Promoting Inclusion:
Shared Assesment:
Multi-Agency Planning and Practice
Presented in March, 2004
Sharing of Information
Network of support
- Education Department
- Health personnel
- Voluntary agencies
- Social work services
- Child/parents/families
- Statutory bodies
Working together
- Quality provision for meeting special educational needs is best achieved within the context of a positive ethos of partnership between parents and schools, local authorities, education support services and other agencies working with children and young people. (A manual of good practice in special educational needs)
- Professional staff from relevant services involved in multi-disciplinary assessment of children and young people, share their respective approaches to the assessment and identification of additional support needs pertaining to sensory impairment and share the conclusions drawn from the assessments.
- Information is shared between professionals, parents and where appropriate,
the child/young person.
Implementation and evaluation of collaborative practice - Structures are in place for monitoring, reviewing and evaluating services provided jointly.
- Multi-agency review of practice in the context of meeting the additional support needs of children and young people with sensory impairments.
How do we do this?
Hearing Assessment panel meetings
Visual Impairment review panel meeting
What are they?
- The meetings are organised by the Head of Service or Assistant to Head of Service for Sensory Impairments.
- They offer a chance for all the people involved with the child/young person to get together and make sure the best possible support is offered.
Who attends?
- The Head of Service or Assistant (VI) or Educational Audiologist, where appropriate, will chair the meetings.
- Parents, carers and child/young person.
- Teacher for children with a visual impairment or Teacher of the deaf.
- Headteacher and/or representative from child/young person’s nursery or school.
- Educational Psychologist.
In addition, the following will be invited, when appropriate:
- Consultant Community Paediatrician
- Consultant Ophthalmologist
- Associate Specialist (Audiology and Child Health)
- Other relevant health personnel
- Educational Audiologist
- Specialist Speech and Language Therapist (Deafness/Hearing Impairment)
- Representatives from the Cochlear Implant Team
- A representative from Social work services
- A member of the local Voluntary agency; eg: Mobility Officer
- Education Liaison Officer
- Careers Officer
- Any other person the family feel they would like to invite.
How often are the meetings held?
Approximately, once a year or more often if needed.
What happens?
- Appropriate assessments are carried out prior to the meeting.
- All the professionals are asked to write a report commenting on assessments carried out and saying how the child/young person is progressing.
- Parent/child/young person have the opportunity to see the reports beforehand.
- Everyone will have the opportunity to express their opinions and there will be discussion regarding any future plans.
- There will be recommendations made at the end of the meeting.
- A minute is compiled and, with the permission of the family, is circulated to all who were invited to attend.
- A copy of the minutes is sent to Education Service Management, if necessary, for their information.