Families face changes to special education services in Northamptonshire

Core Assets Children’s Services has been commissioned by the Department for Education and the Council for Disabled Children to provide free impartial information and support services on reforms in the Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND) system for a number of local authorities in Northamptonshire.

Tracey Mutch, independent support service manager at Core Assets, said: “Working in partnership with Northamptonshire County Council we have been able to forge excellent links with everyone involved in delivering support services for families through events and joint activities.

“However, there will be many families that are affected and still need support to successfully transfer from a statement of Special Education Needs to an Education, Health and Care plan. We would urge anyone that is struggling with the changes to come to us for free impartial information and support.”

The Children and Families Act 2014 introduced new measures to improve the support available for children with special educational needs and disabilities. Under the act, local authorities have a duty to phase in the introduction of the new Education, Health and Care (EHC) plans to replace the Statement of Special Educational Needs and where appropriate also Learning Difficulty Assessments (LDA).

EHC plans are designed to include education, health and social care needs in one legal document with the child or young person having the opportunity to express their personal interests, goals and aspirations for the future.

For further information on the support services available, visit http://www.coreassets.com/what-we-do/independent-support-service/, [email protected] or contact the helpline 0800 028 8455