The Governments Green Paper, Support and aspiration: A new approach to SEN, published in March 2011, proposes radical changes to the current framework moving away from “special education needs” to identifying a child/young person’s needs across education, health and social care.
Wigan Council has been awarded pathfinder status to test out the new proposals. The Green Paper proposes a radical change to the way in which children and young people with SEN or who are disabled and their families have their needs identified, assessed and provided for.
The common objectives at the heart of the programme are to:
- Develop a new birth to 25 assessment process and single plan that could replace both the statutory SEN assessment and statement and the Section 139a Learning Difficulty Assessment. The single plan should incorporate health and social care assessments bringing together the range of support for children and young people and their families
- Explore how the voluntary and community sector could be used to improve access to specialist expertise and to introduce more independence to the process
- Ensure the full engagement of children, young people and their families, with increasing opportunities for their participation in decision making as they get older
In addition to the core areas above, Wigan will also be testing out additional reforms in regards to
- Personal Budgets
- Vulnerable Children
- Support for Parents
A Pathfinder Partnership Group has been established to strategically steer the programme.
Additionally, six sub groups have been established to take forward each core area. The sub groups are as follows:
- Support & Engagement: Parents children and young people
- Integrated Working: Pathways, Plans and Assessments
- Personal Budgets
- Local Offer
- Vulnerable Groups
- Data Sharing & Reducing Bureaucracy
More information can be found on the attached leaflet.
