At Star Primary School, an Inclusion Quality Mark Flagship school, the aim is to remove barriers to learning so that every pupil gets an ambitious, high-quality education, whatever their needs.
Faria Alam, Assistant Head of Inclusion & SENCO, explains how Evisense helps her team capture evidence of learning, focus on what each child can do next, and give parents real confidence in their child’s abilities.
From photos “all over the place” to evidence that counts
Before Evisense, teachers were collecting photographs, but they were scattered and hard to use. Teaching assistants – who Faria describes as the school’s “biggest strength” – were seeing children achieve new things every day, but had no easy way to capture it.
Now TAs record evidence on their iPads in Evisense, linked to each child’s small next steps in Connecting Steps. Because they know what each child is working towards, they know exactly what to look for.
“The question is not, ‘Has this child met this outcome?’ The question is, ‘What is the next step?’ We are not judging the child. We are there to see what the child is able to do next, what their strengths are, and how we can support them further.”
Showing progress for every child with SEND
Using Evisense alongside B Squared’s Connecting Steps assessment software, Star Primary evidences SEND progress in small steps. This is used for annual reviews, EHCP reviews, high needs funding applications and SEND review meetings. Faria calls Evisense “the cherry on the cake for Connecting Steps”.
It’s just as valuable for children on SEN support who don’t meet the threshold for an EHCP, such as children with social, emotional and mental health (SEMH) needs, speech and language difficulties or delay in some areas. When a speech and language therapist sets interventions, staff capture what the child achieves in Evisense, so progress is visible and shared.
“I did not know my child could do that”
Parents of neurodivergent children can understandably focus on what their child finds difficult. In the past, when staff told parents their child could communicate, follow two-step instructions or use new life skills in school, parents would often say, “No, they can’t do it at home.”
Now the school can share photo and video evidence through Evisense, and that changes the conversation.
“When parents look at that, they’re like, ‘I did not know my child could do that.’ It’s that wow moment, where you can show, yes, your child is able to – let’s practise this more at home. It’s about giving parents confidence in what their child can do.”
The result? As Faria puts it, assessment at Star Primary is now “a genuinely joined-up, working process, not an end-of-term tick-box exercise.”
Find out more about Star Primary School
👉 Watch Faria’s full video for more details on the school’s approach to assessment
👉 Read the case study – Ensuring better outcomes for children with SEND
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