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SEND Helping SEND children claim their


right to education By Rachel Amos, co-founder Support SEND Kids


community. This is a community that has long been burdened with trying to piece together answers from a fragmented and inconsistent system running across over 400 local authorities. SEND families as well as educators instead now have a wealth of expert information and guidance at their fingertips. In particular, the Support SEND Kids hub is now


A


ll children have a right to education. Yet, most children with Special Educational


Needs and Disabilities (SEND) are failed by the system and only 1 in 5 SEND children who need regular in-school support actually get it. Unfortunately, navigating the SEND system is,


in the words of the House of Commons Education Committee, a ‘bureaucratic nightmare’, and to attain the Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) that their children are entitled to, SEND families often have to resort to legal action. This is typically a lengthy, gruelling and expensive experience for families, and though they usually win – with 95% of EHCP complaints upheld – precious time is wasted in pointless legal fighting during children’s crucial development years. Support SEND Kids is a new charity on a


mission to change this. We understand that schools are often under as much strain as parents, with already limited funding stretched to the limit since the pandemic. By providing online resources to SEND families going through the EHCP application process, we want to give families the help they need, when they need it, free of charge. No SEND child should miss out on the right educational support simply because their parents cannot afford expensive legal proceedings.


A safe-space for SEND families This month marks the launch of our new online hub - www.supportsendkids.org - a safe-space where SEND families can access technical expertise as well as help and support each other. We have brought together advice and information from healthcare professionals, special educational needs coordinators (SENCO), other SEND charities and those in the legal profession to give families the answers they need. These experts, who are all donating their time


and insights pro bono, field questions on EHCPs from families, creating a searchable pool of answers for the benefit of the wider SEND


October 2021 www.education-today.co.uk 29


hosting a digitised version of the definitive guide to SEND law and the SEND tribunal process, known in specialist circles as the ‘Noddy Guide’. The authors have worked to make this more accessible for SEND parents using bite-size Q&A to quickly identify the sections most relevant to their particular circumstances, so that they can navigate the complex EHCP process more effectively. This is empowering SEND parents to self-serve in a process where they may not otherwise be able to afford to fight for their children’s rights.


empower SEND families to advocate for themselves. Over the next year, we hope to expand our


pool of resources, by developing an AI-powered searchable national database of EHCPs, and creating a digital workflow, which will inform SEND families of where they are in the EHCP process as well as issuing reminders on immediate next steps. Although some example EHCPs are already on the platform courtesy of the SEND community, once this ground-breaking database has been completed, this will help parents navigate the system even more easily. By making legal insight around every stage of


the ECHP application process freely available, Support SEND Kids hopes to help both schools and parents, and to deliver on our central vision that every SEND child has the right to learn, develop and fulfil their potential.


uGo to www.supportsendkids.org to find out more or donate via our CrowdJustice page https://www.crowdjustice.com/case/support- send-kids/


Find us on social media: uTwitter: @SupportSENDKids uFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/SupportSENDKids uLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/support- send-kids/


Why we need your support When it comes to EHCPs, many families don’t know what their entitlements are or where to start. They have so many questions to ask but not enough answers. Sadly, the upshot is that many SEND children lose their educational entitlements and miss out on vital years of schooling. With the support of the community, we hope that our searchable and easy to access online hub can


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