Dance Together, Growing Up & National news 7th July 2018 Dear All Our newsletter this time is a bit of a mix of subjects. By far the best bit is the Dance Together video below…
Table of Contents 1. Dance Together – from SEND Futures 2. Ages 18 to 25 3. The Post-16 Maze 4. Reminder: Secondary Transfer Events 5. News from the Local Offer 6. The Activity Station 7. The Squidz Club 8. SEND Inquiry: The Baroness, Brian, the man in the middle and much more… 9. <SEN.IMPLEMENTATION@education.gov.uk> 10. BSL as a GCSE?
1 Dance Together – from SEND Futures In truth, the Dance Together film was possibly the highlight of the SEND Futures event last week (3rd July). The slides from the day will be published soon; in the meantime, enjoy this 6.19 minutes. The film includes Greycourt and Strathmore Schools, the Royal Ballet School and 4 dancers from BalletBoyz; made to celebrate the growing partnership between Greycourt and Strathmore Schools. https://vimeo.com/187045007
2 Ages 18 to 25 The Post-16 group at SEND Family Voices are very keen to know what families’ experiences are when it comes to being legally an ‘adult’, particularly ages 18 – 25. These young people are outside children’s services and are possibly receiving adults social care services. What does that look like? What does that feel like? Do you have any thoughts, questions or concerns? We hope to expand this conversation in September through coffee mornings. For now, please contact us to help us to usefully explore this further: E: sendfamilyvoices@outlook.com
3 The Post-16 Maze You are warmly invited to come and listen to Steve Broach, a leading barrister and expert on health, education and social care for SEND. Steve is an articulate and entertaining presenter who will guide us through the maze that surrounds post 16 provision and will be able to cover the practical application of the law. Thursday 27 September 2018 10am – 3pm Clarendon Hall York House Richmond Road TW1 3AA More detail on the agenda to follow after the summer holidays – in the meantime, please book your place. The event is free to residents of Kingston & Richmond and booking is essential: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-rights-of-16-to-25-year-olds-with-send-tickets46882380462?aff=ebdssbdestsearch
4 Reminder: Secondary Transfer Events …for parents and children with EHCPs in Richmond and Kingston All families of children currently in Year 5 should have received an invitation to from Achieving for Children’s SEND Team’s Year 5 Secondary Information Event. The purpose of this event is to support parents and young people understand the Secondary Transfer process and to provide information on what is available in our local community schools for children with Education, Health and Care Plans at a secondary level. It will be an opportunity to talk informally to representatives of the schools. The SENCo’s will attend as well as at least one other member of staff - and we (SFV) have requested that if possible the schools also organise a parent or possibly a young person at the school who can give a personal perspective. The events will aim to give parents and children more time to decide on an appropriate secondary placement in advance of the general open evenings and formal admissions process (these happen in the Autumn term of year 6).
This is the first time… This is the first time that these events have been run and we would urge as many parents of children in year 5 as possible to attend. The events are: For Kingston children in Year 5 Monday 9th July 18:00 – 19:30 at Coombe Girls School. Clarence Ave, New Malden KT3 3TU
For Richmond children in Year 5 Wednesday 11th July 18:00 – 19:30 at Orleans Park School, Richmond Rd, Twickenham TW1 3BB
5 News from the Local Offer Short Breaks With summer coming, the Local Offer recommends looking to their event’s pages for the most current listings (these are often the first to be updated). https://www.afcinfo.org.uk/local_offer/events
Early Years Survey “Are you the parent of child aged 4 or under? If so, answer our survey and tell us about your childcare needs to help us ensure there is enough free childcare available for all families in Kingston and Richmond". https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/30Hparentsurvey
Teddington Memorial Centre ...the centre has just updated their information https://www.afcinfo.org.uk/local_offer/organisations/25415-urgent-treatment-centre-atteddington-memorial-hospital?term=memorial
What is Participation? Updated pages on what Participation is, does and offers – and why its important. https://www.afcinfo.org.uk/pages/local-offer/information-and-advice/participation-forchildren-and-young-people
6 The Activity Station “Activity Station organises fun and exciting activities for people with disabilities in the London Borough of Richmond-Upon-Thames and beyond.” The Activity Station’s main website is below; people can find a range of activities to book online as part of thei summer programme, suitable for 11+, during August. www.activitystation.org.uk
7 The Squidz Club Not really local (Deptford), but looks fun… “The club for young people with learning disabilities aged 10-25, their friends and families. Featuring young DJs, musicians and artists in a fun and friendly atmosphere” https://www.thealbany.org.uk/event_detail/2244/Events/The-Squidz-Club
8 SEND Inquiry: The Baroness, Brian, the man in the middle and much more… The House of Commons Education Select Committee is sought evidence from parents by 14th June on progress with the SEND reforms and SEND provision. SEND Family Voices made a submission, as did individual parents. Below is an update and commentary from Special Needs Jungle “The first hearings into the SEND inquiry were held before the Education Select Committee this week. Three esteemed witnesses were gently probed for their views on how the 2014 SEND reforms have played out so far.” https://specialneedsjungle.com/send-inquiry-the-baroness-brian-and-the-man-in-the-middle
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<SEN.IMPLEMENTATION@education.gov.uk>
The latest news from the SEND Implementation people at Central Government: “Date: 06 July 2018 at 09:54 Subject: SEND Newsletter: Newsflash – Speeches by Damian Hinds and Nadhim Zahawi to the Association of Directors of Children's Services Dear Colleagues Yesterday, the Secretary of State for Education addressed the Association of Directors of Children’s Services (ADCS) at their Manchester conference. The speech covered a range of areas, including: • Safeguarding children • SEND • Alternative provision and exclusions • Care leavers You can access a transcript of the speech here: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/education-secretary-makes-inaugural-speechto-childrens-services-sector A video message about the speech was posted on Twitter yesterday. You can access a link here: https://twitter.com/educationgovuk/status/1014857427286740993 Minister Nadhim Zahawi also spoke at the ADCS conference. You can access his speech here: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/children-and-families-minister-addresses-adcsconference “
10 BSL as a GCSE? More information here: “Twelve-year-old deaf boy trying to make British Sign Language [BSL] a GCSE subject” http://www.ladbible.com/news/uk-12-year-old-deaf-boy-trying-to-make-sign-language-agcse-subject-20180705 As ever, if you have any queries at all, please ask and we'll always do our best to find an answer. With best wishes from all at SEND Family Voices T: 07469 746 145 E: sendfamilyvoices@outlook.com W: www.sendfamilyvoices.org