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Alongside our SEND Local Offer webpages and our Local Offer Directory, this half-termly newsletter brings news and updates about what's on offer locally for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), directly to your inbox.
 Pictures by Steve Smyth
Local Offer Live is back for 2025
Hosted by SEND Voices Wokingham, this free event is for all families in Wokingham Borough with children or young people with special educational needs or disabilities, aged 0 to 25.
Come along to:
- Find out about local support
- Talk directly to organisations and services
- Enjoy refreshments and fun activities for children, including circus skills, face painting and meeting reptiles
Event details:
- Saturday 18 October
- 10.30am to 12.30pm or 1pm to 3pm
- St Crispin's School Sports Hub, Wokingham, RG40 1SR
 In-person meetings this term
If your child or young person has an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP), the SEND Team is offering in-person meetings this term. These sessions are a chance to talk through any queries you have about your child’s plan and support.
Appointments for September are now fully booked, but you can join the waiting list, and we’ll be running more sessions each month during the autumn term.
We’ll share future dates in this newsletter and through SEND Voices Wokingham.
SENDIASS drop-in sessions
Wokingham SENDIASS offers free, confidential advice to all families with children and young people up to age 25 who have special educational needs and disabilities.
Every two weeks, they run drop-in sessions where you can speak to an advisor without needing to book ahead.
Find the upcoming drop-in dates on the SENDIASS website.
 Join the Additional Needs Inclusion Champions
This new, online monthly group is run by our council's Children's Participation Team and SEND Team. It’s for young people aged 8 to 25 with additional needs or a disability.
Why join?
- We’ll do a fun craft activity together while we meet online
- You can share your ideas about how to make support better for everyone
- It might work well for you if getting to face-to-face groups is tricky
You don’t need a diagnosis to take part. We’ll send you a mosaic coaster kit in the post, and we’ll make them together in our first session.
The first session is on Tuesday 14 October at 5pm.
Contact Jo to join:
We're excited to meet you!
More ways to share your ideas
Say YES SEND Youth Forum, run by local charity Me2 Club, is for young people aged 8 to 25 with additional needs and their siblings.
It's a place to share ideas, meet others, and help make local services better. The group meet in-person every half term on Wednesday evenings in Woodley to enjoy a takeaway together.
Find out more on Me2 Club's website.
 Courses to support families
Wokingham SENDIASS and SEND Voices Wokingham work together to offer free courses for parents. Upcoming courses include:
- Education Health and Care Plans (EHCPs): for those new to the process
- Annual reviews
- SEN support in school
- Preparing for adulthood
You can find the course dates on the SEND Voices Wokingham website.
Resilience and anxiety courses
Our council's Adult Education Service offers courses to help families with topics like building resilience and managing anxiety. This autumn, the courses include:
 Help to join in with activities and clubs
Me2 Club is a local charity that helps children and young people aged 5 to 19 join in with term-time clubs and activities like swimming, Scouts, Guides, sports and more.
They match each child with a trained volunteer who gets to know them and goes along to the club every week to offer support.
Your child doesn’t need a diagnosis to get this help.
Find out more on Me2 Club's website.
 SEND-friendly seasonal events
Our council has recently relaunched the Children with Additional Needs (CAN) network.
Make sure you're signed up to the CAN network newsletter to receive the next issue, which will include SEND-friendly ideas for bonfire night.
In case you missed it, last month's newsletter focused on going back to school, and included details of local hairdressers who offer tailored appointments for children and young people with additional needs.
Get a CAN Card
The CAN network also manages the children with disabilities register.
This register helps us understand how many children and young people with disabilities live in Wokingham Borough and what their needs are.
If you're eligible to join the register, you can get a CAN card. This is a photo ID card that can be used to prove a diagnosed disability. Many local attractions accept it for discounted entry or free carer tickets.
 Free online mental health support
The Tellmi app is available for all 11 to 17 year olds who live or go to school in Wokingham Borough.
Moderators check everything to keep things safe and in-house counsellors are on hand for extra support.
The Tellmi app can be downloaded from Play Store or Apple Store.
Tellmi Therapy
Tellmi Therapy is a text based service delivered via the Tellmi app. Young people can refer themselves or a referral can be made by parents, carers and professionals.
Make a referral to Tellmi Therapy
Supporting neurodivergent children earlier
Andrea King, the NHS Strategic Lead for Berkshire Neurodiverse Transformation, recently spoke with families online about plans to better identify and support neurodivergent children and young people across Berkshire.
You can read the slides from the session on the SEND Voices Wokingham website.
Andrea has also written a blog post for families.
 Artwork created by Quacky, a member of ASSIST clubs
Celebrating the talents of autistic children
ASSIST is celebrating 20 years of supporting families in Wokingham Borough by creating a special book.
The book will feature short pieces that showcase the talents and perspectives of autistic children and young people.
All autistic children and young people in the borough are invited to take part, including anyone waiting for an assessment.
You can share pieces like:
- A story, poem or joke
- Something about your joyful interest or talent
- A drawing, photo or craft
- A favourite recipe with a photo
To get involved, email assist@wokingham.gov.uk
Find out more about how ASSIST supports families on the SEND Local Offer.
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