Agenda item

Vikram Hansrani, Assistant Director of SEND and Inclusion, and Dan Kennedy, Director of Housing, Environment, Education, Performance, Health and  Wellbeing, provided the Committee with information on the Council’s provision of Special Educational Need and Disability Services to schools.

The Committee was informed that, to address the need for specialist provision within the Borough, the updated SEND Provision Capital Plan set out a number of expansions, including:

-       An expansion of Hedgewood Special School totalling 25 places;

-       An expansion of Moorcroft Special School totalling 10 places for September 2020;

-       The creation of two Special Resource Based Provision at Ruislip High School (Autism Spectrum Disorder and Physical Disabilities);

-       An expansion of 30 places at Uxbridge College for post-16 children;

-       The creation of a Satellite Special School hub to meet the needs of children with complex needs, using two different sites accommodating 30 children at each site.

Eden Academy Trust had applied to develop two new free schools within the Borough for children with Severe Learning Difficulties (SLD) and Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulties (PMLD), at the grand Union Village site (approximately 80 primary places age 3-11) and at Pinn River (180 places age 3-19). As a result, Grangewood Primary School was to be closed. The programme had been agreed by the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA), and officers were in discussion with Eden Academy and the ESFA to review proposed timetable and delivery options.

With regard to support for mainstream schools, the Service had been newly transformed, which had resulted in a revised SEND strategy which helped to support these schools through a three tiered approach:

1.    The SEND Advisory Service was a multidisciplinary pre-statutory service designed to meet the needs of children and young people at a much earlier stage, as opposed to the process of an Education and Health Care Plan (EHCP) assessment.

2.    The Educational Pyschology service, which performed statutory functions (i.e. Reports and assessments for EHCPs), as well as extending trade offers to schools; and

3.    The SEND Casework team, who supported the pupils and schools through actioning of casework.

Members sought further information on a number of points, including:

Could the Committee be provided with a copy of the new SEND Strategy?

Detail of the SEN Strategy, and the Additional Needs Strategy, could be provided to Members following the meeting.

Was the £5m SEN grant providing value for money?

The £5m available to Hillingdon was broadly commensurate to the figures available to neighbouring authorities. Historically, it had been challenging to assess value for money and outcomes for young people, areas which would be addressed through the use of the SEND Advisory Service.

Hillingdon had circa 2,400 young people with EHCPs within the Borough. Use of the grant was expected to result in a more children accessing SEN support, though this would likely result in an increased number of requests for assessments. The new SEND Advisory Service was to be responsible for supporting these requests for early support fuding and sharing best practice between practitioners, as well as providing a robust challenge were necessary, with a view to ensuring the best outcomes for the Borough’s young people.

How was the Council addressing the problems with funding for High Need?

Hillingdon had a number of measures in place to support High Need. This included the current provision of providing additional financial resource to schools who have over 2% of their population with an EHCP.

In addition, Hillingdon was in the process of developing a pathway for schools to access extra support funding for children with a degree of additional need, or children with emerging needs prior to the 20-week EHCP assessment. However, all requests would be subject to robust governance within the decision making process.

How would the Council address children affected by the retention, or removal, of temporary teaching blocks at Meadow School?

Meetings had been held with the head teacher of Meadow School to discuss how to manage long-term risk due to the temporary blocks. Options were still being considered.

Was there strong evidence that the new Strategy’s early stage support was effective, and was it expected that requests for assessment would reduce as a result?

The success of the new strategy would be dependant on building trust with schools and ensuring that the schools understood how to access services and that there was value for money in the services being provided.  A review of data from other local authorities had shown that a number of requests being made were for a lower tier of support that could be dealt with earlier, without the requirement for a 20 week assessment.

What kind of training and development was being provided to the newly restructured Casework team?

The team currently had a mixture of agency and contracted staff. Recruitment was ongoing and three new staff members had recently been appointed. Support and development to staff included regular meetings, and the provision of a Continuing Professional Development (CPD) programme. A full service away day was scheduled for 22 November.

It was expected that the team would be fully staffed by January 2020.

Hillingdon currently has 2,400 young people with ECHPs. What did forecasting expect this number to be in 3-4 years time?

Based on growth forecasts, and without the transformation that had just been implemented, it was likely that the number would double to approximately 5,000 in 3-4 years. The measures being put in place now as part of the new strategies, such as Capital development, were expected to ensure that there was sufficient budget and resources to meet the needs of this increased number.

Was the Council developing a long-term Capital programme?

In order to access funding, the Council had to consult with stakeholders. The options presented as part of that consultation would form a larger piece of strategic thinking and long-term strategy to meet the needs of young people.

RESOLVED: 

1.    That the report be noted; and

2.    That the Committee be provided with detail of the new SEN Strategy, and the new Additional Needs Strategy.