Your Insights, Funding (various) & an Accidental Ambassador

Your Insights, Funding (various) & an Accidental Ambassador 24th March 2018 Dear All Easter is on its way. Please look to the Local Offer website for events and activities https://www.afcinfo.org.uk/local_offer/events And here is our news‌ 1.

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Additional SEN places – parent consultation 27th March Transfers from Statements to EHCPs – one week to go Aiming High funding – news from AfC Kingston's Education Budget for 2018/9- what happened this week The Learning Disabilities Mortality Review (LeDeR) Accidental Ambassador for assistive technologies – remembering Stephen Hawking School Exclusions and SEND – a national call for evidence (takes just 5 minutes!)

Positive things to end with đ&#x;˜Š

1. Reminder – 27th March 7pm Additional SEN Places in Kingston and Richmond The new places will be in ‘specialist resource provisions’ (SRPs) and will include a specialist teacher in charge, therapies and educational psychology support as well as bespoke accommodation. The proposals represent a significant expansion of existing capacity.

Whether or not you are interested in the new places – your insights and experiences count.

Tuesday 27th March – 7pm to 9pm Hyde Room, York House, Twickenham, TW1 3AA Please email us to let us know you are planning to attend. (Of course, you are also very welcome just to show up on the day – but if it is popular we may be short of seating.)

E: sendfamilyvoices@outlook.com We are also planning a feedback meeting with Achieving for Children (AfC) where parents can hear what the consultation has told AfC and how they plan to respond to the feedback.

Online Consultation You can also find the online consultation process on the AfC Local Offer website. All the detailed documents on the proposals can be found there. The link for this is: https://www.afcinfo.org.uk/local_offer/blog_articles/1722-consultation-on-proposals-for-theestablishment-of-new-school-places-in-the-london-borough-of-richmond-upon-thames-andthe-royal-borough-of-kingston-upon-thames-for-children-and-young-people-with-specialeducational-needs-and-disabilities

2. Transfers from Statements to EHCPs - Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) One week to go until the statutory deadline of 31st March. Here’s a reminder of our FAQ document on Transfers from Statements to EHCPs:

http://www.sendfamilyvoices.org/golden-binder If you are having any difficulty. do get in touch with us as we have agreed with the SEN team that we can contact them on behalf of any parent who is unhappy or has a problem.

T: 07469 746 145 E: sendfamilyvoices@outlook.com

3. Aiming High funding for short breaks “The funding pays for a child or young person with disabilities to attend an activity of their or the family's choice. This might be a mainstream or specialist out of school activity such as an after school, weekend or holiday club, a leisure activity such as swimming lessons, dance, football etc. The funding can also pay for annual memberships e.g. Merlin Pass (for the child with disabilities – carers pass is free).”

There is a new Aiming High Application Form for parents and professionals to use when applying for the Activity Fund (previously known as individual funding). It can be found on the local offer here: https://www.afcinfo.org.uk/pages/local-offer/information-andadvice/leisure-activities-and-short-breaks/short-breaks/funding-for-short-breaks-aiminghigh This form should be used when applying for activities which take place after the 1st April 2018.

Please note that there have been some changes to the eligibility criteria for the Activity Fund which are detailed on the form but for information they are: • The maximum amount you can apply for is £140 per child per year • You can only apply once per year • In circumstances where the activities requested are not taking place immediately and parents are unable to book, an application can still be made and if agreed, AfC can give you the cost of the activities (up to £140) in advance. When the parent pays for the activities, the receipt/s for the activities must be sent back to the Short Breaks Team. Failure to do so will mean you will not be able to claim for the funding the following year You can still: • Apply for funding towards a holiday if eligible - see application for further information (maximum of £140 per child per year) • Apply for funding towards an annual pass e.g. Merlin Although the amount per child is reduced, the total amount of funding available for the year remains the same, giving many more children and young people the opportunity to access the funding.

Please note, we are unable to accept any further applications for this financial year, but we look forward to receiving applications for the period 1st April 2018-31 March 2019.

Caroline Cichorczyk (Jager) Short Breaks Care and Family Support Team Manager

4. Kingston's School Budget - News This Week Facts Kingston Council published their report on the school’s budget for 2018/9 on the evening of Monday 19th March: https://moderngov.kingston.gov.uk/documents/b16856/Late%20Material%20Thursday%2022Mar-2018%2019.30%20Adults%20and%20Childrens%20Committee.pdf?T=9

Some key facts from the report: • Kingston is a tiny London borough and has a SEND debt of c.£6 million • Hackney, a much larger, and better funded LA, has a similar level of debt • The DfE (Department for Education) have 'advanced' RBK (Royal Borough of Kingston) £3 million for 2018/9 • Additionally, RBK are proposing to reduce the schools budget further by £1.3 million • Achieving for Children (AfC) have been tasked with submitting plans on a 'sustainable future' for SEND in Kingston • RBK have set up an independent Education Commission to look into Kingston's SEND spending.

• They are looking for an Independent Chair for this Commission • Ernst & Young were brought in towards the end of 2017 to write up a report on SEND in Kingston - this has just been published, but it is for internal use only.

• We do not know what its recommendations are although understand that a key finding is that more children need to be educated in mainstream.

The discussion This report and its recommendations were discussed at RBK’s Children & Adult Services Committee on 22nd March. To watch the Committee meeting, look here, going in at c 0.48 minutes: https://kingston.public-i.tv/core/portal/webcast_interactive/280457 The links to the published papers are published on the right-hand side of the video. Speakers have their names in front of them (Lucy Kourpas, Finance Director for AfC, has Matthew Paul’s name in front of her).

Four Kingston parents attended the meeting, asking questions including: • Why does RBK and AFC literature emphasise 'demand-led' when SEND is needs-led?

• Why did RBK not raise its Council Tax given the huge deficit?

• When is the £3 million advance going to be paid back?

At 0.57 minutes, Councillors answer these questions.

Needs Led, not Demand Led That question, that term, resonates with SEND Family Voices. When our children’s needs are identified, they create a demand on budgets. It’s not fair, surely, to say that the budget is under stress due to demand. It’s under stress because… …the law makes a duty to meet need – once that need is identified. There is unlimited statutory duty to meet needs, but a (very) limited budget.

We would absolutely urge AfC and all Councillors in financially tough times like these to take great care to use the term Needs Led costs (not demand led). The tone of ‘demand led’, rather than the more correct ‘needs led’ could foster a negative view of Special Educational Needs & Disability.

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The £3 million is advance on next year’s budget (FY19/20). There was some discussion as to whether this would be deducted from the following years budget. In essence “On the basis of the DfE response, the money needs to be repaid, but there is no indication of when that will be.”(Stephen Fitzgerald) In addition, this advance is given on condition that there is a recovery plan and one that will be closely monitored In response to a question about interest, Stephen stated that “it is reasonable to assume no interest” as the £3 is an advance, not a loan.

There is recognition within the DfE that Kingston is lowest funded in London in terms of individual EHCPs (average of 19K per EHCP, vs 24K). The DfE believe that Kingston

has sufficient funds to meet their duties regarding SEND – and are not budging on that.

Further reading: Tolworth Girls on Radio 4's Today programme on 16 March - tune in at c7.50am: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b09tyzyv Kingston Council's press release: https://www.kingston.gov.uk/news/article/717/statement_the_department_for_education_s_ decision_on_kingston_council_s_school_budget_request Kevin Davis, Conservative Leader of Kingston Council's blog: https://social.shorthand.com/kevinjdavis/32GcjX695j/good-news-for-the-schools-budgetand-education

5. The Learning Disabilities Mortality Review (LeDeR) The Learning Disabilities Mortality Review (LeDeR) began as a pilot scheme in London last year and was rolled out across England on the 1st Dec.

Why is the LeDeR programme necessary?

“For every one person in the general population who dies from a cause of death amenable to good quality care, three people with learning disabilities will do so. The LeDeR Programme supports local reviews of deaths of people with learning disabilities aged 4-74 years of age across England. A confidential telephone number and website enables families and other key people to notify the LeDeR team of the death of someone with learning disabilities.”

Early findings suggest that earlier mortality is not as a result of the person's disability as such, but of poor health care and follow up.

One possible factor is the inconsistency of adults with Learning Disabilities and/or their carers, knowing about their rights to access Annual Health Checks with their GP from the age of 14 if diagnosed with Learning Disabilities.

Further reading and contact details About the Programme http://www.bristol.ac.uk/sps/leder/about/ Frequently Asked Questions http://www.bristol.ac.uk/sps/leder/frequently-asked-questions/

6. Accidental Ambassador for assistive technologies Our children have such a spectrum of physical, medical and neurological needs and technology has helped communications enormously over the last 30 years. Whether that be the internet or voice recognition software.

“When Stephen Hawking spoke, the world listened. The physicist, who died early Wednesday at the age of 76 …. was diagnosed with a nervous system disease known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in 1963, also became one of the world's most famous advocates for people living with disabilities.” https://mashable.com/2018/03/14/stephen-hawking-disability-advocate-als/#lZ0AU_KjBiqH “Hawking lived in a time when researchers were rapidly developing electronic technology to assist people with physical limitations in achieving increased independence.”

http://theconversation.com/stephen-hawking-as-accidental-ambassador-for-assistivetechnologies-70627

7. School Exclusions and SEND A reminder of our newest publication – and a national review. “A child must not be excluded because they have additional needs or disability that the school feels unable to meet, or for which they have not provided appropriate support� http://www.sendfamilyvoices.org/booklets

Exclusions review: call for evidence We did this survey – it took 5 minutes – no more. Well worth doing. Children and young people with SEND are excluded more than those without (regardless of ethnicity) “The review will help us to understand how and why schools use exclusion, what drives the variation we see in exclusion rates and, in particular, the disproportionate exclusion of some groups - including black Caribbean boys, Children in Need, Looked After Children, and those with Special Educational Needs. The review will also explore and identify effective practice, which can be shared across the system.

As part of this review, we have published our call for evidence. We are seeking views from parents, children, schools, local authorities and other organisations, to hear about their experiences, practice and evidence. Please submit your responses by 6 May 2018.�

The Online Survey button is at the bottom of this page: https://consult.education.gov.uk/school-absence-and-exclusions-team/exclusions-reviewcall-for-evidence/

8. Positive things to end with đ&#x;˜Š Down’s Syndrome Day “On Down’s Syndrome Day, the public and businesses should challenge their perception of what children with additional needs are capable ofâ€? https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/mar/20/children-special-needs-downssyndrome-day

Music & Magic There are now photographs on our website! Whether you came along or want to see what it was all about‌ http://www.sendfamilyvoices.org/music-magic-2018/ 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, Romany (for Richmond) and Caroline North (for Kingston) T: 07469 746 145 E: sendfamilyvoices@outlook.com W: www.sendfamilyvoices.org