This week we have four important updates for families of children and young people with SEND in Hertfordshire:
The Short Breaks Local Offer (SBLO) is a Hertfordshire County Council (HCC) scheme which provides supported, accessible activities for children and young people with SEND. These often include holiday play schemes and Saturday clubs. Short breaks also give families time away from caring responsibilities.
The local authority is proposing a new approach to providing short breaks in Hertfordshire, including changes to eligibility, costs and how families access support. You can read the proposed changes and respond to the consultation on the Local Offer website.
HCC is also running webinars and an in-person session where you can find out more about the proposals and share your thoughts. HPCI will be supporting these events, and we hope to see you there. Details about how to book a place are at the bottom of this web page.
Families often talk to us about SBLO. We know the current system does not work for many families, but there is not enough funding to expand it to meet demand. We have talked to the local authority about families’ concerns, including the activities available, their locations, waiting times and accessibility. They want to hear from families before making any decision, so we really encourage as many families as possible to share their views about the future of this important service.
What the proposed model would mean:
The consultation closes at 12 noon on Thursday 17 December.
The proposals do not affect other short breaks services, including overnight short breaks, shared care, direct payments, homecare support or other specialist services.
You are invited to take part in a parent carer engagement session, to help shape Hertfordshire’s plans for better SEND support in schools.
Parent carer engagement session dates and booking links
What you can do at the session
Why these sessions are happening and what “Experts at Hand” means
There has been a lot in the news about SEND reform, and families have told us they are unsure about what is changing and when. The government is reviewing responses to its consultations about its ideas for a new SEND system, but SEND laws have not yet changed and are not expected to change for several years.
In the meantime, the government has asked local areas to develop Local SEND Reform Plans. These plans explain how each area will work within the current legal framework to improve support for children and young people with SEND.
You can read more about the draft Local SEND Reform Plan for Hertfordshire here. This web page is a helpful overview of what this means for families now, including the set-up of the “Experts at Hand” model, which aims to help schools get quicker access to expert advice from professionals such as Educational Psychologists, Speech and Language Therapists and Occupational Therapists.
We will keep you updated as this work develops and we hope to see you at one of these events.
Thank you to everyone who took part in our recent survey. 84 families shared their experiences of school transport so far this new academic year, giving an average satisfaction score of 2.7 out of 5.
Families praised many drivers and passenger assistants, and some reported good reliability of day-to-day arrangements. However, there were also reported delays, last-minute changes, uncertainty about arrangements and difficulty contacting services. Communication was the most common concern, with many families saying that they were unable to get timely information or updates.
Your feedback will be shared with those who manage the transport service at HCC.
The SEND Local Offer website explains which SEND services are available in Hertfordshire and who can use them.
At this webinar a member of the Local Offer team will show you what is available on the website and how to use it to find suitable services and support. Click on the following link to: Join the Introduction to the Local Offer webinar.
