Leeds Local Offer (SEND) Ebulletin – February 2021
3rd February 2021
| COVID 10 resources on the Leeds Local Offer On the Leeds Local Offer website we have a range of COVID 19 resources for families and schools. Please do have a look at these https://leedslocaloffer.org.uk/#!/search/list?query=COVID19 If there is anything missing or you know of any other great resources please do let us know by emailing LLO@leeds.gov.uk |
| Leeds Local Offer Facebook Group The Leeds Local Offer has developed a facebook group for parents and carer of children with special educational needs and disabilities. The facebook group is platform for us to share with families key service updates, events, consultations and much more. Please promote the facebook group to families you work with https://www.facebook.com/groups/leedslocaloffer |
| Review and Development of the Leeds Local Offer Website Over the last couple of months we have been working with the website developers on the redesign of the Leeds Local Offer. We have been using the feedback from children, young people, families and services to ensure the new updated website better meets the needs of children, young people and parents and carers in Leeds. We will be relaunching the Leeds Local Offer website late February / early March 2021. https://leedslocaloffer.org.uk |
| Is your group / service on the Leeds Local Offer website? The Leeds Local Offer is a great way of making sure people in Leeds get to know about what you offer for children and young people 0-25 with Special Educational Needs or Disability. To be featured on the Leeds Local Offer we ask that you complete a short proforma and email it to llo@leeds.gov.uk. The proforma can be found at http://www.leedsforlearning.co.uk/Page/18104 While it is normal to have some of this information spread across multiple pages, we are asking you to make it easy for families to find the information they need quickly. Thank you for your help! |
| Consult with the SEND Youth Forum The Leeds SEND Youth Forum is a virtual network of young people aged 11 to 25 years old with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) who live in Leeds or attend school in Leeds. The SEND Youth Forum are a group of young people who have signed up to take part in consultations and have their say on service development. If you would like to consult with young people with special educational needs and disabilities please complete and return the SEND Youth Forum consultation form to LLO@leeds.gov.uk. The consultation form can be found at https://www.leedsforlearning.co.uk/Page/18104 |
| SILC Listening Ears Dedicated out of hours phone line offering support, information and advice to parent / carers of children who are on roll at a specialist provision. Lines open from January 14th 2021 to Saturday 27th March Thursday 6 pm until 10 pm Friday 6 pm until 10 pm Saturday 6 pm until 10 pm https://endorphins.uk/silc-listening-ears/ |
| Rainbow House At Rainbow House we conducted child friendly questionnaires to young people to ascertain views on this year’s Christmas activities and what they would like especially as we could not have a big party. The survey asked what Christmas meant to them and what they felt about it. Lots of drawing were done to represent views from … playing in the snow, activities with music to eating biscuits. Once we had them we then were able to tailor lots of activities and funs sessions from the ideas. We were also able to find out from young people what they would like Father Christmas bring to young people as he wasn’t allowed to come to see everyone. We held gingerbread house making session; Christmas pizza making; watched Christmas films and listened and sang to carols. Staff also used Makaton to sign the songs. We are currently conducting our annual quality assurance to families, carers, young people and stakeholders so if anyone wishes to complete one that would be great as it helps Rainbow House develop and model a great service to young people with disabilities – a place where it is fun to stay. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd0djE9cOAZnBw1DimUXrd8lG2UBVwxPKmft1ioBkVMQas1g/viewform?usp=sf_link |
| DEX Covid-19 accessible videos for deaf and hard of hearing DEX are creating short accessible video clips to share important Covid-19 updates. They can be viewed on their YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFen0Nyxx9At45IvuSpLHRQ DEX can also meet with deaf young people aged 17-30 one to one online (e.g. Zoom or Teams) to clarify and discuss any Covid-19 guidance further. For more information please email Claire Baldwin, Development Manager at claire.baldwin@dex.org.uk |
| Leeds Autism AIM – Online autistic-led groups Leeds Autism AIM run online groups led by autistic members of staff for autistic adults (aged 18+). These include two peer support groups every month, a monthly women-aligned group and a monthly creative group on Zoom. There is also a gaming group hosted on the Discord app. More information on the groups is available here: https://leedsautismaim.wordpress.com/our-services/online-groups/ |
| SENDIASS on social media SENDIASS have recently launched new social media channels. You can find the service and a developing library of information advice and support by searching LeedsSENDIASS in Facebook, You Tube, or Instagram or use the following links to view SENDIASS Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/356141779086693 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHzY7c0_VtCPjf_Spem9vfQ?view_as=subscriber Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Leedssendiass SENDIASS would like to hear from you to develop their social media content. If you have any ideas or suggestions for formats or content please send these to: sendiassproject@leeds.gov.uk |
| Irwin Mitchell – webinars Irwin Mitchell solicitors have been providing webinars available on YouTube, to help so many people during the COVID pandemic. The archive of these including webinars on carers rights, accessing therapies, SEN provision, making internet safer for vulnerable people and so many more can be found https://www.irwinmitchell.com/news-and-insights/events/webinar-archive and there are more being delivered. Any questions on these or if you are needing some further information to help you, do contact Irwin Mitchell either through the helpline 0370 1500 100 or Sarah Coles Partner at the Leeds office 0113 394 6894. |
| SENate Information and consultation month for young people with special educational needs and disabilities in Leeds 1st to 30th March 2021 Hosted on the Leeds Local Offer website Due to the Coronavirus pandemic this years’ SENate will be a virtual opportunity for young people in Leeds to find out information on the different services available to them in Leeds as well as take part in consultations. Launching on the 1st March the SENate will be available via the Leeds Local Offer (https://leedslocaloffer.org.uk) Information market place: there will be a number of short videos from different services across Leeds explaining what their service offers and how to access it. Please share these with the students at your school. Consultations: there will be consultations available for young people to take part in. Please support your students during the month of March 2021 to take part in these consultations, which can be done in group settings. Let us know if you plan to access the information and consultations https://surveys.leeds.gov.uk/s/SENate0321/ If you have any further questions please contact Kayleigh Thurlow on 07712 214392 or email LLO@leeds.gov.uk |
| SENDIASS young people’s webpages and images We have launched the first SENDIASS Young people’s webpages as part of our digital Information Advice and Support (IAS) offer for young people with further pages due for publication over the next few months. The pages form a section of the website dedicated to young people’s IAS needs. Young people can help to develop and evaluate the current website pages by using the feedback buttons on every page, by using our online ‘contact us’ form on the website or by sharing any general comments by email at sendiassproject@leeds.gov.uk |
| Special Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Long Term Conditions (LTC) The aim of this group is to improve the experience for young people with SEND and/or LTC in schools and educational settings. To do this, they are working to create a resource aimed at teachers to improve their understanding, and help inform their future delivery. To aid in making this resource, the group are now looking to consult young people with SEND and/or LTC to better understand the different experiences. You will find the consultation here: https://britishyouthcouncil.typeform.com/to/KHX8CM5w |
| Special Free School – Former Copperfields site (was Elmete Wood) In 2019 Leeds were successful in our bid to the Department for Education to establish a new 200 place generic Special Free School in Leeds. The school will also provide 50 partnership places in local mainstream schools. Opening is currently planned for September 2022. The school was originally proposed for the Elmete Wood site. Due to planning and highways issues an alternative site has been identified for use at the former Copperfield’s College site, Cross Green Lane, LS9. The DfE recently announced that The Co-operative Academies Trust has been selected as the successful sponsor to run the school. The Co-operative Academies Trust will carry out a further public consultation to inform the local community, potential parents, pupils and other stakeholders about the new school. Details on the scheme will be updated on the following webpage https://www.leeds.gov.uk/schools-and-education/planning-school-places |
| Leeds Local Offer – Question & Answer Sessions for Parents & Carers Leeds City Council and EPIC Leeds are providing parents / carers of children with special educational needs and disabilities in Leeds the opportunity to ask questions to professionals working in different services across Leeds. Each month EPIC Leeds will ask professionals questions on your behalf and the sessions will be hosted on the Leeds Local Offer (www.leedslocaloffer.org.uk) January 2021: SENDIASS The question and answer session can be found at https://leedslocaloffer.org.uk/#!/model/page/service/33265 February 2021: Short Breaks Parents and carers have been submitting their questions for the Short Breaks service and the session will be available on the Leeds Local Offer week commencing 15th February 2021. March 2021: Health Transitions The March 2021 session will be around Health Transitions. Parents and Carers are invited to submit their questions to https://surveys.leeds.gov.uk/s/PCFQandA/, the link will be available from the 22nd February to the 5th March. |
| Does your child have SEND? Do you get support with home to school transport? At Children’s Transport we’re always looking for ways to improve what we do and are inviting you to complete a short survey. Your views about the current process will help us to make it easier for you when you next need to apply. Complete the survey here https://surveys.leeds.gov.uk/s/CUALTI/ Please bear in mind that this consultation is only concerned with the application process. We do not require information about your child’s actual transport arrangements, such as punctuality and journey times. The survey should take you about 10 minutes to complete. The last day that you can respond is Sunday 7th February 2021. If you need to speak to someone about this survey then please email Mary.Gillespie@leeds.gov.uk. |
| Leeds Local Offer Information and Consultation Month A virtual information and consultation month for families with children with special educational needs and disabilities in Leeds 1st to 30th March 2021 Hosted on the Leeds Local Offer website Due to the Coronavirus pandemic we will be hosting a virtual Leeds Local Offer information and consultation month. This is an opportunity for families in Leeds to find out information on the different services available to them as well as take part in consultations. Launching on the 1st March the Leeds Local Offer Information and Consultation month will be available via the Leeds Local Offer (https://leedslocaloffer.org.uk) Information market place: there will be a number of short videos from different services across Leeds explaining what their service offers and how to access them. Consultations: there will be a number of online surveys for you to take part in to share your feedback about services in Leeds. If you have any further questions please contact Kayleigh Thurlow on 07712 214392 or email LLO@leeds.gov.uk survey |
| Do you have multiple health conditions and want to get your experiences of health and care services heard by people at the top? We’re looking for people who care for a child or young person with multiple health conditions that mean they have a lot of health appointments and/or care needs and who would be willing to talk to us once a month over a 6 month period to record their story. We can record your experiences in a way that works for you (e.g. recorded phone or video call, or working with you keep an audio/video diary). Once you’re happy with the recorded updates, they would be shared with health and care leaders to help them understand how they can make improvements. For more information, visit https://healthwatchleeds.co.uk/our-work/how-does-it-feel-for-me/ or contact Harriet@healthwatchleeds.co.uk Tel: 0113 8980035 |
| Local Offer Information and Consultation Month: Opportunity to promote your service Due to the coronavirus pandemic we are unable to run our information and consultation events in person this year (March 2021). Local Offer Information and Consultation Event for parents and carers SENate Information and Consultation Event for young people (run via the schools) As an alternative the SEND Leeds Local Offer will be hosting a virtual information and consultation month in March 2021. The month will be launched on the 1st March 2021 and will be live till the 31st March 2021 on the Leeds Local Offer website. The information and consultation month is an opportunity for services to share information with children, young people, parents and carers about their service consult with parents and carers consult with children and young people How to get involved Sharing information about your service Produce a short video (no more than 2 minutes long) about your service. This will be included in the virtual information market place that will be accessed by both young people (supported by school) and their parents and carers. Videos can be recorded on devices such as phones and IPADS and can be sent directly to LLO@leeds.gov.uk or via WhatsApp to 07712 214392. Provide a short description of your service to go alongside the video, this is to be no more than a couple of sentences long. The deadline for sending videos and descriptions is the 12th February 2021 |
| COVID 10 resources on the Leeds Local Offer On the Leeds Local Offer website we have a range of COVID 19 resources for families and schools. Please do have a look at these https://leedslocaloffer.org.uk/#!/search/list?query=COVID19 If there is anything missing or you know of any other great resources please do let us know by emailing LLO@leeds.gov.uk |
| Leeds Autism AIM – COVID-19 toolkit The Advonet Group’s Leeds Autism AIM service has a toolkit of online resources to help autistic people manage during the COVID-19 pandemic. It includes routine planners, a COVID-19 autism alert card and communication and mental health profiles. Most of these resources were made with autistic adults in mind and are available here: https://leedsautismaim.wordpress.com/resources/covid-19-resources/ |
| SENDIASS Resources New EHCP review information can be found on the Leeds SENDIASS website EHCP information tile or by following this link to the Leeds SENDIASS website https://sendiass.leeds.gov.uk/parents-and-carers/my-childs-ehcp/education-health-and-care-plans-and-assessments/preparing-for-a-review Parents and carers can explore information, advice and support about all our SEND topics including the new EHCP review information at www.leedssendiass.co.uk |
| Creative Consultation Resource Pack The voice of children, young people and their parents are at the centre of Children and Families Act, clearly set out in the principles in Section 19. This means that children, young people and their families should be involved in decision making at every level of the system. The Voice and Influence Team have developed a creative consultation resource pack for consulting with children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). You can download the resource pack here (http://www.leedsforlearning.co.uk/Page/18104). |
| Feeding back to children, young people and families following consultations As well as consulting and involving children, young people and their families in service review and development, it is also as important to ensure you feedback to families how their responses have influenced service development and that you have addressed the feedback received. We have developed a ‘you said, we did’ template (http://www.leedsforlearning.co.uk/Page/18104) for services to use as a way of feeding back following consultations. Please do share feedback you provide with families with us so we can ensure it is included in the annual Leeds Local Offer report. Email any feedback documents to LLO@leeds.gov.uk |
