Agenda item

To receive an update on the outcomes of the Ofsted Special Education Needs and Disabilities Strategy (SEND) Area Inspection that took place in October 2024.

The agenda item provided an update on the outcomes of the Ofsted Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) Area Inspection.

 

The Chair welcomed to the meeting Councillor Cusworth, Cabinet Member of Children and Young People Services (CYPS), and Niall Devlin, Assistant Director for Education and Inclusion.

 

The Chair invited the Cabinet Member of Children and Young People Services to introduce the report, during which the following was noted:

 

·       In July 2021, Rotherham Council’s Children and Young People Service was inspected and areas for improvement were identified, this led to the development of a written statement of action, which aimed to improve the local SEND offer.

·       By September 2024, significant progress had been made, though further work would continue. The 2024 inspection outcome was positive and reflected the hard work of the Service, despite the national challenges to the SEND system.

 

The Chair invited the Assistant Director for Education and Inclusion to present the update and presentation, during which the following was noted:

 

Aims of the presentation-

·       The presentation would set out the progress made towards the Written Statement of Action (WSOA).

·       The presentation would provide an overview of the findings and consequences of the 2024 Inspection Report.

 

The 2021 SEND inspection-

·       The inspection identified thirteen areas of strength and sixteen areas that required improvement. To address the areas requiring improvement, the local area was required to produce a Written Statement of Action (WSOA) prioritising the following four areas for action-

o   Quality of Education Health and Care Plans (EHCPs)

o   Communication of Local Offer

o   Preparation for Adulthood

o   Graduated Response.

 

·       The local area had made significant and sustained progress in relation to the following-

o   Improved the variability in quality of EHCPs including contributions from health and partners.

o   Improved the effectiveness of the Graduated Response to meet young people’s needs, especially in Key Stage 1 and 2.

o   Improved the quality of provision for young people’s preparation for and transition to adulthood.

o   Improved communication with parents and carers with SEND about the Local Offer.

 

·       A lot of progress was made from August 2022 to August 2024, during which-

o   Completed actions increased from 7 to 71

o   Actions on track decreased from 43 to 2

o   Actions in progress reduced from 13 to 0

o   Actions with no progress decreased from 3 to 0

o   Actions not due to start reduced from 9 to 2.

 

The 2024 inspection-

·       Significantly different from earlier inspections, it was more rigorous and lasted three weeks.

·       The new inspection involved a broader range of participants, including a Lead Inspector from Education, a Care Quality Commission (CQC) Inspector, and, for the first time, a His Majesty's Inspector (HMI) who evaluated the entire partnership.

·       Unlike previous narrative-based inspections, this inspection introduced a grading system with three levels, which were as follows-

o   Grade 3: Indicated significant weaknesses that required intensive monitoring and reinspection within 18 months.

o   Grade 2: Reflected variability, with both strengths and areas needing improvement, requiring a follow-up inspection within 18 months.

o   Grade 1: Significant consistent positive experiences and outcomes for families and young people, this was achieved by a very small number of authorities nationally.

·       The Rotherham Council was graded as Grade 1, this highlighted its consistent positive impact on families and young people.

Effective Practice-

·       Leadership and Strategy- Leaders had a clear strategy based on rigorous data, focusing on four cornerstones which were; Welcome and Care, Value and Include, Communicate, and Work in Partnership.

·       Voice of the Child- Leaders gathered views from children and young people through surveys and groups like ‘Guiding Voices.’

·       Co-production- Stakeholders worked together to improve services, making the best use of resources.

·       Parental Feedback- Parents reported positively on the support their children received and appreciated accessible information.

·       Attendance- Innovative strategies were in place to support attendance, including emotional preparation packages.

·       Early Help- Early Help Practitioners provided timely intervention and support, working with various services.

·       Specialist Support- Effective provision was in place for children with visual and/or hearing impairments.

 

The area partnership needed to improve in four key areas-

·       Quality and Specificity of EHC Plans- There was variability in the quality of Education, Health, and Care (EHC) plans. Often, the voice of the child or young person and their families was not well reflected, leading to generic outcomes without clear steps for achievement.

·       Detail in Post-16 Provision- While leaders were effective in helping young people access post-16 provision, this success was not always mirrored in the EHC plans. The plans often lacked detailed strategies for transitioning to adulthood, including vocational training and independent living skills.

·       Holistic View in EHC Plans- Despite improvements, many EHC plans did not provide a comprehensive view of the child’s needs across education, health, and social care. There was a need for better systems to share information across these sectors.

·       Timely Access to Services- There were delays in diagnosing neurodevelopmental needs and accessing occupational, and speech and language therapy. Although there were action plans to address these delays, it was too early to see their impact.

 

Next Steps-

• The next full area SEND Inspection would be conducted within approximately five years.
• Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) asked that the local area partnership update and publish its strategic plan, based on the recommendations set out in the SEND Ofsted Inspection Report.

 

 

The Chair thanked the relevant officer for the presentation and invited questions, this led to the following points being raised during the discussion:

 

·       The CQC Inspector spent significant time working with health services, challenging them to demonstrate their investment in neurodiversity assessments. A detailed plan was made to reduce Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and neurodiversity assessment times, to 18 weeks by December 2026, which was scrutinised and approved by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

·       There were milestones and financial investments set to reduce waiting lists, with significant progress already made. Efforts included improved early support and identification through Family Hubs and resource hubs, schools reported positive impacts from the Orchard provision.

·       The partnership aimed to challenge the misconception that a diagnosis was needed for an Education, Health, and Care (EHC) Plan. A graduated approach was being developed to provide support at the lowest level while waiting for diagnosis, with a focus on needs like speech and language therapy.

·       A new resource provision at Hillcrest was introduced to support speech-language communication needs, and a school-led diagnostic referral process was established to speed up triage and improve the quality of referrals. This process had a success rate of over 90% for diagnoses.

·       Rotherham had a higher-than-average number of young people with EHCPs post-16, and efforts were made to improve transitions for those with learning difficulties, even if they didn’t have EHCPs.

·       The Rotherham Parent Carers Forum, along with adult social care, health, and the local authority, had developed a "Preparation for Adulthood" handbook and pathway to support the transition.

·       A NEET (Not in Education, Employment, or Training) group was established, involving providers like the RNN Group (higher-education group), ROC Group, and other early help services, to improve communication and pathways between secondary and post-16 education.

·       Minimum communication standards between schools and post-16 providers were being developed, with the RNN Group leading the creation of a pro-forma for essential information transfer, which would be discussed with secondary school head teachers in February.

·       The local authority worked closely with post-16 providers and non-traditional organisations, such as United Community Sports, to explore additional opportunities for young people.

·       The NEET Group included a broad range of providers, ensuring a comprehensive approach to meeting the diverse needs of young people, including those with autism.

·       There was a strong commitment from providers to collaborate and develop joint solutions for young people's transitions, including non-education establishments like ROC and others.

·       The significant improvements in SEND services in Rotherham were noted, with the current progress described as revolutionary compared to the past, and congratulations were given to everyone involved in achieving these changes.

·       The report highlighted unclear information regarding post-16 pathways, and it was acknowledged that more work was needed to clarify this. Since the Ofsted Inspection Report, efforts have been made to improve and clarify information with the Parent Carers Forum, with the final draft of the revised version scheduled for review at the next SEND Partnership Executive Board in February.

·       Over the past two years, efforts were made in Rotherham to ensure data sharing agreements were fit for purpose and the service worked closely with partners to address any issues. While some bureaucratic challenges still existed, the system had processes in place to escalate and resolve them quickly.

·       There were 600 children in Rotherham who were electively home-educated, and while support within schools was available, those outside the school system, including home-educated children, faced challenges accessing services like Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS). Efforts had been made to address barriers for non-attending children, but interim support mechanisms were still needed for those awaiting intervention, particularly for universal services like CAMHS.

·       Efforts had been made to improve the early identification of special educational needs through strategies like the Early Years Education Strategy, which aimed to identify needs early, reduce exclusions, and improve the quality of support and referrals across schools.

·       New initiatives were implemented, such as the Inclusion Support Grant, outreach services, inclusion panels, and the development of a "threshold document" to ensure consistent support for children with special needs and to address gaps in EHCP referrals, with substantial progress in the early years sector.

·       Efforts were made to monitor the use of funding for children with EHCPs, including tracking progress through annual reviews and collaborating with schools on SEND progress, such as attendance and exam performance. A new portal was being developed to improve accountability.

·       Concerns about the misuse of SEND funding in other areas were acknowledged, with plans to increase accountability and transparency in how funds were spent. Parents were encouraged to access support through services like Special Educational Needs and Disability Information, Advice and Support Service (SENDIAS) and the Rotherham Parent Carers Forum, and improvements in the local offer and communication were made to support families.

 

Resolved:- That members of the Improving Lives Select Commission:

 

1)    Acknowledge the outcome of the SEND Area Inspection and the associated report.

2)    Request that the Assistant Director for Education and Inclusion provides an update on the progress of the area’s identified within the Inspection Report as requiring improvements, such as the variation of Quality and Specificity of EHC Plans and the delays in diagnosing neurodevelopmental needs and accessing occupational, speech and language therapy.

3)    Request that the Assistant Director for Education and Inclusion provides provide a written response containing further information relating to the CAMHS services and the interim support available for children who are electively home educated.