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In this edition:
- An update from Hilary Jones, Head of Service for Additional Needs
- Latest news from Parent Carer Voice (PCV)
- SENDIASS information
- Visible & Valued SEND Celebration Week
- Targeted Short Breaks Allowance
- Melo - new wellbeing and mental health support service
- HANDS - Herefordshire Autism and Neurodiverse Support
- Here for Herefordshire Holidays
- Carer Links event for unpaid carers
- Herefordshire NOW e-magazine
- SEND Local Offer Facebook page
To receive this newsletter straight to your inbox, please subscribe using the link.
Dear Parents and Carers,
I hope you have all been enjoying the recent sunshine and lighter evenings, it really feels like spring has sprung! I am pleased to share some updates with you on what’s been happening in SEND in Herefordshire since the last SEND Newsletter was published.
Working in Partnership
In the last newsletter, Liz Farr, Service Director for Education Learning and Skills, shared with you the findings from the Ofsted and CQC Area-Wide Inspection. The Partnership have been working together to ensure the recommendations from the inspection can be implemented quickly. One of the recommendations was to ensure that the Partnership work together to ensure that the range of services available to children and young people with SEND is well-communicated. In Herefordshire, all this information is available on the Local Offer website. If you think there is something missing or need help to find information, please email localoffer@herefordshire.gov.uk
The Partnership are excited to introduce Herefordshire’s first Visible and Valued SEND Celebration week which you will be able to read more about below. This shows the strong collaboration between education, health, and social care to bring together a range of activities, information sessions and workshops for children and young people with SEND and their parents and carers.
Since the last newsletter, Herefordshire’s Youth Employment Hub has officially opened. One of the first young people to join the hub, Ethan, assisted the team by cutting the ribbon during the ceremony that marked the hub officially opening for business during National Apprenticeship Week. The hub is dedicated to helping young people aged 16-24 into employment, education, or training. The hub brings together a range of professionals who can support young people, including those with SEND.
Listening to children, young people and their families
Paul Walker, the Chief Executive of Herefordshire Council visited Beacon College recently to meet with the student council and staff. Paul spent three hours at the college and the Student Council presented him with a number of challenges about how we can help make Herefordshire safer for young people with SEND, and ways to help them enjoy life outside of school / college. He plans to make a return visit soon.
Children, young people and their families told us that they wanted more activities that were either especially for SEND or were more accessible for young people with SEND. Using a small amount of grant funding, we have been able to support 7 organisations across Herefordshire to develop a range of new opportunities for children and young people of all ages with a range of needs. Young people were involved in the evaluation of the funding applications and had their own scoring criteria.
Specialist Provision
Those of you who have driven along Grandstand Road recently, will have seen that the new building at Brookfield Special School is well underway. When completed this will allow the school to increase their capacity by 20 places. Work will soon be underway at Hampton Dene and Aylestone to increase places in their resourced provision (the Language and Communication Centre at Hampton Dene and The Bridge at Aylestone).
Celebrating success
William Stavert, Deaf Specialist Teacher from our Physical and Sensory Support Team was awarded with the Francis Maginn award by the British Deaf Association. This prestigious award was presented to William for his commitment to the deaf community and deaf education. William has been supporting children at the Deaf Hearoes club set up by the Hearing Support Teachers in the Physical and Sensory Support Team in response to children feeling isolated or alone in wearing hearing technology. It offers the opportunity for Deaf children to meet other children, who like them, need support with hearing and communication. William has been supporting these children to learn British Sign Language.
I hope you and your families all enjoy the Easter break.
Best wishes,
Hilary Jones
PCV Coffee and Chat with Colleagues
PCV have confirmed dates for their Coffee and Chat with Colleagues sessions in the summer term. This is a chance for parents and carers to meet colleagues from Herefordshire Council, Wye Valley Trust, SENDIASS and Herefordshire and Worcestershire ICB and others and have a chat over a coffee and ask any questions they might have. Keep an eye on PCV's Facebook page to see who will be available to meet you at each session. All sessions are held at the HANDS Hub on Bath Street.
- Wednesday 7th May 2025 - 10am - 12noon
- Wednesday 11th June 2025 - 10am - 12noon
- Wednesday 16th July 2025 - 10am - 12noon
Holiday Activities and Food - Easter Holiday Sessions
PCV are working in partnership with the Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme to bring you Easter Holiday activities eligible for Benefit-Related Free School Meals. If you would like your child to attend please book online - spaces are filling fast.
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PINS (Partnership for Inclusion of Neurodiversity in Schools) Project Update
PCV are waiting for confirmation of how the second year of this project will run but in the meantime, you can take part in the Department for Education (DfE) survey to share your feedback. The survey is open to all parents that have children attending one of the 38 PINS schools in Herefordshire even if your child / young person doesn't have any additional needs. Click here for more information and to complete the survey.
HANDS Hub available to book for events
HANDS stands for Herefordshire Autism and Neurodiverse Support. HANDS Hub are proud to offer a PCV a friendly space to hold their events including coffee and chat groups, stay and play sessions and more. If you or your organisation would like to pop along for a look around the hub, please get in touch by email: info@Hands-Hub.co.uk
Do you have a child/ young person with a Special Educational Need or disability (SEND)?
Do you think your child might have Special Educational Needs (SEN)?
SENDIASS (Special Educational Needs/Disabilities Information, Advice and Support Service) provides FREE, impartial and confidential information, advice and support on all matters relating to children and young people (0-25) who have or may have SEND.
They can help you if:
- You have concerns about your child’s progress or development
- You would like to know more about the support available for children with SEND and their families
- You would like to know more about Herefordshire’s SEND policies and procedures
- You need information and guidance on the Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) process
Contact them:
Monday – Friday 8:30am – 4:00pm
Call: 01432 260955 (24 hour answering machine service is available)
Email: SENDIASS@herefordshire.gov.uk
Or visit their website www.hwsendiass.co.uk for information and resources.
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Join us for a week of celebration of our children and young people with SEND in Herefordshire. From Thursday 22nd May until Wednesday 28th May, there are lots of exciting events planned that are inclusive, fun and created especially for children and young people with SEND, their families and other adults who support them. The aim is for children and young people with SEND to feel they are visible and valued in their local community.
Activities planned so far include:
- SEND Stay and Play sessions with a variety of providers including PCV, Little Play World and the Hope Centre
- A SEND-friendly family fun day at Hereford Community Farm
- Exclusive SEND-friendly session at Flipout Hereford
- A range of SEND sessions across the Halo Leisure sites
- Drop-in sessions with a range of professionals and practitioners including Health, Social Care and Education
- Sensory Room drop-ins at various sites across the county
- And more!
Many of the activities are being offered for free or at a reduced charge to help families access as many opportunities as possible and try out something new in an inclusive, supportive environment. Most events require advance booking and will be offered on a fist-come, first-served basis.
All of the events will be publicised on our SEND Local Offer Facebook page, so please make sure you Like and Follow the page to make sure you don't miss out!
Does your child or young person need extra support to take part in leisure activities? Herefordshire Council’s targeted short breaks allowance is to help children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) to take part in leisure activities while allowing the person/s that care for them to have a short break.
Eligible families receive funding on a pre-paid card which can be used to pay for activities using a card machine or when booking online.
Find out more, including eligibility criteria, on our Targeted Short Breaks Allowance page.
Visit the Targeted Short Breaks Allowance page on our website.
Updates for existing recipients of Targeted Short Breaks Allowance
If you already have a targeted short breaks allowance card, remember to agree this year's terms and conditions to ensure your allowance for 2025/26 is credited to your card this month. Check your email from the Short Breaks team for more information.
Should your card be declined at a venue and you are certain that there are sufficient funds available and the card has not been used more than 5 times that day, you may need to request that the venue tries an alternative card reader. Some venues have multiple card readers which are registered slightly differently with banking systems. For example, a bowling alley with an adjoining cafe may have one card reader for paying for bowling and another for the cafe - the transaction would be successful if they use the card reader that's for payment for bowling sessions, but declined if they mistakenly use the card reader from the cafe area as the card cannot be used to purchase food. If you try alternative card readers and the transaction is still unsuccessful, please email with your full name and the name of the venue and we will investigate and try to resolve the issue where possible.
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ONSIDE* has announced the launch of a new innovative wellbeing and mental health support service for children and young people across Herefordshire from 1 April 2025.
This new early intervention and prevention service named ‘Melo’ will provide children and young people from 0-25 years, with a range of support options to improve their mental health and emotional wellbeing.
‘Melo’ has been developed in collaboration with partners, young people, children and families, and is designed to be flexible and adaptable to truly meet the needs of individuals.
It will include one to one support and group options, as well as online and digital support, delivered in collaboration with a range of local and specialist partners. These include Action for Children, Coventry, Warwickshire and Worcestershire Mind, Kooth and leading research charity, Anna Freud Centre.
One-to-one support will be offered from 1 April 2025, and group support will be available from 1 July 2025.
The service will be community based, with opportunities to learn more about what can be offered and directly access support through a range of regular information and drop-in sessions in locations across the county.
It will be an open access service and individuals can refer themselves or be referred by their parents/carers/family members as well as professionals and organisations. There will lots of ways to refer including telephone, online and WhatsApp options.
More information on the service including how to make referrals into Melo will be available on the ONSIDE website.
For more information about Melo, please email CYPenquiries@onsideadvocacy.org.uk
The new service has been commissioned and funded by NHS Herefordshire and Worcestershire and will work closely with a wide range of system partners.
*ONSIDE is a local charity which has worked across Worcestershire for over 30 years delivering a wide range of advocacy, mental health and wellbeing services supporting and enabling people to live their best lives. ONSIDE is a leading provider of wellbeing and support services for children, young people, and adults with a focus on mental health, emotional wellbeing, and empowerment, working last year with 11,000 people.
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There are lots of events happening at HANDS Hub this month for children and young people, parent carers and professionals.
Get in touch with HANDS for more information and to book a space on any of the events. Email: info@Hands-Hub.co.uk or visit their website.
Children and Young People's Activities
Saturday 19th April - 11:00 - 13:00
11 - 16 year old social group
Saturday 19th April - 14:00 - 16:00
Under 11s Play and Craft session
Understanding Autism Workshops for Parent Carers / Professionals
Friday 11th April - 10:00 - 12:00 and 14:00 - 16:00
Tuesday 22nd April - 10:00 - 12:00 and 14:00 - 16:00
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The Here for Herefordshire Holidays programme is now open for bookings! Eligible families can now book their fully funded activities for the Easter holidays. The programme is open to children and young people (school aged 5 to 16) who receive benefits-related free school meals.
Eligible children and young people can enjoy up to 4 free activity sessions throughout the programme, which will run between 22nd – 27th April. There will be a free, healthy meal on offer at each session. Providers offer spaces for children with SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) and Herefordshire HANDS (Herefordshire Autism & Neuro Diverse Support) hub will be running SEND specific sessions. Please explore the listings and contact providers directly to find out more about specific provision.
Eligible families can book their places on the Talk Community Directory. For more information on the programme contact HAF@herefordshire.gov.uk
The Here for Herefordshire Holidays programme is funded by the Department for Education.
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A special free event for unpaid carers highlighting the range of services, support, and advice available to carers living in Herefordshire will take place at the Kindle Centre on Monday 9th June 2025.
The event marks the relaunch of Herefordshire Carer Links, a dedicated support service for unpaid carers run by the leading charity TuVida on behalf of Herefordshire Council.
The event will feature market stalls from local organisations and services that support unpaid carers in the local area. A buffet lunch, tea and coffee will also be provided.
A carer is anyone who cares, unpaid, for a friend or family member who due to illness, disability, a mental health problem or an addiction cannot cope without their support.
The event takes place on the first day of Carers Week - an annual campaign to raise awareness of caring, highlight the challenges unpaid carers face and recognise the contribution they make to families and communities throughout the UK. It also helps people who don't think of themselves as having caring responsibilities to identify as carers and access much-needed support.
To register to attend the event, please complete short registration form
If you are a local organisation working with unpaid carers in the area and would like to exhibit for free at the event, please use our dedicated local service registration form.
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Our Herefordshire SEND Local Offer Facebook page is the place to be to find out about local events, community activities, social opportunities and support available across Herefordshire for children and young people with SEND and their families.
In the last few months we have highlighted over 50 different providers in Herefordshire who offer inclusive activities for children and young people with SEND, support services for parent carers and information about other organisations that can help you and your family.
Please follow us @HfdsSEND to keep up to date with everything that's happening locally and share our posts with other parent carers who might be interested in hearing what's going on.
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