SEND

• Info for School Age Children

  Developmental Concerns
  
  Children and young people develop in many ways and at different rates. As your child grows older, they are also learning new skills and developing socially and emotionally. Sometimes development can be slower than you expect (physically or emotionally), or you notice something different about your child or young person.
  
  Complex Health Needs
  
  Some children and young people experience different health concerns (sometimes resulting in a diagnosis) which can have a significant impact on their childhood experience. This can be a very worrying and scary time for you and your child.
  
  Medical Health Needs
  
  Your child or young person should have all the same opportunities as their friends. If
  your child has medical health needs, they can sometimes worry about this and wonder how their care will continue while in school. You may also have concerns.
  
  What you can do to help
  

  • Continue to encourage their development. Talk and listen. Chat about everyday things and find out what interests them.
  • For younger children encourage to take turns in the conversation and as they get older explore their ideas with them, listen and encourage them to see from other points of view.
  • Play together, follow your child’s lead, and let their imagination explore their own ideas and creativity.  As they grow older spend time and notice what interests them.
  • Give your child opportunities to be with other children / young people. They can learn a lot from each other.
  • Think about if anything has changed or happened either in their life or just recently. This could be having an impact on their development.
  • If you are concerned that your child's development has stopped or that they have stopped doing things they used to, seek support to explore what might be happening for them.
  • Sometimes we will use another development tool called Schedule of Growing Skills (SOGS) to help us think about which stage your child is at and most importantly what your child can do, celebrating their success. Remember that all children develop at their own pace, and this tool is another way of helping us to understand how your child is progressing. SOGS can be used to review development from 0-5 years old. To complete it, a practitioner will assess your child either at home or a clinic appointment using a range of activities. They will discuss the assessment with you to ensure we have all the information about your child
  • Write down what you do to support your child each day. This can help form a plan which highlights areas where your child needs assistance whilst at their nursery, preschool or school.

• Info for 16+

  Do you have a disability or special health need?
  
  If you have a health or developmental condition that is impacting on everyday life, this is often referred to as SEND (Special educational Need or Disability)/ SEN or an additional need. It may be that from birth you have faced some extra challenges or these may have become more obvious as you have grown older.
  
  Your additional needs could be developmental, physical, learning, behavioural or sensory. Your needs might be easily met with a regular plan of care or something more complex. You may have an EHCP (Educational, Health Care Plan) Some additional needs may continue throughout life and you and your family may require support from a number of services.
  
  All children and young people should have access to the right services, at the right time, and this is to make sure you can reach your full potential. This includes as you approach adulthood and transition into adult services.
  
  Making SEND everybody’s business Cambridgeshire, Peterborough City Councils and NHS have a shared vision that children and young people-
  
  ‘Dream big, achieve well, have choice, control and lead happy, fulfilled lives’ 

  What you can do to help

  • Looking after yourself is important for good physical and mental health. This includes your personal hygiene and mental stimulation.
  • You may have an additional need that means you rely on someone else to help you. Talk or communicate to them about what you want and need and be active in planning your care.
  • Self-care is individual to you and how you chose to relax may not be another person’s choice. It also does not have to be expensive and might be anything from time to read, exercise, bath to having a day out, seeing friends or time away.
  • It’s ok to think about yourself and ask for help.
  • Take time to talk to a trusted adult, such as a relative, teacher, support worker or one of our team using Chathealth, our confidential text messaging service.
  • We can offer advice on a range of health topics such as; emotional health, substance use, relationships, healthy eating, bullying or looking after your physical health.
  • We also have more information on our website about the topics above, which can be found here: ‘Making healthy choices’, ‘mental health’, ‘sleep’ and ‘life skills.’
  • Visit: NHS.UK for the NHS 5 steps to mental wellbeing.