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Latest Issue: December 2022

Improving the lives of children with special educational needs and disabilities in the Dudley borough.

Keeping stakeholders, parents and carers informed about Dudley’s
SEND Improvement Programme.

Catherine Driscoll
Director for Children's Services
Dudley Council

Welcome from Catherine

Welcome to our latest SEND Improvement Programme bulletin. Children’s Services has recently undergone some key structural changes, and as we continue to deliver on our promise to ensure children and young people are at the heart of everything we do, I wanted to share a new development with you directly.

New Service Director of Education, SEND and Family Solutions

Sal Thirlway has been appointed as our new Service Director of Education, SEND and Family Solutions.

Joining in February 2023, Sal will lead the council's work for realising the vision and priorities for education, special education needs and disabilities and Early Help services.

Sal has over 30 years' experience of work with children, young people and families. He started his professional career in Sunderland where he studied for his qualification in Youth & Community Work Studies. Since then, Sal has gained a wide range of senior experience in youth, community-based project work, social work, children centres, multidisciplinary teams, Early Help and latterly in the roles of Assistant Director at Milton Keynes, Norfolk County Council and currently at Wokingham Borough Council as Assistant Director, Learning, Achievement and Partnerships.

Sal said "I am delighted to have been appointed to the role of Service Director for Education, SEND and Family Solutions, as it brings together so many parts of my professional experience in a way that will enable me to further develop the great work that is happening right now for children in Dudley. As a former student of the local college, I have a real affinity with the borough, so this is like coming home in some respects."

Sal lives in a small village on the Staffordshire/Shropshire border with his wife, two children and their French Bulldog. He is an avid Star Wars fan and general film buff, likes cooking, and has recently found the virtues of audio-books.

At the end of this bulletin, you will find an updated list of key contacts and stakeholders for our SEND Improvement Programme. If you have any questions or are unsure who to contact, please get in touch with our Head of SEND, Julia Dean.

Thank you for your continued support,

Catherine.

Vision, Road Map and Accelerated Action Plan (APP)

Following the Ofsted and Care Quality Commission (CQC) revisit of SEND in Dudley in early 2022, inspectors confirmed that the local area had made sufficient progress in eight of the fourteen areas of significant concern identified at the May 2019 inspection.

We were subsequently required to submit an Accelerated Progress Plan (APP) for the remaining six areas.

Update from Dudley Carers Alliance and Dudley Carers Hub

Updates including information about Carers Week 2023 and upcoming events for you to attend.

Integrated Early Years’ Service

Integrated Early Years have been carrying out some partner stakeholder engagement events over recent weeks in relation to the continuing review of Early Years’ Service.

The purpose of the engagement exercises has been to obtain the views of as many people as possible who have been involved with /used Early Years Services and provision in Dudley including Specialist Nurseries.  This includes parents of children with emerging and additional needs across the borough and the professional networks involved with families and their children. 

Events have been face-to-face and virtual to ensure we reach as wide an audience as possible. A survey is also on the Local Offer.

Parent and partner engagement continues to be extremely valuable, hearing their feedback and contributions on what they value and what they want for children going forward.  

Events and Workshops 

Dudley SENDIASS (special educational needs & disabilities information advice and support service) is running a range of activities in the Spring to help parents and carers or young people with SEND.

New joint framework for inspecting provision for children and young people with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) within a local area

The Office for Standards in Education, Children Services and Skills (Ofsted) and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) have (29 November) launched a new joint framework for inspecting provision for children and young people with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) within a local area.

Dudley Council SEND Team – Update to Education, Health and Care Needs Assessment

The SEND Team has made changes to support the delivery of our statutory duties in respect of SEND, in particular, the 20-week timescale for an Education, Health and Care (EHC) needs assessment and the delivery of high-quality Education, Health and Care EHCPs in order that we achieve the best possible outcomes for our children and young people.

Local Offer

Dudley’s Local Offer is a one stop resource of information and services available to children and young people (aged 0-25) with Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities (SEND), their parents, carers and families. A useful list of FAQs regarding SEND and the Local Offer has been pulled together.

Preparing for Adulthood: Access to work scheme: support for individuals with a disability or health condition

Access to Work is a government scheme that can pay for extra support to help individuals start or stay in work. The support that individuals are offered will be based on their needs and could include a grant to help cover the costs of practical support in the workplace.

SEN Support – The Graduated Support Pathway for children/young people with SEND

Every school is required to identify and address the SEN of the pupils and use their best endeavours to make sure that the pupils with SEN gets the support they require. SEN support is where a pupil has a learning difficulty or disability that requires special educational provision that is different from or additional to that normally available to pupils of the same age. Schools must take action to remove barriers to learning and put effective special educational provision in place.

DCVS are recruiting a Senior Development Officer (Children, Young People and Families)

Are you self-motivated, enthusiastic and passionate about children and young people? Dudley CVS are recruiting for a Senior Development Officer (Children, Young People and Families) for 37 hours per week

Salary: £33,000–£36,000k. Closing date 6 January 2023.

Spread the word about the SEND bulletin!

If someone you know is interested in receiving this communication, please share the following link so as they can sign up to receive the latest SEND-related news and events: 

https://public.govdelivery.com/accounts/UKDUDLEYMBC/signup/31736

More information:

Visit the Local Offer website to learn more about the services available in the borough. To find out more about the SEND Improvement Programme, please visit Dudley's Health and Wellbeing Board. 

Useful contacts:

• Interim Head of SEND – Julia Dean julia.dean@dudley.gov.uk
• Interim Head of CDT – Claire Joyce claire.joyce@dudley.gov.uk
• SEND Manager - Sue Powell susan.powell@dudley.gov.uk
• SEND Programme Manager – Simon Hickman simon.hickman@dudley.gov.uk