Kingston & Richmond councils have agreed to bring together all SEN Transport arrangements under Achieving for Children with effect from July 2015. For now, this simply unites the management and the budgets under one organisation and there should be no visible change to anyone’s services. The current provision will continue under the current policies until September 2016; therefore there is no immediate change to the policy. Consultation on policy will take place from October 2015 and be concluded by February 2016. This consultation will be between both Kingston & Richmond boroughs and will be offered to all parents, carers and young people through a variety of media (eg Open meetings, surveys etc). There is one team managing & planning the services and therefore an expectation of one policy across both commissioning councils – if possible. If this is not workable, then different policies in each borough could be retained.
Why is this happening? SEN Transport facilitates children and young people getting to school or college; this may be because they attend a specialist school some distance from their home, or it may be because they cannot currently manage to travel independently. By combining resources across both boroughs, there is the opportunity to be more creative and save money. Like it or not, that will be one of the outcomes of this change. What is important is that parents, carers and young people have some say and ownership of this policy.
What does a more creative approach look like? For some young people, some form of transport will always be necessary. For others, it may be that transport is needed when they’re younger, but as they grow and develop the desire to be more independent; their needs will change. In some cases, Independent Travel Training may be the next step and a plan will be made to support these young people. In one Kingston specialist secondary school (St.Philips), the SEN Transport team worked with the school to identify young people who were currently using transport but wanted – and were capable of – greater independence. These young people were given mountain bikes, helmets etc and supported through a bespoke Cycling Proficiency programme. They now all cycle to school and these skills will hold them in good stead for an independent adulthood. In Richmond, the Taxi companies are told that they must take specific routes – this makes no allowance for roadworks or other delays. In Kingston, the Taxi companies make their own decisions about the routes and have a direct relationship with the families which allows for more personal service. In Richmond, under 5’s cannot use SEN Transport, in Kingston they can. There is some discussion to be had whether AfC can replicate this across both boroughs – depending on the outcome of these consultations. Medically trained staff are in attendance on some Richmond routes and, whilst this is not in line with NHS guidelines, there is also work to be done to understand the benefits and limitations of this.
If you would like to be a part of a working group for the SEN Transport Consultation, please contact Richmond SEND Family Voice, or LEAD Kingston on: 07469 746 145 Or send an e-mail to RichmondSENDFamilyVoice@outlook.com rwr/eg/cg – revised 2 4th August