Ordinarily Available Provision (OAP)
At Oak Farm Primary School, we believe that inclusion begins in the classroom. Every child should experience high-quality teaching, feel a sense of belonging and have the support they need to participate, learn and achieve.
Our Ordinarily Available Provision (OAP) describes the everyday teaching approaches, adaptations and resources that we provide to remove barriers to learning. These strategies form part of our universal inclusive offer and are available to children according to their individual needs, whether or not they have an identified Special Educational Need or Disability (SEND).
OAP is not about providing an entirely different curriculum. It is about making thoughtful adaptations to how we teach, communicate, organise our classrooms and support children's independence.
The right support, at the right time, in the right way.
What does OAP look like at Oak Farm?
Our approach is informed by Hillingdon's Ordinarily Available Provision guidance and adapted to reflect the needs of our school community.
In practice, this includes:
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Attention and concentration: predictable routines, visual timetables, movement breaks, reduced distractions and manageable learning steps.
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Communication and interaction: clear language, visual supports, processing time, modelling and opportunities for meaningful interaction.
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Cognition and learning: scaffolded activities, explicit modelling, practical resources, pre-teaching, repetition and opportunities to revisit learning.
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Executive functioning and working memory: checklists, timers, structured instructions, memory aids and support with organising and completing tasks.
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Social, emotional and mental health: positive relationships, consistent routines, emotional literacy, regulation strategies and supportive environments.
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Sensory and physical needs: reasonable adjustments, accessible resources, environmental adaptations and opportunities for movement and sensory regulation.
These approaches benefit many children, not just those with SEND. Teachers select and adapt strategies in response to the needs of the pupils in their classrooms.
Explore our OAP
Our school OAP document provides practical examples of the strategies used across Oak Farm to make learning accessible and promote independence.
Oak Farm's Ordinarily Available Provision – View our school offer
We also work in line with the London Borough of Hillingdon's guidance, which outlines the support that schools should ordinarily make available to meet a wide range of needs.
Hillingdon's Ordinarily Available Provision – Read the guidance
Total Communication – removing barriers to understanding
Communication is central to our inclusive classroom practice. At Oak Farm, our whole-school Total Communication approach combines spoken language with visuals, gestures, signing, symbols and communication resources to help children understand, express themselves and participate confidently.
These strategies are embedded within our OAP and benefit children at different stages of communication development.
Explore Total Communication at Oak Farm
Emotional Regulation – understanding ourselves
Recognise it. Understand it. Respond to it.
At Oak Farm, we recognise that children need to feel emotionally safe and regulated to engage successfully in learning.
We use our own adapted approach to the Zones of Regulation, placing particular emphasis on developing children's understanding of what is happening inside their bodies, rather than simply identifying or labelling emotions.
Through supported reflection and regular opportunities to body-scan, children learn to recognise their own internal signals, such as changes in breathing, heartbeat, muscle tension, energy levels or feelings of restlessness.
Our approach helps children to:
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Notice – recognise physical sensations and early signs that their emotional state is changing.
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Understand – connect these internal signals with feelings, experiences and possible triggers.
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Respond – identify and use personalised strategies that help them meet their needs and regulate.
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Reflect – develop increasing awareness of which strategies work best for them.
We teach children that all emotions are valid and that moving between different Zones is a normal part of life. The aim is not to label feelings as good or bad, but to help children understand themselves, recognise early warning signs and develop the confidence to respond before becoming overwhelmed.
For some children, this involves universal classroom teaching and visual resources. Others may benefit from more personalised emotional regulation toolkits, adult coaching or targeted intervention.
Our long-term aim is to develop self-awareness, independence and lifelong emotional regulation skills – not simply to manage behaviour in the moment.
Supporting emotional regulation at home
Families can explore the resources below to understand the language and approaches used in school.
Oak Farm's Zones of Regulation – Staff and Family Information
Zones – areas of the body visual
When does a child need additional support?
Our OAP provides the foundation of inclusive teaching for all pupils. However, we recognise that some children will need additional, targeted or more personalised support.
Where concerns arise, teachers work closely with families, the SENDCo and, where appropriate, external professionals to understand the child's strengths, needs and barriers to learning.
We use the Graduated Approach – Assess, Plan, Do, Review – to plan appropriate support, monitor progress and adapt provision as necessary.
Children do not need a diagnosis to benefit from ordinarily available strategies, and receiving classroom adaptations does not automatically mean that a child has SEND.
Our aim is always to provide the most appropriate support while maintaining high expectations, promoting independence and enabling children to participate fully in school life.
Working together
We believe that parents and carers are essential partners in understanding what helps their children learn, communicate and regulate successfully.
If you would like to discuss the strategies being used to support your child, please speak to their class teacher in the first instance. Our SENDCo, Mrs Samantha Hunt, is also available to provide further advice and guidance.