September news
Portsmouth’s young people to benefit from parent power
Parents in Portsmouth are being invited to join a unique project that could establish the way that all local authorities make decisions about children and young people’s Special Educational Needs in the future. Portsmouth City Council’s Inclusion Support Panel is a multi-agency advisory group that helps the council to make decisions about things like when pupils should be given Statements of Special Educational Needs, when schools should receive additional resources and when to issue fixed penalty notices and court proceedings to parents who are failing to ensure that their children attend school regularly.
For the first time ever, parents are being invited to become part of the panel. The council is looking for 40 parents to attend four panels and four training sessions per year. Parents will receive a financial allowance for attending panel sessions and after receiving training and being cleared by the Criminal Records Bureau, they will share the same voting rights as professionals on the panel such as teachers and educational psychologists.
Portsmouth City Council’s unique proposal has been given the green light by The Lamb Inquiry, which was established by the government to find ways of increasing parent’s confidence in the ways local authorities assess and provide for pupils with Special Education Needs.
A launch event will take place on 8 September from 6.30pm at The Guildhall, Portsmouth, which will be a great opportunity for anyone interested to find out more and get answers to any questions they may have. Interested parents will need to book a place by contacting Portsmouth City Council.
Troy Hobbs, Special Educational Needs Manager for Portsmouth City Council said, “This is an exciting and innovative project. We’re offering parents an opportunity to make a very real difference to children and young people’s lives in Portsmouth.
“Being part of the Inclusion Support Panel offers parents significant influence on the decision making process and will help to ensure that pupils receive a consistently good quality of education in the city.”
If you are interested in joining the panel, please contact Troy Hobbs, SEN Manager on 023 9284 1235 or email troy.hobbs@portsmouthcc.gov.uk
Date : 03 September 2008