You said: It would be helpful to better understand parents’ and carers’ experience of the Graduated Response in Bournemouth, Christchurch, and Poole.

We did: In the summer of 2022 and 2023, we conducted surveys on the Graduated Response, to better understand the experiences of our local families.  We have used the results carry out positive changes and have explained some of these actions below.

You said: Not everyone has heard about the Graduated Response. Parents and carers do not always know what they should do if they are worried about their child’s learning and development.

We did: We co-produced the new local offer pages for the Graduated Response, which explain what you should do if you are worried about your child or young person. Our hope is that these pages will continue to develop and grow as co-production continues. These pages were launched at a SEND Local OfferLocal OfferA local authority website resource that holds information on services and provision for children and young people with SEN and disabilities across education, health and social care and leisure. event for parents and carers in November 2023, accompanied by an information presentation by one of our senior educational psychologists. 

You said: It would be useful to have more information for parents on the Local OfferLocal OfferA local authority website resource that holds information on services and provision for children and young people with SEN and disabilities across education, health and social care and leisure. about the support available for children and young people struggling in education.

We did: We co-produced The Graduated Response booklet for parent and carers alongside parent and carer groups, educational psychologists, health professionals, early years professionals, and post-16 services. We have published this booklet on the Local OfferLocal OfferA local authority website resource that holds information on services and provision for children and young people with SEN and disabilities across education, health and social care and leisure. and hard copies are also available at Family Hubs and schools.

You said:  The support that children and young people receive is inconsistent between settings and between services.

We did: We have worked with special educational needs co-ordinators (SENCos) to create the BCP expectations for Ordinarily Available Provision to increase consistency across all our settings. This page on the Local OfferLocal OfferA local authority website resource that holds information on services and provision for children and young people with SEN and disabilities across education, health and social care and leisure. clearly lays out the support that all children should get. It also includes our expectations for assessment, planning, implementation, and review. This process is also visually explained for parent and carers on page 9 of the Graduated Response booklet.

You said: We are not confident that setting staff understand children’s needs fully. We feel there should be more training for setting staff.

We did: We have started the SENCOs supporting SENCOs initiatives. We also organise the SENCo forum and inclusion circles for SENCos. We have also published our expectations for staff skills and training on the Local Offer.

We are continuing to compare parent and carer experiences from 2023 with the results of the survey in 2022 to identify areas of progress and areas for continued improvement. We are pleased to report that parents and carers feel that the delivery of the “assess, plan, do and review” cycle has improved since 2022.

Would you like to find out more about the Graduated Response?

In 2024, we are hoping to hold another SEND Local OfferLocal OfferA local authority website resource that holds information on services and provision for children and young people with SEN and disabilities across education, health and social care and leisure. event which will focus on the Graduated Response. Once we have finalised arrangements, we will advertise the event on the Local offer.

We are also hoping to offer a brief video introduction to the Graduated Response in order to support understanding.