Welcome
Welcome to the December SEND newsletter. In this edition you will find the name of the new SEND model, an update on the Special Partnership Trust new free school and information on free school meals voucher, click below to find out if you are eligible for double vouchers for Christmas.
You will hear from us once more before Christmas with news items for the new year.
The new SEND model has been designed in collaboration with parents and carers, professionals and children and young people with SEND, and aims to ensure that every child or young person gets the support they and their families need and achieve their best in life.
And the winning name chosen by you was… ‘SEND Connect’! We had a very large number of suggestions from individuals, partners and groups. The most popular suggestions were put out in a Facebook poll so everyone had the chance to indicate a preference from the short list.
SEND Connect, which will start to come to life during next year, aims to bring together support services offered through education settings, health services and social care to offer a more streamlined and easily accessible service which can make a real difference to children, young people and their families.
Click here, to find out more about SEND Connect and the SEND Transformation Project.
Free school meals holiday vouchers doubled for Christmas
Families in Devon on low-incomes, whose children receive free school meals, will get extra support this Christmas to help them buy food during the holidays.
Over the past year we’ve provided supermarket vouchers worth £15 per child per week of the school holidays to families who qualify for free school meals, so their children don’t go hungry.
To read the rest of the article and how to access the scheme, click here.
We’re doubling that for Christmas, with an extra one-off £30 supermarket voucher, so families will receive a £60 voucher per child for the two-weeks to help with the additional financial pressure the festive period can bring. You can find out more about the free school meals holiday voucher scheme on our website. |
Our monthly SEND newsletter includes a roundup of important news and updates about SEND services across Devon. The newsletter is written for families of, and professionals working with, children and young people with SEND.
This can include updates from Devon County Council and our SEND Improvement Board, as well as Parent Carer Forum Devon, the Devon Information Advice and Support Service (DIAS), Children and Family Health Devon and NHS Devon.
As part of the SEND Improvement Board updates, news items may come from the following working groups which operate underneath the Board; Coproduction and Communication (which was previous known as Communication and Engagement), Operational Delivery Group, Autism, Early Years, Improving Access to Communication Services and Support and Preparing for Adulthood
From January 2022, the SEND Improvement Board will be changing its name to the SEND Partnership Board to reflect the way we’re all working together with a shared ambition to improve the experiences of children and young people with SEND and their families.
We would really appreciate if you could forward the newsletter onto your networks for them to sign up.
An exciting partnership between Devon County Council, Plymouth City Council and The Special Partnership Trust brings a new free school a step closer
The innovative partnership will deliver a special school providing 120 places for children aged from 5 to 16. The school will become a centre of educational excellence for pupils who have a significant level of ASD and Social Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH) needs.
In a statement the Department for Education confirmed the Special Partnership Trust has been chosen to work with Devon County Council and Plymouth City Council to deliver this resource. Devon County Council is working hard to secure a suitable site well located to serve both Devon’s and Plymouth’s children and young people.
To read more please click here. |
