10 top tips for moving local authority with an EHCP
with Liz Arriens Troy, a parent of a child with Down Syndrome The 2014 SEND reforms were supposed to have made EHCPs more easy to move between local authorities when …
Category: Guest Posts
How will the government-funded RISE partnership improve local areas’ SEND provision?
with Anna Gardiner, Assistant Director – Health , Council for Disabled Children Earlier this year the Department for Education announced £12 million of funding to directly support schools and colleges to …
I’m a Dad with ASD and ADHD. Here’s why I’ll never give up fighting for my neurodiverse children’s educational rights
with an article from James Alexander, neurodivergent Dad of neurodiverse children **With Will Quince gone from SEND to Health, we will bring you a full update on the implications in …
What is “special educational provision” in law? How a case of electromagnetic hypersensitivity may help future appeals
Article by Ed Duff, HCB Solicitors A very interesting SEND appeal in the Upper Tribunal caught our eye recently. A family was appealing in a dispute over what could be …
An Employment Passport to young people with additional needs into paid work
with Richard Lamplough, My Employment Passport This autumn, thousands of parents will be waving off or delivering their young people to universities up and down the land (or even overseas). …
What influences the emotional wellbeing of young people with severe dyslexic difficulties?
with Claire Durrant, Researcher, University of Sussex When our child(ren) have a SEND diagnosis, they can be made to feel stupid, isolated, rejected by thoughtless peers and often, shockingly, by …
How The Wave Project makes surfing possible for disabled children
With Ian Bennett, The Wave Project A decade ago, I wrote here about a young Cornwall charity that was helping vulnerable young people find their feet—and get them wet—learning to …
Helping Businesses Become More Inclusive with SEND Session Guides
with Dan Hughes I don’t think that there are many people reading this that would argue that inclusivity isn’t beneficial to everyone, but sometimes being exclusive is the best way …
Falling Through the Cracks: How children with SEND struggle to access early years education
with Catherine McLeod, Dingley’s Promise Today we’re hearing from Catherine McLeod from Dingley’s Promise, a charity trying to drive change for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in …
The #SENDReview must embed Speech, Language and Communication skills across education, especially teacher training
with Amy Loxley, Lead Speech and Language Advisor for I CAN, One of the major criticisms of the SEND Review is its silence about the revolution in SEND teacher training …
Fabricated or Induced Illness (FII) and Perplexing Presentations – New guidance for social work practitioners
with Sally Russell, Trustee, The PDA Society Scientific rigour in medicine is, thankfully, the rule rather than the exception. We want our medicines, procedures, and treatments to be based on …
Campaigning for inclusive education for children with Down’s syndrome
with Chris Barnes, Down’s Syndrome International Diversity and inclusion. Two words we champion daily, the holy grail for those in the disability community. But what do they mean? And how …
What the evidence says about the 13 crucial areas for quality in Alternative Provision
with Dennis Simms, IntegratED Hub Lead The SEND Review Green Paper places great emphasis on including alternative provision within a “single system” with mainstream and special schools. The DfE want …
#SENDReview: Downgrading SENCO training is a mistake but protected time must be mandatory
with Tristan Middleton, University of Gloucestershire & chair, LLSCIC. Under the SEND Code of Practice, SENCOs must be gain a Masters-level NASENCO award within three years of taking the role. …
#SENDReview: Why mandatory mediation in SEND appeals isn’t wanted–or needed
with Margaret Doyle, author, accredited SEND mediator One of the proposals in the SEND Review Green Paper is for compulsory mediation before parents can register an appeal at the SEND …
Post 16: What’s in the #SENDReview Green paper for 16-25-year-old disabled young people?
with Ruth Perry, Senior Policy Manager, Natspec SNJ is bringing you lots of information and analysis about the SEND Green Paper. We are also interested to hear the responses of …
The law on educational provision to support Ukrainian children with SEN and disabilities arriving in England
with Ali Fiddy, Chief Executive of IPSEA We are all beside ourselves with shock and sickening helplessness at the invasion in Ukraine. Everyone can surely empathise with how terrifying it …
Brian Lamb: Will the SEND Review Green Paper deliver lasting improvements for disabled children and families?
SNJ note: Prof. Brian Lamb OBE’s Lamb Inquiry in 2009 sparked the last SEND Reforms Green Paper. We’re delighted he’s here on SNJ to give his thoughts on what’s gone …
Schools need support to implement vital lessons about better SEND teaching, learned from Covid
with Sharon Smith, SEN Policy Research Forum The pandemic illuminated the yawning gap between schools that put high value on supporting their learners with SEND and those who have little …
Lockdown stresses worse in parents and their children with intellectual disabilities. Things haven’t improved since
with Dr Hope Christie, Edinburgh University While much of the country is going about their business as if the pandemic is over, many parents of disabled children feel like their …