Warwickshire has been selected to take part in a national pilot to support Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to develop a new special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) inspection framework.
The Warwickshire local area will pilot the new inspection framework from the 13 June to 1 July 2022 and will focus on the impact of local area arrangements on children and young people and their families. It will consider how the inspectors gather evidence, and whether this evidence enables them to fully measure the effectiveness of local services to improve the experiences, progress and outcomes of children and young people with SEND.
Participating in the pilot will help services in the Warwickshire area to further develop plans to ensure that all Warwickshire children and young people with SEND lead a fulfilling life and are part of their community.
Hearing from parents, carers, young people and practitioners will be an important part of the pilot and their views will be captured through the surveys below. https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/YourViewsWarwickshire/
Working together Warwickshire County Council, NHS Coventry and Warwickshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and Warwickshire Parent Carer Voice will ensure that the pilot is fully supported to enable Ofsted and CQC to test their methodology for inspections including tracking meetings, sampling visits, surveys, conversations with leaders and practitioners, and evaluating evidence.
Talking about the pilot, Councillor Izzi Seccombe, Leader of Warwickshire County Council, said:
“We are pleased that Warwickshire has been chosen by Ofsted and the CQC to contribute to a new SEND Inspection Framework. As a partnership we are always keen to learn how we can improve the services we provide and as we have recently been through an inspection, we are ideally placed to provide feedback to help shape the new framework moving forward. Although there will be no formal report or judgement on our local area, we value the opportunity to take part to help us to meet the needs of Warwickshire’s children and young people.
“Over the next few weeks Ofsted and CQC will be contacting several Warwickshire schools and colleges asking for their views. A survey will also be available online for parents, carers, young peopled and families to have their say. So please take the time to fill in the survey and help Warwickshire shape the future inspection framework.”
Dr Sarah Raistrick, local GP and Chair of Coventry and Warwickshire Clinical Commissioning Group said:
“As a local area we are committed to improving the lives of children and young people with special education needs, and their families.
“The NHS plays an important role in the assessment, diagnosis and treatment of children and young people with SEND and by taking part in the pilot, we are hoping to learn more about how the new inspection framework will be developed and how we can help to shape the methodology and approach.”
Warwickshire Parent Carer Voice said:
“This is a great opportunity for Warwickshire families to help to shape the future of SEND inspections across the country. Warwickshire Parent Carer Voice will play a key role in the pilot and welcome the opportunity to feedback on behalf of Warwickshire families.
The pilot inspection comes at a key time for SEND provision in Warwickshire, with its commitment to deliver the SEND and Inclusion Change Programme; the work being undertaken as part of the Written Statement of Action to improve the lives of children with SEND; and the Government’s consultation on its green paper.
Warwickshire County Council is one of six councils invited to take part in the pilot inspection with Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission.
For more information on the Local Offer in Warwickshire visit https://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/send or https://www.facebook.com/WarksLocalOffer