Other Leaflets In This Series: 1. Your Partnership with School 2. The Special Education Needs Coordinator 3. Supporting Pupils With Additional Needs 4. Statutory Assessment 5. Statement of special educational needs 6. Annual reviews 7. Your guide to Ed Speak 8. Professionals and what they do 10. Moving up to secondary school 11. Independent Parental Supporter 12. School Exclusion 13. Exclusion Appeals Parent Partnership Services, Unit 7, Wirral Business Park, Arrowe Brook Road, Upton, CH49 1SX Tel: 0844 880 1500 Fax: 0151 670 1600 E-mail: contact@wired.me.uk Website : www.wired.me.uk PARENT PARTNERSHIP SERVICES PROFESSIONALS AND WHAT THEY DO The leaflets were developed in association with: Birkenhead ADHD Support Group, Sundowns, Wallasey Mencap and Wirral Autistic Society Published May 2010 In accordance with the SEN Code of Practice (2001) and the Education Act (1996)
(ADHD) Attention Difficulties Advisory Teacher To support schools in their planning and provision for children with attention (and related learning and behavioural) difficulties. Much of the role involves observation and consultation work within schools as well as the provision of training. The role also involves liaison with relevant colleagues within the Health Service, both in relation to individual children and also to strategic issues and planning. There are no criteria that have to be met in order for schools to access the service and children do not need to have a diagnosis, other than that parental consent has been gained. Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) Specialist Teachers The ASD Specialist Teachers are available to all mainstream schools where there are ASD pupils, both statemented or school action plus, with a diagnosis and five units of support. The main focus is working with school staff to ensure that appropriate targets and strategies are in place. The Social and Communication Specialist Teachers are based at Solar Campus. They offer support from KS1 upwards. They are happy to advise on specific targets and strategies and offer training where appropriate for pupils with ASD Asperger Syndrome Social and Communication Difficulties. The Service will always respond to requests for information and advice on any aspects of visual impairment relevant to a particular child s progress. Pupil-specific assessments with follow-on advice and/or taught programmes in elements of the specialist vision curriculum will be provided for all children who are experiencing difficulties as a result of reduced vision. For further information about the Service, advice about the possible curriculum implications of a specific visual condition or to request INSET, please contact the Head of Service Peter Davies, Tel: (0151) 6376108, email:pjdavies@wirral.gov.uk. Wirral Hospitals School/Home Education Service Wirral Hospitals School and Home Education Service is a coeducational community Hospitals School for pupils age 3 to 19 years who are unable to attend their school for health reasons. The school is located on several sites across Wirral so as to best meet the needs of students and parents. The Community Base at the Solar Campus offers support to a growing number of anxious and vulnerable pupils and for pupils who are recovering from periods of hospitalization and from other chronic and debilitating conditions. In addition to this community base we also have a classroom at Arrowe Park Hospital for those children who are in hospital for any period of time. Within the health field, we work with the Health Trust at Adcote House where students are admitted for assessment by Clinical Psychologists. We also operate the Home Education Service for pupils who cannot leave their home for medical reasons. In addition we operate a satellite service for pregnant schoolgirls and schoolgirl mothers who are taught either at home or in a classroom with crèche facilities at the Seacombe Ferry Centre.
Facilitate liaison between home and school to enable full access to educational services is achieved and to develop relation ships supportive to the pupil. Encourage the use of voluntary community support where translation is essential or other needs are identified. Vision Support Service The Vision Support Service offers a comprehensive range of services to Wirral schools, parents and pupils to support successful inclusion of children and young people who have a visual impairment from the ages of 0 to 19. Qualified specialist staff work both at Solar Campus in Wallasey and in the specialist resource bases located at the Pensby High Schools and Sandbrook Primary School. The team of qualified teachers of the visually impaired, rehabilitation officers and specialist teaching assistants provide advice to schools and settings as well as appropriate specialist assessment and support for children and young people who are experiencing difficulties as a result of reduced vision. In addition to pupil specific work, the team offers training and information for school staff via generic Vision Awareness training sessions and phasebased INSET. The Service works in close partnership with local health service colleagues to support monthly visual assessment clinics and low vision aid service. Advice to parents and training for children is not restricted to term time but is also available in most school holidays. Pupils referred should be on SEN register with primary need identified as ASD (which includes ASD, Asperger Syndrome and Social and Communication Difficulties). Order of Priority 1. Pupils with a Statement of Special Educational Need 2. Pupils at School Action Plus, with 5 units of support. 3. Pupils at School Action Plus Behaviour Manager 1. The Behaviour Manager offers a range of services to primary and secondary school. The main role includes: 2. Supporting schools to embed the National Strategy: B + A in primary schools; 3. Supporting schools to embed Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning and the Professional Development Programme, NPSLBA in Primary Schools, Secondary Schools and a range of Services; 4. Whole school development and training in Behaviour Improvement; 5. Working with schools to help school staff work in partnership with parents to promote the Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning through embedding the following programmes: Family Works; Family Wise; Family Welcome.
Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) This Service is part of the Health Service, known on Wirral as Child & Family Service. The Child & Family Service of the Cheshire & Wirral Partnership NHS Trust provides assessment and therapy to children, young people and their families in cases of psychological difficulty. These may include problems with behaviour, emotional problems and coping with the effects of chronic illness. The service provides direct clinical work with children and their families, which may be individual, group or family work. The service aims to be accessible to all ethnic groups and children with disabilities. Referrals are accepted from GPs, Paediatricians, Social Services and Health Professionals. Schools are advised to consult the above professionals if they have concerns. Community Paediatricians Community Paediatricians assess children with additional/special needs. These may include physical, medical, learning and behavioural difficulties. Community Paediatricians work in teams and arrange referrals to therapists (speech, occupational and physio) if needed. Paediatricians frequently liaise with schools about individual children. Referrals to paediatricians may be made by GPs, Health Visitors, School Nurses or Therapists. Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCO) The SENCO works closely with the head teacher, senior management and fellow teachers and is closely involved in the strategic development of the SEN policy and provision. The SENCO has responsibility for day-to-day operation of the school s SEN policy and for co-coordinating provision for pupils with SEN, particularly through School Action and School Action Plus. Speech and Language Therapists (SLTs) Speech and language therapists (SLTs) are specialists in speech, language and communication difficulties. SLTs work to assess, diagnose and develop a programme of care to maximize the communication potential of the people under their care/referred to them. This will also include working with those caring for the client, enabling them to communicate more effectively in their everyday environments. SLTs also work to support people with swallowing, eating and drinking difficulties. Team for English as an Additional Language (TEAL) The purpose of the team is to: Remove language barriers and provide access to the school team. Enable pupils to achieve at the same level as their peers. Support mainstream staff in facing the challenges and opportunities provided by the presence of pupils acquiring English in their classes.
Social Care The Children and Young People s Department provide services for children with complex disabilities which include the: Specialist social work and family support services for children with complex disabilities. Residential short breaks provision for children with complex disabilities. Occupational Therapy assessments for adaptations and equipment. Specialist play schemes for children with complex autism. Home and community based support via private providers/agencies. Direct payments for parents to pay their own personal assistants. Information about carer services and/or support groups. Where there is a need for an assessment parents or professionals should initially contact the Central Advice and Duty Team on Tel: 0151-666 5262. The Central Advice and Duty Team will take basic information from you and pass the information to the appropriate team who will accept the referral. Children with a complex learning, physical disabilities or sensory impairments or acute medical and health needs will usually be assessed by the Children with Disability Team based at Willow Tree Resource Centre. Children with moderate or mild disabilities will be assessed by an Assessment Team. Educational Psychologists Educational Psychologists aim to promote the educational, social, emotional and behavioural well being of Wirral pupils. An Educational Psychologist provides consultation to schools and staff and discusses the concerns regarding the psychological needs of the pupils. They also make a particular contribution to those children who are undergoing a Statutory Assessment of their special educational needs by the provision of the required psychological advice. The service is part of the Authority s Emergency Response Team and provides a Bereavement Response Service. The Educational Psychology Team provides a Parent Consultation Service, which enables parents to discuss their concerns about their child s development and receive advice as to how they may best help them. Education Social Welfare Service The Education Social Welfare Service can offer help and advice around a number of issues by liaising between home and school, discussing concerns with school staff, working jointly with other agencies and working with parents and children individually or in groups. Issues they may be able to help with include: Attendance at school; difficult to manage behaviour; social and family problems; legal rights and responsibilities; child protection; work with out of school pupils; pre-school issues; special educational needs; children s employment. The Educational Social Welfare Service contributes to raising educational attainment and reducing social exclusion by
building effective and supportive relationships with children, young people and their families or carers. The Service works in partnership with schools to enhance pupils attendance and engagement with education. The Education Social Welfare Service operates within a statutory framework to meet the educational needs of children and young people. The Service provides the Local Authority with the necessary information in order to prepare appropriate statutory orders or prosecutions where parents fail to comply with action plans which offer them support and guidance. The Service has a number of projects to assist them in supporting parents and young people. Pressure Point Support Project (funded by the Children s Fund) An early intervention project supporting families through some of their most difficult times. Issues addressed include bereavement, self esteem, bullying, transition (for example from primary school to secondary school), and a range of other issues. Konnecta Bus Project Innovative multi-disciplinary outreach project, facilitated by the service and youth service. The project uses an outreach approach to connect with young people on the streets during school hours. Its mission is to contact disengaged young people at risk of social exclusion and support them back into education or training. visit the mainstream primary schools. The service provides a vision and hearing screening programme and the school based vaccination programme. The service includes health assessments; advice and support for children and young people and their carers; confidential open access service for secondary schools; health education and health promotion in conjunction with teaching staff and supporting the healthy schools agenda. SENAAT (Special Educational Needs Advisory and Assessment Team) The SENAAT team works in most mainstream primary and secondary schools. They will undertake any of the following: Assessment of individual pupils where they provide reports with recommendations. Advice on any matter relating to SEN, this could be about teaching methods/materials or organization/strategic matters. Inset for individual schools and some central inset. Liaison concerning the transfer of SEN pupils between phases.
Pupil Advocate The Pupil Advocate works with children and young people aged between 5 13 years old with any disability, additional need or support need. The pupil advocate s role is to advocate the thoughts, views and opinions of the children and young people. S/he works for the young person to help them to voice any issues concerning them and aid them to become their own advocate. Pupil Services Section The Mainstream Admissions & Transport Section is a team within the LA who can offer information and advice regarding: availability of places and admissions procedures in the Local Authority s primary and secondary schools; advice to parents on what to do if their child is excluded from school, including how to appeal against the exclusion; help with finding an alternative school place should your child be excluded and home to school travel. Information about free school meals, grants for uniform can be obtained from any of the One Stop Shops. School Nursing Service School nurses are employed by Wirral Hospital Trust and are able to offer a confidential service to pupils, parents and carers. They are qualified nurses supported by ancillary staff. Each school has a named school nurse and they are the link between home, health and education. They work closely with all agencies concerned with the welfare of young people. Generally, the school nurses are based in the secondary and special schools and go out to Hearing Support Service Wirral s Hearing Support Team offers a range of services to deaf children from 0-19 and their families. Early Years Staff offer support to families after diagnosis, working in homes, audiology clinics and early years settings. They provide parents/carers with information about language/communication and educational options and empower parents/carers to provide a stimulating environment in which their deaf child s language & communication skills can flourish. Primary staff provide training and information for teachers at Key Stage 1 and 2 and can, where appropriate, support deaf pupils in class or during individual sessions to ensure access to the curriculum and to promote, assess and review language/communication and social/emotional development. The Secondary Team provides training and information to teachers and tutorial and can, where appropriate, provide in class support to enable access to the curriculum at Key Stages 3 and 4 and to provide support and advice at transition to post- 16 provision. Advice and support is given with regards to special arrangements for examinations and assessments. Advice and support are available at key transition points.
In addition, Wirral s Hearing Support Service can, where appropriate: Test children s/young people s hearing in school Monitor deaf children who do not require regular support on a regular (usually termly) basis Provide/loan out assistive technology Provide information about other services which might provide assistance to deaf children/young people and their families. Paediatric Occupational Therapy Occupational Therapists work with children with physical and learning difficulties, providing practical support and advice in order to improve function in everyday living activities. S/he works with the child and their family to develop function and promote independence, enabling the child to meet their maximum potential. Practical support is provided through play activities, socializing, specialist treatment and school access. They advise, assess and make recommendations for equipment and adaptations. Support is also provided for family and carers in order to reduce the impact of disability within the home environment and enhance the quality of family life. (This service is part of the Health Service). Physical/Medical Needs Co-ordinator The Co-ordinator supports children in mainstream by pulling together any additional services needed. Support is given to schools by developing the Schools Accessibility Plans. Direct contact with carers and families is maintained throughout all settings and staff liaise continually with other agencies, e.g. physiotherapy, occupational therapy, paediatricians etc. Physiotherapy Services Offers advice and support for parents and carers on all aspects of physical management of children at home and in other appropriate settings. Assessment, advice on specialized equipment and group or individual therapy sessions are offered as appropriate. Therapy and support are also offered to children with developmental, neurological, respiratory, orthopaedic and oncology conditions on both an inpatient and outpatient basis. (This service is part of the Health Service). Pre-School Service (Portage) The Pre-School Team consists of teachers and nursery nurses and is lead by a senior Educational Psychologist. The role of the service is to provide the Portage hometeaching program for pre-school children with special educational needs, where parents/carers are seen as the first and most effective teacher of their child. The aim is to increase the child s rate of progress so that as many children as possible can eventually be successfully included in their local schools. The team also delivers training to Early Years Practitioners and may run parent support groups to help them address a range of difficulties they may experience with the children.