Agenda item

The Cabinet Member for Children and Young People’s Services, the Assistant Director for Education and Inclusion, the Head of the SEND Service and the Head of Children and Young People’s Services Commissioning and Transformation attended the meeting to provide a progress report the implementation of the SEND (Special Education Need and Disability) Sufficiency Strategy in Rotherham. including updates with regard to the implementation of the SEND Sufficiency Phases 1, 2 and 3.

In introducing the report, the Cabinet Member for Children and Young People’s Services noted that SEND Sufficiency Strategy set out a plan to look at meeting our emerging SEND provision needs against a structured profile of identified SEND needs in Rotherham with the three phases of SEND Sufficiency Strategy aiming to address key areas of need against a context of increasing demand for SEND services across the Borough.

The Assistant Director for Education and Inclusion made a presentation to the meeting that provided information on:

·       The definition of SEND and the requirement that was placed on the Council to ensure sufficient provision of suitable educational provision for children and young people with SEND needs.

·       How SEND Sufficiency was managed in Rotherham by the SEND Sufficiency Strategy.

·       The progress that had been made in delivering the three phases of the SEND Sufficiency Strategy noting that Phase 1 had been completed and that Phase 2 was 80% complete.

·       The objectives and activity included in Phase 3 including its focus on:

·       creating a specialist SEND campus in Dinnington.

·       combines rebuild of Newman Special, movement of upper part of Newman to Dinnington.

·       developing a Social, Emotional, Health Specialist setting in Rotherham.

·       Future phases and potential objectives for the strategy.

·       The recent Ofsted/CQC inspection of SEND services across Rotherham

Members expressed their concern regarding the amount of time that Education Health and Care Plans (EHCP) were taking to be completed noting that in order to ensure that every child could access the correct support that these should be completed in a timely manner. The Cabinet Member for Children and Young People’s Services noted that whilst the timely completion on EHCP’s was very important, it was more important that each child got the right support, in the right setting and at the right time. The Cabinet Member noted that as a result of the actions carried out as part of the SEND review support could be delivered to children and young people without an EHCP being in place. The Assistant Director detailed the processes involved in establishing an EHCP for a child and noted that whilst there was a 20-week target for completing an EHCP that this timescale could be very challenging due to the number of stakeholders involved in the process. The Assistant Director assured members that whilst an EHCP brought together a single document to support a child’s needs, support was accessible and would be provided before an EHCP was in place.

Members noted the importance of a safe and secure environment for all children, and especially for children with additional needs when accessing education and asked what plans were in place to support the children and families who would be impacted by the move of the Newman School to the site at Dinnington. The Assistant Director advised that this aspect of the move had been given thorough consideration throughout the planning processes involved in the school move. The Assistant Director assured members that parents and carers had been fully consulted with and involved in the plans that would ensure that each child could transfer smoothly and settle in at the new site. The Assistant Director noted that whist the move would be challenging for some children he was confident that the right support was in place, and that ultimately the new building would better meet the needs of those attending.

The Chair asked whether the children and young people who would be moving to the new school site had been involved in the design and layout of the new school. The Head of Children and Young People’s Services Commissioning and Transformation advised that the design of the new school had been carried out in a collaborative way and had involved students in co-production activities that had been facilitated via members of school staff.

Members asked for further information on the number of out of area placements that were made. The Assistant Director advised that he would obtain this information and circulate to members. Members asked whether the current SEND provision across the Borough was sufficient to cope with the increasing number of children with EHCP’s or whether further provision would need to be developed. The Assistant Director confirmed that the growth in the number of children with additional needs and EHCP’s was increasing and advised that a further needs analysis was scheduled to be carried out in 2022 that would ensure that the provision of services would continue to match demand. The Cabinet Member noted the 2019 Government Review that had been carried out around SEND provision had emphasised the need to focus on providing wraparound holistic support locally as required, rather than solely focussing on EHCP’s as a means to then deliver support.

The Chair asked how long the current SEND provision would be able to meet demand for. The Assistant Director advised that discussions were being carried out with the Department for Education regarding extra funding to alleviate any immediate pressures being felt in the system. The Assistant Director advised that it was important when considering SEND provision and the needs of children with additional needs that consideration was given to enabling provision across the entire education system. The Assistant Director advised that there would need to be further investment in providing the highest level of provision but that it was essential to look how children with less severe needs could be supported in mainstream education. The Assistant Director confirmed that Phase 4 of the SEND Sufficiency Strategy would look to deliver more SEND provision on mainstream schools. The Chair welcomed the plans to increase SEND support in mainstream schools.

Members asked whether there were any plans to relocate Hilltop School at Maltby as whilst the school provided an excellent level of education and support for its students the site it was located on was not ideal. The Assistant Director advised that the upcoming needs analysis that would be carried out in 2022 would consider the suitability of the buildings on the site and that discussions would be held with all stakeholders on potential future options.

Members asked when the Written Statement of Action that was being created in response to the joint Ofsted/CQC inspection of SEND services would be available. The Assistant Director advised that Written Statement of Action would be published in January 2022. The Cabinet Member noted the result of the recent joint Ofsted/CQC inspection of SEND services across Rotherham that had raised concerns about the effectiveness of processes in Rotherham with regards to SEND provision related to the provision of all SEND services that were delivered by other bodies as well as the Council with regards to SEND. The Cabinet Member noted the many positive parts of SEND provision noted in the inspection report including the Parents and Carer’s Forum. The Cabinet Member assured members that the Council and all stakeholders were fully committed to developing services and delivering the best possible outcomes for all children and their families. The Assistant Director assured members that they would be kept informed with regard to the planned activity to address the areas of weakness that had been highlighted in inspection report.

Members asked for further information on the selection process that had resulted in the Wellspring Academy Trust being chosen to be the provider of the new Newman School. The Assistant Director advised that a rigorous and transparent selection process had been followed that had been led by the Regional Schools Commissioner. The Assistant Director advised that this process had resulted in the recommendation being made to the Council that the Wellspring Academy Trust was the most suitable provider and should be appointed. Members sought assurance around the experience of the Wellspring Academy Trust in delivering SEND provision. The Assistant Director advised that the Wellspring Academy Trust had significant experience in delivering SEND provision and assured members that rigorous processes were in place to ensure that the Wellspring Academy Trust met and continued to meet the needs students and the school.

The Cabinet Member noted the role that the Improving Lives Select Commission had played in the monitoring and delivery of SEND provision over recent years and she welcomed members enthusiasm to involved in development of the revised SEND Strategy and needs analysis. The Cabinet Member suggested that members may like to invite representatives of the Parents and Carers Forum to the meeting when SEND was next considered by the Improving Lives Select Commission as it would add an extra dimension to the discussion.

Members asked whether there ever would be a situation where the SEND provision across the Borough would be able to a meet the needs of all children and young people with additional needs who lived in the Borough without the need to use out of area placements. The Assistant Director advised that whilst demand for and provision of SEND Services was constantly evolving there would always be a need for some out of area placements in situations where such a placement would best meet the needs of an individual child. The Cabinet Member noted that successful SEND provision across the Borough would be when all parents could be fully confident that the needs of their child would be assessed and catered for in an appropriate and timely manner.

The Chair thanked the Cabinet Member for Children and Young People’s Services, the Assistant Director for Education and Inclusion, the Head of the SEND Service and the Head of Children and Young People’s Services Commissioning and Transformation for attending the meeting and answering members questions.

Resolved: - 

1)    That the report be noted.

2)    That a further progress report on the implementation of Phase Three of the SEND Sufficiency and other activity surrounding SEND Sufficiency in Rotherham be brought to the March 2021 meeting of the Improving Lives Select Commission.

3)    That a written update regarding the opening of the Newman Special School at the Dinnington SEND Campus be circulated to members of the Improving Lives Select Commission by the end of 2021.

4)    That the Assistant Director for Education and Inclusion liaises with Chair of the Improving Lives Select Commission to arrange visits for members of the Commission to the Newman Special School at the Dinnington SEND Campus.

5)    That a briefing be provided to the members of the Improving Lives Select Commission on the written statement of action drafted in response to Ofsted/CQC SEND Local Area Inspection once it is available.