Sense calls for Government to adopt Education Committee recommendations on SEN
19 December 2012
Sense welcomes the Education Committee's report on the draft Children and Families Bill published today. In particular we welcome the recommendation that regulations must make clear the necessary skills for individuals undertaking assessments. In a survey carried out by Sense, 87% of responses about the quality of the assessment processes cited a lack of understanding of deafblindness or multi-sensory impairments as a reason for a delay in obtaining a statement. Regulations could make a huge difference to this experience by ensuring those carrying out the assessments have an understanding of the complex issues facing deafblind/multi-sensory impaired (MSI) children and young people.
Other recommendations in the report which Sense welcomes include:
- The presumption that a key worker / lead professional will be appointed unless there are good reasons not to do so
- The recognition that active involvement of the NHS - in commissioning, delivery and redress - is critical to the success of the legislation
- That the legislation should make clear that the entitlement covers children from birth upwards, including those too young to be in an educational setting but for whom an early assessment might highlight educational needs
- The establishment of a national framework for Local Offers to ensure consistency, together with accountability measures by which they can be evaluated
Steve Rose said: "This report contains some recommendations which would significantly improve the experience of deafblind children and their families as they navigate the education, health and care system. We call on the Government to incorporate these recommendations into the Bill before it is presented to parliament."