SEND Local Offer Review

Healthwatch Halton completed a project to assess how young people with Special Educational Needs or Disabilities (SEND), their families or carers and SEND professionals feel about the SEND local offer, referrals and additional support in Halton. They conducted focus groups and surveys between September 2022 and February 2023 to gather experiences from 227 people.

In the focus groups, people shared their experiences of assessments, including the long wait period for assessments. Another topic discussed in focus groups was schools, particularly the lack of help from schools and children remaining in mainstream schools while waiting for a diagnosis. Medication, waiting lists for referrals and parental blame were also topics of conversation in focus groups.

Parents reported finding it difficult to get information about the Halton SEND Local Offer, saying that the website is difficult to navigate and that more information is needed, as some respondents reported that information is not shared between services.

However, the feedback on these topics were all mixed, with some respondents sharing positive experiences. The report ended with recommendation, including improvements to the assessments, joint working protocols, and refreshing the SEND Local Offer website.