Special Educational Needs and disabilities: service experiences of children, young people and their families In Gateshead
Download (PDF 1.27 MB)Summary of report content
Healthwatch Gateshead worked in partnership with the Northeast and North Cumbria ICB to engage with children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities and their families to understand their experiences across education, health and social services. This is intended to feed into the joint commissioning strategy. They heard from 45 people.
Among the 45 respondents, there were high levels of dissatisfaction in how services met the needs of their child and the wider family. However, there were also several examples of good practice reported and positive experiences shared.
Overall, only 38% of caregivers responded positively when asked if services met their child’s needs and an equal number felt that the services met the needs of their family. Much of the frustration felt by families appeared to stem from difficulties accessing services and lengthy waiting times.
While overall caregivers felt that the support received by services was not duplicated, there were issues with the lack of joined-up provision and what caregivers perceived to be a lack of communication between service providers. Experiences in Mainstream Schools / Colleges were less positive that those in Specialist Schools / Colleges and ratings were consistently lower across indicators including meeting needs, the effective use of reasonable adjustments, and transitions between key stages and schools.
Healthcare service experiences were largely positive. Reasonable adjustments were good in most cases, but due to the level of demand, waiting times were long and the frequency of support did not meet the needs of many.
A small proportion of those consulted reported using social care services. Where services were used, feedback was largely positive. However, subsidised provision for specific groups (i.e., those over 18) and specific types of support (i.e., training, employment, and respite opportunities) could be further developed.
The report contains six recommendations about sharing good practice, staff training, awareness of services and communication.