Agenda item

The draft recommendations on SEND will be finalised by the Chair with input from commission members, supported by the Scrutiny Officer.

The Chair then read out feedback from National Health Service (NHS) colleagues on SEND recommendations, health colleagues were unable to attend this meeting due to not working evenings. NHS Colleagues sought some clarity was on the latter part of the draft recommendation no.3, concerns around early diagnosis in Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).

The Chair briefed the commission on the conversation with Bridget Nicola from NHS Clinical Commissioning Group prior to the meeting as it was important to get views from NHS colleagues and not just Council colleagues. The commission’s recommendation on shortening response times for Autism and ADHD; The Health colleagues fed back that it was a positive and ambitious recommendation, however Autism had the lowest waiting times in Southwark when compared nationally and although in the context of ADHD the wait was longer but it was still one of the best waiting times when compared nationally. Health colleagues also explained that going forward there is a Central Government mandate on an integrated care system that covers how local authorities and NHS work together around the SEND vision and that there is potential cause for NHS and Councils working more closely together, but the challenges are a mix of practicality between different processes and differences in work culture.

The Chair explained to the commission that there are inherent structural and cultural differences in the way parts of the NHS and Council operate such as evening working and the inability of the Health colleagues to attend this commission meeting.

The Vice Chair then informed the commission on feedback from the parent of a child with SEND, Shenice, who was invited but was unable to attend the commission’s previous meeting; Firstly, teachers in schools should quickly identify children with SEND and secondly, any exclusions of the child with SEND before after or during the Education and Health Care Plan (EHCP) process should be wiped from the child’s records.

The commission considered Shenice’s feedback on wiping out exclusions from a child’s record once it has been established that it is a child with SEND needs and is going through or will go through or has gone through the EHCP process. However the Chair explained to the commission that it is not known whether such a recommendation would lie within the remit of the council for it to be actioned.

The commission noted from the statement (distributed to members at the meeting) of personal experiences with SEND provision from Shenice that SEND provision was inefficient and patchy in mainstream schools which fed into the commission’s recommendation no.2. The commission agreed to incorporate Shenice’s feedback in this recommendation below. To be amended by the Scrutiny Officer post meeting.

2. The Commission recommends that the Council explore routes to supporting mainstream schools in improving the quality of training plans for their SEND provision, including Continuous Professional Development for staff. The Commission identified varying levels of confidence and competence in schools across Southwark which will likely affect the ability of schools to identify and provide the necessary support to children who may have limited SEND needs that would greatly benefit from early identification and support.

The Chair suggested amendments to expand on the second sentence of the recommendation 3 below on the co-ordination problems between council staff and health colleagues. To be amended by the Scrutiny Officer post meeting.

3.The Commission recommends that the Council works more closely with health colleagues to provide earlier diagnoses of relevant SEND needs where assessment is health and mental health led. From the Commission’s early work we identified some concern amongst schools and Council officers that the Council’s strong record of early diagnosis and information provision applies unequally across SEND needs that may require more specialist health and mental health led diagnoses. Similarly, the Commission identified concerns that conditions such as ADHD were not seeing as much success in early diagnosis and early support as recent gains in autism-related provision.

The Chair also suggested and agreed amendments to be made acknowledging the council’s good record on being one of the highest performers in the country with regards to SEND diagnosis and EHCP process on the statutory 20 week target timeline in recommendation.6 below. To be amended by the Scrutiny Officer post meeting.

6. The Commission recommends that the Council explores shortening the average timescale for SEND diagnosis from the current, statutorily required, 20 week target. Whilst the Commission appreciates that there can be some support for children during the assessment period, the Commission notes the impact of this lengthy period on parents and carers and on the ability to provide the best possible early support and schools to fund appropriate support before EHC Plan funding is forthcoming.

The commission agreed to all the rest of the SEND recommendations 1, 4 and 5.