You may have seen news recently about the length of time families in the county are having to wait for an Education, Health and Care Needs Assessment (EHCNA) for their child. We’ve never shied away from facing tough truths in Essex and I have been clear that this is unacceptable.
We need to improve – and we are. Our Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities (SEND) improvement journey has been ongoing for some time and we are seeing progress. And while our focus has rightly been on reducing assessment wait times, this is only part of the improvements we have made. That’s because we want every child with SEND and their family to thrive. However, given the national SEND landscape we're working in, this can be challenging.
It's no secret the national SEND system is complex, spanning different services and sectors. Each with their own ways of working and responsibilities. And for that reason, it is often difficult to understand and navigate – not only for families but for professionals too. We have seen this confirmed time and again in reports about the national SEND crisis. Indeed, our own scrutiny committee confirmed it again in a recent report.
As a result, it seems we are finally starting to see some national change on the horizon. But as local councils, we also need to seize opportunities ourselves.
In Essex, we continue to explore different ways to improve families' experiences. We understand that it will take time for every family to feel the benefits of the changes we have made already and that is really the only way to measure our success, not simply by figures. We are continuing to work as quickly as possible to realise the improvements needed, without compromising on the quality of services. We’re already taking action by:
- investing millions to recruit more educational psychologists and clear the EHCNA backlog
- streamlining processes and introducing remote EHCP assessments
- empowering schools through our Inclusion Framework, enabling early, inclusive measures to be put in place
- delivering our inclusion support offer which includes training, funding and professional guidance to help mainstream schools support pupils effectively
- building new special schools, including the first for the Rochford district
- improving communication, with more call centre staff and a new directory of inclusive clubs and activities on the Essex Local Offer
But this isn’t just about the here and now, it’s about embedding lasting, long-term change so that families in the future also benefit. We have undertaken a further system-wide review of how children and young people with SEND experience support in Essex. This has helped us to identify improvement priorities for the next two years. These include:
- reviewing and refreshing our SEND Strategy to ensure it is fit for purpose and there is clear direction
- early intervention to ensure there are equitable, known pathways and effective use of funding
- further improvements to the EHCNA process to include compassionate communication and the best use of EP resource
- accessible, inclusive support and services with clear navigation and a secondary school focus
- preparing for adulthood, with timely reviews and clear next steps
- digital enablement, including the use of AI, clear and effective communications and performance tracking
We’re also supporting professionals to reshape how services work together to meet children’s needs at the right time. This is part of our comprehensive ‘Inclusion Support Offer’ for schools. It includes training, funding and access to professional support. As well as building new special schools, we want to work with mainstream schools to ensure that children and young people with SEND can also thrive in these settings.
These are all positive changes we have introduced to address the specific challenges we are facing in Essex, but they don’t negate the fact that we still need a total reform of the national SEND system. It must work better for every child and young people, and their family. And as organisations, we need the right resources and funding to enable them to reach their full potential. Because that is the driving force that unites us.
I look forward to the Government’s promise of national SEND reform and working with them and families to achieve a system where every learner experiences an equitable, excellent and ambitious education system. Change won’t happen overnight but it won’t happen at all, if we don’t act now.
Leave a comment