SEND Reform in West Berkshire - Briefing for
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Transcript SEND Reform in West Berkshire - Briefing for
SEND Reform in West
Berkshire
Briefings for parents, schools and
practitioners July 2014
What will be covered
Overview of SEND Reforms and underlying
principles – Jane Seymour
The new Education Health and Care
assessment process & EHC Plans – Jane
Seymour
Conversion of existing Statements to EHC Plans
– Nicola Ponton/Tina Norton/Lucy Baker-Smith
QUESTIONS
The Children & Families Act 2014
Reform of systems and processes for meeting
needs of children with SEN & Disabilities
(SEND) arise from Children & Families Act 2014
Takes effect 1st September 2014
Detail is contained in the “SEN & Disability Code
of Practice: 0 to 25 years”, June 2014
There are also several sets of regulations which
accompany The Children & Families Act
Key principles of SEND Reforms
Child and family at the centre of assessment,
planning, decision making – “person centred”
approaches
More choice and control for families
More flexible and creative solutions,
personalised to the individual
Key principles of SEND Reforms
High aspirations for young people with SEND
Effective collaboration between agencies
Holistic, joined up planning
Focus on outcomes including long term life
outcomes
Life outcomes for young people with
SEND
Paid employment, wherever possible
Living as independently as possible
Optimum physical and mental health
Friends and relationships
Being part of community
Overview of SEND Reforms
School Action & School Action Plus replaced by
one SEN category - SEN Support
Local Authorities must publish a “Local Offer”
setting out all services available for children with
SEND and their families
Statementing process replaced by Education
Health and Care Assessments/ EHC Plans
Families have right to request a Personal Budget
as part of EHC Plan
Overview of SEND Reforms cont.
LAs have responsibility for young people with
SEND up to age 25 – FE Colleges come within
same legislation as schools
Young people with SEND over compulsory
school age have legal rights previously held by
parents
Information, advice & guidance services (Parent
Partnership) must be offered to children with
SEND as well as their parents
Overview of SEND Reforms cont.
Information, advice & guidance services must
cover health and social care as well as SEN
Children and young people must be offered
advocacy service where needed
Increased requirements on LAs to offer
disagreement resolution and mediation services
More joint commissioning of services across
education, social care and health
QUESTIONS???
EHC Assessment Process
A new process for EHC Assessments has been
developed with parents, schools and other
agencies
This will replace the statementing process from
1st September 2014
The criteria for EHC Assessment are essentially
same as for statementing
Process will be led by EHC Assessment
Coordinators (3 new appointments)
EHC Assessment Process – how will
it be different?
Much more involvement of child and parents
throughout whole process
Holistic assessment and plan – covering
education, health and care needs and provision
EHC Plan will look and feel very different from a
Statement – more accessible and user friendly
Must be completed in 20 weeks (currently 26)
EHC Assessment Process
Parent / school requests EHC Assessment
Parent is sent “We want to tell you…” pack and
offered support to complete
Covers 6 areas: communication, learning,
behaviour & emotions, health, everyday life,
family & community
Information requested from school (if not a
school request)
Decision re whether EHC Assessment needed
EHC Assessment Process
If decision is not to proceed, SEN
Manager/Assistant Manager meets family with
school and other professionals to plan support
If EHC assessment agreed, Assessment
Coordinator allocated to family
Assessment Coordinator meets family and
reviews “We want to tell you…” document to
ensure child and parents’ views fully
represented, including desired outcomes
EHC Assessment Process
Assessment Coordinator agrees with family what
assessments are needed by which professionals
Professional reports requested – 6 week
timescale
Assessment Coordinator ensures all
professionals providing reports liaise with one
another to avoid duplication and do joint visits /
assessments where appropriate
EHC Assessment Process
Assessments are completed
Assessment Coordinator discusses reports with
parents and offers meeting if needed
EHC Panel considers reports and allocates
indicative budgets
EHC Planning meeting held involving family,
school & other professionals - chaired by EHC
Assessment Coordinator
Assessment Coordinator drafts EHC Plan
EHC Assessment Process
Draft EHC Plan issued, including any direct
payments if requested / agreed
Draft EHC Plan must be issued within 16 weeks
of EHC request (no school named at this stage)
Further discussion with parents if needed
Final EHC Plan issued (with school named)
Whole process must be completed within 20
weeks
Personal Budgets
A “personal budget” is the total resource spent
on a young person, some of which may be given
as a “direct payment” (cash)
Families will be able to request a direct payment
for the education, health and/or care aspects of
the EHC Plan
Direct payments are already given in some
cases for families to purchase social care
provision (children’s and adults’ services)
Personal budgets
Criteria for SEN direct payments are being
developed – requests will be considered case by
case
Health are also developing processes for health
Personal Budgets / Direct Payments – will only
apply to children who meet Continuing
Healthcare Criteria
EHC Plan
“Xxxxxx’s Plan” + photo (if child / parents wish)
Contents page
One page profile at beginning – what others like
about me/ what is important to me/ how best to
support me/ my hopes for the future
Strengths, difficulties & desired outcomes –
communication, learning, behaviour & emotions,
health, everyday life, family & community (in
table format)
EHC Plan
Area of need
1. Communication
2. Learning &
Development
3. Behaviour and
emotions
4. Health
5. Everyday life
6. Family &
Community
Strengths
Difficulties
Outcomes
EHC Plan
Outcome
What needs to
happen
(provision)
Quantity,
frequency,
duration
Who is
responsible
Start date
EHC Plan
Name of educational placement
Type of placement
EHC Funding including any Direct Payments
Review arrangements
Signature
Appendices
EHC Plans
Will specify health and social care provision as
well as SEN provision
Only SEN provision is subject to appeal to SEN
Tribunal
Parents must consider mediation before going to
Tribunal
Parents can go to mediation about health and
care aspects of EHC Plan or follow normal
complaint processes if in disagreement
Reviews of EHC Plans
Will be subject to Annual Reviews which will be
carried out by schools on behalf of Local
Authority (as now)
Annual Reviews of EHC Plans from Year 9 must
consider transition to adulthood
Young person can have an EHC Plan in FE
College, (or apprenticeship or traineeship) but
not in Higher Education
QUESTIONS???