Today, we received the following letter from Manchester City Council, where they give an overview of what happens during a Local Area SEND Inspection and ask parents & carers to take part in a survey that Ofsted & the Care Quality Commission (CQC) published as part of the inspection.

A copy of the letter will be sent to all parents/carers with a child or young person having an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP). It has also gone to schools, colleges and other education settings for them to send to all children with SEND.

The Director of Children and Education Services from Manchester City Council, the Chief Executive of Manchester Health and Care Commissioning and Manchester Parent Carer Forum have been given five days’ notice of a local area Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities (SEND) inspection of Manchester. The inspection will take place over a five-day period commencing on Monday 22nd November until Friday 26th November.

The inspection team will include:

  • Her Majesty’s Inspector – Adam Sproston
  • 2 CQC specialist children’s services inspectors – Daniel Carrick and Jonathon Parry Hall
  • an Ofsted inspector – Pippa Jackson Maitland

The joint inspection will review how Manchester as a local area meets its responsibilities to disabled children and young people and those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) from birth to 25 years as set out in the Children and Families Act 2014.

The inspection will focus on how the local area identifies, assesses, meets the needs of, and improves the outcomes for, children and young people with SEND.

Inspectors want to hear the views and experiences of families with children with SEND. Please encourage and where appropriate, support parents/carers of children with SEND (SEN support or EHCPs) to complete the survey. 

Parents and carers who would like to take part in this survey can follow this link: https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/ManchesterCityCouncilLASENDInspection/.

Parents and carers can email their contributions to Lasend.support@ofsted.gov.uk.

Inspectors will visit a variety of settings and services from health, social care and education.  Inspectors will talk to children, young people, parents and carers about their experiences of services and support. During the visits, inspectors will ask leaders, staff and governors about how Manchester is embedding the SEND reforms.

Inspectors will look at children and young people’s case files when they visit settings and will review the support provided by Manchester for 25 individual children and young people with EHCPs from a long list of 5543.

In addition, inspectors will hold a range of focus groups – officers will contact individuals who have been selected to attend these groups and provide background information to support you with this. Some of the focus groups will be on line and some with be in person.

 

Andrea Daubney

Assistant Director of Education

 

Children’s and Education Directorate

PO Box 532

Level 4

Town Hall Extension

Manchester

M60 2LA

 

Mobile: 07795 635026

Email: andrea.daubney@manchester.gov.uk

Watch the video below to find out more about the inspection and how you can help: