Parents and young people asked to contribute to an inspection of the Special Educational Needs and/or Disability (SEND) services

Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission will be carrying out an inspection of Swindon's services for children and young people aged 0-25 years who have special educational needs and/or disabilities.

Published: Thursday, 15th November 2018

Under the Children and Families Act 2014, the Government placed new duties on the local health, social and education services that provide for children and young people with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

Inspections of all local authorities are organised to check that these duties are being delivered for young people in their area.

This is Swindon’s first SEND local area inspection and will involve a range of providers such as Swindon Borough Council, the NHS Clinical Commissioning Group, schools, colleges, health providers, parent/carers and other relevant partners.

The inspection happening in Swindon will evaluate how effectively our area meets the responsibilities to children and young people (from birth to age 25) who have special educational needs or disabilities (or both).

As part of the inspection, Ofsted and the CQC will be asking for feedback from parents and children in Swindon who receive the services as well as the wider community.

The inspection team have set up an online recorded webinar to allow Swindon’s parents and carers of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities to contribute their views. The webinar is open from noon on Monday 12 November 2018 until 4pm on Tuesday 20 November 2018.

A drop-in session is also available on Tuesday 20th November 11.45-1pm. Information about the drop in session is available on the parent carer forum https://swindonsendfamiliesvoice.org.uk

Councillor Mary Martin, Swindon Borough Council’s Cabinet Member for Children and School Attainment, said: “We always value feedback which is why we regularly speak to our service users. We are constantly seeking better opportunities for our young people to enable them to enjoy and participate fully in all areas of their lives.

“It is therefore important that people who benefit from the services we provide contribute towards this Ofsted inspection so we assess the effectiveness of those services.”

Esther Schmidt, Children’s Services Commissioning Lead, Swindon Clinical Commissioning Group, said, “We welcome this inspection as it not only allows us to strike up valuable conversations with the very people who use our services every day, but it also gives us a unique opportunity to act on the feedback we receive and plan changes and improvements to benefit Swindon families now and in the future.” 

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