E081-02 I Pae Mac 2010 a 10/03/2010 10:32 Pae 1 In Partnership · E081-02 I Pae Mac 2010_a 10/03/2010 10:32 Pae 3. 4 Sometimes being a parent of a child with SEN can be very isolating

l Helping Parents of Children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Stay in Touch l

In Partnership

Editorial p2

Bye, bye, Macclesfield House p3

Spotlight on SHIFT p4

Thomley p6

Job behind the jargon p7

Exclusion Records p8

Special Olympics/O.F.V p9

Understanding Sensory Sensitivities p10

Lamb Report p12

PIN p14

OXFSN p15

Info Bites p16

COMPILED AND

SENT OUT BY

PARENT PARTNERSHIP

OXFORDSHIRE

Issue 18 March 2010

Bye, bye,

Macclesfield

House xSamuelson House, Banbury

Knights Court – Central Team

Windrush Cour

t – Southern T

eam

E081-02 In Partnership March 2010_layout 10/03/2010 10:32 Page 1

2

Dear Parent,

Perhaps you are wondering why this magazine has arrived onyour doormat?

Or perhaps are you quite familiar with its twice yearlyappearance?

What we realised last year was that we have never toldparents who sent it and why!

So – as you can read on the front, ‘In Partnership’ is compiledand sent out by Parent Partnership Oxfordshire (PPO). It goesdirectly to all parents/carers in Oxfordshire who have a childwith a statement of Special Educational needs (SEN) and now toall those at School Action Plus as well. At PPO, our job is toprovide parents of children with SEN with impartialinformation, advice and support. What exactly does impartialmean? For us, it means we try to tell parents ‘like it is’, weexplain how the systems work in Oxfordshire and what the lawsays about children with SEN, including the DisabilityDiscrimination Act. We don’t take sides but interestingly someprofessionals in education feel we are on the parents’ side. Wedon’t mind that, but we do work hard to try and get everybodyto work together and keep the needs of a child in the centre ofdiscussions.

We offer this advice and information in a variety of ways-including this newsletter, which we hope is a useful source ofinformation to you as parents, whatever your child’s needs, andgives you some idea of what is happening in Oxfordshire andbeyond in the area of SEN/LDD. (The latest change in jargon isthat SEN are now referred to as LDD, Learning Difficulties andDisabilities, but until such time as everyone is familiar with thenew language we will keep on including SEN as well …. )

If there are things you would like included, or if you have aresponse to something you read, please ring 01865 810516 ore-mail [email protected] – we would loveto hear from you!

If you have questions about your child’s SEN/LDD and what ishappening at school, you can contact us at the same number,or come to one of our drop-in sessions advertised on thenext page.

Editorial

Wendy Cliffe

Marian Roiser

Anne-Marie Belcher

Jocelyn Morris


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It may be a 1960s eyesore but Macclesfield House, more commonly known as ‘MaccHouse’, was the name that parents and schools alike associated with Oxfordshire CountyCouncil’s Education department. School staff talked about getting in touch with ‘MaccHouse’, sometimes leaving parents wondering who this powerful Scotsman might be whoseemed to be the one with the final say and the authority to make decisions!

Though the Education department has changed its name many times, from ‘Education’through ‘Learning and Culture’ to Childrens’ Services and now to the Directorate forChildren, Young People and Families, ‘Macclesfield House’ was the place that everyoneknew to contact if you had questions about your child’s education, especially if they hadSEN. But no longer…..

After Easter 2010 the 3 SEN Area teams, Northern, Central and Southern will be intheir new homes in their 3 areas.

The Northern team are now based in Samuelson House in Banbury, on Tramway Road,Banbury, Ox16 5TB. Telephone 01865 816681.

The Central team will be in Knights Court in Cowley, Oxford and the Southern team inWindrush Court, Abingdon. The contact numbers for these teams will be confirmed later.The telephone numbers for the individual SEN officers will remain the same.

Hopefully having the SEN teams closer to where you live will make it easier for you toget in touch when you have queries.

Bye, bye,MacclesfieldHouse

ARE YOU A PARENT OR CARER OF ACHILD WITH SPECIAL EDUCATIONAL

NEEDS (SEN)?

Want to find out about the SEN system?Looking for a chance to talk things through?

Come along to a FREE drop-in ‘TalkingPoints’ SEN advice session

Parent Partnership Oxfordshire will provideimpartial information and advice.

Join us on a Wednesday morning

10.00 - 11.30 wherever suits you best.

To find out more ring 01865 810516

TALKING POINTSBANBURYThe Sunshine Centre(Formerly BradleyArcade CommunityCentre), off Bretch Hill

19 May & 7 July 2010

BICESTERBicester Children’sCentre, Glory FarmSchool Site,Hendon Place

28 Apr & 23 June2010

CARTERTONSt John the Evangelist Church,Burford Road,Carterton

26 May 2010

DIDCOTDidcot Children’sCentreStephen FreemanCommunity School,Freeman Road

21 April* & 16 June 2010

OXFORDCounty HallNew Road

10 Mar, 12 May, 9June & 14 July2010

WITNEYMethodist ChurchHigh Street

5 May & 30 June2010

* Evenings suit you better?Didcot – 21 Apr 2010, 7-8.30pm

at Didcot Community Church, Barnes Road.


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“Sometimes being a parent of a child with SEN can be very isolating. SHIFT is a great way to informally meet others in the same boat."

SHIFT=Support – an informal group which came about out of a chance conversationbetween a couple of parents who have children with SEN at Dunmore Primary School inAbingdon. It sparked an idea that there was need for some kind of support group forparents & carers of children with special needs in the area. With the help & continuedsupport of both Dunmore School & the North Abingdon Children's Centre we were able toget the group started. At the first meeting, 3 of us shared our concerns, difficulties &ideas with each other, but before long we had contacted all schools in the town & thegroup became Abingdon wide.

We meet fortnightly & always guarantee a warm welcome, coffee, cake & toys for anylittle ones. There is always plenty of conversation, sharing our knowledge & experiences,some weeks accompanied by great laughter, whilst at other times one or two people haveshared particular concerns with others on a deeper level.

“I always look forward to our meetings. It is great being around a group of people who allunderstand what it is like having a child with special needs.”

=Help – The group is made up of a mixture of parents & carers with children who are ofdifferent ages, have a variety of conditions and attend primary, secondary & specialschools. Those with slightly older children are fantastic at talking about the experiencesthey have gone through, they share what went well & how, in hindsight, they may havedone some things differently.

“Because our children are all different ages there is always at least one person in thegroup who is able to offer advice if you have a problem”

=Information – A couple of times a term we have benefited from visits from differentprofessionals. This has proved very successful as the talks have been very informativeand hopefully the invited professionals have also found the visits beneficial when gettingfeedback from the group.

“The talks that have been given have opened my eyes when really we're all stumblingaround just trying to do the best thing for our children”

=Families – A topic of conversation that we find ourselves constantly returning to is theimpact of having a child with special needs on family life and especially on siblings.

“As the mother of two boys, both with SEN, one at Kingfisher Special School and onesupported at Dunmore School, I have often felt that as a family we didn't "fit in" toexisting groups”

=Together – We come to SHIFT to enjoy a break and meet up with others in similarsituations where there is a level of understanding and acceptance that can only be foundamongst those with similar experiences.

SPOTLIGHT ON shift

Continued next page


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“What I value most about SHIFT is the opportunity to meet and empathise with peoplewho, regardless of their particular child's profile, seem to have many experiences incommon with me. This just doesn't happen with even the closest friends outside thegroup because they really cannot put themselves in my shoes.”

“I like to be with a group of people where I cantalk about my situation and not be the oneeveryone feels sorry for! I want to be able to givesomeone else the hearing ear they need because Iknow how hard it is to find that hearing earmyself. I've met some amazing women in verydifferent situations who do a fantastic job justholding things together however they can.”

If anyone asked me what was the most worthwhilething I had done in the last few years what wouldjump straight to my mind would be my involvementin starting SHIFT. Not only do I greatly benefitfrom the support of others & the wealth ofexperience within the group but also the joy ofseeing others cared for & supported.

“Finding your way through the special needs world and locating people and places thatcould help you is not an easy process. One of my reasons for belonging to SHIFT is toshare with other parents the knowledge I have gained along my journey so far.”

I would really encourage other parents to form similar groups; to start it just needssomewhere to meet, some coffee & a few people (we began with 3) who want to helpreduce that sense of isolation that can come with caring for a child with SEN, & have agreat time along the way. If you would like to know more about us visit our websitehttp://shift-abingdon.org.uk email [email protected] or pop in to see us, alldates & times are on our website. Sally Foulsham

“SHIFT has a core group of dedicated mums and includes parents of children attending anumber of schools and with a variety of additional needs. I think reasons for its successare its 'all welcome' attitude (as well as the baking!) and access to an experienced andimpartial Children's Centre Worker if required. The timing also alternates between aThursday morning and a Tuesday afternoon slot to account for peoples' differentsituations. I’m very proud to have been involved in the early stages of this group, and evenmore proud that SHIFT is now run completely by the people who need it, for the peoplewho need it.” Ian Moore, Deputy Head & SENCO, Dunmore Primary

SHIFT

THE MUSIC CLUB – New for children with disabilitiesFun with music for children & young people aged 0-19 years & carers – Siblings welcome! Crowmarsh Village Hall, Benson Lane, Crowmarsh. Come for an hour of music making, singing & fun!Time: 6-7pm music session followed by refreshments Cost: £2.00 per childDates: 29th March – SoundAbout 12th April – Easter Holiday Music Club – Disco: 6–8pm10th May - Drumming with Rythmezone: 6-7pm Future dates - 7th June, 5th July, 2nd Aug. For info, contact: Sophie – [email protected] or Julie on 01889722322 [email protected]


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February Holidays - ‘Big Screen Week’ Thomley entered 2010 with lots of snow, ice and closures but we made up for it in theFebruary half term, with bundles of excitement and fun for families and groups!

We had a very successful cheer leading workshop (for High School Musical), lots of fancy dress outfits,decorating Scooby snacks, a creative superhero workshop and even some days of sunshine to top off agreat week. A particular highlight of the week was the Thomley Jedi Academy and our Star Wars LightSabre Training. This involved lots of fencing techniques and certificates for all those who joined in tobecome a Thomley Jedi for the day!

Our first Monday opening proved to be a great success; reducing waiting lists and getting as manypeople through the gates as our capacity allows. The week saw 357 children out of a possible 360attending Thomley; so a very busy week! A big thank you to all families who notified us that theycouldn’t make it as this enabled other families on the waiting lists to attend.

What’s next at Thomley??We’ve got a very exciting and busy year planned at Thomley and below are the dates and themesfor the next holidays!

Spring holidays (6th April – 17th April – closed on 11th April) – Favourite Books

May/June holiday (31st May – 5th June) – West End Theatres

Summer holidays (Wed 21st July – 1st September – closed Sundays and Mondays) – Alphabet

During each holiday we will be running focus days for particular age groups (e.g. teenage days).Advance booking will be essential so please call the office for further details or check ourwebsite for all 2010 dates.

Thomley Activity Centre, Menmarsh Road, Worminghall, Bucks, HP18 9JZ

Dads and Male Carers Day – Sunday 21st March 10am-3.30pm

Join us for our first ever Sunday opening!Throughout the year we have 3 Dads and MaleCarers Days organised for Sundays: 21st March 20th June 21st November – community dads day

On the 21st March we plan to kick start our Dadsand Male Carers Days off with brunch! We’ll becooking up a selection of bacon or sausagesandwiches (+ a veggie option) and baked beans ontoast. In the afternoon we’ll be out on the fieldfor cricket and football...what more could youwant for a Sunday!!

Disability Toddler Days – Tuesday 23rd March 10am-3.30pm

Throughout the year we have 3 DisabilityToddler Days organised: 23rd March 21st July 23rd November

To launch our first term time DisabilityToddler Day we will be joined by Felipe, ourvery popular bubble man, for a bubble maniaworkshop between 11am-12pm!

If you have children under 6yrs withdisabilities, this will be the perfect day tovisit.

What’s new at Thomley for 2010?

Thomley Activity Centre is open to different groups from 10am – 3.30pm, Tuesday toSaturday, throughout the year. Bookings must be made in advance.


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Who can help parents find accessible childcare for children withSEN/LDD who attend mainstream schools?Carly Metcalfe can!

Hello, my name’s Carly Metcalfe and I am an Information Officer for AccessibleChildcare, based at Oxfordshire Family Information Service (OxonFIS). For those of youwho aren’t aware of OxonFIS, we provide free information and support to all families inOxfordshire with children and young people aged from birth to twenty. We can helpparents to find childcare, such as finding a childminder or nursery as well as answeringqueries on applying for a school place, information on parenting classes and signpostingfamilies to the right services. We also do outreach work, visiting children’s centres,toddler groups as well as attending events across the county.

I work specifically with families with disabled children and young people who are in amainstream setting. I can provide information and support on a variety of topics, such asfinding childcare, play and leisure activities as well as accessing any funding that may beavailable. This can happen in the form of a brokerage service, which means I contactproviders directly on behalf of parents, explaining what the family needs and, wherepossible, shortlist any suitable provision to give to parents. If appropriate, I can meetwith families in Oxfordshire, usually at their local children’s centre. I also visit supportgroups and providers around the county talking to parents and professionals about my roleand the services available to families. If you would like me to visit, please feel free tocontact me.

The majority of my work is finding either a childminder or holiday playscheme for a childto attend, with funding sometimes required to cover the cost of either transport or anadditional member of staff. So far, I have helped 58 families, 29 of which wereconcerning finding a childminder or holiday playscheme. Other queries have been aboutsupport groups, swimming lessons, information of funding criteria, finding volunteer work,or finding out what other support is available. The main funding pots used by families arethe Community Chest Fund and Inclusion Support Scheme; for further information pleasevisit www.oxfordshire.gov.uk.

Families can get in touch by phoning the OxonFIS helpline on08452 26 26 36. We are open from 9.00am till 5.00pm Monday to Thursday and from9.00am till 4.00pm on Fridays. Alternatively, you can e-mail the service [email protected] or visit us in person at County Hall, New Road,Oxford, Ox1 1ND.

I look forward to hearing from you!

The job behind the jargon –

Information Officer for Accessible Childcare


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Children with SEN are 8 times more likely than their peers to be permanently excludedfrom school! There are many things that can and should be tried before a permanentexclusion happens. One thing that may help prevent things escalating to a permanentexclusion is if you can show the difficulties your child is experiencing early on.

If your child is being excluded for whatever reason it is very important to keep anaccurate record. Keeping good records of when and how they are being excluded can give aclearer picture of what is happening and show they need additional support. It may helpshow patterns of behaviour, or what is the trigger to certain behaviours, is it in a particularsubject, with a particular member of staff or at a particular time when the difficultiesoccur? Having an idea of this may help in the planning and review of your child’s progressand support needs at school. It will certainly help you get a clearer picture of your child’sexclusions and be useful for your child’s next termly or annual review or when attendingmeetings with your child’s school. If you don’t know what is going wrong and when, how canany changes be made to help avoid it happening again?

If your child has support needs that are not being met, if you don’t have good records ofhow many exclusions have taken place and why, it might mean it is harder to prove theyneed more help.

Things to make a note of: The date of the exclusion: How has school recorded this exclusion? Internal/Lunchtime/Fixed Term/ Permanent How were you informed about this exclusion? Phone / Letter / Other Date / time you were contacted: Have you been asked to take your child away from school without them been excluded?

If so, when? Name / role of the member of staff who contacted you: What was said or written to explain the reason for the exclusion? If you are in any

doubt you can check with the school what the reason was. If it was an internal exclusion, was your child given any work to do?

? If it was a fixed term exclusion, was work sent home for the first 5 days for yourchild to complete and was it marked?

? When did they start to receive full time educational provision?? If it was a permanent exclusion - was work sent home for the first 5 days for your

child to complete and was it marked?? When did they start to receive full time education provision? If they only received

part time education, how many hours did they receive?

If you need advice around exclusions, ring PPO on 01865 810516 or email [email protected] or ACE exclusions advice on 0808 800 0327

Has your child been excluded?Do they get excluded quite often?

Do you keep a record of the exclusions?It might be a good idea to start!

This record is based on one created by TreeHouse, a charity for autism education


A Forum for Parents/Carers of Disabled Children & Young People

Successfully launched last year OFV now has 86 Parent/Carer members. OFVcollected feedback from our members on the issues that are affecting them and weidentified transport and extended services as the key issues to take forward to aSounding Board, this is a meeting with parents which also involves key personnel withinOxfordshire County Council, such as Commissioners and Heads of Service. As a resultof the Sounding Board an action plan will be drawn up and OFV will monitor thisprocess to ensure the recommendations made will be undertaken. OFV also feedissues into the Children’s and Young Peoples Trust Board. Info on past and futureOFV consultations is on our website http://oxfordshirefamilyvoices.co.uk

OFV will be holding a meeting for both members and parents/carers of disabledchildren who would like to join the forum on Thurs 6th May 2010 at the OxfordSpires Four Pillars Hotel, Abingdon Road, Oxford, OX1 4PS from 10.00 a.m.until 2.00 p.m. (a light lunch will be provided). We will also take this opportunity toplan a conference that will be held later on in the year – so please let us know whattopics you would like us to cover.

OFV are also able to offer training around Parent Participation to thoseParents/Carers who wish to represent the forum. The next training will be Wed 9thand Thurs 10th June, the venue will be confirmed nearer the time. There will beanother 2 day session in October. Participants will receive £20 in vouchers. If you areinterested in taking part in this training or for more info on OFV please contact us [email protected] or on 07906 389925.

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Can my child be a Special Olympics Athlete?

OxSRAD runs the “Special Olympics Oxfordshire” project,which offers athletes with a learning disability the chance toparticipate in sports training sessions and competitions acrossthe County. Anyone, 6-80yrs old, with a learning disability(IQ75 and below) can take part.

YES – Would your child like the opportunity to try Cricket,Football, Tennis or Boccia (a specially adapted throwing game)?If so, let us know your details and we will let you know where

and when the sessions are. If they would like to try a different sport then please let usknow so we can recommend a local club or set up a section in that sport.

YES – If your child currently trains regularly in their chosen sport then please let usknow and we will affiliate them to Special Olympics; they can continue in their currentclub but be able to represent Special Olympics Oxfordshire in local, regional and nationalcompetitions.

Who do I contact? [email protected] or call Paul Guest on 01865 741336For more information on Special Olympics, check the national website www.sogb.org.uk


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Understanding sensory sensitivities in ASD – Touch

Children and young people with ASD may experience issues of sensitivity to a range ofsensory input. Many people with ASD find touch difficult; some cannot stand any touch,others get engrossed in touching e.g. they might go up and start stroking someone’s hair.For others, a light touch can make them reach sensory overload quite quickly.

Issues around touchHow a child with these issues might be behaving:

Screaming, running away, explosions of anger, hitting, taking clothes off, wearing only alimited range of clothing, doesn’t like face being washed, won’t have their hair washed orcut, drags hands along walls, needs to touch everything.

It may be that soft/hard touches hurt them, that they have a lack of spatialawareness so need to test out where their body is or to make sense of a situation.

What to do to help? Expand their experience of touch using sensory toys, or playing games involving being

wrapped in a blanket. Play wrestling can also be effective Teach them to tolerate touch but be guided by the child, what they like, hard/soft and

use it as reward Teach your child to indicate their touch preference appropriately, e.g. practice saying

‘please only touch me on my arm (firmly or gently) and tell me first.’

Give a pre–warning:

At home – develop a shared phrase that pre warns the child that they are going to betouched. Anna Tullemanns described how her son did not respond to hugs and actively triedto get away, struggling and hitting out. At other times he would come and hug his motherso tightly that she couldn't breathe. From this she realised he liked firm hugs on his terms.

As she knew that he needed to be warned beforehand if he was going to be touched, shecame up with the phrase ‘Mothers need hugs to be beautiful’ . These words told him he wasgoing to get a hug and acted like an advance warning so he could prepare himself for thesensory stimulation that was about to happen. Sometimes he would reply "but you'realready beautiful!" which meant that he did not want to be touched.

If relatives are coming to visit who may want to hug and kiss the child, tell them in advancewhat is likely to happen e.g. Grannie will hug you and kiss you twice when she arrives andsay how big you are. You are to say ’thank you, Grannie, it’s lovely to see you’ and then youcan go upstairs. Practise the scenario with them

At School – Jostling in the hallways or what can be normal boyish friendly ‘nudging’interaction can be distressing and a pupil with ASD may overreact because it has actuallyhurts them.


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Possible solutions to help the pupil are to:

- allow the pupil to leave a lesson a couple of minutes either before or after everyone else

- analyse video footage of this sort of interaction and discuss whether people are trying tohurt one another or is it a form of greeting?

- role play these interactions but then make sure that it is practised in a variety of placesso the knowledge can be transferred from classroom to classroom and to the playgroundas well.

Be aware of difficulties of uniform- be prepared to wash items of clothing multipletimes before wearing and remove all labels.

Young children - bath time,face or hair washing and haircutting can be difficult.

Possible solutions to help thechild are to:

- play with the water- fill thebath at other times just toplay and explore

- play with sponges, facecloths,variety of soaps and smells-let them choose what to play with from a selection of 4 or 5 things

- use mirrors and face paints to get the child used to having their face touched. Perhaps start by letting them put it on your face, then progress to them painting theirfingers, then their own face and then work up to allowing you to paint their face.

- get the child used to having their hair touched. Start with getting them to touch theirown hair or massage their own head- or yours. Move on to lifting up their hair.

- explain to the hairdresser that they need to warn the child before they start, that theycould place their hand on the child’s head to apply pressure before they start cutting.

In the wider world –

Shaking hands - a skill that you can use in most areas of life.

If your child absolutely hates being touched and hugged, you can teach them the skill of"shaking hands" as a greeting. You might need to remind relatives that your child only likesto shake hands as a greeting! Make sure you teach your child to have a firm but not tootight grip and to only shake once. (Some younger people with ASD like to shake hard andlots of times!)

The content of this article is adapted from training delivered by Anna Tulleman. Her newsletter and more info can be found at www.annatullemans.com


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Brian Lamb’s inquiry into SEN and parental confidence came up with 51 recommendations!Much of what he identified as problems and solutions will come as no surprise to parents.

The headlines are:Childrens’ outcomes should be at the heart of the system –

the need to change the culture of low expectations for children with SEN

pupil and parent guarantees to show what disabled pupils &pupils with SEN (SEN/LDD) can expect from their schooland local services

reduce the numbers of exclusions among pupils withSEN/LDD

address the negative impact on children’s progress fromusing support staff instead of teachers.

Nationally approved training for new SENCOs

Training in working with parents for those in regular contact with parents of childrenwith SEN/LDD.

A stronger voice for parents – Where things go wrong, the root causes can often betraced to poor communication between school, local authority and parent.

honest, open communication and a culture that values listening to parents as key to improving parental confidence in the SEN system and support their children receive.

Better Information - Parents should be able to access the information that they need, when they need it, in ways that are convenient to them- including face to facecommunication..

Annual Review meetings for children with a statement to consider the informationneeds of parents and children and young people

the mandatory content of schools’ SEN policies to be simplified - to includeinformation on policies for identifying, assessing and providing for all pupils with SEN;the name of the person parents can contact for more information;information about outcomes for children with SEN;how parents can complain about the school’s SEN policy or practice;information about the local authority’s SEN policy and where that is published;information about parents’ statutory rights and schools should consult with parentson the content of the policy.

There are two issues that particularly affect children with SEN significantly morethan their peers: being bullied and being excluded from school.

statutory guidance to governing bodies and independent appeals panels (IAPs) onexclusions to require a review of whether the Headteacher ‘had regard to’* theguidance on SEN and disability.(*This means ‘ did the Headteacher take notice of whatthe guidance says?’)

SEN and disability training is provided for members of IAPs

PARENTS NEED TO BE LISTENED TO MORE AND THESEN SYSTEM NEEDS TO BE MORE AMBITIOUS FORTHEIR CHILDREN!

Continued next page


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A system with a greater focus on children’s needsLamb acknowledged that a lack of information, poor support and negative attitudes canmake the statutory assessment process stressful.

accurate assessment and regular review of a child’s needs

address vagueness and a lack of specificity and improve review of statements -including an additional right of appeal to Tribunal for parents if a Local authoritydecides not to amend a Statement after an Annual Review

A more accountable system that delivers better services - underpinned by a beliefthat ‘a school cannot be a good school unless it caters properly for all the children it isthere to serve’.

Governors to have a greater focus on SEN

all Ofsted inspectors receive training on SEN and disability.

Lamb emphasises the fact that who leads a school makes the biggest difference; theyset the ethos that either welcomes or sidelines children with SEN/LDD and they createa culture where parents are either confident to engage with the school or feel they are anuisance. He ended his report with this comment:

‘There is nothing I am recommending that is not being done by the best teachers,schools and local authorities across the country already’.

No need to reinvent the wheel >>>>>

The Special Needs Handbook wouldlike to hear from you.

A new publication is being complied which will betremendously useful to parents and professionals alike,full of handy, helpful tips, ideas and solutions for day to

day problems encountered by people living with or supporting a child or adult with SEN. Once finished the Special Needs Handbook will be made available free over the internet,to print off or share around e.g. with support groups, schools, therapists, etc. Send your practical tips to: [email protected]

They are particularly looking for Top Tips on the following subjects:- Sitting, crawling, walking- Soiling, bedwetting - Obsessions

- Family, single parents - Support, home help, volunteers, private care- Activities and leisure - travel/transport

All contributors will be acknowledged - so remember to include your name and addressalong with the tips you send in.


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Parent Involvement Network (PIN) Update:

Hi All, we’ve been working really hard since my last update, here are the headlines –September 2009 - Building Schools for the Future (BSF) – parents and carers attended aSounding Board on the government project for BSF and we got professionals to commit to :

l Having parents and carers on the steering group and governance for BSF Oxfordshire– the first areas for the project are Banbury, Abingdon and Oxford City.

l To ensure all families have access to the internet and a lap top if they do not havethis facility at home.

l To feedback to parents through their schools and the PIN on how BSF is developing.

l To include parents and carers feedback in Oxfordshire County Council’s (OCC)‘Strategy for Change’.

November 2009 – a consultation withparents and carers on speech therapy,language therapy and physiotherapy. (OCCare re-commissioning these services.) Themain issues raised by parents who usethese services were:

l Navigating and understanding thesystem

l Transition from early years settings(e.g. pre-school)to primary school, fromprimary to secondary school

l Knowing what is available, what is out there

l Communication

l Being able to have one person who they could talk to.

The reports have been written and OCC are now at the stage of deciding about services.

December 2009

E-Safety – parents and carers attended a Sounding Board on E Safety.

As a result, action will be taken to:

l Ensure the governing bodies of all schools, including specials, are aware of E-SafetyTraining.

l Ensure all schools have a lead teacher on E-Safety.

l Ensure information on E-Safety is available to parents and carers.

l Ensure that local communities understand the benefits & pitfalls of the internet andpass these messages on to others and parents will support a local E- safety campaign

Currently I am running a Sounding Board on Extended Services and integrated transport– so I’ll be able to tell you about the outcomes in the next magazine.

We will be doing a sounding board on schools exclusions in July or September –please contact me if you want to get involved and I will get in touch.

If you would like any more information or would like to join the PIN, please contact me inthe most convenient way for you and I will get back to you:[email protected] Phone 01865 256671 Mobile 0777 1978455


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Oxfordshire Family Support Network (OxFSN) is a small project run by family carersfor family carers. In April last year, the Learning Disability Partnership Board gave usfunding to set up and run a Transition Support Service to support families through thetransition to adulthood stage.

In October we held our very first Transition Fair at the Kassam stadium in Oxford. Anamazing 253 family members attended along with approximately 100 professionals. Wehad 35 information stands providing parents/ family carers with information about avariety of services available to their family member when they become an adult. Wealso had activities for the young people such as drumming, arts and crafts and dramaworkshops.

“Thank you for a truly fantastic event on Saturday. Judging by the sheer volume ofpeople, it was much needed. Everyone was extremely warm and helpful and (son)particularly enjoyed the drumming” [parent]

For those of you who missed it we are hoping to hold another one in October this year,so watch out for flyers or get in touch to be added to our database so we can let youknow directly.

We have also been running a series of “Transition Matters Workshops” at 3 specialschools around the county for parents of young people aged between 13-19 years(whatever school or college their child goes to). We have had a good response andpositive feedback from parents so far and hope to run more in the near future. Pleaseget in touch if you would like further information.

Gail Hanrahan OxFSN Tel:07726 347 395 or E-Mail: [email protected]

We have launched our free guide to Transition called

“Transition Matters”written by parents for parents and many of these have nowbeen distributed to schools throughout the county.

Please ask your child’s school for a copy. If they don’t yethave any please ask them to get in touch with us and we willsend a batch to them. We are sorry but we are unable tosend out individual copies to parents at this time.


Being a sibling to a child with SEN/LDDhas its own challenges

SIBs- Sibs is the UK charity for people whogrow up with a disabled brother or sister.

www.sibs.org.uk offers a variety of support with aspecial section for young siblings.

DisabledGear.com is an easy-to-use website designed to makebuying and selling second-hand disability equipment painless. Plus there is a free-ads section.

DotComUnity Oxfordshire, a one stop online resource and directory for finding outabout community services, care information and social interactivity for adults and childrenwith a learning or physical disability within Oxfordshire. www.dotcomunity.co.uk/dcu3_local_learning_disabilities_services.php?area=30&county=Oxfordshire

Child of 16 or under with a brain related condition,e.g. Cerebral Palsy, ADHD or epilepsy? Cerebra is a uniquecharity set up to help both children and their carers, throughresearch, education and direct support. Cerebra providesproducts and services that give practical support and

assistance to help directly improve the lives of children with brain relatedconditions , including financial assistance through a grant scheme, Speech adLanguage Therapy voucher scheme and Wills and Trusts Scheme. They alsooffer practical and emotional support through their sleep service and stresshelpline. They have a comprehensive postal lending library with books andsensory equipment- all FREE to parents. http://www.cerebra.org.ukTel 01267 244200

Cerebra’s Research Unit, aims to help find out what treatments and therapies improvethe health & well-being of disabled children & their families by asking children & parents tohelp shape their research - is there a treatment or therapy that you would like to know moreabout? What evidence is there that a specific treatment works? Any other health issue thatyou would like us to look into? www.pcmd.ac.uk/cerebra Chris Morris, Cerebra Research Unit.01392 262980 Internet forum:http://sites.pcmd.ac.uk/cerebra/main.php?g=adult&s=forum&c=forum_welcome.

OMEGA (Oxfordshire ME Group for Action) - a support & campaigning group forpeople with ME(Myalgic Encephalomyelitis),their friends & families is running an artcompetition "What is ME?". It’s a chance for people to create original art work to showwhat best represents ME, any aspect of ME, its symptoms, its effects on those who haveit or their friends & family or how people with ME achieve despite their illness. Competition is open to adults & children living or working in

Oxfordshire The art work can be in any medium, any shape & any size(up

to 1 metre sq)

A good quality digital copy of the entry must be sent via email byWed March 31st and artwork for the exhibition needs to bebrought, ready to be hung, to Oxford in April. More details canbe found at www.oxnet.org.uk/omega or by emailing:[email protected] or write to: OmegaCompetition, 19 Maidcroft Rd, Oxford, Ox4 3EN, with an s.a.e.

INFO BITES

!

E081-02 (03/10)

Produced by County Print Finishers

Tel: 01865 815672 • Fax: 01865 204309

Prizes worth £120!

Including special prizesfor children agedunder11, 11-18 & forOMEGA Members PLUSyour art work could beexhibited in OxfordArtweeks and in local &national magazines andwebsites


Documents

E081-02 I Pae Mac 2010 a 10/03/2010 10:32 Pae 1 In Partnership · E081-02 I Pae Mac 2010_a 10/03/2010 10:32 Pae 3. 4 Sometimes being a parent of a child with SEN can be very isolating