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1.1         Disability Discrimination Policy

This policy has been formally adopted by the Governing Body of Hereford Cathedral School.  It is the intention of the Governing Body that the policy should be reviewed annually and that it should accord with national legislation.

This policy incorporates the duties of schools under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA) and the DDA 1995 Part IV (as amended by the Special Educational Needs and Disability Act 2001) (SENDDA) and takes full notice of the Code of Practice for Schools published by the Disability Rights Commission (2002).

HCS recognizes that a person, whether staff or pupil, has a disability if he/she has a physical or mental impairment, which substantially and in the long term adversely affects that person’s normal day to day activities.  However, having a disability does not imply that a pupil has for that reason alone “special educational needs” under the terms of the Education Act 1996 and the Code of Practice.  Each pupil with a disability will be given separate consideration and treatment.  It is the school’s policy not to treat a disabled person less favourably for a reason related to his/her disability than a person who does not have a disability, without justification.

The school will also undertake to make reasonable adjustments to admission and curriculum arrangements, and in relation to education and related services, so that disabled pupils are not disadvantaged in comparison with pupils who are not disabled, without justification.  The school recognizes that less favourable treatment may be justified if the reasons are material to the circumstances and substantial.  In addition, non-admission to the school will be deemed to be justified if it results from the school’s selection procedure which does not include criteria to only exclude disabled pupils.  In making reasonable adjustments Hereford Cathedral School will, within the constraints of financial resources, seek to:

1.      make improvements in access to the curriculum for disabled students;

2.      make physical improvements to increase access to education and associated services (e.g. extra-curricular activities);

3.      make improvements in the provision of information in a range of formats for disabled students.

The school aims, within the constraints of resources, to enable each pupil to fulfil his or her potential, within an educational programme that has development of the whole person at its core.  The school will examine each disability case to determine the best adjustments that can be made to accommodate a disabled pupil’s needs.  This will include exploring whether or not behaviour issues have an underlying cause resulting from a disability.

The school will produce an annual (Disabled Pupils) Accessibility Plan which will be reviewed by the relevant committees of the full Governing Body.  Regular liaison with parents of disabled pupils will take place.  The school recognizes that through the provisions of SENDDA it is not required to provide “auxiliary aids” (i.e. special equipment or additional personal support), nor make “physical alterations to the buildings” (such as provide lifts).  However, to meet its obligations, the school will seek to ensure that the needs of disabled staff and pupils are fully considered in any strategic planning for the development of the school.  In all of this, the school will bear in mind health and safety requirements and the interests of other pupils.

Annual training will be given to senior staff to ensure understanding of the Disability Discrimination Act and SENDDA so that continued actions may be undertaken to ensure the inclusion of disabled pupils.  Regular staff training will also be undertaken in relation to the needs for learning of particular disabled pupils.

This policy and the Accessibility Plan will be available to all parents and prospective parents on request.  The school will monitor separately the progress, attainment and exclusion of pupils with disability and the Governing Body will review the effectiveness of its policies and the school’s procedures to ensure full compliance with the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (as amended by the Special Educational Needs and Disability Act 2001).