Agenda item
SEND Improvement Plan
The Tower Hamlets SEND Improvement Plan sets out the programme of improvement work for the council and partners in relation to SEND, and SEND related, services. It identifies priorities, actions to be taken, lines of responsibility and timescales for delivery. The plan includes the detail of how the Tower Hamlets SEND Strategy 2020 – 2024 will be delivered.
Minutes:
The Board received a presentation from James Thomas - Corporate Director, Children and Culture that outlined the programme of improvement work for the council and partners in relation to Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND), and SEND related, services. It identified priorities, actions to be taken, lines of responsibility and timescales for delivery. The plan included details of how the Tower Hamlets SEND Strategy 2020 – 2024 will be delivered. The main points of the discussion are outlined below:
The Board
v In response to questions noted that work has been underway over the last few months to refresh the improvement plan and this will continue as it is an iterative process. Noted that as part of this process feedback will be sought regularly to ensure that the views and contributions of a wide range of stakeholders can help to strengthen the approach being taken. Work is underway to strengthen and make more systematic the views of children, young people and parents/carers, and the direct involvement of their representatives in driving forward our improvement.
v Was advised that a range of activities have been taken place over the last few months to review and revise the SEND Improvement Plan including workshops with senior managers and with parents and carers and young people representatives. More recently capacity has been constrained across all services, and in particular health services, as the current wave of the pandemic has worsened, and staff sickness or redeployment has become more of an issue.
v Noted that the aim throughout has been to ensure that the plan is an effective tool to drive improvement work. Work continues with strategic leads to refine and sharpen the focus of the plan. Particular attention continues to be on identifying the most pressing items for improvement, rationalising content to avoid duplication and confirming actions are ‘SMART’ (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and timely). Also, that a set of priority areas for indicators have been identified, and these are currently being reviewed by the SEND Improvement Board. These will help to clarify the focus of attention for the improvement plan. The proposed indicators are set out below with details of how the improvement plan addresses them.
v In response to the presentation noted that the Partnership has started to work to ensure that procedures are in place to agree a plan of action to secure SEND provision in line with the statutory responsibilities to meet the needs of young people as part of the local offer and captures the range of health services available relevant to children and young people with a disability. The intention is that local health practitioners will bring those children who may have SEND to the attention of LBTH so they can consider whether an assessment is necessary, and work with parents on this. Then the health practitioners will contribute to any co-ordinated Education, Health and Care (EHC) Assessment. As well as ensuring that (i) health care provision as specified in the EHC plan is made available; (ii) the Local Offer including relevant contracts with providers reflects the needs of the local population; and includes information about health care provision for children and young people with SEND.
v Wished to see what specific plans to address needs for all high functioning students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) at secondary level and wanted to know what specific plans to support children in that age group.
v Stated that it was important to create appropriate settings in secondary schools for students with ASD and was concerned that demand for places for pupils with SEND is increasing and many are being sent out of the Borough and such “out of borough” replacements which are costly and require children to undertake stressful journeys. Therefore, the Board wanted to look at increasing SEND provision at local secondary schools and to support teaching staff to have the right skill sets.
v In response to questioning it was noted that the Education Partnership strongly believes in the importance of inclusion for all pupils. This belief is at the heart of SEND practice and ensures students reach their full potential. The Education Partnership is committed to developing a creative and challenging curriculum to ensure all students, irrespective of their needs, thrive and succeed. Therefore, students with SEND have the same opportunities to take part in enriching experiences as their peers.
v Agreed on the importance of keeping the programme of improvement work on the agenda to maintain an understanding where the challenges are and to have honest conversations between partners to address any challenges.
v Commented that they acknowledged that schools have worked tirelessly to support young people during the pandemic, facing daily challenges, difficult decisions and changing national guidance.
v Was concerned that there is a potential risk that children with SEND will be disproportionally impacted by the pandemic, unless agencies and services for children and young people with SEND are given additional support.
v Were informed that the programme of improvement will ensure that there are more opportunities and better information about care and education across the Borough. In addition, it was noted that the intention is to make it simpler for parents/carers to be involved in major decisions regarding their children’s needs.
As a result of discussions on the report it was RESOLVED to consider a further report at the next meeting.
Supporting documents:
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SEND Improvement Plan - Report to Health Wellbeing Board (002), item 5.
PDF 253 KB
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SEND Improvement Plan - Feb 2021, item 5.
PDF 816 KB