Council and NHS ordered to address ‘widespread failings’ in services for Nottinghamshire children with special needs

It follows an inspection by watchdogs which found long waits for assessments, with some children with complex needs waiting as long as 37 weeks.

Nottinghamshire Council and NHS Nottinghamshire Integrated Care Board are responsible for arranging services for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities across the county.

The service was inspected in an unannounced visit by education watchdog Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission health watchdog over three days at the end of January.

A newly published report revealed the inspection found children and young people are waiting too long to receive specialist educational health care assessments and specialist help such as speech and language therapy.

Colin Pettigrew, council director of children’s and families services, apologised and said “undoubtedly families have been let down”.

Amanda Sullivan, chief executive of the ICB, which is responsible for the delivery and oversight of commissioned services such as speech and language therapy, said the report has given staff “renewed determination to improve things as quickly as we can”.

A education, health and care plan is for children and young people aged up to 25 who need more support than is available through special educational needs support. The plans identify educational, health and social needs and set out the extra support to meet those needs.

However, the report stated: “There are widespread and/or systemic failings leading to significant concerns about the experiences and outcomes of children and young people with SEND which the local area partnership must address urgently.”

A monitoring inspection will take place in 18 months and a full inspection will follow in three years.

There are currently 16,000 young people in Nottinghamshire with SEND. About 4,000 have ECH plans, with 300 currently going through the assessment process.

Over the last five years, the number of requests for EHC assessments has more than doubled.

The Government target states children should not wait more than 20 weeks for an ECH, but in Nottinghamshire, four out of five children are waiting more than 20 weeks, while some with “particularly complex needs” wait about 37 weeks.

A Nottinghamshire SEND Partnership Improvement Board has been established to oversee the improvement.

The Ofsted and CQC report stated: “Leaders, the ICB and education, health, and care providers should cooperate to urgently identify, assess and provide for the needs of children and young people with SEND.

“This includes assessment of needs, timely issuing of EHC plans and holistic oversight of these plans through annual reviews.

“Leaders’ plans and actions have not resulted in noticeable or sustained improvements to this situation.”

It said managers should act urgently to address the delays in access to speech and language therapy, neurodevelopmental pathways and equipment services.

There was also criticism of partnership leaders, who “cannot effectively challenge and support one another at present”.

It said: “Leaders are unclear about the challenges young people with SEND and their families face in Nottinghamshire”.

Mr Pettigrew said: “Since the last inspection, we’ve seen a doubling of demand for EHC plans and something called Covid happened during that period.

“We know children’s health has taken a downturn, particularly around emotional health and wellbeing.

“That comes together with demand across the country in recruiting into some of these specialists posts, particularly education psychologists. The code of practice requires the need to be signed off by an education psychologist, so there’s a lag between the increase in demand and the capacity to meet that demand.

“The report will help us make better outcomes for children with SEND in Nottinghamshire.

“We are confident that in 18 months inspectors will find a very different experience for young people with SEND in Nottinghamshire.”

Ms Sullivan said: “I am sorry people have to wait too long for their assessments and for treatments or therapies that they need.

“I welcome the increased profile this process has brought onto this group of individuals and it gives us renewed determination to improve things as quickly as we can.”

She said the service has seen “significant increases in demand”, with 400 children currently waiting more than 13 weeks to access therapies provided by the NHS.

She said: “We recognise and are sorry families will find it frustrating and difficult when they’re not getting the assistance they need. We understand that is difficult and concerning for parents.

“People with SEND have a right to expect they will have their needs assessed and met in a timely way. That is what we’re committed to do.”

The report said: “For those young people with the most complex needs, EHC plans do not identify needs, outcomes or services well enough. This means they are not consistently getting the help they need at the right time.

“Young people are positive about how their views and aspirations are reflected in their individual EHC plans and the support they receive. However, many parents and carers feel less informed and involved in decision-making for their children. They feel they must fight to get the support their children need to make progress towards their EHC plan outcomes.”

However, the report said “for many children and young people with SEND, alternative provision is a positive experience”.

It said children and young people are supported to remain in education and leaders have also increased their engagement with children and young people with SEND to gather their views about services.

The Nottinghamshire Parent Carer Forum, which is run by parent carers of children or young people with an additional needs or disabilities, said there was a “considerable amount of work to be done”.

Georgina Palmer, forum lead, said: “Sadly, the findings of the inspection reflect the experiences and concerns families of children and young people with SEND often communicate with the forum. Prompt action must be taken to address the issues raised.”