1. HoSS conference/event 15th June 2012 Lindsey Rousseau and David Couch
Progress and next steps response to the Green Paper SEND Pathfinder Pilots
HoSS conference/event
15th June 2012
Lindsey Rousseau and David Couch

2. The Green Paper: Support and aspiration A new approach to special educational needs and disability
Vision:
a radically different system that
supports better life outcomes for young people
gives parents more confidence by giving them control
transfers power to front-line professionals and to local communities

3. Next Steps - Areas covered
Training and Development
Single School Category
Single assessment/ Education, Health and Care Plan
Health and wellbeing boards
Widening the range of special educational provision
Local Offer
Parents – Greater control over services
School Funding Reform
Preparing for adulthood

4. Green Paper Reform
Statements and Learning Difficulty Assessments to be replaced by a quicker, better integrated assessment and a single Education, Health and Care Plan setting out all the services they will receive for their support;
Statutory protections comparable to those currently associated with a statement of SEN to be provided for year olds in further education so that young people will get the support they need wherever they are taught

5. By 2014, CYP aged from birth to 25 who would currently have a statement of SEN or learning difficulty assessment will have a single assessment process and Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) for their support which will afford parents the same statutory protection as statement of SEN
All the services on which the CYP and their family rely will work together with the family to agree an Education, Health and Care Plan which reflects the family’s needs and ambitions for the CYP’s future outcomes covering education, health, employment and independence
The plan will be clear about who is responsible for which services, and will include a commitment from all parties across education, health and social care to provide their services
Local pathfinders will test how to reform radically the statutory SEN assessment and statement and explore the best replacement, including whether the voluntary and community sector could coordinate assessment and bring greater independence to the process; and
The time taken to complete the assessment process will be reduced

6. Purpose of the SEND Pathfinders The SEND pathfinders are working towards the following common objectives:
To develop a new 0-25 assessment process and a single plan which brings together the education, health and social care services on which children and young people who are disabled or have SEN and their families rely and focuses on improving outcomes
To explore how the voluntary and community sector could explore access to specialist expertise and introduce more independence to the process
To ensure the full engagement of children, young people and their parents and families, schools and colleges
To improve choice and control for children, young people and their families through the use of personal budgets and direct payments.

7. One Plan – Who else will be involved?
“LAs and health services will be required to link up services for disabled children and young people – so they are jointly planned and commissioned.” Say and pay… statutory or non-statutory?

8. 20 SEND pathfinders (31 local authorities and their Health PCT partners)
Bromley and Bexley
Calderdale
Cornwall and Scilly
Devon
Gateshead
Greenwich
Hartlepool and Darlington
Hertfordshire
Lewisham
Manchester
North Yorkshire
Northamptonshire and Leicester City
Nottingham
Oldham and Rochdale
SE7
Solihull
Southampton
Trafford
Wigan
Wiltshire

9. The SEND Pathfinder timetable
September 2011: initial set up: bids approved and programme launched
January – July 2012: Recruitment of families and ongoing engagement - Local governance in place; families recruited for single assessments starting in Feb (all pathfinders by July)
April 2012 – January 2013: Testing and learning
May 2012 – March 2013: New offer for children, young people & families – including use of education direct payments; EHC Plans in place; local offers in action
January 2013 onwards: Rollout phase - Final evaluation report (spring 2013)
By 2014 all children currently with statement entitled to EHC Plan and choice of personal budget

10. Proposed legal timetable
June 2012 – SQW 1st update on emerging findings from Pathfinders
July: draft clauses for SEN & disability section of the Children’s and Families Bill published for consultation
September onwards: pathfinder parents start testing single assessment and plan
Autumn: scrutiny by Parliamentary committee
January 2013: Bill introduced into House of Commons
March: final evaluation of Pathfinders with findings fed in to legislation
April: new systems introduced by Health and Social Care act operational
May: Bill carried over into next Parliamentary session
Early 2014: Bill receives Royal Assent
Mid 2014 onwards: Implementation

11. Meanwhile, statutory duties continue
“Pathfinders have been set up to test how to reform the system including statements and statutory framework – but we are not suspending any part of the existing framework in pathfinder areas during this period of testing
We are encouraging pathfinders to work creatively in partnership with parents, schools/ colleges, voluntary sector partners etc to find new and better ways to meet the needs of disabled children and those with SEN – but parents will retain their right to request an assessment and the LA will retain their duties in relation to assessments and statements
direct payments:
Government introduced an amendment to the Education Bill to enable the pathfinders to test the use of education direct payments within the existing statutory framework
The Education Act 2011 (15 November) – implements the government’s reform programme and helps to deliver even higher standards

12. Pathfinder activity
All pathfinders will work within existing statutory frameworks to test core elements, including:
A multi-agency approach, with clear lines of accountability
Links between support planning and strategic commissioning, particularly through health and well-being boards
Use of personal funding
Pooled and aligned budgets
Focus on outcomes in a single plan
Transferability of social care support across area boundaries
VFM and cost
Mediation for parents
Some pathfinders will test optional elements of banded funding,
age range, support to parents and support to vulnerable groups

13. Pathfinder Governance Structures
Different for all but with some common structures:
Lead/Chair
Majority - Local Authority
Some - Health, Parent Carer Forum/Council
Representation from: Local Authority, health (commissioners & providers), parent carers forum/council, VCS, schools, colleges, parent partnership services, children and young people groups/forums
Workstreams and task groups

14. Pathfinders – emerging themes: from Mott MacDonald
Integrated assessments and EHC plan
Who should have a plan, what should it look like
How to ensure the process is transparent with the child/young person and family at the centre
Who is accountable for the delivery of the plan in the multi agency setting
Commitment that it should be the families plan but at what point should/could it become the young persons plan
Referral routes should be open/clear. Range of approaches to referrals e.g. multi-agency panel, extension of CAF approach

15. Pathfinders – emerging themes:
Integrated assessments and EHC plan
National v localism
How to work effectively with a range of VCS organisations during the pathfinder programme
What should the role of VCS organisations be in providing greater independence to the process and to improve families confidence in the system
How to develop the capacity of the VCS now and for the future
How to use the EHC Plan to engage services and providers in more effectively planning for and supporting transition to post-16/post-18 provision

16. Pathfinders – emerging themes:
Parent carer participation
Commitment by pathfinders that this is key but what does this look like: strategic voice, co-production, engagement
Role of ‘key worker’ ‘mentor’ ‘trained facilitator’, ‘navigator’
Commitment by most that family choice is key
Role being tested by pathfinders with representation across LA, VCS, heath, social care, community representatives, parent carer representatives
Training, capacity

17. Pathfinders – emerging themes
The local offer
Involving local parents and young people in its development
Provide clear information about what support is “normally available” from education, health and social care services to support disabled children and young people and those with SEN, and their families - and how to access it
Provide information on how to seek support beyond provision that is “normally available”
How far should it be prescribed nationally
How does the local offer link with the EHC plan

18. Further information and interest:
Mott MacDonald as support team from pathfinders – to share learning widely
SQW to evaluate pathfinders
SEND strategic partner – Council for Disabled Children:
SE7 Pathfinder:
Parents presentation for providers (Kent):

19. SomePathfinder SI examples we are aware of:
LB Bexley and Bromley
Medway
SE7
LB Greenwich
Calderdale
NatSIP would like to know of others please !
The NatSIP VCS role in supporting Pathfinders:
LISEND description
A national offer for SI?

20. SEND Pathfinder Pilots: South East Seven
HoSS conference event
15th June 2012
David Couch

21. Do you know all about it?

22. Health, education and care services legally required to work together
“The biggest reform of SEN for 30 years will also force education, health and social care services to plan services together by law – so when their children are assessed, parents will be assured they will get full provision to address their children’s needs.”

23. Pathfinder SE7: Scope of testing – One Plan
EYA
STATEMENT
LDA

24. There is no new money!

25. One Plan - Who does it apply to?
“For the first time ever, parents will be given the power to control personal budgets for their children with severe, profound or multiple health and learning (difficulties!?)”

26. One Plan – What does it look like?
Make it up yourself

27. One Plan – Will it be legal?
“Providing statutory protections comparable to those currently associated with a statement of SEN to up to 25-years-old in further education – instead of there being a 'cliff edge' when it is cut off at 16, to help young people into employment and independent living.”

28. One Plan – How will it be constructed?
“These reforms will put parents in charge. We trust parents to do the right thing for their own child because they know what is best.”
Parents will take a major role in deciding what education and care their child is to receive. This will take the form of a conversation focusing on outcomes for their child which will lead to the production of the One Plan.

29. One Plan – Who will be involved?
“LAs and health services will be required to link up services for disabled children and young people – so they are jointly planned and commissioned.” Say and pay…

30. One Plan – Who else will be involved?
To explore how the voluntary and community sector could explore access to specialist expertise and introduce more independence to the process. Say and pay…

31. One Plan – What provisions can be included?
The Local Authority will be required to publish a Local Offer
Local offer: all LAs would publish a ‘local offer’ of  support, so parents would know exactly what is available instead of having to fight for basic information. It is envisaged that all parents would be given details of: early years, school and colleges provision and transport to and from it; social care services available, including short breaks; health services, including speech and language therapy; how to access specialist support; and special and specialist school provision available – including training providers and apprenticeships.

32. Personal Budgets
“Personal budgets: all families with an approved education, health and care plan will have a legal right to request a personal budget, if they choose.”

33. There is no new money!

34. Personal Budgets
This will mean disaggregating money that is already in the system. But which bits can be disaggregated?...

35. Parental choice of school?
“Children would have a new legal right to seek a place at state academies and Free Schools – currently it is limited to maintained mainstream and special schools. LAs would have to name the parent’s preferred school so long it was suitable for the child.”

36. Low Incidence Needs (LISEND)
We have an accepted description… They will be undergoing the same process.