Agenda item

To consider and comment on how early intervention is undertaken by the Council for children and young people in order to prevent needs from escalating.

Tim Miller, Head of Strategic Commissioning, presented an update on the SEND Transformation and the associated Written Statement of Action, as included in the agenda papers for the meeting.

Panel Members expressed concern at the waiting time for autism assessments for children between the ages of 12 and 18, which was 18 months.  Secondary schools were more challenging places for children with autism, especially girls.  In addition, many children might not appear to be autistic.  Mr Miller reported that specific work was being undertaken with Open Door.  The Language and Support Team had been of the view that there was a gap in therapeutic support for children in secondary schools and this was why Open Door had been commissioned.  Support had been moved to a pre and post diagnostic model.  The offer from Open Door was in addition to the support that was already provided by the Tavistock Clinic.  A new clinical pathway was being developed for autism in the north central London area that recognised local differences but also adopted common principles.   The aim was provide support when needs arose rather than waiting for a formal diagnosis and supporting children and families as they progressed.  A meeting would be taking place with NHS England to discuss how to bring the waiting list down.

In answer to a question regarding the use of privately funded assessments, Mr Miller stated that the NHS did not ask about the status of clinicians making assessments.  Private diagnoses were used on a regular basis and the NHS itself also used private providers.  However, GPs could be sensitive about the suitability of some providers, as could clinical teams.  He would encourage any parents considering the option of a private diagnosis to talk the matter through with their GP.  Ms Graham commented that, irrespective of the existence of a private diagnosis, there was still a process that needed to be gone through.

Ms Difolco presented an update on the Safety Valve programme.  In answer to a question, she stated that there was commitment by the Council and its partners to bring about a shift in culture.  The direction of travel was consistent with national trends.  There were very good relationships with partners and support from them all for the programme.  No change was not an option.  Ms Graham commented that there would also be a whole systems change in addition to the cultural shift.  In answer to a question on how teachers would be taught, she stated that work was taking place to improve support to schools and especially the workforce.  One of the key projects was to improve the workforce development plan.  The new plan was much more comprehensive and had been developed following consultation with stakeholders.  It was due to start from September. 

In answer to a question, Mary Jarrett (Head of Integrated SEND) reported that recruitment was taking place of Speech and Language Assistants.  This was following a successful pilot that had taken place in Noel Park and was part of a system change that focused on early intervention and support.  The Panel noted that the new posts were in addition to the posts that were already in the service.   In answer to another question, she stated that speech and language therapy was only one of a number of projects included in the Safety Valve programme and which were aimed at meeting the needs of children and young people at the earliest possible age.  There was another project that was intended to improve the social, emotional and mental health of young people and this was particularly relevant to those in secondary school.  An update on progress with this could be provided to a future meeting.  They were mindful of the needs of children with English as an additional language and were able to differentiate between children who were learning a new language and those who were struggling with both their first and second language.  Children who were multi-lingual tended to do better academically than others but only after the age of 12.

AGREED:

That regular further updates on progress with the Safety Valve programme be provided to the Panel.