You Said, We Did - Spring 2018

SEND and Inclusion

You Said We Did

Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) template would read better if the child/young person’s primary need came first in section B of the Plan which details the child/young person Special Educational Needs

 

We implemented this change of template. We also amended the outcomes section of the Plan to mirror section B. We have broken down section F of the plan which details provision so that provision matches up with the needs of the child/young person

The letter sent out when the Local Authority makes a decision not to assess a child/young person’s Special Educational Needs did not give enough information about how that decision was made. Parent/Carers find it difficult to understand the reasoning behind decisions made

 

The SEN Team has now started to contact the Parent/Carer directly following a no decision so that the reasoning behind it can be fully explained and the Parent/Carer has an opportunity to ask any questions

Schools are unsure who their current SEN Caseworker is

 

The SEN Caseworker school allocation list went out in the school circular in August 2017

The voice of child seemed to be lacking across plans, and was identified as not being recorded in enough detail

 

SEN Casework Managers are now checking that the voice of the child is well represented before a draft Plan is issued

Barnet CCG and Health Providers

You Said We Did

Parents wanted an opportunity to learn about health services, ask questions and feedback about personal experiences

Conducted a survey with 40 parents present at the education training held on 13 September. The feedback directly informed and developed the training which was delivered on 1 February 2018; co-produced with parents with the SEND Designated Medical Officer and Senior Children’s Joint Commissioner (Clinical Commissioning Group / Council)

Pre-School Inclusion Team

You Said We Did

‘Perhaps introduce a newsletter for early years settings’

We will send out regular updates and information via email to each early years setting SENCO and Manager. These will be sent regularly – at least on a termly basis. In addition, our website continues to be regularly updated with information for early years SENCOs to use as well as updates given out at our termly Early Years SENCO forums

‘Please provide weekend training opportunities for staff’

We do provide some limited weekend training opportunities for staff to attend at present. We will ensure that we continue to offer these and will ensure in addition that all staff have access to online learning opportunities too - see below

‘Please provide basic online training for staff to understand the foundation of inclusion and special educational needs’

We will be highlighting to all setting staff the free opportunities for early years SEN webinars and guidance documents on the NASEN website. This will ensure that any staff member can access relevant early years SEND up-to-date information and can work through training at a convenient time for the individual. In addition our Pre-school Inclusion Team website is updated regularly to ensure that staff have access to relevant information, Barnet specific guidance documents and forms at all times

‘Provide training in the afternoons as this is an easier time to get cover’

We will continue to offer training sessions at different times of the day to suit as many people as possible including in the afternoons and will ensure that this continues going forward

’Provide online guidance and advice to parents’

The remit of the Pre-school Inclusion Team is to support nurseries but of course we are always available to speak to parents too. We will liaise with the teams that work directly with parents about other ways of offering support and guidance to parents. We also promote the Barnet Local Offer website as a starting point for parents of children with SEND to go to in order to find information

‘Visit each term as routine’

The Pre-school Inclusion Team offers a tailored service to each early years setting. We aim to visit each early years setting at least on a termly basis. For some settings who require more support this may be twice or more times per term depending on the need. For some early years settings who do not require intensive input we will contact the setting via phone or email to ensure that all is going well in the setting. A decision about whether to visit a setting where there is limited need during a particular term will be taken by the Area SENCO together with the setting SENCO and manager

‘Better communication between outside services and nursery and wishing referral waiting times to be shorter’

The Pre-school Inclusion Team does not operate a waiting list so consultations to nurseries are offered as the need arises. Unfortunately we have no jurisdiction about numbers of children referred to outside agencies (health, education, social care) and how long these waiting list are. We will always support early years settings to make appropriate referrals and to provide appropriate evidence with the referral. Whilst settings are waiting for a particular outside professional, the Area SENCO is available to give advice and guidance

‘Area SENCO should spend time observing children with SEND’

All Area SENCOs observe children, if appropriate, follow a settings’ observations and discussions if we feel that an observation by the Area SENCO will add further information to the setting’s observations. These will always be written up with significant points and next steps so that setting SENCOs can use this information for SEN support plans, for discussions with parents and as part of the evidence pack for referrals to other agencies

‘Inclusion Funding to cover a longer period’

The Pre-school Inclusion Team do not have any jurisdiction about how long funding is given to early years settings. This decision is made by the complex needs panel. Funding is usually given for either two or three terms following an application. Sometimes funding is given for one term only if further information is required from the early years setting