Imagine you are a supply teacher: you have worked in three schools over four days, each in a different city.

At the next school, you are given cover work and your class lists. You step into the first class, ready to teach.

But wait a moment: who are these students? Which members of the class do you need to keep a close eye on in case they need extra support? Will anyone struggle to read the board? Who might have to ask for some time out?

Schools should always provide supply teachers with relevant information on students with SEND. But sometimes this does not happen.

So, here is my checklist for what every supply teacher needs to know about the children they are teaching when it comes to SEND.

1. Make sure they know the basics

When teaching supply in any school, it is reasonable to expect to receive the following basic information:

• A list of classes, including information on the various needs of the students.

• Clear, unambiguous information for each lesson about staff that the teacher can call on if they have any in-lesson queries or issues, and how to call for support if needed.

• Names, possibly photos and the location of key staff: cover coordinator/HR officer, heads of relevant departments, the Sendco, behaviour-support staff, heads of key stages.

• At least a summary of any code of conduct and details of any reasonable adjustments the school makes to meet the needs of its SEND students.

2. Provide the SEND register

Every school will have its own version of a “register” of those students who have special educational needs and disabilities. The details for the students in the classes that the supply teacher will be teaching should be provided. The best schools will have registers that contain information not only on the relevant SEND of each individual, but also on strategies to use with that young person in the classroom. Many schools will now include photos of the young people with the most complex needs, as part of the bespoke information pack they can offer supply colleagues.

3. Provide information on additional adult support

When teaching supply, having an additional adult in the room who knows the children - whether that is a teaching assistant/learning-support assistant or a regular volunteer - can be the difference between a successful, positive experience for everyone, and a lesson in which things go wrong, leaving the teacher and students with negative emotions.

On most occasions, the additional adult will have background knowledge and experience of the students with SEND, which can be invaluable.

Notify a supply teacher in advance if they will have support from another adult in the lesson and, if possible, arrange a conversation between the two ahead of time.

4. Other SEND documents that can help

The SEND information report and the school’s SEND policy are documents that every supply teacher should be provided with.

Of these two documents, the SEND information report is by far the more important and the most pertinent when it comes to working in a classroom with young people with SEND.

The school’s information report is a working document: it should tell the story of provision at the school.

Garry Freeman is director of inclusion at a secondary school in the north of England and an associate consultant for Nasen