Hello, welcome to this June edition. Thanks for your contributions for this month's edition. It really would not be possible without you. Please continue to share and spread the word, email: localoffer.news@Bradford.gov.uk
A round-up of what's on and what's new!
- Local Offer Live: Preparation for Adulthood event, Monday 8 July 10am - 5pm. Book now
- SENDIASS coffee morning (in-person), 2 July, 10am until 12 noon. Will focus on school attendance with members of the Education Psychology Team. Book now.
- Helpful information about Emotionally Based School Avoidance.
- Chellow Heights summer Stay & Play - (25, 30 July, 1, 6, 8 Aug). 10am until 2pm. Book by phoning Chellow Heights on 01274 484242, or email julia.warren@chellowheightsschool.co.uk
- #Chromosome Rocks summer festival, 13 July, 1pm until 6.30pm at Keighley Rugby Union Football Club. Book your ticket here.
- BradStarz survey - please help your young person to share their views here.
- Youth Theatre for young people in Bradford, aged 11 to 19 with a learning disability and/or Autism. Every Saturday (term time) 10am until 12 noon. Read more.
- Coleman Training, Supported Internships Programme, starts September 2024. Read more.
- My Life, My City - Bradford district's video/animation competition. For young people aged 11 to 18. Winning movie shown as part of City of Culture 2025. Read more.
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BD: Festival returns to Bradford City Centre on 26 and 27 July. suitable for families. Some free events and some ticketed performances.
- Healthy Minds new website page for LGBTQ+ mental heath centred support. Read more.
Local Offer Live - Preparing for Adulthood event
We have over 30 services already attending, including disability employment advisors, social care preparation for adulthood team and the Short Breaks service. We have over 70 parent/carers including children and young people booked on! Come along to this brilliant opportunity, book now to find out about Preparing for Adulthood.
Young people at BradStarz want to know what you think
Bradford SEND youth forum members (BradStarz) have created a survey aimed at young people up to 25 years of age. Please can you support young people to fill out the survey. The group would like to hear about experiences and use feedback to make improvements and identify opportunities for them to develop within their youth voice work.
Tell BradStarz what you think to services for children and young people living in Bradford district with Special Educational Needs and disabilities. Fill out the survey here.
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SENDIASS coffee morning
Parent/carer coffee morning (school attendance)
2 July, 10am until 12 noon.
This coffee morning is aimed at parents and carers of children and young people of school age with barriers to attendance. Hannah Whittaker and Vicky Morris (from Bradford Council's Education Psychology team) will be attending as guests, so it is a great opportunity to find out more and ask questions.
Please book your free place here, spaces are limited so please do cancel if you can't make it. Thank you.
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Short Break day trips to Inglebrough Hall
The SEND Short Breaks and Specialist Inclusion project are running five day trips during the summer holidays to Inglebrough Hall for children and young people who are aged eight to 18 years, and able to participate with a 1:3 staff ratio.
Day trips will run from Monday 29 July until Friday 2 August 2024 and will include activities like: archery, tree climbing, abseiling, slip and slide, water play and games.
The trips are fully funded and the young people attend without parent/carers.
If you have an questions and/or to check the criteria to attend, or for a booking form, email: halima.kara2@bradford.gov.uk
Family Hubs offer specialist groups
At Rainbow Family Hub (Keighley and Shipley areas) there is a parent-led SEND play session for children aged 6 to 11 years. It runs every Friday 3.30pm until 5pm, and 9.30am until 11am during the school holidays. Book a space, call Rainbow Family Hub on 01535 618005. The Rainbow Family Hub is located at: Braithwaite Grove, Keighley, BD22 6JB
Watch out for other upcoming activities and events on the Bradford Family Hub Facebook pages and the FYI 'whats on' webpage here.
I wanted to help other families with language barriers
Our new series of stories highlight how local parents/carers are getting involved and using their voice and experience to help improve SEND services and support.
This month you can read an inspiring story from
Saima, one of our parent/carer ambassadors:
“My youngest son, has complex medical needs. I knew there were parents in our local community struggling due to language barriers and they often didn’t know how to go about finding out about support. I thought I could get involved to help others." you can read Saima's full story here.
If you would like to express an interest in becoming a parent/carer ambassador then please send an email to the SEND Transformation and Compliance team, email SENDT&C@bradford.gov.uk
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Rewarding experience for Ben and Declan on their supported internship
Our new series of stories share how young people in Bradford are telling us about their experiences so they can help other young people.
Ben and Declan share their experiences of joining the Coleman Training Supported Internships Programme which enables young people to gain a range of work experience and practical skills that they can apply to future job opportunities. They were fully supported with a coach and a tutor and with reasonable adjustments as needed.
You can read Declan and Ben's full story here.
There are currently 12 places available from September for the Supported Internships Programme and you can find out about this and Coleman Training’s other SEND programmes on their website.
Email: info@colemantrainingdevelopment.com Telephone: 07495 051056
The Local Offer Live - preparing for adulthood free event is a great opportunity to find out about all the local opportunities for young people in Bradford with SEND, when taking the next steps to adulthood. Book now.
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Thinking Big - Friends and Family Hub
The Friends and Family Hub, part of Thinking Big charity, are running a free workshop on supporting a young person in distress and reframing challenging behaviour.
At the workshop Laura Hellfeld, a neurodivergent nurse will help to look at why these distress behaviours are happening and teach ways to support someone in distress and how to set boundaries.
- Tues 9 July at Bradford Hub, 10am-2pm
- Wed 10 July at Menston Hub, 10am-2pm
- Wed 10 July - online, 10.05am-2pm
- Thurs 11 July at Keighley Hub, 10am-2pm
To book a space, email friendsandfamily@thinkingbiguk.org
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Emotionally Based School Avoidance project
Bradford’s Educational Psychology Team has started to roll out its Emotionally Based School Avoidance project in partnership with local schools and parent/carer groups.
This month school training has started, and next academic year it is hoped there will be workshops for schools, as well as parent workshops and additional support for young people. The project is also working closely with school attendance officers to increase awareness where attendance difficulties are due to emotion based factors, as we understand what a difficult time this can be for families.
If you are concerned about your child’s attendance, we recommend you keep school informed and ask school to contact the Social Communication Interaction and Learning Team for more information, advice and support. Each school has a designated specialist link teacher.
There is a helpful information sheet from Bradford’s Educational Psychology Team about Emotionally Based School Avoidance, here.
Learning Disability Week 2024
It's Learning Disability Week (Monday 17 - Sunday 23 June 2024) and this year's theme is "Do you see me?" which is all about being seen, heard and valued. You can find many useful resources on the West Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership website to support you with your child or young person who has a learning disability. Including:
SEND noticeboards in Family Hubs and beyond
We are pleased to tell you we have now created specific SEND notice boards, initially in Bradford Family Hubs promoting the Local Offer, local support groups, the one-minute guides and more.
The plan is for our noticeboard posters to be available soon for download by schools, health centres and other public spaces.
We would like to thank the PFBA for supporting us with the development of a poster to share local support groups across Bradford district. We hope to grow the notice boards even further...so watch this space!
If you'd like to be sent the link when available to download these documents, email SENDT&C@bradford.gov.uk
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Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) strategy 2024 - 2028
The new SEND strategy for Bradford district is now live on the Bradford Council website. This strategy sets out the vision and strategic priorities for the Bradford district during the period 2024- 2028 and has been co-produced with families, children and young people.
You will find it on the Bradford Council website, here.
Change to the post-16 transport policy statement
The Parent's Forum asked if there was any changes in the post-16 transport policy statement. Transport have confirmed that there is no change to the Post-16 offer for 24/25 academic year, and the only change to the Post-16 Transport Policy statement 2024-2025 is the following section:
“Those eligible students aged 16 – 18 can choose to access transport by paying a fee. This is currently £370. The fee is set in line with the cost of an Under 19 Bus Only Ticket which may change each year.”
For anyone who missed the 'spotlight on transport event' from the Parents' Forum you can read the responses to questions to the Head of Service and Travel assistance here.
Have you visited the new sensory space in Broadway shopping centre yet?
A new calm space has been created at Broadway shopping centre.
The space is located next to The Hub and includes mood lighting, mirrors, a musical hand and touch wall, an LED colour curtain and an acoustic bed.
Did you know? Broadway has a 'quiet hour' every Tuesday and Saturday from 9am to 10am, where the music is turned down and the shops are less busy.
There is a fully fitted Changing Places facility including an adult-sized, height adjustable changing bench, hoist and plenty of space. The room is located within the main toilet area accessed from Petergate Mall (opposite Footasylum) or through the Food Court.
There are accessible parking bays available on each floor and these are situated near to the lifts for level access.
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