Agenda item

The Children’s and Education Select Committee had agreed to set up a rapid review in November 2022 with the aim of investigating the pathways to finding information for children and young people with SEND when first trying to access services and support. This involved:

(a)               assessing views from different sources with regards to the availability and accessibility of information required by parents to gain support from services for their children, and

(b)               gaining understanding on information for services specifically relating to gaining help for children with autism, ADHD and anxiety/depression.

The group took part in a range of evidence gathering sessions from November 2022 to March 2023 with a wide range of council officers, through visits to primary, secondary, grammar and special schools, with lead professionals from related organisations and by interviewing parents with SEND children.

The final stage of evidence gathering with individual meetings with parents provided a crucial insight into the first-hand experiences of parents in accessing the system of services potentially available to them when concerned about gaining help for their child. This process highlighted a range of issues such as difficulties in knowing where to go for assistance, how to gain diagnoses, and symptoms being recognised and supported.

The review was chaired by Councillor Diana Blamires and comprised Councillors Sarah James, Sophie Kayani, Paul Turner and Julie Ward.  Following the evidence gathering meetings the review group then met to discuss and agree its key findings and recommendations, which were presented in the report found at Appendix 1.

Cabinet was asked to consider the recommendations of the Select Committee Review.

RESOLVED

1. That the Pathways for Children with SEND Review Group, as well as the supporting officers, be thanked for their work and subsequent recommendations. 
2. That Cabinet’s responses to the Pathways for Children with SEND Review report and recommendations, as set out and circulated to Members, be agreed. 

Note: a complete breakdown of the scrutiny recommendations and Cabinet’s responses can be found here.

The Children’s and Education Select Committee had agreed to set up a rapid review in November 2022 with the aim of investigating the pathways to finding information for children and young people with SEND when first trying to access services and support. This involved:

(a)               assessing views from different sources with regards to the availability and accessibility of information required by parents to gain support from services for their children, and

(b)               gaining understanding on information for services specifically relating to gaining help for children with autism, ADHD and anxiety/depression.

The group took part in a range of evidence gathering sessions from November 2022 to March 2023 with a wide range of council officers, through visits to primary, secondary, grammar and special schools, with lead professionals from related organisations and by interviewing parents with SEND children.

The final stage of evidence gathering with individual meetings with parents provided a crucial insight into the first-hand experiences of parents in accessing the system of services potentially available to them when concerned about gaining help for their child. This process highlighted a range of issues such as difficulties in knowing where to go for assistance, how to gain diagnoses, and symptoms being recognised and supported.

The review was chaired by Councillor Diana Blamires and comprised Councillors Sarah James, Sophie Kayani, Paul Turner and Julie Ward.  Following the evidence gathering meetings the review group then met to discuss and agree its key findings and recommendations, which were presented in the report found at Appendix 1.

Cabinet was asked to consider the recommendations of the Select Committee Review.

The Chairman, Councillor Diana Blamires presented the report. Councillor Julie Ward was also in attendance who was Chairman of the Children and Education Select Committee. 90% of parents who flag that they believe that their child had autism, ADHD, anxiety or depression turned out to be right. It was therefore imperative that they get the advice and information they need when they raise the alarm. Following the Council’s OFSTED report one of the priorities was to provide better guidance for parents and this Review Group was set up to see what support parents could be given. Visits were undertaken to primary, secondary, grammar and special schools. Separately there were 15 meetings with the Council, voluntary groups and other organisations. The Group spoke to parents and looked at best practice from other Councils particularly with information on their websites. She gave some examples of the experiences of parents in obtaining the right support. As well as providing better information to parents from the start of their journey it was recognised that there needed to be improving training of SENCO’s, teaching and nursery staff. They needed to be more aware of behaviours associated with autism, ADHD, anxiety and depression. A parent had flagged an issue at primary school. However because it was only recognised at secondary school level the needs of that child had become more complex. Early intervention was vital and it was important for parents to be supported at the outset. Parents often turned to the internet for help and advice and the term ‘local offer’ on the Council’s website was confusing for parents. Some other Councils used simpler language or videos to help direct parents to the right support. There was also a need for more educational psychologists and trainees. Some parents had to wait years for medication and diagnosis. It would also be helpful for pupils or former pupils to talk about their symptoms and what it felt like, to help other pupils. These recommendations would help parents to get the support they need when they first express their concerns, so they felt validated, empowered and confident.

During discussion the following points were raised:-

·         The report was welcomed including the need for simple language which reflected the voice of the users. It fed into the work of the Integrated Care Partnership across Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West. Another area was the Autism Strategy which was now emerging specifically recommendations 4 and 5 which related to resource packs being developed.  Timeliness of diagnosis was key which needed to be address with partners.

·         A Member also commented that the terminology local offer was misleading; however this was a national term. Some key trigger words needed to be included which would be easily recognised by parents. There would also be an issue of stigma for young people when they first realise there could be a neurodiversity issue. Talks in schools would be particularly useful for girls as only one in four girls were diagnosed as they were good at masking their behaviour. He referred to a community of parents who were home schooling their children and the importance of providing support to them and easily accessible materials. The Chairman of the review said that information should be available to all and should be publicised in key areas such as GP surgeries.

·         Another Member welcomed the report and sharing the neurodiversity resource pack with councillors to improve their understanding of the issues. Simple clear language should be applied across the whole Council website. A question was asked about key priorities and the Chairman of the review commented that length of wait was key but parents should have the information at an early stage so they could be as proactive as possible whilst waiting for a diagnosis.

·         A question was asked about whether this information would be provided in different languages and also reference was made to support being required to those parents who did not want to recognise that their child had special needs. The Chairman of the review said a suggestion was made to use more you tube videos to help with languages. The Leader suggested it would be helpful to have further work undertaken on this area which was endorsed by the Cabinet Member for Communities to understand how some ethnic communities would engage with the process and also concerns about stigma. Teachers could also play a key part in this area as they would have a better relationship with parents.  

The Cabinet Member for Children’s Services and Education welcomed the report and said that enquiries on SEND were escalating, nationally and locally and it was really important that parents had the right information before them. These recommendations would be included in the transformation work being carried out. The Cabinet Member referred to the comment about working with local communities and language needs and she commented that local members often helped their residents on these issues but sometimes were not aware of the pathways themselves.  Neurodiversity awareness was important as all brains did not develop in the same way. All of the recommendations had been accepted by the Caibnet Member with the exception of recommendation 2 as the local offer terminology was from legislation but some clarity could be provided around this terminology.  The Leader also made reference to the need to look at language and cultural issues. The Cabinet Member reported that it would also be helpful to provide training for local members on pathways.

RESOLVED

1. That the Pathways for Children with SEND Review Group, as well as the supporting officers, be thanked for their work and subsequent recommendations. 
2. That Cabinet’s responses to the Pathways for Children with SEND Review report and recommendations, as set out and circulated to Members, be agreed. 

Note: a complete breakdown of the scrutiny recommendations and Cabinet’s responses can be found here.