SEND Joint Commissioning Strategy Action Plan for Children and Young People 0 - 25 years old with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and their Families within South Tyneside

Published 26th January 2022 An accessible document from southtyneside.gov.uk

Action Plan

For All Children and Young People to have the best start in life, through the delivery of the Partnership’s shared vision.

Action Plan
Priority	Actions	Why we are doing this	Impact we will have
Preparing for Adulthood (post 16 transition planning)	Support children and young people to develop skills to support them into adulthood, such as: employability skills - opportunities for training and work experience; advice for independent travel; budgeting. Develop relationships with local employers to achieve this action. These opportunities should be provided at the earliest opportunity and before the age of 16.	To support the young person to live as independently as possible. Best Practice.	Rate of NEET will reduce. Young people are aware of what opportunities is open to them.
	Children and young people and their parents and carers have access to the help and support they need so that they feel prepared when they move from one provider to another, or into adult services	To help families feel supported as they transition through into adulthood.	Families will feel supported.
	A family approach is developed when a young person turns 18 to ensure those who may not have capacity to make some decisions are still supported to live safely.	Families tell us that some young people are not able to cope with decisions to be made as soon as they turn 18.	Families can continue to support their child as they move into adulthood.
	Inclusive support is provided to children and young people with SEND needs as they transition through their education.	Children and young people are able to access support as equals.	Children and young people with SEND needs are afforded the same opportunities as those who are non-SEND.
Preparing for Adulthood (post 16 transition planning)	Review the pathways, processes and support mechanisms for a managed transition to Adult Services, enabling young people with SEND to access the support that meets their needs.	This will provide pathways which young people can access to give them the best opportunities as they reach adulthood.	Young people are better equipped to move into adulthood.
Preparing for Adulthood (post 16 transition planning)	Ensure Annual Health Checks are accessed from age 14+. Annual Health Checks for children and young people with Autism without a learning disability and how post 18 can be supported to access IAPT services.	Young people have appropriate support and early intervention is identified where required. Awareness is given to practitioners to understand challenges facing young people and adults when accessing services.	Better health outcomes by early identification and intervention provided to young people.
Develop the short breaks offer	Review and redesign the short breaks offer in line with feedback from parents and carers.	Children and young people with disabilities are able to spend time away from their main carers, and parents and carers are able to take a break from their caring responsibilities.	Children and young people with SEND needs develop some independence. Prevent carer breakdown.
Review and Refresh the Local Offer	Refresh the Local Offer on the LA website and communicate how to access this to families in the borough.	Children, young people and their families can access information on how they can access support to meet their need.	Children, young people and their families understand how to access information to meet their need.
Review and Refresh the Local Offer	Work with services to ensure they are inclusive for those children and young people with SEND needs.	Children and young people feel confident in the health services they receive.	Appointments kept; families feel supported by the health professional.
Build capacity in mainstream provision and improve inclusive practice	Review where training is required in order to; Training is provided to education settings to support children and young people to remain in the school setting. Due to more children and young people with Autism attending a high rate of special schools within ST, more training is required to both parents and carers, and school settings to understand conditions such as autism to be better equipped to offer appropriate support	To reduce illegal inclusions. Children and young people are supported within a mainstream setting.	More children and young people can remain in an education setting. Reduced need for special school places.
	Review the Therapy Offer.	To ensure those with identified need have access to appropriate support.	Reduction in time waiting to access health services. Better outcomes for children and young people.
	Review neurodevelopmental referral pathway within mental health provision and to consider this as a lifespan model.	To offer access to families outside of the mental health pathway.	A clear pathway is available to families and professionals in South Tyneside.
Improve Communication	Ensure there is a streamlined and effective way of communicating with families. Consideration should also be given to foster carers who may not be employed by South Tyneside, but may be looking after a South Tyneside child or young person	Families have told us that some do not know of some of the services on offer in the borough and when new services are developed. Foster carers are equipped with knowledge as to how to access services required for the person they are looking after.	Families have access to clear, relevant and up to date information.
	Consideration to be given to an ‘advice line’ for information; support and signposting to services.	Families feel “lost” and don’t know how to access information and support.	Families are able to access information and guidance
	Health services communicate well together. This includes different hospital trusts across the region. Explore the possibility of access to Rix Wiki.	Families have told us that they often have to “tell their story” multiple times.	When visiting for appointments families do not have to repeat themselves and practitioners are aware of “what matters to them”
Strengthen co-production arrangements for children and young people with SEND, and their families in the development of Joint Commissioned Service	Ensure that the voice of the child, young person, families and carers are included in service development. Encourage co-production throughout remodelling- i.e. CAMHS Remodel, neurodevelopmental offer, behaviour support offer.	Due to restrictions in place due to Covid-19, developing opportunities for face to face coproduction sessions have not been able to take place, which families have told us that they are feel works better than digital.	Services are designed and reviewed with those who have lived experience. Families feel valued.
	Strengthen coproduction arrangements. Reinforce the role of children and young people and parents and carers in the EHC Assessment and Planning processes so that they are able to influence decisions about how best to meet their/or their child’s needs.	Adhering to the Send Code of Practice by including the family in the EHC process.	Families feel like their voice has been heard and they have been included in the process and decisions taken on how needs will best be met.
	Review capacity of the SENDIASS Service and make sure that the Service is able to continue to meet the increased demand for support. Promote the use of the Independent Mediation to families during the EHC Assessment and Planning processes.	To ensure the service is able to function safely.	Families have access to support when they are faced by challenges in education settings.
Identify children with additional needs at the earliest opportunity	Children and young people have access to the right services at the right time so that they achieve their full potential and are able to progress positively into adulthood	To ensure children have the best opportunities to live fulfilling lives.	Children and young people are happier and fulfilled.
	Promote multi-agency collaboration and increase the number of integrated development checks being undertaken.	To ensure any potential interventions are offered at the earliest opportunity.	No delay in accessing service provision for the child/young person.
	Develop a graduated approach to supporting children with additional needs, but do not qualify for an EHC Plan.	Provide an offer of support to those children and young people who do not qualify for an EHCP.	All children with identified SEND needs have access to support
	Enhancing our early help offer and make better links between early help assessments and EHC Plans	Develop more outreach support for families.	More joined-up working between services to better support families in South Tyneside.
	Support is provided to schools and health professionals to identify children and young people whose needs may have changed during the course of the pandemic.	To support those to access the right support at the right time.	Deterioration in presentation is recognised and the child/young person is offered appropriate support.
Improve the experiences of assessment and support planning	Consideration be given to developing a rolling training offer to parents/carers on understanding the EHCP process, including legislation which underpins this; their rights and the rights of their child/young person.	Families told us when this training was invaluable to them, however, some were not able to access all at one time.	Families feel heard and develop an understanding as to the EHCP process and what this means for their child/young person.
	Children and young people and their parents and carers are actively involved in the assessment process and the production and review of their EHC Plans. They have co-ownership of both the process and the decisions taken about how their needs will be met.	The voice of the family is heard.	Families feel their voice is heard and they are embedded in the EHCP process, including review.
	Identify gaps and commission services where needs cannot be met by current commissioned services.	To ensure we meet the needs of the families in South Tyneside.	Families have access to appropriate support.
	Parents and carers will be given a more appropriate amount of time to review and approve the content of their Plans Establish mechanisms for management oversight and for families to be involved in the process.	Families don’t feel rushed when reviewing important documents.	Families feel that they have been included in the process and an appropriate amount of time given for them to have oversight.
	EHCP Plans are robust and embedded in the local area; this includes quality and review. Check quality of EHCP from Health.	Information contained within the EHCP is complete. All professionals have an understanding of the process.	More awareness between professionals.
	Develop SEND dashboard.	Leadership understands the journey for the child/young person with SEND needs to those without.	A better understanding amongst decision makers as to what potential gaps there may be in terms of training opportunities or commissioned services.