The Rotherham Council’s Cabinet will review the Local SEND Reform Plan 2026 to 2029 on Monday, 16 November, outlining the council's collaborative role with health services, educational settings, families, and partners. The plan's core objectives include identifying needs sooner, ensuring support is clearer and more consistent, and fostering children's success within local mainstream education where appropriate, while maintaining the essential role of special schools and specialist provision.
A key initiative, 'Experts at Hand', will bring specialist advice closer to children, families, and educational settings. This approach aims to enable schools to access early advice from a multidisciplinary team, including Educational Psychology, Specialist Teaching, Speech and Language Therapy, and Occupational Therapy. This early support is intended to help staff better understand children's needs, adapt interventions, and identify further assistance requirements, potentially preventing the escalation of needs.
The 'Experts at Hand' initiative is allocated £2.2 million for 2026/27, with the goal of providing access to all settings by 2028/29. Additionally, a £3.4 million High Needs Capital Allocation will fund priorities such as accessibility improvements, inclusion bases, and specialist provision. By 2029, the plan aims to significantly increase the number of inclusion-base places from 120 to 258, supporting the ambition to raise the proportion of children with Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) educated in mainstream settings.
Developed through consultation with children, families, and partner organisations, the plan addresses rising demand and ongoing challenges, including therapy waiting times and educational absence. Cllr Victoria Cusworth, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, stated, “Our ambition is for children and young people to get the right help at the right time, with more opportunities to not only learn and but to thrive close to home and friends where this meets their needs. This plan sets out how we will work with families, schools and health partners to make support clearer, more consistent and easier to access.”
Cllr Cusworth added, “There is no one-size-fits-all approach. Special schools and specialist services will remain essential, alongside stronger support in mainstream settings. Children’s needs must remain at the heart of decisions, and we will continue listening to them and their parents and carers to understand how these changes are making our families lives better.”
