The Department for Education said the effectiveness and pace of current reform within SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) services commissioned and provided by Suffolk County Council and the Suffolk and North East Essex Integrated Care System is ‘reassuring’ and noted ‘the leadership’s commitment to improvement in a wide range of areas’.
Government and Care Quality Commission representatives met with Suffolk County Council and NHS colleagues to review progress and improvement. The visit follows on from an inspection carried at the end of the 2016, after which a Written Statement of Action was agreed. The Department for Education continue to monitor this improvement every six months and report back on progress and impact. Another follow-up meeting is due in April 2023.
SEND services in Suffolk are currently undergoing a wide-scale overhaul following a SEND area inspection and a peer review by Lincolnshire County Council in June 2021.
Findings from this latest progress check highlighted a number of key reforms as having a positive impact. These include significant investment in staffing the neurodevelopment pathway, mental health services and language therapy.
The report also noted improved quality assurance arrangements for Education Health and Care Plans across Suffolk County Council and health services.
Rachel Hood, Cabinet Member for Education, SEND and Skills at Suffolk County Council, said:
“Since I took up my position as Cabinet member for SEND, I have been clear that I wanted to see significant change and improvement in the County Council’s SEND provision.
“I am pleased that experts within the Department for Education have been able to recognise the progress we have made to date, and are reassured by our ongoing efforts.
“There is more still to do. Transforming a programme as complex as the delivery of essential services for children and young people is never quick or easy, and we recognise that not every family’s experience is where we would like it to be. However, SEND reform continues to be the council’s biggest priority.”
Advisors from the Department for Education also listed areas in which they would like to see a progress report during the next visit. These include plans to improve the timescales of Education Health Care Plans and the outcome and impact of the additional funding of services in relation to speech and language and occupational therapy services.
The report was received by the council on March 1 2023 following an inspection in July 2022.
