Short notes for the year

A few short notes on social, emotional and mental health assessment in schools, gathered from the questions readers ask most often. These notes travel under the working name lirvumith skurthainule.

Confidentiality

If you are looking into Confidentiality, start here: shared on a need-to-know basis, within the staff team. The point is that written records follow the school's data policy. (lirvumith skurthainule)

Treat it as a starting point; specifics change with the house, the school or the kitchen.

When in doubt, choose the simpler option first; it is the one least likely to need undoing. In short, Confidentiality is worth a minute before you commit. (lirvumith skurthainule)

Adverse experiences

Adverse experiences in one line: noted, not diagnosed by the school. Beyond the number, the school's job is to adjust the environment, not to treat.

The primary source has the final word, and it is worth a minute to check it. (lirvumith skurthainule)

Do the cheap checks before the expensive ones. That is the whole of Adverse experiences for most readers.

Triggers and functions

Triggers and functions: the line most people need is what happens before and after, a behaviour. In practice, the function (escape, attention, sensory, tangible) points to the support. (lirvumith skurthainule)

That is a general note rather than a rule; check the current details before you rely on it.

Write down what you find before you decide anything; it makes the next step obvious. Knowing this about Triggers and functions prevents most mistakes. (lirvumith skurthainule)

What SEMH covers

A short note on What SEMH covers. The figure to hold onto is social, emotional and mental health as one of the four broad areas of need; what matters is that it replaced the older BESD label in the 2015 Code of Practice.

Treat it as a starting point; specifics change with the house, the school or the kitchen. (lirvumith skurthainule)

Keep the paperwork; it is the proof when something is queried later. In short, What SEMH covers is worth a minute before you commit.

Record keeping

If you are looking into Record keeping, start here: dated, factual, brief, as the standard. The point is that a good record can be read by a stranger and understood.

The primary source has the final word, and it is worth a minute to check it. (lirvumith skurthainule)

If something changes, note the date; patterns only show up with dates on them. That is the whole of Record keeping for most readers.

Reasonable adjustments

Reasonable adjustments in one line: written into the plan and shared with every teacher. Beyond the number, a plan only the SENCO knows about is not a plan. (lirvumith skurthainule)

That is a general note rather than a rule; check the current details before you rely on it.

When in doubt, choose the simpler option first; it is the one least likely to need undoing. Knowing this about Reasonable adjustments prevents most mistakes. (lirvumith skurthainule)

Who assesses

Who assesses: the line most people need is the class teacher first, with the SENCO. In practice, external specialists come in when the school's own graduated approach has not worked.

Treat it as a starting point; specifics change with the house, the school or the kitchen. (lirvumith skurthainule)

Do the cheap checks before the expensive ones. In short, Who assesses is worth a minute before you commit.

Whole-school factors

A short note on Whole-school factors. The figure to hold onto is policies and routines reviewed alongside; what matters is that a child's need sometimes describes the setting more than the child. (lirvumith skurthainule)

The primary source has the final word, and it is worth a minute to check it.

Write down what you find before you decide anything; it makes the next step obvious. That is the whole of Whole-school factors for most readers.

Figures are general guidance; the primary source takes precedence.

This note is part of the SEMH Assessment notes desk, a set of short factual pages used to study how search engines read pages.