Issue - meetings

BCP Council received statutory direction in relation to special educational needs and disability services provision (SEND) from the Department for Education (DfE) in February 2024 following a monitoring visit in July 2023. The document, published by the Department for Education (DfE), calls on all partners including Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council, NHS Dorset, schools and colleges, multi-academy trusts, early years settings, and parent and carer groups to work together at pace to improve services.

A diagnostic has taken place since this monitoring visit in July 2023 and a new SEND Improvement Plan has been created to ensure progress is made at pace. All partners across the SEND system are working together to deliver meaningful support to ensure children get the right support, in the right place at the right time, creating better outcomes for Children and young people.

Progress has been made in the SEND provision including improved timeliness of the decision-making process and requests for Education Psychology advice.

The Director for Quality, Performance Improvement and Governance and Interim Director of Education and Skills presented a report, a copy of which had been circulated to each Member and a copy of which appears as Appendix 'C' to these Minutes in the Minute Book.

BCP Council received statutory direction in relation to special educational needs and disability services provision (SEND) from the Department for Education (DfE) in February 2024 following a monitoring visit in July 2023. The document, published by the Department for Education (DfE), called on all partners including Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council, NHS Dorset, schools and colleges, multi-academy trusts, early years settings, and parent and carer groups to work together at pace to improve services.

A diagnostic had taken place since this monitoring visit in July 2023 and a new SEND Improvement Plan had been created to ensure progress was made at pace. All partners across the SEND system were working together to deliver meaningful support to ensure children get the right support, in the right place at the right time, creating better outcomes for Children and young people.

Progress had been made in the SEND provision including improved timeliness of the decision-making process and requests for Education Psychology advice.

Cllr Beesley left the meeting at 8:37pm.

The Committee discussed the report including:

• The Committee was advised that before the letter of the statutory directive was received a SEND diagnostic was carried out from which an improvement plan was devised and signed off by the SEND Improvement Board. Since the plan was revised the service had seen significant improvement.
• In response to a query regarding EHCPs and the timeliness of the decision-making process the Committee was advised that the service did not make decisions on EHCPs to reduce and improve figures, in fact acceptance of EHCPs was high and that was the result of robust leadership as well as good use of efficient processes and resources.
• A councillor suggested an item for the forward plan concerning the improvement of communication with the families in BCP and parent/carer forums. It was agreed the scope would be considered outside of the meeting and would come back to the Committee at a later date. ACTION.
• In response to a concern from the Chair that the Send Improvement Board, which was not a public meeting, seemed to be considering items which would normally come before the Committee to publicly scrutinise, the Committee was advised that the Send Improvement Board fulfilled governance arrangements and assurance to the Secretary of State through the DfE and the membership of the Board was detailed.
• The Committee was also advised that the SEND Improvement Plan had been refreshed and could be shared with the Committee at its next meeting.  ACTION.
• There was some Committee discussion regarding engagement with the SEND Improvement Board and it was felt that further consideration could be given to this during the Committee’s annual forward planning activity.

RESOLVED that the report be noted.