Are the abbreviations, acronyms, and terminology used in SEND (there goes another!) driving you to distraction and back again? Do not despair we will rescue you from this world of unknowns and unrecognisable language. Put the kettle on, we could be here for some time...
As the song says, ‘let's start at the very beginning, as it's a very good place to start’, lets dive in:
SEND – Special Educational Needs and Disability
SEP – Special Educational Provision
IHCP – Individual Health Care Plan, for children and young people with a continuing health condition, documenting all Healthcare professionals involved, medical assistance and how to provide this, the location of medical/medication and procedures.
Statement of Special Educational Needs – the historical name for EHCPs
EHCP – Education Health and Care Plan
SENDCo – Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Coordinator
SLT – Senior Leadership Team (schools)
TA – Teaching Assistant
INA – Individual Needs Assistant
LSA – Learning Support Assistant
HLTA – Higher Level Teaching Assistant
ELSA – Emotional Literacy Assistant
SALT – Speech and Language Therapist
OT – Occupational Therapist
PT – Physiotherapist
EP – Educational Psychologist
TEACCH Approach – Treatment and Education of Autistic and Related Communcation Handicapped Children
AR – Annual Review
RTA – Refusal to Assess for an EHCP
RTI – Refusal to Issue an EHCP
DBS – Disclosure and Barring Service, a check on an individual's criminal record and suitability to work with children and vulnerable people
How are you feeling, ready for a few more? Let’s go...
LA – Local Authority – this will be who you pay your council tax to
Director of Children’s Services – the most senior member of staff overseeing SEND at your LA
Case Officer (CO)/Case Worker (CW) – admin who takes oversight of your child/young person's EHCP
APO – Assessment and Planning Officer as above – a case worker under a different name, doing the same job – fancier title!
EWO – Education Welfare Officer
Local Offer – LAs must publish on their website detailed information regarding the educational, health and social care services for SEND children and young people in the area
ICB – Integrated Care Board
PR – Parental Responsibility – Section 3 (1) Children Act 1989
TAF/TAC - Team Around the Family/Child
MASH – Multi Agency Safeguarding Hub
I’ve more fun and exciting ones coming up – if you are still with me, ready, set, go...
EHE – Elective Home Education
EOTAS/EOTIS - Education Other Than At (or In) School (or College/FE)
AP – Alternative Provision
PRU – Pupil Referral Unit
Section 41 Schools – Independant Schools, approved by the Secretary of State for Education which parents have a right to request to be named in Section I of an EHCP under Section 41 Children and Families Act 2014
PB – Personal Budget – the amount of funding identified by the LA to secure a particular provision with a view to this being secured by the parent or young person (CFA 2014 s49)
DP – Direct Payment as part of a Personal Budget
PfA - Preparation for Adulthood
CFA 2014 – Children and Families Act 2014, this legislation underpins all SEND law in England
CofP (COPP/CoP)– The Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Code of Practice 2015
EA 1996 – Education Act 1996, the SEND aspects are mostly covered by the CFA 2014, but it is still relevant for elements such as transport.
Regs 2014 – Special Educational Needs and Disability Regulations 2014
LGSO – Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, a means of investigating (for free) any complaints regarding the LA (not a school)
FTT – First Tier Tribunal, the court type body where appeals are heard in relation to EHCP’s, also known as SENDIST or Tribunal
UTT – Upper Tier Tribunal where valid appeals from FTT are heard – the High Court
JR – Judicial Review, a legal process where a public body’s decisions can be challenged, this is a last resort and will require legal representation – High Court Action
DfE – Department for Education
We’re on the home straight, the next list is not exhaustive, but very relevant to many ...
PMLD – Profund Multiple Learning Difficulties (Department of Education 2015) Classified as a Learning Disability
SLD – Severe Learning Difficulties (Department of Education and Skills 2003) Classified as a Learning Disability
MLD – Moderate Learning Difficulties (Department of Education and Skills 2003) Classified as a Learning Disability
SpLD – Specific Learning Difficulties (Department of Education and Skills 2003) Classified as a Learning Difficulty
VI – Visual Impairment
HI – Hearing Impairment
MSI – Multi-Sensory Impairment
PD – Physical Disability
SLCN – Speech Language and Communication Need
ASD/ASC - Autism Spectrum Disorder/Condition
ADHD – Attention Deficit (Hyperactivity) Disorder
FASD – Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder
GDD – Global Developmental Delay
ODD – Oppositional Defiant Disorder
PDA – Pathological Demand Avoidance
EBSA – Emotionally Based School Avoidance
Needless to say, this list is not exhaustive, and if we have missed something essential, please do let us know – our Facebook Group is a great place to talk directly to us. Any that we have omitted have not been omitted intentionally and we apologise if this has caused upset or distress to anyone.
The world of SEND and EHCPs is a tricky one to navigate alone, and we at Empowering Families of Children with SEND Ltd can help you to do this.
Here is some more especially important terminology that we believe is critical to ensure that you and your family are in safe hands – please check out that any advocate you plan to use has all of the following in place:
We are all DBS checked – Anna and Sarah have Enhanced DBS
We have full Employers Liability Insurance
We have full business insurance, including Professional Indemnity
We are registered with the Information Commissioners Office (ICO) for full Data Protection
We are a Disability Confident Committed Employer
We have received nominations for The National Diversity Awards twice (once for each year our business)
All our recommendations and testimonials on our website and business pages are fully traceable
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Where do I go from here and how can Empowering Families of Children with SEND Ltd help me?
We offer a growing collection of Webinar Events which provide a full package of support for families to support them to successfully manage key stages of the SEND/EHCP journey. In the easy-to-follow webinars, Anna and Sarah talk you through, step by step, giving scenarios, examples and detailed explanations of each process.
The accompanying support packages give you timelines, example reports and resources, and ‘fill in the blank’ templates to make the process as uncomplicated as possible.
Find our full webinar library here. Please keep an eye out as we will be holding a B and F appeal webinar in early 2025. It will then be available for access to the recorded session after the live event.
This is part of our Event Department, which aims to provide affordable support for upskilling. We Empower Families to have knowledge and thereafter the confidence with SEND and EHCP issues to advocate for their own children and young people.
If you require additional support, Empowering Families of Children with SEND Ltd also provide fully bespoke 1:1 support with Anna & Sarah as part of their professional service, for details click here: Bespoke 1:1 support from Anna & Sarah
You can find testimonials to our bespoke service on our website and Facebook business page - here
We are, and always will be Stronger Together.
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