National context

Preparing for Adulthood Young Person’s Transition Plan (14-25)Supporting young people move into adulthood with better life outcomesEllen Atkinson 19th June 2013

National context The Current system is not working for families and children: • Too many children with SEN have their needs picked up late; • Young people with SEN do less well than their peers at school and college and are more likely to be out of education, training and employment at 18; • Schools and colleges can focus on the SEN label rather than meeting the child’s needs with a focus on life outcomes • Too many families have to battle to find out what support is available and in getting the help they need from education, health and social care services • When a young person leaves school for further education, they enter a very different system which does not carry forward the rights and protections that exist in the SEN system in schools. 2

Timeline for reform

SEN draft legislation - key highlights • Local authorities, health and care services to commission services jointly • LAs to publish a clear, transparent ‘local offer’of services so parents and young people can understand what is available. • More streamlined assessment process 0-25 • New Education, Health and Care Plan integrating education, health and care services - replace the current system of Statements and Learning Difficulty Assessments. • Option of a personal budget for young people with a Plan, extending choice and control over their support. • Academies, Free Schools, Further Education and Sixth Form colleges to have the same SEN dutiesas maintained schools.

Vision of the SEN reforms • Children’s special educational needs will be picked up early and support routinely put in place quickly • Staff have the knowledge, understanding and skills to provide the right support for children and young people who have SEN or are disabled wherever they are • Parents and young people know what they can reasonably expect their local school, local college, local authority and local services to provide, without having to fight for it • An integrated single Education, Health and Care Plan from birth to 25 will lead to better co-ordinated support • Aspirations for children and young people are raised through an increased focus on life outcomes

Preparing for Adulthood The Partnership • National Development Team for inclusion • Council for Disabled Children & • Helen Sanderson Associates. The Preparing for Adulthood programme will: • Build on the learning from past initiatives • Support peer to peer learning at a local level to improve outcomes • Share knowledge of what works, the challenges and solutions with Government, local agencies, families and young people. 6

Preparing for Adulthood Three strands of work • Pathfinder support • Wider support for all local areas • Best practice and information sharing Focus on outcomes • Paid work • Independent living (choice and control over life, support and housing) • Good health • Friends, relationships and community inclusion

What we know.... • Poor outcomesfor young people, particularly in employment, independent living, health and community inclusion • No increase in the employment rate • Less than 6.4% of people with learning disabilities in paid employment • Parents (and young people) often don’t know what’s possible • Not enoughgood supported employment • Low expectations about what young people with learning disabilities can achieve. 8

What works.... • Raising employment aspirations and expectations of children and young people, families and everyone who supports them • Person-centred transition planning with a focus on employment • Welfare advice, ‘better off’ calculations • Real work experience, so that families see that work is positive and possible • Vocational curriculumthat supports young people’s aspirations • Supported employment organisationsworking with young people in school and good supported employment from 16+ • Supported internships- being trialled at 15 colleges for young people who have complex learning difficulties or disabilities. • Study programmes providing structured learningwith an employer that is tailored to the individual needs of the young person.

Preparing for Adulthood Young Person’s Transition Plan (14-25) • Think about how to support good planning • Identify what needs to happen • Who needs to be involved? • What works? • What will success look like?

Preparing for Adulthood - Young Person’s Transition Plan (14-25) • The revised version of the Learning for Living and Work framework • Evaluation - July 2012 • Provides a detailed and consistent picture • Takes into account the new SEND draft legislation and funding reforms for young people with higher support needs. • Focus on positive outcomes that lead to as much independence as possible, including employment.

The Young Person’s Transition Plan (14-25) • Collates robust evidence to inform decisions about the most appropriate post school option for a young person • Based on the principles of person centred planning and gathers information to enable providers to support young people with additional needs to work towards their aspirations. • Allows scope for multi agency planning to take account of and plan for all aspects and create a holistic package. • Recognises that education is one part of a young person’s life

Structure of the 14-25 Plan • Made up of separate sections and appendices that facilitate a single, consistent, multi agency process of pre and post-16 transition planning; the Learning Disability Assessment (S139A) is currently an integral part of this process. • Each section can be completed separately, based on need • Section A captures the young person’s views (and Parents) and what’s important to them and evolves and changes over time. • It is important to recognise that information in the Plan appendices is recorded and built up over time • The young person will be exploring options through a process of impartialinformation, advice, guidance and transition planning from Year 9 at the latest 14

Preparing for Adulthood - Young Person’s Transition Plan A plan to support young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND1) in their transition to adult life. CONTENTS 15

Embedding person centred transition planning in the system • Understand what a good life looks like, especially for people with complex needs • Describes how to be successful in supporting people • Outcome focussed • Used toshape the marketand develop provision • What elsedo you need to know? • Engages young people, families and all agencies in thinking about creative solutions • Builds on informal and mainstream support as wellas paid support and provision

Independent Living(good housing options, choice and control over your life and support) 17

Paid Employment

Good health

Friends, relationships and community inclusion 20

Issues.... • Austerity measures - pressure on all budgets • Balance cost and outcomes • Develop creative multi agency local approach • Start from much earlier • Raising aspirations • Important to understand demand by planning from earlier • Ensure long term planning leads to young people having better life outcomes New approaches are needed to deliver good outcomes for young people and be cost effective We cannot just tinker with the system – we need to do things differently

Preparing for Adulthood Young person’s transition plan (14-25)Useful contact details.... • Email: ejatkinson@me.com • Phone: 07875-145931 • Hertfordshire County Council: http://www.hertsdirect.org • Youth Connexions: http://www.youthconnexions-hertfordshire.org • Preparing for Adulthood: www.preparingforadulthood.org.uk/what-we-do/pathfinder-support • Aspirations for life: http://aspirationsforlife.org

National context