Aim

To work with partners to develop a Wolverhampton shared understanding of what ‘inclusion’ means and identify underpinning values that we can all commit to across the city.

Purpose

We have done this work so that we can:

• help children, young people and parents/carers understand what they can expect from services and settings, in terms of their ways of working and their approach to decision making.
  
  
• Continue to have a culture of high support and high challenge to ensure that practice is inclusive and reflects our values.
  
  
• support services and settings to continually reflect on their ways of working and their approach to decision making, ensuring that they are practising inclusively and in line with our inclusion values.​

Work to date

• extensive consultation and co-production with partners including children and young people, parents and carers, school leaders and staff, SEND and Inclusion Service (such as, Educational Psychology Service, Outreach, Specialist Learning Support, SENSTART, Special Needs Early Years Service), Education Excellence, Virtual School and SEND and Education Leaders.
  
  
• Consultation has included focus groups that have involved gathering views about what inclusion means to you? How do you know that a setting/organisation is inclusive? What are the benefits of inclusion? What are the barriers to inclusion?
  Workshops have focused on reviewing and refining the co-produced visual to ensure that it is reflective of views and representative.
  
  
• National and local policy and guidance has been reviewed to ensure our work is joined up and linked to national and local contexts.
  
  
• By gathering a range of views from across the partnership we have a co-produced inclusion visual that includes a Wolverhampton definition of inclusion, information about when children and young people feel included, commitments to ensure practice is inclusive, and our aspirations for children and young people.

Next steps

• Finalise the visual (how it looks and involvement of children and young people in the design) and launch internally and externally.
  
  
• Develop a guidance toolkit to sit alongside the visual for practitioners to ensure that practice is inclusive.

About us

The SEND & Inclusion Partnership is continuously working to improve services through its Quality Assurance (QA) Framework.

This framework outlines how and when we assess our practices, using feedback from families, staff, and partners, alongside a review of the quality of the work we do. The insights gathered help shape future improvements, ensuring the best possible support for children and young people with SEND.

As part of this process, we regularly review the quality of:

• Education, Health and Care Needs Assessments (EHCNAs)
• Annual reviews
• Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs)

These checks are carried out by managers and practitioners from across the partnership who assess how well these processes are working and identify areas for development.

By working together and listening to feedback, we aim to create a system that is transparent, effective, and responsive to the needs of families and professionals alike.

EHCP Quality Continues to Improve

In February 2025, 45 Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) were audited, revealing a positive trend in overall quality.

The number of plans rated good or outstanding increased by 10%, demonstrating ongoing improvements in the support provided to children and young people with SEND.

Notably, there has been a significant uplift in the quality of sections D, H1, and H2, which focus on social care needs and provision.

While these improvements are encouraging, further audits have identified areas that require additional focus. Individual services are now working on targeted action plans to enhance the quality of support, ensuring better outcomes for children, young people, and their families.

Feedback received from families, children and young people indicate that there is a positive impact on their lives from the services they receive in particular the SEND Family Help Service.

"Sharing my family’s story was a positive experience, where I felt truly heard without needing to repeat myself. I was treated with respect, my views were listened to, and I now have hope for the future. The relief families feel when securing suitable placements for their children is immense."

Further work on gathering lived experience and feedback from children, young people and their families is ongoing and if anyone is willing to share their story please let us know by dropping us an email SENDQA@wolverhampton.gov.uk.

The next cycle of audits and quality assurance activity is underway including looking at the quality of our EHCPs, annual reviews, information on complaints and compliments and work with the SEND Family Help Team.   If you are involved in any quality assurance activity, please share this with us via SENDQA@wolverhampton.gov.uk

Families of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in Wolverhampton are being invited to help shape a new parent carer forum.

Following over a decade of dedicated work, the city’s existing forum, Voice4Parents, announced its closure earlier this year. Efforts are now underway to establish a new group to continue representing the voices of local families.

Parent carer forums are led by parents and carers of children with SEND. They play a key role in influencing decisions and improving services by working closely with the SEND Local Area Partnership. This partnership includes the City of Wolverhampton Council, Black Country Integrated Care Board, The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust, Black Country Healthcare Foundation Trust, schools, and local voluntary groups.

The charity Contact is leading the development of the new forum. Parents and carers interested in joining or learning more can email: catherine.ratcliffe@contact.org.uk.

Wolverhampton continues to make strong progress in delivering its SEND and Inclusion Improvement Plan, aimed at improving outcomes for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

The plan is built around five key priorities, working together with efforts from education, health, social care, voluntary services, and families.

Priority 1: A System Underpinned by National Standards

Progress includes updates to the:

• Inclusion Framework and policies around attendance and alternative provision.
  
  
• Continuous improvements in speech and language therapy and parenting programmes are now standard practice.
  
  
• The Local Offer is being promoted through community outreach, and new SEND guidance is being developed for education settings.

Priority 2: Successful Transitions and Preparation for Adulthood

• Transition content is being improved on the Local Offer, and Universal Transition Forms (UTFs) have been shared with schools.
  
  
• Transition clinics are expanding, and a Health Transition Passport is being tested.
  
  
• A new Joint Preparation for Adulthood Policy is in development, alongside tools to ensure young people’s voices are central to planning.

Priority 3: A Skilled Workforce and Excellent Leadership

• Work is underway to refresh the Co-production Charter and develop basic SEND training for universal services.
  
  
• A skills matrix is being created to identify training needs.
  
  
• A co-production audit toolkit will be used across the partnership to support continuous improvement.

Priority 4: Strengthened Accountabilities and Clear Routes of Redress

• New actions have been added to improve decision-making processes and tribunal support.
  
  
• A Quality Assurance Framework is being developed, and feedback from families is being reviewed through the Local Offer group, with a “You Said, We Did” update planned for November.
  
  
• Work is ongoing to improve the use of digital systems for EHCP reviews and to develop tools for auditing and peer learning.

Priority 5: A Financially Sustainable System Delivering Improved Outcomes

• The Joint Commissioning Strategy is being finalised, and work is progressing on integrating health, education, and social care data into a shared dashboard.
  
  
• A pilot of the Fabric system is underway to improve data sharing.
  
  
• New frameworks for alternative provision and independent special schools are in development, and service specifications for key therapies are being updated.
  
  
• Planning is also underway to better forecast future needs and reduce reliance on special school placements.