Parent/Carer SEND Newsletter 09 December 2020

This week in NE Lincs

In NE Lincs this week the Combined Primary and Secondary Attendance is 88.5% compared with 86.2% nationally, meaning we are above the national average.

Additional School Inset Day

Schools can if they wish introduce an Inset day on 18 December 2020 the last Friday of term, to ensure staff get a proper break over Christmas. Addressing the Commons Education Select Committee, Schools Minister Nick Gibb said the Department for Education (DfE) wanted schools to stay open until the end of term as that was the best place for young people, but the department also wants there to be a “clear six days” so that by Christmas Eve staff can have a “proper break”.

For details of your child’s school term dates please check school and settings websites and/or social media pages.

SENART Update

In November 2020, 94% of EHCP were issued within the 20 week timescale which is a great
achievement. Annual Reviews are also being completed and we are making good progress to address a small backlog. Credit to be given to Nikki and her team, their brilliant work, it is very much appreciated.

If you do have any questions about Education, Health and Care Plans please do email
SEN@nelincs.gov.uk or contact our Lead EHCP co-ordinator Nikki Lambert by phone on 01472 323041.

SENDIASS

SENDIASS (Special Educational Needs Disability Information Advice Support Service) provides
free impartial information, advice and support to disabled children and young people aged 0-
25, and those with SEN, through their parents and carers.

Young people aged 16+ can have support in their own right. Our service is open Monday to Thursday 8.30am until 4.30pm and Friday 8am – 4pm. We are working remotely at the moment, but we will answer your call within 3 days if you leave a message or you can email us on nelincs@barnardos.org.uk, or you can also follow us on Facebook.

NELPPF Update

There has been contact made from some parent/carers unsure of the response times to some
Services within the area, including the Access Pathway.

Access Pathway respond to voicemails and emails within 5 days working days. The contact
number is 01472 323998 and email address is access-pathway@nelincs.gov.uk.

It is important to note that some services are operating with staff shortages due to the pandemic, so if you haven’t received a call back within a week and your call is urgent, try calling again.

NELPPF is a collective voice for parents and carer’s in North East Lincolnshire, offering guidance and support for families of children and young people aged 0-25 years with SEND. Their General Advice Line is: 07583474892

EHCP Hub

Last week some parents reported having issues logging on to the new EHC Hub, but these issues have now been resolved.

When parents/carers first register to use the Hub, they have to set up 2 factor authentication this is either by way of a QR Code or a 6-digit code text to them. This is to ensure the details within the Hub are kept safe/secure. Information to support parents/carers has been added to the Hub and it is also part of the email that is being sent out to parents/carers when their child’s EHCP is added to the Hub. If parents/carers or professionals do experience any difficulties, please contact siobhan.hardy@nelincs.gov.uk.

Primary to Secondary Transition Days

Dates for the primary to secondary transition days are currently being arranged for 8/9 July
2021, these are a week later than usual due to GCSE’S being put back a week.

More information will follow in these newsletters with transitions information nearer to the time.

Free School Meals

Vouchers are being processed and will be delivered by next week to those families in receipt of Free School Meals for use over the Christmas half-term.

The Vouchers will be for Aldi .

The nearest stores in our area are:

Cleethorpes Road, Grimsby DN31 3BH
Magdalene Road Little Coates, Grimsby, DN34 5DN
Washdyke Lane, Immingham DN40 2AA

DfE Interim Visit Update

A virtual meeting took place on, 8 December 2020, when a lot of ground was covered. The focus areas for this discussion were the Access Pathway and co-production. Acknowledgement was given to the work that has been completed and to the plans that are in place. The Local Authority are looking to finalise strategies and to clarify approaches to coproduction with parent/carers.

SEND Local Area Ofsted visits may be starting again in April; however, we are awaiting
further clarity from the DfE.

Local Offer

Feedback was given at the meeting re the ‘Have your say’ section the Local Offer. Parents/carers have asked us to make it easier to leave comments. This is going to be fed back to the Local Offer web team and changes made.

The newly appointed SEND Local Offer and Communications Officer will be attending next week’s meeting.

Health

If parents and have any queries or have any health queries, please email designatedclinicalofficer@nelincs.gov.uk.

Personal Budgets

The local authority wants to work with parents/carers to co-produce an agreed approach to Personal Budgets and Direct Payments. This doesn’t have to be done in a group meeting format and could be through 1 to 1 conversations over the telephone. If any parents/carers are interested in chatting about what they would like to see available in NE Lincs, please contact clare.linfitt@nelincs.gov.uk.

Future meetings / Newsletters

These weekly SEND parent/carer newsletters are shared with teams within education, health and social care as well as parents/carers SENCOs, the DfE and local charities.

If you would like to be added to the weekly emailing list to receive these newsletters direct, please contact siobhan.hardy@nelincs.gov.uk

If anyone would like to be involved in the weekly meetings, you are most welcome and can contact clare.linfitt@nelincs.gov.uk for more information.