Parent carers and their role in the SEND reforms

Introductions Sarah Thomas Parent Carer NNPCF Co Chair & West Midlands Regional Representative

The NNPCF is a network of local forums meeting in regional settings, working together to effect local and national service improvement through participation and co production with parent carers. Each Parent Carer Forum includes parent carers with a full range of experiences in Health, Education and Social Care as their children have a wide range of conditions. Parents in the network total over 63,000: they contribute to local, regional and national consultations. We continue to develop closer working relationships with local authorities and health authorities at all levels, including local working with Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs). National Network of Parent Carer Forums

The Reforms and Families

What Does the Children and Families Act Say? Section 19 of the Children and Families Act 2014 makes clear that local authorities, in carrying out their functions under the Act in relation to disabled children and young people and those with special educational needs (SEN), must have regard to: the views, wishes and feelings of the child or young person, and the child’s parents the importance of the child or young person, and the child’s parents, participating as fully as possible in decisions, and being provided with the information and support necessary to enable participation in those decisions the need to support the child or young person, and the child’s parents, in order to facilitate the development of the child or young person and to help them achieve the best possible educational and other outcomes, preparing them effectively for adulthood

What Does the SEND Code of Practice Say? ‘Parents’ views are important during the process of carrying out an EHC needs assessment and drawing up or reviewing an EHC plan in relation to a child. Local authorities, early years providers and schools should enable parents to share their knowledge about their child and give them confidence that their views and contributions are valued and will be acted upon. At times, parents, teachers and others may have differing expectations of how a child’s needs are best met. Sometimes these discussions can be challenging but it is in the child’s best interests for a positive dialogue between parents, teachers and others to be maintained, to work through points of difference and establish what action is to be taken. ‘

Bring all perspectives to the table Understanding what the solution needs to look like Deliver the support that families want and need Working in Partnership to;

Parent carers can help pinpoint problems frequently experienced by families with disabled children. This knowledge is useful to professionals to help them improve how services are delivered, so they better meet family’s needs. When parents and professionals work together, recognising each other’s expert knowledge, informed decisions are made which make the best use of people’s time and money. Including parents in their decision making processes has helped Local Authorities and Health professionals develop services that are relevant and right for the disabled children and their families in their areas. Why?

‘Aiming High’ came with a new impetus to focus on partnership working between Parent Carers and the Statutory Authorities Parent Carer Forums started up across England and were funded directly by DfE We work very closely with Contact a Family Short Breaks and Parent Carer Participation were a key focus Now… SEND Reforms are the focus The future… We are planning…. The NNPCF – A bit of History

Member Forums open to all parent carers of children and YP 0-25 yrs Organised in regional areas with a national Steering Group Pan-disability, across all sectors of the community, working on issues across all relevant service boundaries More about the NNPCF

A consultation and consensus network Peer to Peer support Information sharing Sharing good practice Ensuring the voice of Parent Carers are heard Linking with local, regional and national organisations How we work

Who we work with

NNPCF West Midlands North WestNorth East Yorkshire and Humberside East Midlands East of England South EastSouth WestLondon The NNPCF Steering Group

 Has ten members, one from each region (London two)  Provide a national focus for parent participation by working with national and local strategic partners  Model and grow participation at all levels  Supports the network to respond to national agendas  Have termly meetings with our membership of local PCF  Feedback back this information to the Steering Group so we can ensure the voice of parents are at all levels  Send out communication bulletins to local PCFs so that they are supported NNPCF Steering Group

Working With Local Services Local forums offer; An opportunity to work with your local parent carer community An insight to what life is like for families who care for children and young people with a disability or additional need An opportunity to understand what works and what doesn’t work A chance to co produce solutions with parent carers

What do the Reforms mean to the NNPCF……….

For More information about the NNPCF and Local Parent Carer Forums please visit our website; Thank You