Anita Cutts

Chair

Julie Coulson

Finance Officer/Co-Chair

Paula Wooton

Administrator/Co-Chair

What can I do, I’m just a mam/dad/grandparent? How can I go to meetings with ‘professionals’?

Parent Carers are ‘Experts by experience”, you are an expert and a professional regarding your children and young people.

We are moving away from the term professionals, as that assumes parent carers are not professional – we are asking everyone we work with to use the term practitioner, with great results so far.

The SEND Code of Practice 2015 outlines its expectations of principles that underpin all legislation and guidance related to SEND:

“1.1 Section 19 of the Children and Families Act 2014 makes clear that local authorities, in carrying out their functions under the Act in relation to disabled children and young people and those with special educational needs (SEN), must have regard to:

• the views, wishes and feelings of the child or young person, and the child’s parents
• the importance of the child or young person, and the child’s parents, participating as fully as possible in decisions, and being provided with the information and support necessary to enable participation in those decisions
• the need to support the child or young person, and the child’s parents, in order to facilitate the development of the child or young person and to help them achieve the best possible educational and other outcomes, preparing them effectively for adulthood”