Warwickshire Local Area SEND Partnership has welcomed the findings in the report from it's latest Ofsted and CQC SEND inspection.
Warwickshire Local Area SEND Partnership has welcomed the publication of its latest Ofsted and Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection of services for children and young people with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).
In its first inspection under the new national framework, which introduces three possible outcomes rather than a single overall rating, Warwickshire was assessed as meeting the ‘middle’ outcome, representing an improvement on the previous inspection.
This judgement reflects inspectors’ findings of inconsistent experiences and outcomes for children and young people with SEND and highlights the need for the Warwickshire local area partnership to work collaboratively to drive further improvement.
This outcome aligns with the wider national picture, with almost half of the areas inspected under the new framework receiving the same outcome, highlighting the increasing demand and sustained pressures facing SEND services across the country.
The report highlights a number of established strengths within Warwickshire’s local area partnership. It recognises that leaders have a strong and well-developed understanding of the needs of children and young people, underpinned by the effective use of data to identify priorities and target areas for improvement.
The report also recognises the positive and increasingly mature role of Warwickshire Parent Carer Voice. Noting that strengthened and purposeful collaboration across Education, Health and Social Care is supporting partners to work more effectively together, helping to drive and deliver tangible improvements for children, young people and their families.
The report also highlights areas where further work is needed to improve consistency for families. These include reducing waiting times for assessments and services such as ADHD, autism, speech and language therapy and CAMHS; strengthening strategic leadership and commissioning; and improving the quality and timeliness of Education, Health and Care (EHC) plans.
Over recent years, Warwickshire has delivered a sustained programme of SEND improvement, supported by £1million of investment through the Government’s Delivering Better Value for SEND programme. Building on this, work is already underway across the partnership to address the areas for improvement identified in the inspection report.
This includes strengthening early identification and support, reducing waiting times for assessment and intervention, and improving the consistency and inclusiveness of mainstream provision. This work will continue through the Council’s Recalibrating Warwickshire plan, with a clear focus on strong partnership working, effective use of resources, and delivering better outcomes for children and young people with SEND. These priorities also align with the Government’s SEND reform agenda, as set out in the Schools White Paper.
Warwickshire County Council Executive Director for Children and Young People, John Coleman said:
“We welcome this report, which recognises the continued commitment of our staff and partners, alongside the progress made in several important areas. It also reflects an improved position compared with the previous inspection, indicating that steps are being taken in the right direction.
“As a local area partnership, we are clear about the work that still needs to be done to further improve outcomes for children and young people with SEND. We recognise that not all families consistently receive the timely and effective support they need, and we are committed to addressing this.
“By working together, we will build on our strengths, respond to the areas identified for development, and drive forward sustained improvements to ensure that all children and young people with SEND in Warwickshire can thrive and have the best chance in life.”
Mari Gay, Executive Director of Integration and Delivery and Senior Responsible Officer for SEND for NHS Coventry and Warwickshire ICB, said:
“We acknowledge the findings of the report and the important role health partners play in supporting children and young people with SEND. We will continue to work collaboratively across the system to strengthen how services are delivered and to address areas requiring further improvement.
We are particularly focused on improving access to, and the timeliness of, key health services, including mental health support and diagnostic pathways. We remain committed to working closely with families, education colleagues and partner organisations to ensure services are responsive, joined up and aligned to the needs of children and young people in Warwickshire.”
Elaine Lambe of Warwickshire Parent Care Voice said:
“We welcome the publication of the report and the partnership’s recognition that there is more to do to improve consistency for families. The findings reflect what many parent carers tell us, particularly around waiting times, access to support and communication. it is encouraging that the progress we are making has been recognised, and we welcome the focus to help build on these. We will continue to work closely with partners to ensure that the voices and experiences of families remain central to shaping services and driving meaningful change and improvements.”
The partnership will continue to work closely with Warwickshire Parent Carer Voice, IMPACT (the young person’s forum for SEND), schools, education settings, health services and local stakeholders to co-produce solutions and ensure services continue to develop in line with the needs of families.
In response to the inspection, the area SEND partnership will need to publish a detailed strategic plan to address the findings of the inspection. This will be completed within the next 50 working days.
You can read the inspection report here: Warwickshire County Council - Open - Find an Inspection Report - Ofsted