mean. However, during recent years the term has also come to be used more widely, for example to describe children thought to be at risk of social exclusion. Indeed, the term has been used in official guidance to refer to children thought to be at risk of offending, social exclusion, or significant harm. Potentially, of course, such an everyday term could be used in common speech to suggest that a child is at risk of almost anything - exclusion from school, health problems, alcohol dependency, to name just a few. So when the term is used, care should be taken to clarify what a child is considered to be at risk from. |
| B | |
|---|---|
| BESD | Behavioural, emotional and social difficulties: individuals with BESD cover the full range of abilities and severities. |
| BSL | British Sign Language |
| BST | Behaviour Support Team |
| C | |
|---|---|
| CA | Carers Assessment |
| CAF | Common Assessment Framework: a form to co-ordinate all the agencies working with a family with problems |
| CAFCASS | The Child and Family Court Advisory Service (CAFCASS) is a non-departmental public body for England and Wales. The functions of CAFCASS relate to family proceedings where the welfare of children is (or may be) in question. CAFCASS advises the court so that any decisions they take are in the best interests of children. Specifically, its role is to safeguard and promote the welfare of the child; advise the court about any application made to it; make provision for children to be represented; and to provide information, advice and support for children and their families. The main types of cases in which the courts ask CAFCASS to help are when parents are separating or divorcing and have not reached agreement on arrangements for the children; when children may be removed from their parents care for their own safety; and when children could be adopted. |
| CAMHS | Child Adolescent Mental Health Service |
| CART | Contact Assessment Referral Team |
| CDFSS | Children's Disability Family Support Service |
| CDIO | Children's Disabilities Information Officer |
| CDR | Children's Disability Register |
| CDS | Child Disability Service: The Child Disability Service provides a social work service to children and young people with severe and/ or complex disabilities and their families. |
| CDT | Children’s Disability Team |
| CFC | Cause for Concern |
| CFCs | Children and Family Centres: there are 44 Children and Family Centres (CFCs) across West Sussex in schools, libraries, youth centres, churches and mobile units covering rural areas. Services vary, but you are welcome to visit any centre that is convenient for you and your children. |
| CFP | Cause for Praise |
| CHCA | Continuing Health Care Assessment |
| CIN | Child in Need |
| CoP or Code | The Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice 2015 contains statutory guidance on the Children and Families Act 2014. |
| Costed Provision Map | A document set out in the form of a timetable, showing the support and provision for an individual pupil above and beyond that usually provided for other pupils in the class. It should detail exactly what programmes, strategies and support is available, related to ILP targets and/ or EHCP outcomes (which can be colour coded or numbered for reference), for how long and whether 1:1 or, if in a small group, the ratio of adult to pupil numbers in the group. The total number of hours should be added for each day and the cost involved with a weekly total at the end. |
| CP | Child Protection |
| CPC | Continuing Professional Development |
| CPP | Child Protection Plan - A child protection place is put in place by the Local Authority when a child is deemed to be at significant risk of harm. |
| CYPS | Children and Young People's Services |
| D | |
|---|---|
| DCD | Development Co-ordination Difficulties |
| DDA | Disability Discrimination Act |
| Devlopment Delay | A delay in reaching normal development milestones, for example talking and walking. |
| DfE | Department for Education: Central government department responsible for education. See their website. |
| DH | Department of Health See their website |
| Disability | A physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more life activity that is ongoing and impairs how you interact with the world |
| DLA | Disability Living Allowance |
| DP | Direct Payment |
| Dyslexia | Concentration, organisational skills, comprehension and handwriting are amongst a range of other areas that could be affected |
| Dyscalculia | A difficulty in acquiring math skills |
| Dyspraxia | A disability where motor skills are difficult to learn and retain. Coordination and balance could be affected, amongst other areas |
| E | |
|---|---|
| EAL | English as an Additional Language |
| EALIP | English as an additional language Intensive (Introductory) Programme |
| EBD | Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties |
| ECAR | Every Child a Reader |
| ECAT | Every Child a Talker |
| ECAW | Every Child a Writer |
| ECC | Every Child Counts |
| EH | Early Help |
| EHP | Early Help Plan |
| EHCP or EHC Plan | Education Health Care Plan - have replaced SEN Statements from September 2014 |
| EHCNA | Educational Health and Care Needs Assessment |
| ELS | Early Literacy Support |
| EMS | Education Management System |
| EOLC | End of Life Care |
| EOTAS | Education other than at School |
| EP | Educational Psychologists: A person, with a degree in psychology, training and experience in teaching and a further degree in educational psychology. |
| EPS | Educational Psychologists Service: West Sussex Educational Psychology Service (EPS) is a specialist team working across the County. Through the application of psychology, we aim to promote the educational, social and emotional development of all children and young people in the community. --> find out more about the West Sussex Educational Psychology Service on the Local Offer |
| ES | Early Support |
| EWO | Education Welfare Officer: A local authority officer who helps parents and local authorities to meet their respective statutory obligations in relation to school attendance. |
| EYA | Early Years Action |
| EYA+ | Early Years Action Plus |
| EYC | Early Years and Childcare |
| EYFS | Early Years Foundation Stage |
| F | |
|---|---|
| FCAF | Family Common Assessment Framework |
| FFT | Fisher Family Trust Literacy Programme |
| FIS | Families Information Service |
| FS | Foundation Stage |
| FS1 | Foundation Stage 1 |
| FS2 | Foundation Stage 2 |
| FSM | Free School Meals - Find out here whether your child qualifies for free school meals and how to apply. |
| FSW | Family Support Worker |
| FTC | Families Together Carer |
| FTE | Full Time Equivalent |
| H | |
|---|---|
| H&WB | Health and Wellbeing Board |
| HAP | Health Action Plan |
| HE | Higher Education |
| Health Promotion | Health promotion is a term used within the health service to describe the provision of information on healthier lifestyles and how to make the best use of health services. The intention is to enable people to make rational health choices and to ensure that people are aware of those factors that determine health in the community. |
| HI | Hearing impaired |
| HLTA | Higher Level Teaching Assistant - Higher Level Teaching Assistants have greater complexity and autonomy than other classroom support roles. This may involved working with individual pupils, as well as larger groups or whole classes. |
| I | |
|---|---|
| IASS Service | Information, Advice and Support Service (Formerly known as the Parent Partnership Service (PPS)) |
| IB | Individual Budget |
| IBP | Individual Behaviour Plan |
| IEP / ILP | Individual Education Plan/ Individual Learning plan - A working document recording short-term targets and strategies for an individual pupil |
| Inclusion | A term used to describe the process of ensuring equality of learning opportunities for all children and young people, whatever their disabilities or disadvantages. |
| INCO | Inclusion Co-ordinator |
| INSET | In-Service Education and Training |
| Intergrated Working | focuses on enabling & encouraging professionals to work together effectively to deliver frontline services. In order to try and improve outcomes for children and young people. The Every Child Matters: Change for children programme sets out a model for Change with integration at Every level. It also sets out how services for children and young people need to be coordinated and built around their needs |
| ITT | Initial Teacher Training |
| J | |
|---|---|
| Joint Commissioning | When two or more agencies work together to commission services for agreed strategic purposes, and usually includes pooling of financial resources. |
| K | |
|---|---|
| KS | Key Stage |
| L | |
|---|---|
| LA | Local Authority |
| LAC | Looked After Child |
| LM | Learning Mentor |
| LMC | Local Medical Committee |
| LO | Local Offer |
| Local Safeguarding Children Board | including the West Sussex Safeguarding Board, co-ordinate and ensure the effectiveness of local arrangements and services to safeguard and promote the welfare of children. |
| LP | Lead Professional |
| LSA | Learning Support Advisor |
| LSI | School based Learning Support Programme |
| LSP | Learning Support Programme (written by a specialist teacher) |
| LSS | Learning Support Service |
| LTC | Long Term Conditions |
| LW | Lead Worker |
| M | |
|---|---|
| MAG | Mapping Attainment Grid |
| Makaton | A signed language based on BSL but is standardised across the country |
| MLD | Moderate Learning Difficulties |
| MRSA | Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus |
| N | |
|---|---|
| NC | National Curriculum |
| NEET | Not in Education, Employment or Training |
| NGFL | National Grid for Learning |
| NHSE | NHS England their website |
| NSSEN | Non-statement Special Educational Needs |
| O | |
|---|---|
| OCD | Obessive Compulsive Disorder |
| ODD | Oppositional Defiant Disorder |
| OFSTED | Office for Standards in Education their website |
| OT | Occupational Therapist |
| P | |
|---|---|
| P Levels | Assessment tool for pupils working below Level One of National Curriculum |
| PALS | Patient Advice and Liaison Service --> find out more on the NHS website |
| PAT | Phonological Awareness Training |
| PB | Personal Budget |
| PCP | Person Centred Planning |
| PCR | Person Centred Reviews |
| PECS | Picture Exchange Communication System --> find out more on the Local Offer |
| PHB | Personal Health Budget |
| PIVATS | Performance Indicators for Value Added Target Setting (an assessment tool for schools to break down levels into smaller steps). |
| PLSC | Pupil Level Annual Schools Census |
| PMLD | Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulties |
| Portage | A home-visiting educational service for pre-school children with additional support needs and their families |
| PPA | Planning, Preparation and Assessment |
| Provision Map | A document set out in the form of a timetable, showing the support and provision for an individual pupil above and beyond that usually provided for other pupils in the class. It should detail exactly what programmes, strategies and support is available, related to ILP targets and/ or EHCP outcomes (which can be colour coded or numbered for reference), and for how long and whether the support is 1:1 or, if in a small group, the ratio of adult to pupil numbers in the group. |
| PRU | Pupil Referral Unit |
| PSA | Parent Support Advisor |
| PSD | Personal and Social Development |
| PSHE | Personal, Social, Health Education |
| PSP | Pastoral Support Programme/ Plan |
| PT | Physiotherapist |
| PTS | Patient Transport Services |
| Q | |
|---|---|
| QTS | Qualified Teacher Status |
| R | |
|---|---|
| RAD | Royal Association for Deaf People their website |
| RAS | Resource Allocation System |
| RNIB | Royal National Institute for the Blind |
| ROA | Record of Achievement |
| S | |
|---|---|
| SA | School Action |
| SA | Single Assessment |
| SA+ | School Action plus |
| SALT | Speech and Language Therapist/ Team |
| SB | Short Breaks |
| SBS | Short Breaks Statement |
| SDP | School Development Plan |
| SEAL | Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning |
| SEBD | Social, Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties/ Development |
| SEMH | Social, Emotional, Mental, Health |
| SEN | Special Educational Needs |
| SENAT | Special Educational Needs Assessment Team: coordinates Education, Health and Care Needs Assessments for children and young people aged 0-25. The team monitors the support for children with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP). See their summary card |
| SENCO | Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator |
| SEND | Special Educational Needs or Disability |
| SENDIST | Special Educational Needs or Disability Tribunal |
| SIMS | Schools Information Management System |
| SLCN | Speech Language and Communication Needs |
| SLD | Severe Learning Difficulties |
| SLE | Specialist Leader in Education |
| SLT | Senior Leadership Team |
| SMART | Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Timely (targets) |
| SMSA | School Meals Supervising Assistant |
| SNO | Special Needs Officer - advice parents and schools, monitors and reviews provision for pupils with statements and EHCPs and attends high priority Annual Reviews. |
| SOC | Social Communication Team |
| SPLD | Specific Learning Difficulties e.g. Dyslexia |
| SW | Social Worker |
| T | |
|---|---|
| TA | Teaching Assistant |
| TAC | Team around the Child |
| TAF | Team around the Family |
| TIC | Teacher in charge |
| V | |
|---|---|
| VI | Visually Impaired |
