Shape our SEND offer and transport service
In Warwickshire we want all children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) to lead a fulfilling life and be part of their community.
To achieve this, children, young people, their families and key stakeholders are being asked for their views on proposed changes to the SEND and Inclusion service offer. Warwickshire County Council is also inviting residents to have their say on proposed changes to the Home to School Transport Service for children and young people aged 0 –25 with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
The consultations for both the SEND offer and the way families access specialist transport for travel to and from school/college opened on 5 December 2022 and will run to 26 February 2023. The consultations will include both face to face events and online broadcasts to be held in January 2023, for anyone who would like to find out more.
As part of a wider programme of work being undertaken to improve outcomes for children and young people with SEND, the offer consultation will give parents, carers, children, young people and key stakeholders the opportunity to have their say on the proposed changes to both the core and traded offer currently provided for education settings across the county. For the transport consultation, views are being invited on three proposals – a simplified application process for parents and carers; a more consistent and transparent approach to determining transport options for children and young people who are eligible for home to school transport; and updates to the Home to School and College Transport Policy to make this clearer and easier to understand.
The core SEND offer includes the things the Council agrees are right things to do to help to improve support services for children and young people with SEND. The proposed changes to the traded offer include things that the council could provide, such as specialist training, if other agencies such as schools and education settings wish to pay for them. The proposals for transport have been developed in response to feedback collected from engagement sessions that took place between March and June 2022 with parents and carers, children and young people and transport providers.
The feedback from the consultations will be used to help improve the range of services provided by the Council to ensure that education settings have the right resources and skills to meet the needs of their learners and that all children and young people with special educational needs feel fully supported. It will inform the future application and assessment process for home to school transport, and the Home to School and College Transport Policy.
Talking about the consultations, Councillor Kam Kaur, Warwickshire County Council’s portfolio holder for education, said:
“Working together with our partners, we want to improve the outcomes for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities by promoting inclusion in mainstream settings, giving schools the skills and resources to meet the needs of learners and building the confidence of parents and carers.
“We are not seeking to stop or reduce any current SEND and Inclusion Services. The intention is to enhance the services we provide to ensure that education settings have the right support at the right time, training and appropriate resources to meet the needs of their learners with SEND.
“We are also proposing changes that aim to deliver a more efficient, timely and consistent home to school transport service, focused on providing the right support according to individual level of need. We also want to ensure that we are maximising the opportunities to work with young people to build their confidence and independence, and to prepare them for adulthood.
“Feedback on these proposals is welcome from all residents across the county, but we would particularly welcome feedback from children and young people who travel to school or college using the service, their parents and the schools and colleges. So please have your say and help us to shape the SEND and Inclusion Service offer and the future of SEND transport across the county.”
To find out more and to respond to the consultations visit ask.warwickshire.gov.uk. Details of the drop-in events and online broadcasts will be added to this main consultation page once confirmed. If you would like any further information, please email sendchange@warwickshire.gov.uk or call the Family Information Service on 01926 742274.
For information on school transport visit www.warwickshire.gov.uk/sendtransport.