Welcome to the latest bumper edition of Shropshire's SEND newsletter, co-produced by Shropshire Council's SEND Local Offer, PACC (Parent Carer Council) and NHS Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin. 

The newsletter aims to provide easy access to key information for SEND families.

Please do continue to provide feedback on this newsletter, we want this to work for you and we are keen to hear what you think of it, and what articles you'd like to see in future editions. You can email us your thoughts at Local.Offer@Shropshire.gov.uk

There’s another school holiday just round the corner, and we know how some families can find the holidays a challenge with the juggle of work and keeping the children entertained.

If parent carers are looking for thinks to do and places to go, then the Shropshire Family Information Service Directory is the place to visit. Click here for half term fun.

There’s also the Actio activity offer  for those children and young people who are registered for All In Short Breaks and Autism West Midlands have a day of games/crafts and a trip to the cinema, which you can find out more about and book on the Autism West Midlands website.

Being a parent can be tough sometimes. We are here for you with a friendly listening ear and practical advice on everything from behaviours that challenge to sleep issues. No judgment, just support, through this anonymous and confidential service. 

Call 01743 250950 Monday - Thursday, 9.30am - 4.30pm or Friday, 9.30am - 3.30pm or email: parenting.team@shropshire.gov.uk

With an increase in cases of measles being seen across the West Midlands Families across Shropshire are being urged to check that you and your family members are up to date with their MMR vaccine.

Measles is a very infectious viral disease which means it can spread quickly among communities, such as schools and nurseries if people have not had two dose the MMR vaccine.

Children are offered the first vaccination at one year, and the second dose at three years and four months. 

You can check whether you or your child are up to date with the MMR vaccines by looking in your child’s personal child health record (PCHR), known as the red book,  through the NHS app, or by contacting your GP practice.  If anyone has missed one or both doses of the MMR vaccine, they should contact their GP practice to book an appointment. It’s never too late to catch up. 

The first signs of measles are:

• high temperature
• runny or blocked nose
• sneezing
• cough
• red, sore, watery eyes
• rash, which usually appears a few days after cold-like symptoms (sometimes it starts around the ears before spreading to the rest of the body)

 What to do if you think your child has measles

• Contact your GP by phone or call NHS 111 for advice.
• Please do not just turn up to your GP, walk-in centre, or any other healthcare setting without calling ahead, as measles is very infectious – the doctor will make special arrangements to see your child so that, if they have measles, they won’t pass it to others.
• People remain infectious until at least 4 days after the onset of the rash – so they should stay off nursery/ school/ university/ work/ other group activities until then.

Further guidance is available  

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/measles/  

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vaccinations/mmr-vaccine/  

A new outreach support service for schools has been established in partnership with Cornerstone Outreach Service offered by the YES Trust.

The outreach service provides specialist support and advice to Mainstream Primary and Secondary schools. Their service aims to advise, support and offer a range of training opportunities on interventions and strategies to help support children and young people with social, emotional and mental health needs. They observe pupils in their setting and offer a bespoke service to support and advise on staff strategies, devise an initial support programme, evaluate and establish next steps and produce a report containing suggested strategies. They also provide opportunities for staff to spend time in a special school for CPD.

Schools can complete a referral form outlining the reason for the request, and outreach workers will review the form and make contact. For individual pupil support, there is a maximum of 2 visits initially, working alongside the pupil, TA and teacher in the classroom. A record of strategies will be provided for the school. Initially, each school will be allocated 2 referrals.

If parents have concerns, they should approach the behaviour lead, SENCO, or form tutor at their child’s school about making a referral to Cornerstone Outreach. For more information, please visit their website.

Have you seen the SEND Local Offer website? It’s a single place for parent carers of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities to access information, advice and support.

You can also follow them on social media for up to date news, information and events. 

• Shropshire SEND Local Offer on Facebook
• Shropshire SEND Local Offer on Instagram
• Shropshire SEND Local Offer on X/Twitter

People with a learning disability, autism or both are more likely to be given medication (including psychotropic medication) than other people. ‘Psychotropic medication’ is medication which affect  behaviour, mood, thoughts, or perception.

Many individuals from the Learning Disability and Autism communities are given such medication when they do not have a diagnosed mental health condition. Sometimes these medications are given to individuals, including children and young people because of behaviours that challenge others and that others are struggling to understand.

NHS England are working with local systems to improve both;

• The decision making about prescribing medication for those with a Learning Disability and / or Autism and how medication use is monitored.
• Consideration of alternative responses to behaviours that challenge, which do not include medication.

This work is being done under the banner of STOMP/STAMP. STOMP stands for ‘Stopping the Over Medication of People with a Learning Disability and / or Autism and is an all-age programme.  It is supported by STAMP, which is Supporting Appropriate use of Medication in Paediatrics. PACC have written more about the right medication at the right time on their website.

Our partners at Price Waterhouse Coopers (PwC) have started their 12-week project to support the Council’s Home to School Transport Team; supporting them to understand how effective and sustainable travel to school can be delivered in a time where costs and need for these services are increasing. They scope of the project covers both mainstream and SEND Home to School Travel. This involves looking at new and different ways of offering support and challenging current ways of delivering transport to children attending mainstream and specialist schools. 

This review is necessary due to the national financial pressure on local authorities and a significant increase in the number of children with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) in recent years which has led to an increase in the demand for transport assistance.   

PwC are supporting the council to ensure that sustainable, cost-effective levels of support will be promoted and offered to families, and that the transport organised will be efficient and sustainable for the council.

There are many ways to utilise the budget and you can help us to create those unique options through a SEND parent/carer focus group. PwC will facilitate session(s) in February with representatives from parents/carers and young people using Home to School Transport and would love to have as many views represented as possible. 

Why your views matter

This is your opportunity for your voice to be heard and help us in shaping the future of Home to School Transport provision in Shropshire. Your opinions matter to ensure we get this right for everyone, combined with our obligations to support those needing transport assistance.

This also enables you to share your thoughts on how we could do something different that we may not have already thought about.

What happens next?

If you have a vested interest in this and wish to be part of this exciting project, please fill in the form here to log your details and PwC will be in touch with some proposed dates.

All sessions will be held virtually to ensure accessibility for all, if you do not have access to the internet in a safe and private space, please indicate this in the form and the team will do everything they can to facilitate your attendance.

When children and young people move between phases of education parent carers or young people often have to think about what school or college should be named in the EHC plan.

There should always be an annual review of the EHC plan before a transfer to a new phase of education – see the section on EHCP annual reviews for more information. 

Regulation 18 of the SEN Regulations requires the EHC plan must be reviewed, amended and issued before —

(a) 31 March if the transfer is from secondary school to a post-16 institution

(b) 15 February in any phase transfer at school eg early years to school, infant to junior, primary to middle, primary to secondary or middle to secondary. 

(c) If a young person is moving from one post-16 institution to another post-16 institution at any other time, at least five months before that transfer takes place.

This great article from the Independent Provider of Special Education Advice (IPSEA), explains more about the process.

Some people’s brains simply work in a different way. Your child's brain is unique to them, therefore they'll have unique skills, abilities, and needs. They may experience and interact with the world around them in different ways. There's no right or wrong way of thinking, learning and behaving. This great video from Autistic Young Experts explains why autism is different not a deficit.  

The Parenting Team is offering free 5 week SLEEP TIGHT workshops either face to face to online from February 2024

These 5 week workshops cover:

• Recognising the role of sleep hygiene to improve sleep
• Identifying causes of sleep issues and appropriate practical strategies to try
• Completing sleep diaries and identifying potential sleep issues

To find out the dates and locations please visit the FIS Directory

 Please do not hesitate to contact us directly if you have any questions: parenting.team@shropshire.gov.uk or give us a call on 01743 250950

Early Help Drop Ins - Sunflower House, Kendal Road, SY1 4ES, Shrewsbury –We will be attending the drop-in sessions once a month.  The next date is 20th February.  The drop-in sessions run from 9.30am -12.30pm – no need to book, just drop in.

Here is an overview of our upcoming events:

Teen Events – Actio All In (ages 11-17 years)

• 12th Feb – Teen get-together Youth Club and Cinema
• 28th March – Carding Mill Valley
• 4th April – Attingham (to be confirmed)

Face to Face Parent Meetings

• 5^th February - Coffee and Chat - Shrewsbury Venue
• 22^nd February – Shropshire 'Autism and Behaviour' parent training - Cleobury Mortimer
• 26^th February - Autism and Girls - Shropshire Council Residents
• 11^th March - Coffee and Chat - Shrewsbury Venue

Book any of the above sessions at the below link: https://www.autismwestmidlands.org.uk/events/

Weekly Teams Advice slots For those who would like some online advice we are offering this virtually via video appointments. Teams also works well on mobile phones. To book a 45 min advice appointment with a specialist autism advisor please book via our shop.  If the dates/timings of our online advice appointments are not convenient for you, please contact us to make alternative arrangements.    https://shop.autismwestmidlands.org.uk/collections/events/products/copy-of-online-autism-advice-and-consultation-sessions-shropshire-county       

Virtual Support Group for Parents - Wednesday Mornings 10am - 11am & Wednesday Evenings 8pm - 9pm – 1st and 3rd Weds of each month (term time)   Our online support groups meet twice a month via Teams. This is an opportunity to talk with other parents, share ideas, and offer support. We recommend that you have attended an online advice appointment with a member of the team before joining group sessions (link above).   If you would like to join either of the support groups, please email the team here shropshire@autismwestmidlands.org.uk  

Advice and support   We also offer advice and support over the phone and via email. Parents/carers and professionals can contact the team directly to arrange an appointment including face-to-face if preferable.  

Shropshire office  01952 454156             

Email shropshire@autismwestmidlands.org.uk

Citizens Advice Shropshire currently provide the Shropshire SEND Information Advice and Support Service (SENDIASS)  on behalf of Shropshire Council and NHS Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin.

This is a free, confidential and impartial service for children and young people that are aged between 0 – 25 years and their parent carers, living in Shropshire.

In the last newsletter we explained that the current contract was coming to an end on 31^st August 2024 and invited you to take part in a survey where we wanted to get feedback from those that had used the service as well as those that hadn’t.

We would like to say a big thank you to everyone that took part in the survey and were very pleased with receiving 134 responses.  The summary of the survey results can be found on the SEND Local Offer.

What will happen next;

• We need to take time to fully review the feedback and identify areas for improvement now and in relation to the new service in September 2024.  
• We will review all data and information available so we understand and can plan for what may be needed from September and for the future.
• We will consider the possible options available for delivery of the future service which will include weighing up the risks and benefits of each one.  This is so we reach a decision that provides the best possible outcomes and experience for those that use the service and that also provides value for money.  Examples of the type of options we may consider are – a formal competitive tender exercise (where bids will be invited from interested providers to deliver the service), exploring any opportunities to jointly commission the service with other councils and the option to bring the service in-house to be delivered by Shropshire Council. 
• We will continue to keep you informed of our progress.
• We will continue to work closely with the current provider and Shropshire Parent and Carer Council (PACC).

Council staff, experts by experience and members of the public who receive or manage direct payments met to hear from board members and find out more with an improvisation activity to get us about how we communicate with each other. 

The aim of the board is to inform and shape the direction of direct payments with fresh ideas and insight that only comes from real-world experience. We meet every 3 months.

We are keen to get a wider range of voices, experience and skills bringing value to the board as an opportunity to hold the Council to account, shape future development, and learn from each other. Everyone with an interest in direct payments is welcome to join. 

Next board meeting is 7th March 2024 - email direct.payments@shropshire.gov.uk if you are interested in joining us. (In person or virtual attendance options).

During November and December 2023, four SEND sessions ran across the county in Early Help Family Hubs in Oswestry, Shrewsbury, Market Drayton and Ludlow. These were attended by 24 parent carers who were able to chat with a range of professionals from Education, Health, Social Care and PACC.

Find out more about how they went, what parent carers thought of them and future plans for the sessions on the Local Offer website.

The Speech, Language and Communication Needs (SLCN) workstream meets on a monthly basis and has representation from parent carer forum (PACC & PODS), health, social care and education including schools and early years settings. Back in 2021 we agreed the vision that "speech, language and communication is everyone's business" this means that everyone has an important role in supporting a child's speech, language and communication skills. Since 2021 we have rolled out a number of initiatives across the system to ensure that practitioners working with children, and their parents can support speech, language and communication skills. 

 These have included Talk Boost in early years settings and primary schools, Talk Boost is an intervention to support speech, language and communication skills. Many children across the area have benefited from this support, speak to your child's school or early years settings to find out more about Talk Boost. You can also look at the  Talk Boost Parent Hub for activities and strategies you can use at home.

In Shropshire we have developed the School Readiness resource as a helpful guide focused on early years development, this was developed in conjunction with the SLCN workstream. We are working to further join up the SLCN offer with the development of Family Hubs and Best Start For Life.  

 The Children's Speech and Language Therapy Service has redeveloped their website with the support of parents, the content on the website is regularly updated so please take a look. Two free training videos on the topics of early vocabulary and concepts and selective mutism, are now live on the website, with two further videos coming soon; early attention and listening skills  and school aged vocabulary and concepts-  The children's SLT service also have a useful Facebook page which has regular updates with links to national campaigns. 

The Children's Speech and Language Therapy Service also have an advice line which can be accessed without a referral to the service, this is an opportunity to call to speak to a SLT for advice about your child's speech, language or communication. The advice line has received over 350 calls! Speech and Language Therapy Advice Line number: 01743 450800 (option 4)

As a workstream we are keen to make sure that information about all of the support available for speech, language and communication needs can be found in one place. We are working on developing an area on the Healthier Together website which is similar to the Neurodiversity Support Information. 

As a workstream we have spent time in the new year reflecting on success of the workstream and discussing our priorities for the coming year. This work isn't yet complete but we aim to set new priorities by the end of February, this will enable us to build on the clear actions we agreed to as part of the Shropshire Accelerated Progress Plan. 

PACC's Annual General Meeting report is soon to be published and will celebrate some of the progress in the ND workstream and reflect on the strong co-production which has taken place as part of the workstream. The report will be on the PACC website.

Finally, we are delighted that 3 Neurodiversity (ND) Practitioners have started with us in Shropshire this January. Rachel Tomkinson, Helen Vincent and Hollie Jones will be working within the Shropshire Educational Psychology Service, in posts funded by the Local Authority and NHS Shropshire Telford and Wrekin. The ND Practitioner project is currently a one-year pilot, and we will be evaluating the impact of their roles in schools over this period to learn from and guide how we move forwards. 

The role of the ND Practitioners will be to support targeted schools who would like to engage in an offer of additional support for their neurodivergent children in Key Stages 2 and 3. These children may already have a diagnosis, be on the diagnostic assessment waiting list or be presenting with needs relating to neurodiversity without a diagnosis. The types of support the ND Practitioners may provide very much depends on the needs of the child, but may include the following:

• Consultation with school staff, parent carers and other relevant practitioners and professionals
• Observation and / or direct work with the child e.g. to add to the understanding of how the child views and understands the world around them
• Jointly developing shared action plans that will be monitored and reviewed over time
• Working with schools to develop inclusive practice and modelling practical applications of approaches
• Providing training / intervention and / or signposting to training and services from other providers. This may be for support for groups of children, school staff, parent carers and / or the child individually, depending upon the identified needs
• Offering support over the transition period of primary to secondary school.

From their work in schools, the ND Practitioners will also have a role in informing and influencing the future strategic development of support available to our neurodivergent children in Shropshire. 

We wish Rachel, Helen and Hollie all of the best in their new roles!

We have introduced stringent quality assurance processes to ensure that all EHC plans meet the quality that is expected and reflect the voice and aspirations of our children and young people. Better EHCPs ensure that our children and young people receive the education, health care and social care they need to live their best life; an aspiration for all young people in Shropshire.

Following the 6-month review of our Accelerated Progress Plan by the Department of Education and Care Quality Commission, they commented that there has been, ‘Significant investment in workforce development to ensure Children and Young People receive quality EHC plans.’

We have developed a new quality assurance framework that has been peer reviewed by an outstanding LA and checked by an Ofsted Inspector. Multi-agency Working groups have been established looking at all our process and forms. All our partners who provide advice for EHCPs now use templates that have been reviewed to ensure quality and consistency of advice. 

Each agency undertakes a QA check of its own Advice reports and what we learn from audits is shared. All New and amended EHCPs are checked and rated by Senior Case Officers and a Multiagency QA team check of 1 in 5 plans and share learning from these checks to our Quality Assurance Group and back to the team, to improve EHCPs.

The benefit of such concentrated effort means that our children and young people are already benefiting from new and amended EHCPs of improving quality.

The PFA workstream has started to gather views on what is and what is not working for the year 9+ transition process. Next steps include developing and sending out a questionnaire to young people and their families. The workstream will be mapping out the year 9+ process to identify gaps and to further inform the development of resources for young people their families and professionals. 

The Employment Forum meets regularly and is exploring ways to support the number of supported internships offered for learners with an Education, Health and Care plan aged 16 to 25 years.  An event for employers is planned for February 24 where employers can come along to find out more about how they can support learners with offering an internship and support progression towards paid employment.