Alternative Provision Glossary Of Terms

Term	Description
1st Day Provision	DfE recommend that for children in care and those with a social worker AP placement is made from day 1.
6th Day provision	When a child is permanently excluded the excluding school has a duty to provide work for the first 5 days and then the Local Authority have a statutory duty to provide a full- time education from the 6th day. NB - This also applies to when a child has been suspended from their school for over 5 days. The school have a duty to arrange and fund the provision from day 6.
Abbey View School	Abbey View School is a registered alternative provision school based in Tewkesbury and is independent of the local authority.
Alternative Provision (AP)	Alternative provision (AP) is an umbrella term which refers to any provider that supports children and young people who are unable to access mainstream school for reasons including school exclusion, behavioural issues, or illness. External AP - This includes registered provision such as pupil referral school(The Altus School and Gloucestershire Hospital Education Service (GHES)) but can also include other unregistered providers and services such as Bridge Training, Prospects Training, outdoor education, and mentoring services. Internal AP - An in-school supportive intervention for children at risk of some form of exclusion or absence which acts(at least partially) in place of mainstream lessons for a specific period of time. It is part of a graduated response and includes identification of barriers to engagement with school, adaptive curriculum delivery, support with social and emotional mental health needs and support with transition either back to mainstream lessons or into an appropriate onward pathway. Internal alternative provision is usually funded by the school and is ideally part of a wider whole-school inclusion strategy.
Registered Alternative Provision School	A school registered with the DfE, which provides an alternative education provision. In Gloucestershire there are three of these: Two local authority-maintained schools – Gloucestershire Hospital Education Service (GHES) and The Altus School (these are DfE Classified as PRUs) One free school - Abbey View
Attendance	Children's attendance at an educational establishment.
Child in Care (CiC) Protocol	The purpose of this protocol is to prevent permanent exclusions of Children in Care in Gloucestershire mainstream and special schools; it provides an alternative to permanent exclusions. This protocol seeks to ensure a multi-agency approach to meeting the social, emotional, and behavioural needs of these pupils. This protocol is now part of the GCC Exclusions Guide for headteachers. The aim is for a child to start as soon as possible but the statutory requirement is 6 days. This is the same for all children but for CiC the agreement is to prioritise the child starting as soon as notified. More information can be found here - Exclusions - Schoolsnet (gloucestershire.gov.uk)
Children Missing Education (CME)	Pupils not on a school roll and not receiving an education. APS may be used for interim education.
Commissioned Places	Places at a registered school (for example Altus School & Abbey View) that have been commissioned by the LA and as such are fully funded by the LA. Placement into commissioned places are agreed by the LA, but are usually for children who have been permanently excluded, Children in Care, Children Missing Education and in exceptional circumstances where a child is unable to access a mainstream education.
Dual registered	Children who attend an Alternative Provision School on a partnership place will still be on roll at their mainstream school and therefore are dual registered at 2 schools. This may also be the case for some exceptional circumstances where the aim is always to return to their school.
Early Help Offer (Please note this should not be confused with the Early Help and Targeted Support Service in Gloucestershire)	Early Help is providing support to children, young people and their families as soon as issues start to arise. When a child, young person or the family need some extra support, Early Help is often the first response offered by those services in contact with them. Every school should have an early help offer. DfE Early Help System Guide P7 - Early Help is the total support that improves a family’s resilience and outcomes or reduces the chance of a problem getting worse.
Early intervention	A child centred approach to understanding and responding to , at the earliest opportunity, barriers to education and/or underlying causes which may put a child at risk of exclusion.
EBSA	Experiencing Barriers in School Attendance
Educated Otherwise Than In School or College (EOTISC), previously known as EOTAS (Education Other Than At School)	A special type of education provided for children and young people who cannot attend mainstream or special schools or college due to specific needs of children and young people with SEND, whose complex needs mean that attending a school or college is not currently suitable. This is not a choice made by parents, but a formal arrangement made through an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP), with the local authority remaining responsible for the child/young person’s education.
EHCP Needs Assessment (EHCNA)	The assessment process undertaken by a local authority when deciding whether an Education Health and Care Plan is necessary.
Electively Home Educated	Children whose parents have taken full responsibility of their child's education and are being educated at home. Sometimes referred to as Home Schooling and not to be confused with Home School (see below).
Exceptional Circumstances	In exceptional circumstances and where it is in the best interest of the child a fully commissioned place may be considered by the LA though the Exceptional Circumstances Panel. For example, a child on the edge of care and on the graduated pathway who is at high risk of exclusion.
Exceptional Provision	Unregistered AP (see Unregistered Provision below)
Fair Access Panel	The Fair Access Panel is a panel of headteachers who consider school allocation for children; in reaching its decision the panel considers the needs of the child, the views of the school/s concerned and parental preference. NB: FAP is not applicable for children with EHCP’s or Children in Care
Fair Access Protocol (FAP)	FAP is a mechanism to ensure that vulnerable children, and those who are having difficulty securing a mainstream school place in year are allocated a place as quickly as possible. For permanently excluded children at The Altus School this is used to support their transition into mainstream. Fair Access Protocol School admission protocols \| Gloucestershire County Council
Full-time placement	All pupils of compulsory school age are entitled to a full-time education (25 hours).
GDM (Governor Disciplinary Meeting)	A locally used term to describe the process where school governors are legally required to consider reinstating a permanently excluded pupil. The governing board must convene a meeting to consider reinstatement within 15 days of receiving notice of the exclusion.
Gloucestershire Hospital Education Service (GHES)	GHES provides education for all students (Reception through to the end of Year 11) who are unable to attend school for medical reasons. GHES is a registered Pupil Referral Unit (PRU) / Registered Alternative Provision School commissioned by Gloucestershire County Council.
Graduated Pathway (My Plan or My Plan+)	Gloucestershire’s Early Help assessment and planning process which provides support to practitioners working with children, young people, and families. Applying a graduated approach (assess-plan-do-review) aims to ensure the right level of support at the right time.
Home school	In Gloucestershire, this is commonly known as a child's mainstream school and refers to the school at which a child is registered. This should not be confused with Home Schooling which is a parent’s active choice to educate their child at home.
Inclusion	Department for Education (DfE) - An educational approach that ensures all students, regardless of their abilities, backgrounds, or disabilities, learn together in the same classrooms. This approach promotes equal access to quality education by removing barriers and providing necessary accommodations to support diverse learning needs.
In reach work (e.g., group work)	Where a child accesses an Alternative Provision School or Special School for a specific activity for a specific amount of time, e.g., Space to Shine.
Intervention	Something that is put in place to support specific needs of a child.
Mainstream schools	A school that is neither - Private, Special or Alternative provision. A mainstream school could be either an LA maintained school, a Diocese School, or an Academy school.
Mainstream SEND provision	Mainstream SEND provision can take the form of resource bases and SEN units. These provisions are formally recognised by the local authority and receive high needs place funding to support pupils with SEND with an EHCP. Pupils are placed in these provisions by the local authority. Resource base - an additional facility within a mainstream school designed to support pupils with specific types of SEND. Pupils accessing a resource base remain on the roll of the mainstream school and spend the majority of their time (usually <50% of their timetable) in mainstream classes. The base provides specialist learning resource areas where pupils can access individual support, learn specific skills, receive therapeutic interventions or use specialist equipment. These facilities may be located in a dedicated suite or dispersed throughout the school. SEN unit - an additional provision within a mainstream school that offers a more structured and separate learning environment for pupils with SEND. Pupils accessing a SEN unit remain on the roll of the mainstream school, but spend the majority of their time in the unit, only attending mainstream classes for selected lessons, assemblies or lunch. SEN units include classroom(s) designed for small groups of pupils and provide tailored teaching and support to meet their individual needs.
Missing education	A child who is missing education will be struggling to access an educational setting, or the education setting is not known. There are different terms for this: - Children missing education - CME - are children of compulsory school age who are not registered pupils at a school and are not receiving suitable education otherwise than at a school. (P.5. Children Missing Education Children Missing Education) Pupils missing out on education - are those on roll but not attending or not able to attend.
Off-site Direction	When a governing board of a maintained school requires a pupil to attend another education setting to improve their behaviour. Off-site direction should be used to arrange time-limited placements at an Alternative Provision School or another mainstream school, where interventions or targeted support have not been successful in improving a pupil’s behaviour. This has to be regularly reviewed by the governing board.
Off-Site Provision	Education delivered away from the main school site, e.g., vocational placements. Must be quality assured and meet safeguarding standards.
Outreach work	Where Alternative Provision or Special School staff support staff and/or children in their mainstream school, or at a local venue or satellite centre.
Partnership Places	A short-term placement at an Alternative Provision School which is commissioned by a mainstream school (referral criteria applies).
Part-time placement	A placement that does not take up a full 25-hour week, for example, this might be where a child at risk of exclusion is on a support package and attends 2 or 3 days a week.
Part-time timetable	All pupils of compulsory school age are entitled to a full-time education. In very exceptional circumstances there may be a need for a temporary part time timetable to meet a pupil’s individual needs. For example, where a medical condition prevents a pupil from attending full time education and a part time timetable is considered as part of the re-integration package.
Permanent Exclusion	When a pupil is permanently excluded and barred from the school premises. Only the head teacher has the power to make this decision.
Pupil Referral Unit (PRU)	Pupil Referral Units (PRUs) are a Local Authority school that caters for children who have been permanently excluded or who are notable to access a mainstream school place. (The Altus School and GHES are registered as PRUs)
Referral process	The process which the LA and schools go through to access support from The Altus School. Only schools or LA professionals can make referrals through the electronic system called JADU.
Registered School	A school must be registered with OFSTED if it offers full–time education and has five or more pupils of compulsory school age; is independent; has one or more pupils with an Education Health Care Plan (EHCP); or has one or more pupils who are looked after (CiC).
Reintegration	The process by which a pupil returns to and re-engages with the mainstream school environment after disruption and is able to participate academically, socially and emotionally, in a stable, supported and productive manner.
Reintegration Plan	A time-bound, structured plan supporting a pupil returning from AP to mainstream education, including targets, support strategies, and review points.
Section 19 Duty (Education Act 1996)	The legal responsibility requiring local authorities to provide suitable full -time education for pupils unable to attend school due to exclusion, illness, or other reasons.
Single Registration	Where the pupil is registered solely at the AP provider (usually Tier 3 or Section 19 placement).
Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND)	A legal term referring to a child with a learning difficulty or disability which calls for education provision that is additional to, or different from, provision made generally available for other children of the same age.
Specialist Setting (previously known as Special School)	Schools that are specifically for children with EHCP that can provide a comprehensive support around specific needs.
Statutory duty	Something that is written in statute and law.
Suspension (previously known as a fixed term exclusions)	When a pupil is barred from the school fora fixed amount of time (including exclusions during lunchtime).
Tiered Model of AP	A graduated system of support used by some LAs and AP schools: Tier 1: Outreach support to mainstream schools Tier 2: Short-term or preventative placements (usually dual-registered) Tier 3: Full-time placements for pupils meeting Section 19 duties
The Altus School	The Altus School is the local authority registered alternative provision school and pupil referral unit.
Unregistered Provision	Unregistered provision delivers short term alternative provision that does not reach the thresholds for a registered school (as described above). If an unregistered provider reaches the thresholds described above, it will be operating as an illegal school.
Virtual School	A statutory team within each local authority responsible for supporting the education of children in care and some previously looked-after children.
Whole school inclusion	All staff supporting the learning, wellbeing and safety needs of all children, so that they belong, achieve and thrive.