The Hub
Waltham Forest SEND Service
This page introduces the Waltham Forest SEND service and includes information about the team, the EHC process, provision and integration. Click on the sections below to find out more.
The SEND Service Structure
- Director of Learning and Systems Leadership
- Assistant Director SEND
- SEN Team Managers, Provision and Integration Service Manager, Social Work Team Manager, Educational Psychology Manager, Head of SEND Inclusion and Teaching Service
The SEND Team
- two SEND Team Managers,
- two Senior SEND Officers
- 10 SEND officer
- a SEND Tribunal Officer
Referrals to the team can be made by schools, Early Years settings, parents, carers and Young People and Health Notification. You can make a referral by emailing senteam@walthamforest.gov.uk.
The team's core duties consist of EHC needs assessments, attending annual review, professionals meetings, preparing and attending SEND Tribunals, advising schools on exclusions. SEND assessment performance currently at 83% cumulatively, and above target.
The EHC Process
- EHC referral is made by parents, professionals such as teachers, health and application is sent to SEN front door senteam@walthamforest.gov.uk
- SEN front door puts referrals on to SEND Panel agenda for decision to assess (SEND Panel occurs every Tuesdays)
- SEND Panel is made up of a multi-agency team: Designated Clinical Officer, Speech and Language Therapist, Principal Educational Psychologist, School SEND Co, SEND Success representative, Waltham Forest SEND Service Team Leader
- Once decision is made to assess, business support officer (BSO) will request professional advices whereby they will have six weeks to submit their advices back to SEND officer
- Week 11 from the date of referral, SEND officer to prepare pupil summary sheet along with advices received – zip file and send to SEN front door to be added to SEND agenda for decision to issue
- Week 15 from the date of referral, hold coproduction with professionals and parents. Send formal draft to parents and consultation to school
- Parents have 15 days to make any changes
- School have 15 days to respond to consultation
- Week 17 – finalise plan with named school in Section I
SEND Health
SEN queries and requests for reports go to a generic email address, please note this address changes at the end of May 2021 to wfhealthehc@nelft.nhs.uk
Please copy in draft and final EHC plans to this address so they can be uploaded to RIO
The SEN administrators are:
- Therapies and CAMHs Regina.Nowacka-skiba@nelft.nhs.uk
- Medical reports Saira.Jabeen@nelft.nhs.uk
SEND Social Work Team
- 1 Team Manager, a MASH Senior Practitioner and 5 Social Workers, 2 of them are ASC SWs
- Service users: 0-25y with EHC plans, Parent carers, Adult carers
- Referrals: MASH Team
- Criteria: Tier 3 and 4 for Children Social Care and the Care Act 2014 for young adults
- Key legislations: CA1989, CFA, 2014, CA 2014, MCA 2005, SEND CP2014,
- Working with: Professionals across CSC / Adult Social Care, Health, Education, Police.
- Duties: assessments, plans, reviews, visits, safeguarding adults, MCAs, DOL
Provision and Integration team
- Service Manager, 1x Short Break Coordinator, 2x Occupational Therapist, 1x Contract/Transport Manager, 1x Travel Assistant, 1x Provision Officer
Assistance with travel
(assistance with home to school travel for eligible children in Waltham Forest). Enquiries: assistancewithtravel@walthamforest.gov.uk or on 074 3599 8424
SEN Transport contracts management
Short breaks (0-18yo), direct payments (18-25yo), domiciliary care
Referrals through senteam@walthamforest.gov.uk for more information please call 0208 496 3515
School finance (independent schools and FE colleges)
Data and performance (WF SEND Service)
Occupational Therapy - Referrals through senteam@walthamforest.gov.uk
⦁ Specialist equipment for bathing, seating, toileting, changing and dressing, sleeping
⦁ Equipment to help movement from one place to another and manual handling - hoists and slings
⦁ Adaptations to property such as ramp, through floor stair lifts, level access showers
⦁ Assessment for home safety issues or needs related to behavioural difficulties, for example window locks or stair gates
Educational Psychology Service (EPS)
Educational Psychologists (EPs) are trained applied psychologists registered with Health Care Professional Council (HCPC). We work with children and young people from 0 to 25 in partnership with young people, families, schools, practitioners and voluntary agencies.
EPs offer focused support informed by sound psychological theory to bring about positive change with regard to improving learning and social and emotional mental health outcomes. Our aim is to promote and facilitate the educational, social and emotional development of children and young people.
The EPS is a traded service and has service level agreements with schools, colleges and agencies such as SEND, Youth Offending Service, etc. to deliver services such as consultations, assessments, staff supervision / training, work with parents.
The team is based at:
Thorpe Hall Primary School,
123 Hale End Road.
E17 4DP
Tel: 0208 496 1732.
All requests for EP involvement must come via an educational setting to our front door email educationalpsychologyservice@walthamforest.gov.uk.
SEND and Inclusion Teaching Service
The team consists of fully qualified and experienced primary (x1) and secondary (x3) teachers and a Higher Level Teaching Assistant.
The SEND and Inclusion provides continuity of education for compulsory school age children (4-16) who are resident in Waltham Forest and:
⦁ unable to attend school for medical reasons (supporting evidence required) for 15 days or more, whether consecutive or cumulative
⦁ a statutory school-age child who is a new mother or a mother to be temporarily unable to attend access education in their registered school
⦁ In-patients (for 15 days or more) on Acorn Ward, Whipps Cross University Hospital
All referrals must be emailed to our central email senteam@walthamforest.gov.uk
Health Services
NELFT
Services are based a Wood Street Child Development Centre: 6 Linford Road, Walthamstow , E17 3LA, Telephone: 0208 430 7777
Staff at the child development centre include; Specialist Paediatrician’s who provide prevention, identification, assessment, diagnosis, treatment and support for children and families. They also carry out a range of statutory duties in relation to child protection, medical advice for special educational needs. They run special clinics including:
- Social and Communication assessment Clinic for assessment of autism spectrum disorders. (SACC)
- Assessment and management of children with complex physical and learning needs including visual and hearing impairment, movement disorders, such as, cerebral palsy, and other neuro-disabilities,
- Visual Impairment multi-disciplinary service
- Multi-disciplinary assessment of motor and movement disorders
- Assessment and follow up of children with genetic conditions such as Down's syndrome
Community Children’s nurses: A team of nurses who have experience of working with children with complex health needs.
Audiology: Specialists in hearing problems
Dietician: provides support and advise on food, diet and nutrition
Speech & Language therapists: provide support for speech, language and communication development
Physiotherapists: Work with children to help them with sitting , moving and walking
Occupational therapists: work with children to help them develop everyday skills such as dressing, writing , playing
Child and Adolescent Mental health services (CAMHS): a team of nurses, psychologists, psychiatrists who provide mental health assessment, treatment and support
Commissioning arrangements for health services
- Speech and Language Therapy – the under 5’s SLT services are provided by NELFT, the schools SLT services are bought in by the schools themselves. Please ask your school who they buy in
- Wood Street Paediatricians and Speech and Language therapists carry out the under 5’s Autism diagnosis – known as the SACC clinic
- CAMHS carry out the over 5’s Autism/ADHD diagnosis
- Equipment - If a child needs specialist equipment – please bring this to SEND panel for funding agreement
Key people to know in the in Health and the Clinical Commissioning Group
⦁ Anna Saunders Integrated Commissioner Adults and Mental Health Anna.Saunders@walthamforest.gov.uk
⦁ Katy Briggs Integrated Commissioner Children’s katy.briggs@nhs.net
⦁ Lynn McBride AD Children’s Integrated Services Lynn.McBride@nelft.nhs.uk
⦁ Sam Illaiee Operational Lead Children’s Services Sam.Illaiee@nelft.nhs.uk
⦁ Cynthia Wood Therapy Lead OT and PT Cynthia.Wood@nelft.nhs.uk
⦁ Louise Parker Speech & Language Clinical Lead Louise.Parker@nelft.nhs.uk
⦁ Shilpa Kanzaria Designated Medical officer Shilpa.Kanzaria@nelft.nhs.uk
⦁ Chris Bright CAMHS transformational lead Chris.Bright@nelft.nhs.uk
⦁ Vikki Monk-Meyer Designated Clinical Officer Vikki.Monk-Meyer@nelft.nhs.uk