Is it inclusive? Blending Mainstream and SEND Curriculum, drawing on KS4 practice — Heather Birtwistle & Anna Messides

Heather Birtwistle — SENCO
Heather became SENCO at Morpeth School in 2024 having joined Morpeth School as deputy SENCO in 2019. Heather leads a team of over 30 staff supporting children with special needs ranging from dyslexia and dyspraxia to visual impairment, physical disability and complex needs and over 100 EHCPs. Wherever possible, Heather believes in identifying ways to enable pupils to access mainstream curriculum whilst recognising that for some pupils, this may not always be the most 'inclusive' solution.

Anna Messides — Deputy Headteacher
Anna has experience of leading on inclusion at a senior level for over 20 years. She currently leads on relationships, behaviour and attendance. Anna has been central to the school’s longstanding work on relationships supported by highly effective systems and practice. One of her most recent projects has been with the school’s internal alternative provision which works as an intervention to support children with a range of needs reintegrating into the mainstream.