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

Following the success of the Preparing for Adulthood Navigator service, Shropshire’s Parent Carer Council (PACC) are pleased to share that they have extended their offer to an all-age service, offering personalised signposting and information provision for families of 0-25 year old’s with SEND in Shropshire.

This extended service will give Parent Carers the opportunity to speak to someone with an understanding of the life of a Parent Carer and lived experience of the SEND system. To find out more about how this service can support you and your family, please visit the PACC website.

Shropshire SENDIASS (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Information, Advice and Support Service) provides a free, confidential and impartial service for children and young people with SEND and their families. The service offers guidance on rights and entitlements, explains processes such as SEN Support and EHC Plans, and provides practical assistance with forms, meetings and appeals. Whether families are new to the SEND system or seeking clarification at a later stage, SENDIASS aims to ensure they have the information and confidence needed to make informed decisions.

New Information Resources In response to feedback from service users, Shropshire SENDIASS has developed two new resources:

• SEND Tribunal Guidance – a comprehensive overview of the Tribunal process, including what can be appealed, how to prepare and what to expect at a hearing.
• Parental Request for an EHC Needs Assessment – a detailed guide to completing the Shropshire parental request form, with prompts and examples to support families in presenting their child or young person’s needs.

Both resources are now available via the SENDIASS website: www.shropshiresendiass.com

Accessing Support With the start of the new academic year, it is expected that many families will be seeking advice and support. The SENDIASS website hosts a wide range of information, resources and online training which are accessible at any time. In addition, the SENDIASS team is available to provide direct support where required.

How did we do? Your feedback helps us improve our service and ensure we meet the needs of children, young people, and their families.  

Please take a few minutes share your experience here. 

SEND Meet and Chat sessions are open to anyone in Shropshire supporting a child with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) — whether you're a parent carer, family member, or professional.

Come along to ask questions, get practical advice, and connect with professionals who understand your journey. Click to find out when the next SEND Meet and Chat sessions are running.

Most children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, including those with Education, Health and Care Plans, can be supported in a mainstream school.

A number of our mainstream schools provide additional specialist facilities on their site which are called Resourced Provision (sometimes referred to as a Hub).

Resourced Provisions cater for pupils with Education, Health and Care Plans who require a more specialist environment within a mainstream school to support their access to the curriculum and activities offered by the school.

The Hubs are relatively small and need to make sure the mix of students is considered so the children will be able to thrive as a group and achieve the best possible outcomes. 

All admissions are considered by Shropshire Council in accordance with the SEN and Disability Code of Practice and with consultation with the school before a decision on a placement is made.

Admissions are managed in partnership through consultation between the EHCP team, school and Shropshire School Admissions.

 Bowbrook, Ellesmere and Whitchurch Primary schools opened as Resourced Provisions in September 2024 providing 34 places for children with SEN.

 From September 2025 a further 4 schools will have a Resourced Provision at Albrighton, Longlands in Market Drayton, Greenacres in Shrewsbury and Whitchurch Junior which over the academic year will provide an additional 28 places.

In addition, St Lawrence Primary in Church Stretton, Sir John Talbots in Whitchurch and Bowbrook in Shrewsbury are all offering an increased number of places providing an additional 10 places.

Our plans for September 2026 are to create more Resourced Provision with a particular focus on secondary schools and we will provide further updates of our progress in the SEND newsletter.

 From September 2025, schools with Resourced Provision will be;

• Albrighton Primary
• Bowbrook Primary, Shrewsbury
• Cleobury Mortimer Primary
• Ellesmere Primary,
• Greenacres Primary, Shrewsbury
• Lacon Childe Senior, Cleobury Mortimer
• Lakelands Senior, Ellesmere
• Longlands Primary, Market Drayton
• Morda Primary
• Shrewsbury Cathedral
• Sir John Talbot’s Senior
• St Andrews Primary, Nescliffe
• St Lawrence Primary, Church Stretton
• St Mary’s Bluecoat, Bridgnorth
• Whitchurch Infants
• Whitchurch Juniors
• Whittington Primary

October half-term is just around the corner! Want to get up to something spooktackular?!

Our Family Information Service (FIS) has been busy gathering information on things to do and places to go this half term.

Find out what’s on through their online directory.

Are you a parent carer to a child under the age of five?

Are you concerned about meeting their emotional needs or seeing some behaviours that challenge you?

Would you like to have a better relationship with your baby or child?

Do you worry about your bond or attachment with your baby or child?

Do you worry that you are not able to meet the needs of your baby or child?

Here at BeeU we can help you explore the answers to some of these questions and many more issues that you may be affected by

Our practitioners can offer a listening ear and help you make sense of some of the thoughts and feelings you have around your relationship with your baby/child.

We may also be able to offer a therapeutic intervention if you wish and is appropriate

We have two practitioners who are trained in Video Interaction Guidance (VIG) therapy which is an evidence-based approach to supporting better relationships with parents and their baby/infants in the early years. You can find out more about VIG at What is VIG? | AVIGuk

If you would like to find out more about our service and if it is right for you or would like to speak to one of our practitioners please contact beeuearlyyears@mpft.nhs.uk

We welcome contact from parent carers directly.

You may have heard of the SEND Local Offer,  which is a single place for information, services, and resources for parent carers of children and young people with SEND.

The SEND Local Offer has two sections, ones if an information section talking about process and support across, health, education and social care. It also looks at early years, preparing for adulthood, travel and transport, emotional health and wellbeing, finance, things to do and support for parent carers,

The other section is a directory element listing services and organisations of support, locally, regionally and nationally. The directory element was recently redesigned, but the SEND Local Offer remained as a key top level category, which you can access here. You can then filter by sub category, or location to find the information you need.

In the free text search box you can also try typing some of these keywords.

#ChildrensMentalHealth

#UnderstandingYourChild

#SENDChat

#SENDThingsToDo

#SENDParentCarerSupport

If you have any feedback about the Local Offer please email us at local.offer@shropshire.gov.uk or complete our online survey - Shropshire SEND Local Offer  Feedback Survey

Ordinarily Available Inclusive Provision is the new name for ‘ordinarily available provision’ and is sometimes shortened to OAIP. The term ‘ordinarily available provision’ comes from the SEND Code of Practice and refers to the support that mainstream schools and settings should be able to provide for a child or young person through their agreed funding and resource arrangements.

Healthcare services are an important part of inclusive provision for children and young people with SEND. Healthcare services work across universal, targeted and specialist services. There are many healthcare services that can advise and support children and young people without the need for referral to specialist services.

The document sets out the support that schools and settings can put in place to address health needs and indicates the support available from health services at universal, targeted and specialist levels.

View or download the Ordinarily Available Inclusive Provision document here

For information about support available to families while waiting for a health appointment for their child go to this page Support available while waiting for your appointment

ERIC, the children's bowel and bladder charity are an amazing resource for families. They can offer expert advice on things like potty training, constipation, wetting accidents, toilet anxiety and stool withholding. 

Their free helpline 0808 801 0343 is open Monday to Thursday, 10am - 2pm. They also run some fantastic online sessions for parents and carers too.

The Healthy Lives Holiday Programme run by Shropshire’s Parent Carer Council (PACC) is about supporting the physical and mental wellbeing of young people from the Shropshire SEND community, especially those from the Learning Disability and /or Autism communities. This summer’s programme was a huge success, attended by hundreds of children and young people who were able to take part in an action packed, fun activities. You can read more about the summer programme on the PACC website.

https://www.paccshropshire.org.uk/celebrating-paccs-summer-healthy-lives-holiday-programme/

Welcome to the Autumn Term 2026! I am proud to say that this month is my first anniversary with the Team. The past 12 months have seen the EHCP Team developing it’s services and, reviewing and refining practices. We have a strengthened team with 7 new EHCP Case Officers who have followed a robust induction plan in May and the whole team has participated in on-going professional development.

Most recently we have an additional 4 staff to the team who are responsible for supporting the Annual Review processes.

There are more changes and developments planned to support and further strengthen the team, so that we can achieve our goal of all Shropshire children and young people with SEND to be healthy, happy and safe, and able to achieve their potential to lead a fulfilling life. We want them to have, and to expect the same opportunities in life as other children and young people. We want them to thrive and live their best life. As an EHCP Team we strive to play our part in this vision, whilst fully understanding and acknowledging that we are not there yet. 

We have in excess of 3200 Children and Young People in Shropshire with an EHC Plan and will continue to improve our services to support them and their families.

Meet some of the Team:

Keith Melville - I am the Senior Case Officer for the Post-16 EHCP Team who have responsibility for those young people with EHCP’s from Year 12 and above.

I have previously worked in a variety of school settings including mainstream, pupil referral unit and special schools. I have worked within the Shropshire EHCP Team for the last four years.

Claire Fellowes - I am the Senior EHCP Case Officer for the Early Years EHCP Team, responsible for supporting children with Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) from birth through to the end of Year 2.

With a background in both classroom teaching and pastoral care across a range of school settings, I bring a deep understanding of the educational landscape. My passion for ensuring that all children and families have equitable access to education is what led me to this role.

I have worked within Shropshire Local Authority for 18 years, and for the past four years, I have been part of the EHCP Team, where I continue to advocate for the needs of our youngest learners and their families.

Jemma Allison - I have worked for Local Authority since I was a teenager, this is my 13^th year working within the world of SEND. I started my career with Staffordshire, then moving on to Solihull. More recently I have worked within the post 16 team at Hackney Council.   

I joined Shropshire Local Authority in April 2025 as a Senior EHC Case Officer to support with the Annual Review backlog and recovery project, since then my role has expanded, and I am now also overseeing the Annual Review team as well.

Gaynor Styles - I am the Senior Case Officer for the Secondary EHCP Team who have responsibility for those young people with EHCP’s in Years 7 – 11.

I am a qualified Teacher with 25 years’ experience working in the Secondary Phase in Shropshire and surrounding authorities and have strategically led SEND and Inclusion teams as part of my Senior Management role.  I began my work within the Shropshire EHCP Team in March 2021.

Helen Petrie - My name is Helen Petrie, and I am the Senior EHCP Case Officer for the KS2 Team. I have a wealth of experience across SEND having worked in both mainstream primary settings and specialist secondary provision for young people experiencing difficulties with their Social, Emotional and Mental Health.

I have been a part of the EHCP Team at Shropshire LA for 4 years after initially joining the team as a Post 16 Transition Officer in September 2021.

I am married (to a Teacher) and have two daughters aged 21 and 18 years along with 4 lovely cats!!!

Priorities for the coming academic term

Phase Transfers - Phased transfers | Shropshire Council

Phase Transfers for those children and young people who are moving from Reception to Year 1, from Year 2 to Year 3, Year 6 to 7, and those at Year 11 and moving to post 16, all require their plans to be amended. This seasonal piece of work is critical to ensuring that we meet our statutory duties in line the SEN and Disability Regulations 2014. We aim to complete these amendments in readiness for the 15^th February 2026 deadline.

The Annual Review Recovery Team (ARRT) are currently supporting with the cohort of Phase Transfers (Year 6 and Year 11). ARRT are working on those reviews where young people who have annual reviews which have not been actioned from the last academic year but are currently in Year 6 and Year 11. They will be responsible for amending the EHCP, consulting with future settings and the case work in between.

Our new EHCP Case Officers who will be working in the area of Annual Reviews, are taking part in their induction and training, and bring with them a wealth of knowledge and experience already.

Our newly appointed Case Officers for Annual Reviews will be asking settings to flag where there are concerns, risk of placement breakdown, request for a change of placement or significant changes to needs. Our Officers will aim to attend reviews, and in person where this suits the needs and expectations of the family/young person, however, teams/zoom can be equally as productive.

 Education Health Care Needs Assessments

In respect of the Children and Families Act 2014 (CAFA 2014), the 20-week legal timescale for local authorities to complete an EHC Plan, we have been and continue to experience delays in being able to meet our statutory timescales of 20 weeks. This timeframe ensures that families receive a decision on an EHC plan as efficiently as possible. We make a full apology for this, but we do have robust plans in place to recover this timeliness and having had these plans in place since May, are now seeing some growth in our timeliness recovery. As of August, is 15.6%, of plans have met the 20 week deadline.

Some of the delays are due to delays across the systems and partnerships which are beyond the control of the EHCP Team. For example, the Educational Psychology Service is experiencing a deficit of staff, which mirrors a national picture, and are not able to assess children and young people within timeframes, but where we can get the assessment process completed, we are making our best efforts.

SENDIASS

SENDIASS are available to support families through these processes, especially parents’ carers navigating phase transfers or delays.

SEND Information, Advice and Support Service (SENDIASS) | Shropshire Council

The SEND and AP Change Programme is now entering its final year and Shropshire’s Change Programme Manager, Sarah Court, is working with the West Midlands Change Programme Partnership to plan and deliver phase 3 of the programme over the 2025/26 academic year.

The Change Programme pages on the Local Offer are being updated to provide you with current information about the programme and how you can get involved. We continue to work with PACC, Shropshire’s Parent Carer Forum, to deliver the Change Programme.  

SEND and AP Change Programme | Shropshire Council

The Early Language Support for Every Child (ELSEC) project enters its second year from September 2025 and continues to support a large number of 3 – 6 year olds in the local area.

The ELSEC team is made up of people from both health and education and they work with children, their parents and professionals to improve language and communication outcomes for children, with early intervention being key.

Last year we worked with around 800 children across Shropshire and noticed that 1 in every 3 children were needing some level of support with their speech, language or communication skills.

After working with children, families and staff in schools and nurseries, 3 quarters of all children were using communication skills appropriate to their age. This is fantastic news and gives children a great start to life.

The ELSEC team are working with these settings until July 2026:

• Our Autism Commissioner has had a positive meeting with Keele University who are doing some research which is titled: The UNPACK study - "Supporting & understanding neurodivergent people through diagnosis seeking and the burden of waiting". This research is going to be focusing on the experience of waiting on assessment. Nationally, there’s momentum to change the way we think around diagnosis and assessment and become more needs led, though not discounting the positive impact a formal diagnosis may have for an individual.

• The Neurodiversity Practitioners (NDP’s) have been taking part in good practice videos with schools who engaged in exceptional inclusive practice within the NDP Pilot. Helen has created a video on the LEANS project which is a free set of resources from Edinburgh University. Rachel has been involved in a video about ‘Working on What Works’ (WOWW) approach which is a solution-focused programme where children set their own goals and work towards these. Hollie is completing a video on neuroinclusive environments in a secondary school. These videos will be available to showcase neuroinclusive practice and how it can be achieved upon completion.
• The Children’s Development Centre (CDC) team is continuing to grow to enable the team to meet the increasing number of referrals being made.

• More schools and settings are contacting us about our Autism Education Trust (AET) training. There is now a plan in place for our AET early years offer. Training will be available over three twilight sessions delivered in the central, north-west, north-eat, south-west and south-east areas of Shropshire, with an additional session focused on implementation support and further continued professional development session to be delivered to all settings that have participated at the end of the year. Our early years settings have been made aware that this is happening.
• The uptake on Autism Education Trust’s (AET) Good Autism Practice (GAP) training is increasing and all the training so far has been very positively received. The schools who have participated already are now being supported by the Neurodiversity Practitioners (NDPs) through the AET’s Competency and Standard Frameworks to implement and embed the knowledge from the training within their schools.
• The AET GAP EY training will be delivered in different locations across Shropshire over this academic year. Thanks to funding we have received, this training will be free for our early years settings for this year. (Update: The first set of training has now started in Shrewsbury, attended by 37 trainees, and very positive feedback has been received already!)
• We are launching the ‘Supporting the Enhancement of Neuroinclusion in Secondary Schools (SENSES)’ to support our 20 secondary schools across Shropshire. Funding has been secured for the NDPs to deliver six staff coaching / continued professional development (CPD) sessions across this academic year.
• A pilot project is being launched to support the successful transitions of our neurodivergent learners moving on to post 16 educational settings. It is hoped that this support offer will then become available to all our secondary educational schools in the next academic year. Adding to this, Transitions Training, that is aimed at supporting all our learners across the age range, which will be delivered by the NDPs in the Spring term.  
• Shropshire-based neurodiversity advocate, Rob Griffiths, has launched some wonderful new support, and uses his experiences to inspire others and make positive change.
• Health’s Ordinarily Available Inclusive Provision (OAIP) was completed over the summer and became live on the ICB website (Health services inclusive provision - NHS Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin).
• The Pupil Voice Project, facilitated by the NDPs, is continuing to run to enhance and enable CYP voice in the Neurodiversity Workstream. This project has established a process in schools where CYP can share their views in a meaningful and efficient way to inform the Neurodiversity Workstream, and there has been positive feedback from the schools that have been involved in this project. The information shared within the groups is influencing the discussions and actions within the Neurodiversity Workstream. For example, their views around sensory preferences in the classroom will be shared in the next Workstream meeting.
• Colleagues across the regional ICBs have expressed excitement around the FASD work to develop resources currently taking place and have asked for updates to be shared in their next regional meeting.

In children’s social care we're proud to champion co-production through our work with individual families, at a service, or operational level and strategically to ensure that we incorporate and respond to the needs and voices of parent carers and children and young people in our work. You can find out more about our co-production work on the SEND Local Offer - Co-production in children’s social care

Hello from the Kids Shropshire Team! We’re Dawn Lewis, Nicola King, Katy Perry, and Sophie Butler — a warm welcome to all our families and supporters. You may recognise Dawn and Nicola from Autism West Midlands, and we’re thrilled to have Katy and Sophie recently join the team. It’s been a fantastic start, and we’re excited about what’s ahead!

Who We Are at Kids

Kids are on a mission to create a world where all children and young people — regardless of ability — have access to life-changing opportunities. We offer a wide range of support from early years through to young adulthood, including:

• Workshops (online & face to face)
• Youth groups –for Lego therapy and Understanding Me - dates to be announced for November
• Parent support group – Coffee and connects in Shrewsbury, Shifnal and Oswestry – no need to book, you can just turn up
• Social connections and emotional wellbeing

When the world puts up barriers for children and young people with SEND, Kids speaks up. Together, we say: “We can.”

Explore Our Services

Kids offer support across the UK. Visit our website to learn more: 🔗 Kids Charity | Supporting Disabled Children and Young People

For Shropshire-specific services, check out: 🔗 https://www.kids.org.uk/services/shropshire-universal-autism-support-service/

About Our Shropshire Autism Support Project

Our Shropshire Universal Autism Support Service provides free, early intervention and person-centred support for families with autistic children and young people aged 0–19. No diagnosis is needed to access our services — we support families with neurodiverse children, including those with ADHD and PDA.

We aim to:

• Improve understanding of autism
• Share practical support strategies
• Enhance emotional wellbeing and quality of life

How to Access Support

Getting started is easy, complete our quick referral form here.

Kids Universal Autism Support Service Shropshire

Once submitted, you’ll receive a link to book a triage call at a time that suits you. This call helps us understand your needs and how we can best support your family.

Dates for your diary

Coffee & Connects - 18^th November 10.30-12pm - Shifnal Trinity Centre Victoria Road

Join us for a friendly, welcoming coffee Morning for parents and carers! Connect with others who truly understand your journey, share stories, swap advice, and enjoy a few laughs together.

Online Training - 11^th November 10-12 Online   Understanding Behaviours

Shropshire Support Drop in sessions

13 November 2025 – 10:00 -12:00 – Lantern, Shrewsbury

4 December 2025 – 13:00 – 15:30 – Oswestry Library, Oswestry

Join us for an informal drop-in session where you can ask questions, get advice, and explore the support available to you within Shropshire.

Speak to a range of professionals who can help with:

• Education, health, and Care Plans (EHCPs)
• School support and advocacy
• Health and Wellbeing for children with SEND
• Social care and family support
• Mental health and emotional wellbeing
• Advice for navigating SEND challenges

Each session will have different professionals available, so come along, have a chat, and find the help you need!

What’s New

We’ve had a busy few months launching our new service and meeting lots of wonderful families. Our training sessions, support groups, and triage calls have been well received — thank you for your enthusiasm and engagement!

We’re looking forward to a busy autumn with new training opportunities and events.

Stay connected with us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/KidsShropshire

Shropshire’s Parent Carer Council (PACC) is an experienced led organisation, run by Shropshire parent carers from the community it represents. PACC work to influence and bring about positive change for all SEND families, to support families through social networks and connections and to empower through the provision of information. You can find out more about their work, and access information, on their new website Home - PACC Shropshire

Shropshire’s Public Health Nursing Service has a new Facebook page.

Follow to keep up to date with the latest public health information and the work of health visitors and school nurses.

Shropshire 0-19 Public Health Nursing Service | Facebook

NHS Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin has launched a new campaign - ‘Think Twice, Order Right’ - to help reduce the estimated £2.6 million worth of medicines wasted unnecessarily across the area every year. Almost 40% of this waste could be avoided and everyone can play a part in changing this.

The campaign urges people to check what medicines they already have at home before ordering their repeat prescriptions, and to only request what they need.

Ordering unnecessary medicines can contribute to shortages, create avoidable risks at home, and harm the environment.

How You Can Help:  

• Check first: Before ordering medicines check the amount you have and whether it’s in date. Only reorder medications when you have around 7-10 days left. Only request the medicines you need.
• Think safety: Unused medicines can negatively impact the environment if thrown away. Return any unused or expired medicines to local pharmacies for safe disposal.
• Double-check at the pharmacy: Before leaving the pharmacy premises, check your prescription bag and hand back any unwanted medicines for reuse.

‘Thinking Twice and Ordering Right’ helps to protect NHS resources, keep medicines available for those who need them and prevent unnecessary environmental harm.  If you’re unsure what to do, speak to your Pharmacy Team.

Find out more at: Think Twice, Order Right - NHS Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin