Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she has taken to help ensure Staffordshire County Council is able to effectively support children and young people with additional needs in a) Newcastle-under-Lyme and b) Staffordshire.

Our ambition is that all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or in alternative provision receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life.

Departmental officials hold regular meetings and correspond with Staffordshire County Council on SEND as part of monitoring progress against the areas for improvement identified by Ofsted/Care Quality Commission inspectors.

The areas for improvement were:

• Area 1: Co-production was weak. Parents felt that the local area did not listen to them or their child. The ‘tell it once’ approach was not embedded. The area’s relationships with schools and families were fragile.
• Area 2: The quality of education, health and care plans was poor. Health and care workers did not contribute to the process effectively. The targets and outcomes in plans were not aspirational enough. The annual reviews of EHC plans were often not completed on time or did not contribute effectively to the review of the children and young people’s needs or the support and help they received.

The department has appointed a SEND Adviser to support and work alongside the Local Area Partnership.