The SEND Partnership Service (SPS) provides free confidential and impartial information, advice and support about matters relating to special educational need or disability, including health and social care.  This advice can be provided to children and young people from 0 -25 with Special Educational Needs or Disabilities (SEND) aswell as their parents/carers. The child or young person does not need to have a Statement of Special Educational Needs or Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan for you to use the service.  Our aim is to empower you by providing you with information, advice and support on national and local policies which will help inform your decisions.

 We provide impartial information, advice and support by telephone, email, web pages and face to face meetings and can signpost to other relevant resources, including those that are specifically designed for children and young people. 

SPS is a Statutory Service provided in-house at Bath & North East Somerset Council and operates at “arms-length” from the Local Authority.  This Service is available to children, young people aged 0 – 25 years and their parents/carers who live in Bath & North East Somerset. 

We also offer impartial and confidential support to all parents/carers of children and young people who have been excluded from school either temporarily or permanently. This support is available whether or not the child or young person has SEND.

We offer:

  • Access to information and advice to help parents/carers make informed decisions about their child or young person’s, (from 0 - 25 years), Special Educational Needs or Disability
  • Access to information and advice to help children and young people with SEND make informed decisions about their own education and transition to adult life.
  • Support by telephone, email or face to face:

     -     To understand, and contribute to, SEND processes and procedures in line with the Children’s and Families Act 2014 up to and including assessment for Education, Health and Care plans

     -     To understand, and contribute to, SEND processes and procedures for children and young people with Statements of SEN or Learning Disability Assessments who have not yet had a transfer review

     -     When any child has been excluded from school

  • Help with preparation for SEND related meetings, including attendance at meetings
  • Help with preparation for, and support at, SEND and Exclusion appeal hearings
  • Signposting to useful information advice, legal and advocacy services including services which support children and young people (up to the age of 25) with SEND
  • An opportunity, by joining Parents Forum, to inform Local Authority SEND policy and practice

Key principles

Children, young people and parents/carers of children with SEND should feel they are treated as equal partners, able and empowered to:

  • Play an active and valued role in their own, or their children’s, education.
  • Have difficulties identified early with appropriate intervention to tackle them.
  • Have a real say in the way in which they or their children are educated.
  • Have knowledge of what they can expect for themselves or their children.
  • Be involved in decisions relating to educational provision for themselves or for their children

SPS contact details:

Helpline 01225 394382 available Monday to Thursday 10.00am to 3.00pm, term time only.  There is an answerphone outside of these hours. 

Email: send_partnershipservice@bathnes.gov.uk

Text: 07530 263 401

Your rating: 

Your rating: None Average: 3.8 (16 votes)
To prevent automated spam submissions leave this field empty.