SSIF Seminar; Education, Health, and Care Plan (EHCP) Annual Reviews
TOGETHER WE CAN
MAKE POSITIVE CHANGE
We want greater transparency so that all parents and carers understand what services are available to them and how they can gain access.
Discover how we work, why we do it, the change we make and why we need you
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE INDEPENDENT?
It means that we have no bias to any service or department, we can speak freely about what is working and what is failing in our SEND community. We can act as a critical friend without prejudice to the local authority and various boards and services, as and when they make decisions. We can raise concerns and divert attention to how these decisions will directly impact our families, we can steer change realistically with high expectations and equality for all. We are included in the vote to agree or disagree with how services are to be created and amended. Our job is to be specific and realistic with the various departments we encounter. Our independence means that we can explain to our community what decisions have been made and why.
LATEST NEWS
The NNPCF together with other Stakeholders attended a Roundtable meeting this week with Minister McKinnel, the Minister of Education which focused on Special Educational Needs & Disabilities (SEND). The meeting provided an opportunity to discuss the ongoing speculation surrounding SEND and Inclusive Education. The Minister shared insights into the government’s direction and engaged with key stakeholders. Read more about the meeting.
SSIF are members of the National Network of Parent Carers (NNPCF). The Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced that the government plans to abolish NHS England and bring it into the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), the government believe that this will remove a layer of bureaucracy and will eliminate duplication between DHSE and NHSE. NNPCF have delivered a statement in response to the announcement confirming what work they intend to do to represent the voices of ParentCarers and children and young people with SEND. Read both the press release and the NNPCF statement.
Highlights film now available! SSIF attended the Contact & NNPCF Joint in-person Conference on Tuesday 4th February 2025 at the Mercure Northampton. It was fantastic to catch up with other Parent Carer Forum's nationally to share ideas and experiences, discuss best practise and learn more about what is happening in other areas. Watch the Highlights film from the day . We are so pleased to have attended and found it incredibly valuable, we are already looking forward to next year!
The Department for Education and the Council for Disabled Children have recently published two sets of guidance to support school governing boards in understanding their role and responsibilities in relation to children and young people with special educational needs (SEN) and disabilities and empowering them to hold their schools to account. This updated guidance from the Department for Education provides a high level summary of the expectations of boards in relation to disability and SEN. It includes a checklist for governors/trustees and suggestions about how to use school performance data and build an evidence base to underpin its strategic oversight. Download and read the document here. Equality Act 2010 and disabled pupils: A guide for governors and trustees can be found here. The Council for Disabled Children guide which was commissioned by the Department, focuses in more detail on the Equality Act duties to disabled pupils. It sets out the individually owed duties and the more strategic duties; and again it promotes a discussion about the evidence that governing boards need in order to understand how well the duties are being met in their school. To illustrate how the duties work in practice, the guide uses examples from schools and from case law where claims of disability discrimination have gone to the Tribunal. At the back of the guide is a set of checkpoints that schools can use to inform a discussion between senior leaders and their governing body or board of trustees. The new guide is a companion publication to the 2022 Disabled Children and the Equality Act 2010: What teachers need to know and what schools need to do which offers teachers more detailed practical guidance on meeting the duties to disabled pupils, read more about it. We hope very much that the guidance will help governors and trustees in their school securing the best possible outcomes for pupils with SEN and disabilities.
EVENTS
SSIF invite ParentCarers of Children with SEND to their penultimate Seminar this year. ‘Education, Health, and Care Plans (EHCP) Annual Reviews,’ is the fifth in a series of valuable and informative events for ParentCarers that will run throughout the year. This seminar is aimed at ParentCarers who have an Education, Health, and Care Plan (EHCP) in place for their Child or Young Person but would like to find out more about the Annual Review process. We will aim to answer questions such as: What does an Annual Review entail? Which services are involved? What can I do if my Child or Young Persons Annual Review is delayed? What does the Law say? I have never had an Annual Review, should I have? What is my role and responsibility as a ParentCarer? We have a panel of professionals from the Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities (SEND) Team, Health and Education, who will talk about the assessment process. They will also bust some common myths. We are inviting ParentCarers to submit any questions they have for the panel by email, by Thursday 1st May 2025, via email, to jody@southendsendindependentforum.org.uk. This is to save time in the room on the day as our speakers will build their presentations around the answers to these questions. There will also be an opportunity for people to participate in a co-production session to develop a useful route map/flow chart of the EHCP Annual Review process. Please Note: Babies, Children and Buggies. For insurance reasons and Health and Safety reasons we apologise but babies, children and buggies cannot be accommodated at these sessions. Parking. There is limited parking available at the main Civic Centre Car Park. Other nearby car parks are available at Civic Centre East Car Park SS2 6LR, and the Beecroft Car Park SS2 6EU. Book your FREE ticket.
We know that some of you have shared that coffee mornings can be difficult to attend so we have organised a Drop-In Event once every half term. The session is open to everyone, ParentCarers looking to find out more about what the Forum does, professionals who want to understand our role and those who would just like to join us for a hot drink and a natter. We will be sharing the dates of the sessions on our social media channels so be on the lookout for future dates. We look forward to seeing you there!
Southend SEND Independent Forum (SSIF) continues its series of valuable informative events for ParentCarers of children with SEND with the fourth seminar of the year: "Education, Health and Care Needs Assessment (EHCNA)”. This seminar is aimed at ParentCarers who have applied for or are thinking about applying for an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP), but would like to find out if it is necessary or right for their Child or Young Person. We will aim to answer questions such as: What does an EHCNA entail? Which services are involved? What happens after the assessment? What is my role and responsibility as a ParentCarer? We have a panel of professionals from the Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities (SEND) Team, Health and Education, who will talk about the assessment process. They will also bust some common myths. We are inviting ParentCarers to submit any questions they have for the panel by email, by Monday 10th March 2025, via email, to jody@southendsendindependentforum.org.uk . This is to save time in the room on the day as our speakers will build their presentations around the answers to these questions. There will also be an opportunity for people to participate in a co-production session to develop a useful route map/flow chart of the EHCNA process. Book your tickets here.
SSIF invite ParentCarers of Children with SEND to our third Seminar this year. ‘Support Plans, ISPs, Support Whilst Waiting for EHCNA and EHCP’ is the third in a series of valuable an informative events for ParentCarers that will run throughout the year. This seminar is aimed at ParentCarers who are not sure of the support and information available to them and their families whilst they are waiting for an Education and Health Care Needs Assessment (EHCNA) or an Education and Health Care Plan (EHCP). We will aim to answer questions such as: What is an Individual Support Plan (ISP), and who is it for? What are Reasonable Adjustments and can I expect them to be made for my child? What is the SEN Register? What is SEN Support? What can I do to support my child or young person at home? Are there any workshops or webinars I can access? We have a panel of professionals from the Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities (SEND) Team, Health and Education, who will talk about what support is available and how to find it. They will also bust some common myths. We are inviting ParentCarers to submit any questions they have for the panel by email, by Monday 20th January 2025, via email, to jody@southendsendindependentforum.org.uk There will also be an opportunity for people to participate in a co-production session to develop a useful route map/flow chart of the Support Whilst Waiting process. Book your ticket here.
