Solihull's Strategy for Inclusive Education 2022-2025

1. Introduction

Welcome to Solihull’s first strategy for Inclusive Education. This strategy has been co-produced by

Solihull Parent Carer Voice, Solihull schools and Early Year’s settings, staff from Solihull Council

(education, social care and communities) and health staff from Birmingham and Solihull Clinical

Commissioning Group [Ccg] (which will become the Integrated Care Board (Icb) on 1st July 2022).

Children and young people in Solihull have told us that they want to enjoy life, they want us all to

know that everyone is different, they want to feel welcome and have the same chances of living

their best life. Our strategy for Inclusive Education aims to support the vision of the Joint Additional

Needs Strategy (2022) ‘to enable all children and young people to have the best life they can, by

holding them at the heart of everything we do’ and the commitment made in the Strategy that

children and young people can get the right support they need at the right time for them.

We understand the power of education in enabling this to happen and know the transformational

role that education can play, not only in the lives of children and young people and their families,

but whole communities too. This strategy is focusing on inclusion and equity within our education

settings, with its main aim being for all children and young people in Solihull to feel welcomed into,

and included within, their local early years setting, school and college - and for every single child and

young person to be respected, valued and celebrated as a unique individual.

Our aspiration is to remove any potential barriers to education and learning; including, but not

limited to, those that can be linked to characteristics such as adverse childhood and adolescent

experiences, protected characteristics, ethnicity, special educational needs and disabilities (SEND),

social class and English as an additional language. This Strategy also reflects our statutory

obligations detailed within the United Nations Conventions on the Rights of the Child (1992), The

Equality Act (2010) and the SEND Code of Practice (2015).

We know that most children and young people thrive in Solihull educational settings but we are fully

committed to closing the attainment gap that exists for our most disadvantaged learners and are

determined to have a high performing, inclusive education system that is at the forefront of

developments to find more effective ways of ensuring the progress of all pupils - enabling them to

achieve their aspirations.

Our strategy is about maximising the considerable expertise that exists within our educational

establishments and our communities; working collaboratively to share good practice. Whilst it will be

driven collectively by all education leaders, with a shared responsibility to improve the quality of

education across Solihull, it is based on the premise that it is up to each and every one of us to develop

inclusion and that it will happen if each of us does something within our own ‘sphere of influence’ -

be that in our interactions, within our strategic planning, within our classroom, within our educational

setting, or within our community.

'Inclusion of every child is everyone's business'

Solihull Parent (Inclusion workshop, May 2021)

In order to provide a clearly defined improvement agenda, we will focus on ‘Three Ps’, linked to the

key dimensions for establishing inclusive and equitable education systems UNESCo (2017):

• Presence – ensuring that all children and young people are supported to attend their

local Early Years, school*, or post 16 setting regularly and on time **;

• Participation – creating a climate within educational settings where all children and

young people feel welcome and valued;

• Progress – developing policies and practices that maximise the achievement and

ambitions of all children and young people;

In order to achieve our vision of inclusion and equity for all Solihull children and young people, we

have identified 5 Key Priorities for 2022 – 2025. Through the contributions of stakeholders to a range

of activities, including a series of Inclusion workshops, we have coproduced a detailed Action Plan

which sets out how we will address each of these priorities and how we will measure success. Our

starting point is working with school leaders, the next stage will then be working with our Early Years

and post 16 education settings. The role of the LA is to support and enable this process and to work

with schools and educational settings to achieve the vision of this strategy.

*Solihull LA respects the right of parent carers to choose to home educate their child. Supporting inclusivity in all education settings, aims to make this a positive choice, not a last resort.

** “Solihull’s Guidance and Protocol: part-time timetables (Pttts) in schools” outlines the use of these for specific pupils in exceptional circumstances and Solihull’s health needs policy “Ensuring a good education for children who would otherwise miss out on education because of their health needs”, sets out support for children of compulsory school age who, because of illness, would otherwise not receive suitable education.

2. Inclusion priorities 2022 –25

'Inclusive practice needs to be the golden thread'

Solihull Head Teacher (May 2021)

• Solihull schools, colleges and Early Years settings will lead on the development of a Solihull Inclusion Standard, to ensure there is a consistent Local Offer and Graduated Approach to support children and young people effectively, whilst also preparing them for transitions and adulthood. Priority 1

•There will be effective processes in place across the system for early identification and intervention, acting upon the earliest indicators of need at every stage to meet children and young people's additional support needs, including SEND. Priority 2

•Participatory systems will be developed further to enable the voice of Solihull's children, parents, school staff and wider services to be central to the decision making processes at school, locality and borough wide levels. Priority 3

•All Leaders across the system will ensure that equity and excellence are always at the centre of all decision making processes, including the development of commissioning intentions and policy development. Priority 4

•There will be a continuous cycle of workforce development to support the inclusion of all children and young people in their local schools, colleges, early years settings and community venues. Priority 5

3. Definitions

Internationally, inclusion is increasingly seen as welcoming diversity amongst all learners (UNESCo,

2017). The United Nations (Un, 2016) describe inclusive education as about everyone having a

fundamental right to education; as a principle that values students’ wellbeing, dignity, autonomy

and contribution to society and as a continuing process to eliminate barriers to education and

promote reform in the culture, policy and practice in educational settings to include all students.

The meaning of terms such as inclusion and equity can be confusing and contested, however a

shared understanding of our direction of travel is crucial for progress. For the purposes of this

strategy, Solihull’s Inclusion Programme Board members from Parent Carer Voice, schools, early

years’ settings, Solihull Council (education, social care - adults and children’s, communities) and staff

from Birmingham and Solihull Clinical Commissioning Group for health; agreed on the following

definition and conceptualisation of Inclusion:

‘Inclusion is a never ending process concerned with the involvement of individuals, the creation of

participatory systems and settings, and the promotion of inclusive values.’

Booth and Ainscow (2017)

‘The aim of inclusion is to reduce exclusion and discriminatory attitudes, including those in relation to

age, social class, ethnicity, religion, gender and attainment.’ Ainscow et. al (2006)

This strategy does not just focus on a particular group of children and young people, but is

concerned with the identification and removal of any potential barriers to learning for all children

and young people. Our ultimate goal, in line with the Equality Act (2010), is to eliminate any form of

exclusion, or discriminatory attitudes. We also recognise that the coming together of certain

characteristics, intersectionality, can enable certain pupils to forge ahead, whilst others may

experience compounded barriers to opportunities.

The Inclusion Programme Board also agreed that:

 ‘When schools, settings and colleges value everyone equally they welcome all children

within their surrounding community.’

 ‘There is no one single model for an inclusive setting, however research tells us that the

common features to all, are that settings are ‘welcoming and supportive places for all

learners’ and that ‘wider community involvement is valued’.’

The following definitions are included here to support a shared understanding of key terms

related to inclusion and equity.

Diversity

Diversity can be viewed in terms of respecting and valuing others and recognising the contributions

they make because of their individuality. Diversity includes seen and unseen differences and

similarities between people: it is about difference within a common humanity. (Booth and Ainscow,

2011)

Equality

Equality is the opposite of inequality and can be defined as ‘being equal in rights, status, advantages

etc.’ (Oxford Learners Dictionary). In practice this often means treating everyone exactly the same

by giving everyone the same tools and assistance. The picture of the three children of differing

heights below illustrates that by treating all three the same, with the same tools and assistance, they

still end up with differential outcomes.

Equity

Equity refers to treating people fairly and impartially according to their needs. The picture below

illustrates equity in practice, in this picture the smaller child on the right needs greater assistance to

see over the fence to see the baseball game, the child in the middle needs some assistance and the

taller child needs none. By doing this inequality is reduced and each child is able to watch the game

on an equitable basis (Choudry, 2021).

Liberation

Liberation in this context, can refer to the act or process of freeing someone from something that

limits either their control, or pleasure in their own life. In the picture below all three children can

now see the game because the fence, symbolic of the barrier that was preventing two of the

children enjoying the game, has now been removed. The fence is symbolic of barriers that may be

faced by people and pupils with a range of characteristics. In this way the system has been fixed to

offer all the children equal access to both the tools and the opportunities they need to be successful

(Choudry, 2021).

Picture by Angus Maguire – published by the Interaction Institute for Social Change. https://interactioninstitute.org/illustrating-equality-vs-equity/

4. Strategy development

Background: Solihull’s Code for Inclusion 2019/20

In 2018/19 the council worked with early years’ settings, schools, Parent Carer Forum and other

partners across health and social care, to co-produce a “Code for Inclusion” which set out principles

for how schools, education settings and wider services would work to support the inclusion of all

children and young people in Solihull.

The Code for Inclusion was finalised in December 2019; three key principles below were identified

by the majority of the stakeholders above, as fundamental to developing inclusive practice in

Solihull.

We are child and family

centred We are solution focused We are all responsible and

accountable

Developing the Inclusion Strategy

The full implementation of the Inclusion Code was affected by the pandemic, however in the

autumn of 2021, this work was picked up as part of a range of strategies sitting under Solihull’s

Additional Needs Strategy 2022-25. These include Solihull’s Maternity and Early Years Strategy,

Accessibility Strategy, SEND School Place Commissioning Strategy and Alternative Provision Strategy.

The Strategy for Inclusive Education has built on the foundation stones of the Inclusion Code.

During 2021, a number of engagement events took place with stakeholders as part of developing

Solihull’s Additional Needs Strategy. A consistent theme arising through this engagement was the

ability of schools, academies and other settings to be more inclusive of children and young people

with additional support needs – including those more likely to face barriers to their learning.

Feedback from children and young people, parent carers, SENCos/Inclusion Leaders and schools has

been clear that much more work is needed in this area. In addition, children and young people and

parent carers have told us that education remains their highest priority.

Engagement process and research basis

Following research into the key elements for successful implementation of inclusive education, a

number of workshops were held with groups of stakeholders from Solihull Parent Carer Voice

(Spcv), Solihull schools and early year’s settings, staff from Solihull Council (education, social care

and communities) and staff from Birmingham and Solihull Clinical Commissioning Group [Ccg] for

health, to determine what is currently working well in Solihull, the current perceived barriers to

inclusion and to agree key priorities for action to move forward on Solihull’s inclusive journey.

Key elements for successful implementation of inclusive education Department of International development (2018):

• Policies which are clear on their definition of equity and inclusion

• Strategies which are informed by evidence regarding impact of current practice on

participation, presence and achievement of all

• Whole school approaches where teachers are supported to develop inclusive practices

• Policies which draw on the expertise of all stakeholders, including children and young people

and their families

• Local leadership promotes inclusion as the principle that guides the work of teachers in schools

Three interrelated sets of factors, which are evidenced to enable inclusion (Ainscow, 2020); were considered within the workshops.

Identifying Priorities and actions for 2022 - 2025

Information gained from research, engagement events and from a survey with SENCOs and Inclusion

Managers, was thematically analysed to determine the 5 key priorities outlined in this strategy and

the specific actions detailed within the Action Plan. These have then been finalised with the Inclusion

Programme Board, school leaders, service leads and strategy leads.

Next Steps

Whilst parent carers, early year’s settings and wider services have been involved in the strategy

development, the initial priorities are clear;

• Schools will be expected to ensure there are effective participatory systems in place so that

their pupils, parent carers, staff and wider school community are equal partners in the

development of their action plans for inclusive practice.

• Once the delivery of the school aspect of this strategy is underway, Council officers will then

work with Post 16 education providers and Early Years settings to develop their sector

specific actions arising from the agreed priorities.

Whilst the strategy itself will be approved and owned by education settings through Solihull School’s

Strategic Accountability Board (Sssab), Solihull Council will have a key role in supporting its

implementation and the monitoring of impact across the education system.

Additionally, the Council has agreed to undertake a number of actions, as detailed within the Action

Plan, to support the expansion of inclusive practice within schools and will work with Sssab to plan

the provision of training, support and resources, as required, to achieve the intended outcomes.

5. The local Context

Overview

In 2020 there were approximately 63,262 children and young people (Cyp) between the ages of 0

and 25 living in Solihull. This equates to 29 % of the whole population of Solihull, 217,487 people.

(Office of National Statistics)

In 2021 Children’s Social Care analysed data for the 0-24 aged group, modelling data as though

Solihull were a village of 100 children or young people aged 0-24 (children enter adult services by

the age of 25);

Ethnicity data for 3-18yrs from the January 2021 pupil census – (annual census of all pupils in

Solihull schools, this data includes pupils living outside of Solihull, but on roll in Solihull schools).

73%

9%

13%

1%

1%

1%

1%

1%

% of children and young people from different

ethnic groups White British, Irish or other background

White and Black Caribbean, African, or Asian background Asian background

Black Caribbean

Black African

Chinese

Any Other Ethnic Background

Information Not Obtained

Numbers of children in Solihull state funded schools (3-18yrs) – January census 2021

2020/21 Solihull % National % State-funded primary Headcount - Total 21,157 50% 53% Number of schools 59 State-funded secondary Headcount - Total 18,179 43% 35% Number of schools 16 Independent school Headcount - Total 2,144 5% 6% Number of schools 5 Pupil referral unit Headcount - Total 70 0.2% 0.1% Number of schools 4 State-funded special school Headcount - Total 688 1.6% 1.5% Number of schools 5 Total Headcount - Total 42,238 Number of schools 89

Numbers of good or outstanding schools in Solihull

Solihull Schools

Primary Secondary Special / PRU

Total Primary

%

Secondary

%

Special / PRU %

All %

Good & Outstanding

50 11 5 66 85% 79% 71% 83%

Requires Improvement

9 3 1 13 15% 21% 14% 16%

Inadequate 0 0 1 1 0 0 14% 1% Total 59 14 7 80 • 83% of Solihull primary aged pupils and 82% of secondary aged pupils attend a good or outstanding school; 83% of pupils attending a special school attend a good/ outstanding school. • 98% of Early Years settings in the borough (child minders and all day-care) are judged to be at least good by Ofsted and this has been consistently high. • From the school census January 2021: 0.7% of children in Solihull schools are Looked After and supported through the virtual school, 21.4% are in receipt of Pupil Premium

Attendance of pupils with SEND SEND Pupil Placements (source SEN2 Jan 2021- includes all Solihull resident pupils with an EHCP) figures are rounded so may not add up to 100%

Solihull EHCP by type of provision for 2021 Total % Mainstream 672 39% Additionally Resourced Provisions (ARPs) * 93 5% Special 660 38% Pupil Referral Unit (PRU) /Alternative Provision (AP) 14 0.8% No Provision 47 2.7% Independent placements 225 13% Elective Home Education (Ehe) 24 1.4% Home Tuition 8 0.5% Total 1743

*Additionally Resourced Provision’s (ARPs) are specialist provisions attached to mainstream schools, where children are on roll at the mainstream school.

Outcomes for most children and young people in a Solihull School are good. Pupils generally perform

in line with, or above, national averages on the majority of measures at all key stages.

Attainment is generally good and Solihull regularly ranks in the top quartile nationally. In 2019,

Solihull pupils had a higher average attainment 8 score* per pupil and ranked 48th nationally; 6th in

comparison to statistical neighbours. A higher proportion of pupils (68.5%) achieved level 9-4 in

English and maths compared to the national (59.8%) and Solihull ranked 36th for this measure.

Progress at Key Stage 4 was 0.05, meaning that average progress for pupils in mainstream schools

was in line with those nationally.

Whilst there are many strengths in our current system, Solihull is still facing a number of challenges,

compounded by the impact of the pandemic, these were detailed within the paper on Reshaping

Education in Solihull, 2021 and in data within the appendices of this Strategy:

• Significant number of exclusions

• Rising number of children home educated, with numbers of parents stating that this is

due to feeling they have no other option increasing

• Number of children not receiving a suitable, full-time education

• Limited early help/support outside of statutory intervention

• Significant increase in the number of children with an EHCP and being educated in out of

borough non-maintained and independent schools

• Lower number of children from low income families reaching the expected level of

development in early years (reflecting the national picture and data)

• Attainment gap at post 16 for disadvantaged children and those with an EHCP

Data included in this section and within the appendices will be used as baseline date to measure the impact of the strategic objectives and the actions detailed in the Action Plan.

More detailed data which, will be used as a baseline measure of impact, is available within Appendix 1 and 2

* Attainment 8 measures the achievement of a pupil across 8 qualifications including mathematics (double weighted) and English (double weighted), 3 further qualifications that count in the English Baccalaureate (EBacc) measure and 3 further qualifications that can be GCSE qualifications (including EBacc subjects) or any other non-GCSE qualifications on the DfE approved list. Each individual grade a pupil achieves is assigned a point score, which is then used to calculate a pupil’s Attainment 8 score.

References

Ainscow et, al. (2006) Improving Schools, Developing Inclusion. London; Routledge.

Ainscow, M. (2020) Moving knowledge around: a strategy for promoting inclusion and equity within

education systems [Www]. 2020 https://education.gov.scot/improvement/research/moving-

knowledge-around-a-strategy-for-fostering-equity-in-education

Booth, T. & Ainscow, M. (2011). The index for inclusion. 3rd ed. Bristol; Centre for Studies on Inclusive Education.

Booth, T. and Ainscow, M. (2017) Index for inclusion. 4th ed. Bristol; Index for Inclusion Network.

Choudry, S. (2021) Equitable Education. St Albans; Critical publishing Ltd.

Department for Education (2015) SEND Code of Practice: 0 to 25 years [Www]. 2015

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/send-code-of-practice-0-to-25

Department for International development (2018) Implementing Inclusive Education [Www]. 2018

https://www.gov.uk/research-for-development-outputs/implementing-inclusive-education

Hmso (2010) The Equality Act [Www].2010

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2010/15/contents

Hmso (2001) Special educational Needs and Disability Act [Www]. 2011

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2001/10/contents/enacted

Unicef (1992) Convention on the rights of the child [Www]. 1992

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/united-nations-convention-on-the-rights-of-the-

child-uncrc-how-legislation-underpins-implementation-in-england

UNESCO (2017). A guide for ensuring inclusion and equity in education. Paris: UNESCO. Retrieved

from: http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0024/002482/248254e.pdf

6. Action Plan

Priority 1: Solihull schools, colleges and early years’ settings will lead on the development of a Solihull Inclusion Standard, to ensure there is a consistent Local offer and Graduated Approach to support children and young people effectively, whilst also preparing them for transitions and adulthood.

Activity what we will do

Output What we will produce

Outcomes what difference this will

make

Impact measures why this is important

• Through collaborative work schools, via Sssab, will co- produce with LA (Council) officers, Csie (Centre for Studies in Inclusive Education), health services, parent carers and young people a Solihull Inclusion Standard which will support early identification and intervention, with processes linked to, and detailed within, a Graduated Approach Toolkit. • The LA will carry out School Improvement visits with a specific focus on the

• A Solihull Inclusion Standard and process for achieving it will be finalised by June 2023. • Over a 3-5 year period all schools will be supported to work towards meeting each element of the Inclusion Standard. • A strengths audit tool and electronic Toolkit to support schools in achieving/maintaining the Inclusion Standard will be available by Easter 23. It will include links to resources and exemplar participatory systems to gain the voice of children, families and stakeholders. • The School Education Improvement Team (Seis) will provide a support/ challenge role for schools in relation to inclusion and provide information to

• Solihull schools will have access to an Inclusion Standard which will support School Improvement including the development of a school inclusion Action Plan (iAP). • New materials will be available to schools including a Toolkit of resources to support inclusive practice and gaining the voice of the school community. • Schools will be better supported to access all stakeholder voices. • Schools will have access to support/challenge related to their iAP and be able to use feedback to evidence outcomes

There will be increasing consistency of inclusive practice across schools, with an increasingly consistent Local Offer to all children and young people. Pupil, parent and stakeholder feedback will demonstrate inclusive practice.

LA services will support the continued development of inclusive practice within educational settings and will feed into the process for achieving and maintaining Solihull’s Standard for Inclusive practice. This will be part of the information the LA uses to identify schools

development of Inclusive Practice. • The LAs Early Years Team will work with Dingley’s Promise to support settings to become inclusion friendly and achieve a Kite mark. • The LAs Early Years Team will work with schools and early year’s settings to further develop and establish clear transition processes.

• Transitions between key stages and into adulthood will be embedded by schools using the resources coproduced by the EdSEND group and LA services. • The LA will coproduce a Solihull standard for inclusive practice for all services, community buildings, spaces, groups and organisations

the LA/Sssab on the number of schools with an iAP and its impact from Easter 2023. • Settings, supported by the Early Years Team will access training from Dingley’s Promise over the next 5 years and achieve an Inclusion Friendly Kite mark. The learning will be shared annually at network meetings. • Training on effectively supporting transition will be provided through Dingley’s Promise and guidance on transition processes from Early Years settings to school will be revised by Jan 23. • Guidance on transition processes for schools and its impact on practice will be monitored and evaluated through EdSEND and recommendations for development made annually. • A Solihull Standard for inclusion practice will be implemented in 2024. • An audit and analysis to identify gaps and good practice will have been completed by the end of 2022.

to support achieving/ maintaining Solihull’s Inclusion Standard.

• Early Years settings will have access to an Inclusion Kite mark which will support setting improvement plans and their ability to include all children, including those with additional support needs.

• Information sharing between settings/ professionals will be supported and valued so that children’s’ needs are identified early and met. • There will be seamless transition process from early year’s settings to schools and between Key Stages to adulthood, which supports and values information sharing between staff/ settings, so children and young people’s early support needs are identified and met. • Children, young people and their families will have access to local community activities, services etc. feel welcome and be confident that any barriers to access will be removed.

demonstrating good and outstanding inclusive practice.

The number of children attending a setting with an Inclusion and/or Communication Friendly Kite mark will increase annually, with an increased consistency of Local Offer available. Parent Carers, staff and children and Young People will be able to share feedback on transition between settings and schools/ Key Stages and how processes support inclusion/ early identification and preparation for adulthood/ life ready outcomes.

A report will be provided annually for the Joint Additional Needs & Delivery Board (Jandb) which details progress with inclusive practice across the Council commissioned services e.g.

• Baseline measures for measuring progress with Inclusive practice related to presence, participation and progress, will be determined by the LA with the support of Csie and stakeholders, taking into consideration the impact of Covid. • Progress against the baseline measures will be reported on by the LA with the support of educational settings.

• By the end of 2023 a standard/ accreditation will have been completed. It will link with the Strategy for Inclusive Education, and have systems in place to ensure all children, young people and their families can access community services/spaces and activities and that barriers are identified and removed. • A set of baseline measures and data to be captured will be finalised by July 22 in collaboration with Csie/ Exeter and Edge Hill Universities and a report produced for Sept 22. • A sample analysis of school websites in relation to the Graduated Approach and inclusion will be included in the baseline measures (Exeter University). • Data gaps will be identified and in the first year of implementing the Strategy a complete baseline will be obtained for measuring impact of the Strategy for Inclusive Education across the system. • An annual report will be produced by the Heads of Service for education which demonstrates progress made against baseline measures and provides an analysis of what is working well.

• Young People, families, education staff and stakeholders can be confident that a range of measures are in place to measure the impact of the Strategy for Inclusive Education on the 5 Key Priorities, inclusive practice and outcomes for children and young people.

holiday activity providers and report on stakeholder’s views on the difference it has made to them. Impact measures will show that there has been a positive impact on the participation, presence and progress of all groups of children and young people and that the gaps in progress and attainment have been narrowed. Schools and early year’s settings will be able to evidence that their learners, families and staff feel fully included in their setting and that learners feel well prepared for all transitions including into adulthood. An annual report on the impact of the Inclusion Strategy Action Plan will be produced in the autumn reporting on actions, outcomes and progress against baseline measures. This will be used to inform future actions.

Priority 2 There will be effective processes in place across the system for early identification and intervention, acting upon the earliest indicators of need at every stage to meet children and young people’s additional support needs, including SEND.

Activity what we will do

Output What we will produce

Outcomes what difference this will

make

Impact measures why this is important

• In the Early Years (Ey) we will develop a multi-agency, community approach to early identification and intervention. The Maternity and Early Years Strategy will enable services to anticipate emerging needs, provide early identification of additional needs, including SEND, and provide the right early support at the right time including through the Early Years Team around the Child (Tac) Panel and referral process.

• The Early Years Team will work with Ican and partners to co-produce a speech language and communication (Slcn) pathway by Dec 2022, which is an accessible visual pathway clearly mapping out a child’s journey from 0-5 with links to useful resources for settings and parent carers. • Guidance for Early Years settings to become Communication Friendly will be produced for Dec 2022. • The Early Years Team with settings will evaluate the impact of Dingley’s Promise training and the Inclusion Kite Mark, on early identification and intervention and outcomes annually. • The Early Years multi-agency Tac Panel will be reviewed and refined by the Early Years Team with partners, to ensure the right multiagency support is put in place early for children with significant needs – Summer 23

• Parent Carers and professionals will have access to an Early Years Speech, Language and Communication Pathway and resources. • Parent carers will have improved access to information about how to support their child’s speech, language and communication development from pre-birth. • Early Years staff will have access to training, resources and support from a range of providers to enable early identification of emerging and additional needs and to developing the targeted evidence based support and intervention they provide to better meet the needs of their children.

Parent carers and early years’ practitioner views will be sought on the impact of the Ey & Maternity Strategy aims and actions on the early identification of need, participation and progress. Early Years staff/ settings will report increased knowledge and confidence in identifying and meeting emerging needs including SEND. Maintain and increase the number of children achieving expected levels at 2-2 ½ in Asq - Ages and Stages Questionnaire. The % of children with Good Level of Development will increase to at least be in line with statistical neighbours.

• The Early Years Team will work with settings in northern Solihull to self- evaluate practice using the Nasen whole setting SEND Tool. • LA officers will lead the co- production of a revised, accessible Graduated Approach (Ga) to identifying and meeting the needs of children, young people and their families, which will detail Solihull’s Local Offer from education, health, social care services and community services from universal to specialist. • LA officers will work with schools, Parent Carer Voice (Pcv) and services to create a Toolkit of resources to support the Ga Guidance.

• LA officers will work with partners to coproduce visual pathways which are, clear and accessible and inform families and professionals about support and services available in Solihull

• A range of settings within North Solihull will have used the Nasen SEND audit tool and have an action plan which targets identified areas for development – Summer 23. • There will be accessible guidance on the Graduated Approach (Ga) to meeting children and young people’s needs in Solihull on the Local Offer, which will be finalised by Feb 23. • A supporting Toolkit of resources to support Assess/Plan/Do/Review cycle will be finalised by March 23. • Educational settings will revise their websites and School Information Report by September 2023, ensuring they link to the co-produced Ga for Solihull, Transitions Guidance and revised Accessibility Strategy, including how they anticipate emerging needs and meet Cyp’s additional support needs, including SEND, from entry to their setting – this will include targeted and specialist support available for Cyp with SEND. • A visual Pathway will be produced which explains the different routes for intervention and support in Solihull.

• Educational settings will have access to guidance and resources to support them in developing their school Graduated Approach to early identification and intervention enabling them to be better able to identify the earliest indicators of need and intervene quickly. • Parent Carers will have access to information about the support they can expect to receive as part of the Ga in any school in Solihull.

• Barriers and gaps in support will be identified. These will be shared with the Inclusion and Joint Additional Needs boards to inform future actions/ priorities.

The Inequality gap will be reduced and Solihull’s national ranking increased. There will be increased confidence reported by parent carers that local education settings meet the needs of their children. % of Cyp educated in their local mainstream school will at least be in line with national figures.

Progress and achievement gap between disadvantaged pupils, including Lac, and their peers will be narrowed.

Average Point Score (Aps) at Post 16 will be at least equal to National Aps and that of our statistical neighbours.

• The Education Inclusion Service (Eis) will be established by September 22 and will have a clear, accessible education Early Help offer which provides early support to Cyp and their families.

• Eis will provide signposting as well as direct support to children and families ensuring the right services are involved at the right time in the Team Around the child and/or Family.

• Eis will support schools to develop consistent and strong attendance support practices, providing clarity of expectations from school staff, children, parents and other professionals in promoting and supporting good attendance. Taking enforcement action where appropriate.

• There will be a published Local Offer by Easter 23. This will detail service structure, criteria, service specification and outcome measures.

• Eis will provide direct work with Cyp and families where attendance is a barrier to learning and ensure there are seamless links with other LA services and appropriate pathways including the Emotionally Based School Non-Attendance (Ebsna), medical, High Needs Semh and Alternative Provision Pathways - Easter 23.

• Eis will monitor those children not receiving full time education and provide support and challenge to schools. They will ensure the right support is put in place and that legal requirements are followed - Jan 22. • Eis will coproduce an attendance toolkit for use in schools to ensure schools are following a consistent and legal approach in securing good attendance of all children - July 22.

• Eis will provide an annual report to the Inclusion Board/ Jandb and Sssab on the work undertaken which will include impact on Cyp presence and participation in education - July 22.

• Schools and other services will have access to support from the Eis where children’s attendance is a concern. • Cyp and their families will be able to access support where there are barriers to children attending school including barriers linked to emotionally based school non-attendance, health needs and children without a school place.

• Children and young people in Solihull will all have a named school place in their local community.

• All school staff, children, and parents will have a clear understanding of the role that they play in securing good attendance for all children and resources available to support.

• There will be a clear Graduated Approach to support for Cyp at risk of exclusion or non- attendance from schools, LA and Services.

There will be reduction in persistent absence figures for all pupils. Children will only be without a named school place in exceptional circumstances e.g. recently arrived into the area. Overall attendance rates will improve, and school days lost will significantly decrease. There will be a reduction in the number of days lost due to children waiting for an appropriate placement. Eis support and intervention will demonstrate a positive impact on the presence and participation of Cyp in education. There will be a reduction in the number of days lost due to fixed term and permanent exclusions All children attending a setting part-time will be known to the LA and an appropriate plan of support will be in place to increase attendance to full time within the legal timescales.

• The Eis service, Alternative Provision Strategy and the Graduated Approach work stream will ensure there are clear pathways with attached resources for Cyp at risk of exclusion or non-attendance. • A review of the processes for early identification of pupils at risk of becoming Neet will be undertaken • The Early Help Strategy will ensure that the Supporting Families Programme/ Family Support Services have clear plans in place to work with school communities to promote inclusion in education of vulnerable Cyp.

• A range of Services, working with the Anna Freud Link Programme*, will collaborate to develop a wider support network of professionals, resources, groups and organisations, across sectors which support improved outcomes for Cyp, including

• A visual Pathway will be produced which explains the different routes for intervention, support and provision within mainstream schools and into specialist provisions, Alternative Provision (AP) and additionally resourced Provision (ARPs) - Dec 22. • The second stage of implementation of this Strategy will include work with Post 16 providers to address the increasing numbers of pupils identified as Neet. • The Early Help Strategy lead will ensure that there are plans in place which detail how support for families is co- produced with families and educational settings and ensure measures are in place around impact on educational inclusion - Summer 23 • As part of the Link Programme an Action Plan to develop a common approach to assessment and outcome measures across education and mental health services will be developed - July 22. • An evidence based co-constructed training ladder will be developed which supports a Graduated Approach to support will be developed by - July 22.

• A Visual pathway will be available for parents- children receiving timely access to support with school staff/ LA and parents understanding pathways available.

• Early intervention and support for children at risk of becoming Neet will be outlined, including a lead for this activity and dates for implementation.

• Families of vulnerable children and young people will be confident that support will be available for them locally which helps improve wider outcomes for their children. • There will be a robust system of workforce training which supports a Graduated Approach to identification and support for children and young people’s mental health and well-being in place.

For Cyp who have SEND and their needs met at SEN Support, the Apdr (Assess, Plan, Do, Review) cycle will inform the appropriate pathway to support and ensure that their needs are met. The number of young people who are Neet will be reduced, including a reduction in the proportion with an EHCP. The Early Help Strategy Lead will report on impact of the Supporting Families Programme/ Family Support Services and will evidence impact on presence and participation in both education and community. A report will be produced annually by the Strategy Lead detailing the agreed outcomes measures across the sector.

their mental health and wellbeing, which impact on their inclusion in education. • The LA will set up a Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (Vcse) led youth sector partnership that will develop the breadth and depth of the youth offer. • The EHCP process and Annual reviews within the LA and between LAs, Clinical Commissioning Group/Integrated Care System and provider services will be developed to deliver specialist support without unreasonable time delays and within statutory timescales.

• Processes for connecting Vcse networks, resources, skills and knowledge to schools to increase the options and wrap-around support for children and young people will be established. This will include the alignment of a LA Community Development Worker to schools based on free school meal populations and known community issues. • Vcse champions/leads, including for SEND and additional needs will be created. • Revised EHCP processes and paperwork for new assessments and annual reviews will be co-produced and implemented by October 2022. • Actions will be completed as specified by the Alternative Provision Strategy and SEND School Place Commissioning Strategy to expand education options for children by September 2023. • Improve the assessment process and timeliness of access to community therapy teams.

• All children and young people will have a greater offer of activities available to them out of school, with greater continuity and links between schools and communities. • School staff will feel better connected to community networks, resources and opportunities, including youth workers. • Children will have new EHCPs issued within 20-weeks and these will be reviewed annually. • Additional specialist and alternative provision will be available to meet the needs of Solihull children. • Waiting times for specialist assessments by Uhb community therapists will reduce so children can be supported more quickly.

Feedback from stakeholders will demonstrate they feel more connected to community networks and young people will report that there are activities available that they want to and can access. The pupil Health Related Behaviour Survey will show improvements, particularly in areas of identified weakness- secondary pupils’ healthy behaviours; girls’ self-esteem; pupil’s enjoyment of lessons; numbers of pupils worrying. There will be a reduction in numbers of Cyp educated Out of Borough, particularly in non- maintained independent schools. Increased Parent Carer and Stakeholder satisfaction in the EHCP process will be collated annually and a report produced with recommendations.

• The LA will explore and evaluate options to support Cyp outside of the statutory processes in line with the Additional Needs Strategy

• As part of the Graduated Approach workstream, LA officers will work with stakeholders to develop materials to support the assess/Plan/Do/review (Apdr) cycle of support. • Revised exemplar paperwork to support Apdr cycles will be produced as part of the Ga Toolkit. • Processes by which schools can access funding to support Cyp requiring high level specialist support will be explored by LA Officers and proposals developed for consideration for Easter 23.

• A range of exemplar materials will be available to educational settings to support the Assess/ Plan/ Do/Review (Apdr) cycle. • Schools will have the opportunity to work with LA officers to develop proposals for schools accessing funding for higher level specialist support.

Greater consistency in Apdr planning and intervention across Solihull, with greater consistency in evidence for accessing LA services/ NHS assessments and EHC assessments reported. Any proposed changes would be piloted and evaluated in 23-24.

Priority 3 Participatory systems will be developed further to enable the voice of Solihull’ s children, parents, school staff and wider services to be central to decision making processes at school, locality and borough wide levels.

Activity what we will do

Output What we will produce

Outcomes what difference this will

make

Impact measures why this is important

• LA Officers will work with educational settings to further develop current resources and processes for gaining the views of their school community; Cyp, parent carers, staff and wider stakeholders. • Solihull’s Parent Carer Voice (Spcv) and Our Voices Heard (Child and Young People’s Forum) to offer support to schools to enable the voice of families and children and young people, including those with additional needs and SEND, to be heard and to evaluate impact across Solihull.

• A central Toolkit of exemplar participatory resources will be created with examples of best practice (July 22). These will be held on the LA website and reviewed bi-annually by LA officers with stakeholders. • School Improvement Plans (SIPs) and Inclusion Action Plans will evidence implementation of stakeholder feedback - July 23. • Solihull Parent Carer Voice will offer to support schools to set up parent engagement groups within schools. • Our Voices Heard will offer to support schools to gather the voices of children and young people.

• Schools will have access to a range of resources so that they are better supported to access all stakeholder voices. • Parent carers and young people will be able to see how their views have been acted upon through ‘You said, we did’ type pages on setting websites. • Improved relationships between parent carers and schools. • Improved engagement between parent carers and schools. • Parent carers feel their voices are better heard within the school setting. • Children and young people better feel their voices are heard within the school setting.

Staff, parents and Cyp will demonstrate confidence that their voices are heard within their setting and that they are fully included in decision making processes. Stakeholder feedback will demonstrate progress with inclusive practice, including improved satisfaction ratings following baseline measures taken in the first year. Pcv and Cypv to provide evidence of improved coproduction at educational setting and LA level, from stakeholders on an annual basis

• Two secondary settings to work with the Autism Team/Spcv as part of the West Midlands Autism Empowered Schools Project to produce training resources on Autistic Identity to pilot with Cyp and to set up Parent Carer Engagement Groups within the schools (Pceg). • This work will be evaluated by Solihull and across the West midlands so that resources and learning can be shared across schools with the aim that school PCEGs will be increased across school settings by 2025 • Educational settings will review and develop their processes for identifying and sharing the interest and expertise of their own staff, in relation to good inclusive practice, within their setting and across their wider school community/ Mat. • Educational settings will support staff participation in action research School Enquiry Groups (SIGs), based

• Autistic Identity resources and training materials will have been produced and piloted in 2 secondary schools - July 22. • PCEGs will have been set up in both secondary schools by July 22. • An evaluation on the impact of this project will be completed, including stakeholder feedback - July 22. • The 2 schools will share their learning with Solihull secondary schools - Jan 23. • A plan will be developed, facilitated by LA Officers and Spcv, as to how to support the establishment of further PCEGs in secondary schools from Sept 23 and in primary schools in 2024. • All schools will have an iAP as part of their School Improvement Plan (Sip), which details how they identify and share the expertise of staff in relation to good inclusive practice across their setting/ Multi Academy Trust (Mat) and which demonstrates how interested staff are enabled to take part in action research projects around inclusion within their own setting and with other schools as part of the SIGs.

• Resources and training will be available to all secondary schools to support work with pupils on Autistic Identify. • Two secondary schools will have established a Pceg. • Support will be available for other secondary schools wishing to set up Pcegs – this will be detailed as part of the project evaluation. • iQFT (inclusive Quality First Teaching) will be evident in all settings through e.g. stakeholder learning walks, Communication Friendly School status etc. and longer term the Solihull Inclusion Standard. • Action Research projects will be established enabling staff to share areas of expertise within their setting and as part of SIGs. Learning will be evaluated and shared with stakeholders/ Sssab

The Project has inbuilt baseline data measures which includes gaining the voice of Cyp/ parent carers and stakeholders. Impact of work on autistic identity and improved mechanism for gaining stakeholders voice will be evidenced through case studies /parental feedback and project evaluation measures. A project report will be produced with recommendations for next steps.

Parent carers and staff will be involved in supporting and evaluating the inclusiveness of their setting- settings will develop processes with their school community. Staff will report that they have opportunities to learn from others within and outside their setting and/or share/ develop their expertise through leading or contributing to action research.

on emerging inclusion audit themes.

• The LA and Icb will develop their participatory systems to ensure that educational settings have a voice in service redesign and the whole system is connected so that there is a process for education settings to inform resource allocation.

• Educational settings will be part of any Boards established by the LA including the Inclusion and Jan boards from Sept 21. • School and LA forum groups (i.e. EdSEND, Heads Reference Group, Collaborative arrangements) will be reviewed and processes redefined by schools with the LA by September 23 so that there is greater representation across boards from a wider range of educational settings and clear feedback loops across the system. • The Icb will ensure that educational settings are involved through engagement and consultations, in service redesigns that impact services delivered within school settings and where educational input is needed/expected. • The Icb will invite education leads to multi-agency meetings. • The Icb will have clear systems in place for gaining the voice of education staff, children, parents and partners.

supported by the Community Education Psychology Service (Ceps). • Schools and educational settings will have a clear understanding of their role, and the processes for, influencing the development of services from the LA and health in order to enable them to meet the needs of their local children and young people and remove their barriers to inclusion within their local school and community. • The views, opinions and insight of educational staff are heard and included in Icb commissioning based decisions, service reviews and forward planning.

• Educational staff feel included in Icb reviews and are able to provide honest perspectives.

Educational settings will provide feedback annually on how included their voice is in service design and the impact of joint working and coproduction on removing any barriers to inclusion for their community. Clear system are in place for engagement and consultation between Icb and Education ensuring educational voice is gained and included in decision making. Improved communication channels between Education and Icb will improve joint working arrangements and in ensuring education voice is heard.

Priority 4 All Leaders across the system will ensure that equity and excellence are always at the centre of all decision making processes, including the development of commissioning intentions and policy development

Activity what we will do

Output What we will produce

Outcomes what difference this will

make

Impact measures why this is important

• Head teachers from Sssab/Csei/LA officers will work together to develop an Inclusion Audit Tool for use across Solihull settings to identify areas of strength and areas for development. This will support the identification of good inclusive practice across Solihull, training needs and areas of focus for peer to peer support/ collaboration. • School leaders will use information from the Inclusion Audit to plan Cpd within their school. They will share information/ key themes with LA leaders so that it can be used to inform Cpd needs across an area/ borough/ group of schools

• There will be a strengths based Solihull Inclusion Audit Tool which will be in finalised in July 22. • School leaders will carry out an Inclusion audit to identify with all stakeholders (Cyp, parent carers, governors, staff etc.) in their setting areas of strength and areas for development around equity and inclusion by July 23. • A process for ‘Good Practice’ in self- assessment using the audit tool will be coproduced, which will include how to involve the wider school community for Easter 23. • Solihull schools will develop an Inclusion Action Plan (iAP) by Sept 23 which is published on their website. The iAP will be revised annually using the Audit Tool. • Schools will have identified Cpd to develop their inclusive practice and have Cpd plans in place for Sept 23.

• Leaders of education settings will have access to an easy to use, free online tool for auditing strengths and areas for development in their setting supporting them to develop their inclusive practice as part of the cycle of evaluation for action planning and school improvement. • Staff will have access to training within their school and within the LA, so that they can develop their inclusive practice and take part in/ access the learning from Action Research projects as part of their professional development. • Action research SIGs, peer to peer support projects will be in place and impact evaluated.

Leaders will feel confident that they have school improvement plans in place which promote equity and excellence in their setting.

The number of schools using the Inclusion Audit Tool, developing an Inclusion Action Plan and taking part in SIGs will increase annually. Schools will be able to share with their school community, progress towards their agreed priorities for inclusion and equity. School staff will provide feedback on the action research projects (SIGs) evaluating impact on their professional development, class room practice and school improvement.

and to inform peer to peer support/ SIGs. • LA Officers will facilitate with Sssab and school/Mat senior leaders the development of action research School Enquiry Groups (SIGs), based on emerging audit themes, and identify ‘what works in Solihull’. • LA and school leaders will coproduce a model Inclusion Policy to drive and embed our core principles and values • LA officers will work with Sssab/School Forum to develop a system for celebrating and challenging educational settings in relation to inclusive practice and outcomes, using a range of data sources. • LA and Icb leaders will ensure joint commissioning arrangements between the

• LA officers will agree a LA Cpd offer for 23-24, by summer 22, based on school audits information and key themes. • School Inquiry Groups (SIGs) will begin to be established from Easter 2023. • There will be a clear, easily accessible bank of evidence about ‘What works in Solihull’ by July 23 that will be revised annually. • Consultation and dissemination out to all schools will be planned through collaborative networks and partnership meetings. • A Task and Finish group will develop a model Solihull Inclusion Policy by Jan 23. • A system for celebrating and challenging the inclusive practice of schools will be developed by Dec 22. The framework will use data from educational settings related to inclusive practice and outcomes including presence, participation and progress • A SEND strategic needs assessment will be shared with LA, health and EdSEND by December 22.

• An evidence base of ‘what works in Solihull’ will be available and there will be an annual Cpd offer for staff, governors and parent carers. • Educational settings will have access to a model Inclusion Policy which provides a set of principles and practices to support the growth and further development of an inclusive borough wide culture within educational settings. • Cyp and families will have a clear understanding of what they should expect and experience, in terms of inclusion in all educational settings. • Leaders in schools/ LA will feel confident that there is an increasingly consistent offer to all children in Solihull, regardless of their postcode. • The LA will have access to a range of data to demonstrate it is meeting its promises to Cyp and its statutory duties to identifying and meeting their additional support needs. • Leaders will understand patterns of demand across the system to

Feedback from others will demonstrate that this bank of good practice is shared widely. The number of schools achieving Solihull’s Inclusion Standard will increase annually.

There will be a consistent approach to ensuring that all Cyp and families are treated with fairness and equity, based on a shared set of core principles and practices. Impact measures will show that there has been a positive impact on the participation, presence and progress of all groups of children and young people in their local school and that the gaps in progress and attainment have been narrowed Parent Carers and Educational settings will report an improvement in the right services being in place at the right time

A schedule outlining LA and Icb joint commissioning arrangements will be produced

LA and health service providers are coproduced in partnership with education settings and parents to ensure the right support is available at the right time. • National guidance and best practice will be fundamental to commissioning and service design ensuring high quality services.

• The Icb, LA, Providers and Education will work together to ensure health services are equitable and meet the needs of the children, young people and families. • Health and Mental Health services to work with educational settings as detailed in the Cyp Mental Health Plan, to improve accessibility and timing of services, so barriers to parent carers supporting their child to attend can be removed. • LA and Icb, in partnership with providers, to develop a system/ pathways to improve

• A co-designed joint outcomes framework for health which will be reported to the Inclusion Board annually. • Activity against the outcomes framework and action plan will be reported to the Inclusion Board annually for governance and accountability. • All service reviews and service planning will have mapped against national guidance and best practice.

• Families will be consulted on how services are planned and delivered to ensure they are equitable and meet needs annually. • Health service will revise their inclusive practice and processes resulting in improved attendance to SaLT/health initial appointments/Solar appointments etc. annually. • Plans will be in place to establish a ‘Neurodevelopmental Pathway of support’ by July 22. The pathway will be drafted/resources identified by the end of 2023.

inform priority actions and activity needed to best support children • Joint commissioning intensions and activity will be published and transparent, providing accountability and adherence to quality standards. • Senior leaders and partners are assured by the governance and accountability of the outcomes framework and action plan. • Services will be high quality and in line with national standards. • Families will report improved timely access to services and information and guidance available while they wait for appointments. • This will result in an increase in stakeholders reporting quicker and easier access to support • There will be an increase in stakeholders reporting the right support is available at the right time without the need for a diagnostic label. •

and readily available, highlighting commissioning intensions and commitments.

All Icb commissioned services will have a clear robust pathway and offer that is transparent to referrers and services users. Service users will access the right service in a timely manner and receive the appropriate support. Commissioned services will be quality assured, equitable and accessible. Parent carers and Education settings will be better able to access support for children without the requirement for a formal diagnosis. All schools will have an accessibility plan in place.

access to the right support at right time without need for labels e.g. draft and resource a neurodevelopmental pathway. • Linked to the Accessibility Strategy and the Capital Work Group Agenda schools will review their accessibility to learners, staff and visitors with additional needs. • The LA will ensure that any new school building is accessible to all and building are planned to ensure inclusion of the local community and staff with additional needs.

• Schools will audit their buildings in line with the Accessibility Strategy by the end of 2022. Schools will have an Accessibility Action Plan in place and escalate and significant barriers to accessibility to the LA or the Efsa. • Training will be delivered to the Capital Development Group/ Estate management Team on the LA’s vision for inclusive education and plans will be developed to ensure the Estate Management Plan has accessibility and inclusion as part of its core criteria when planning new buildings - Easter 23.

• Schools have access to a revised Accessibility Strategy/ resources and PD Net guidance in order that they can be supported to update their accessibility plans. • The LA/ESFA will be aware of barriers to accessibility so that long term plans can be developed to remove them • The Capital Work Group will understand the LA’s vision for inclusion in relation to the accessibility of all new school buildings and community buildings.

The LA estate management plan reflects and shows a commitment to addressing the inclusion agenda priorities and outcomes for all children and young people, in all educational settings

Priority 5 There will be a continuous cycle of workforce development to support the inclusion of all children and young people in their local schools, colleges and Early Years settings and community settings.

Activity what we will do

Output What we will produce

Outcomes what difference this will

make

Impact measures why this is important

• Educational leaders/ will lead on the development of a school/setting workforce Continual Professional Development (Cpd) Plan which addresses current context based needs – including universal, targeted and more specialist training over the next 3 years and make recommendations as to support required from the LA to deliver this. • Sssab will make recommendations about how they can be supported training that promotes inclusive practices previously rolled out across Solihull e.g. Autism Education Trust (Aet) and Language Link training.

• Immediate training needs to be identified by schools through Sssab by Easter 22. • Schools will use information from their audits to inform their Cpd plans over the next 3 years. • Audit information will be shared with the LA to inform a 3 year LA wide Cpd Plan, peer to peer support and Action research SIGs - Easter 23 - 25. • The LA will identify which elements of the 3 year Cpd plan for educational settings they will support the delivery of, and identify how this will be resourced. • Recommendations will be made by Education Leaders annually to inform support to be delivered through LA specialist services to embed Aet and Slcn (speech, language & communication needs) training into classroom/setting practice and evaluate its impact.

• The workforce, including governors and parent carers will have access to a range of Cpd to support inclusion and equity. • There will be an impact on inclusive practice which will be demonstrated through stakeholder feedback, information from the inclusion audit and setting iAP; staff appraisal and performance targets, iQFT.

• Aet training will be part of the school Cpd cycle and strategies will be evident across the school. • Language Link or an alternative Language screening school will be in place in all primary schools.

The education workforce across the LA will report improved knowledge, skills and confidence at meeting the differing needs of all their learners and to deliver iQFT. Children and Young People and their families will report that they feel welcomed into their educational setting, that they belong and that their needs are met. Children and young people with Slcn/ autism and their parent carers will report that reasonable adjustments are in place to meet their needs and there is a Ga to support in place.

• LA/wider services workforce training needs will be identified at all levels through a staff skills audit. This will inform a 3-year workforce training plan, which includes governors and voluntary agencies e.g. Spcv.

• In the Early Years* Dingley’s Promise 5-year Comic Relief funded training package will be delivered alongside Building Success [DfE], Hanen [through Eef], and impact evaluated.

• Training will be available through Csei for all senior leaders/governors on the legal requirements on educational settings related to e.g. the Equality Act 2010, Disability Discrimination etc. This will be delivered on a rolling programme to new and established leaders.

• A mandatory training plan will be produced for all LA/ health/communities staff and voluntary agencies working with children and young people and their families. This will be at a level commensurate with their role and will be on a rolling programme.

• Settings, supported by the Early Years Team, will access a range of training over the next 5 years. The learning will be shared annually at network meetings. • Training will be piloted with a number of volunteer pilot schools from Csei during autumn 22. • Training will be provided on Inclusion and implications for Leaders by Professor Mel Ainscow at the Head Teachers Conference. - Sept/Oct 22. • Training/ support for governors in understanding their roles and responsibilities in driving and embedding the inclusion agenda and adopting a whole

• LA and wider services workforce will have access to a range of training to develop their understanding of inclusion and equity ensuring they have the knowledge and skills to identify and remove barriers to services and support for Cyp and their families.

• Solihull early years’ settings will have access to a range of training sessions which will support them to further develop their inclusive practice. • Senior Leaders and governors in schools will have increased knowledge and understanding about the barriers, challenges as leaders in relation to inclusion and equity; in addition to the legal duties placed upon them.

The wider LA workforce will report increased knowledge and skills in relation to inclusion and equity. Case studies will be built up of how this knowledge and skills has enabled people to work together with Cyp and families to remove barriers to accessing support. The early year’s education workforce will report improved knowledge, skills and confidence at meeting the differing needs of all their children and in creating an inclusive learning environment.

Education Leaders will report improved knowledge and confidence in meeting the legal requirements on Educational settings in relation to Equality and Diversity/SEND etc. and understanding the challenges and how to access support.

school policy will be provided as part of Governors annual training schedule. • The training will be evaluated and content alongside a delivery mechanism will be agreed for making this training available across all school in 2023. Activity stated within this action plan will be monitored by the relevant system leads (Council, Sssab, Health) and impact overseen through the Inclusion Programme Board and Joint Additional Needs Delivery Board. • Further explanation of programmes referred to are available in Appendix 3

Appendix 1

Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) – January 2021 census data

• The number of Solihull pupils with an EHCP has grown by 125 (8%) in the last 12 months and by 328 (23%) in the last 5 years. • At January 2021 Solihull maintained a total of 1,743 EHC Plans 3.2% of the school population. This is in line with both the National (3.3%) and the West Midlands region (3.2%) position. • The largest % growth in EHCPs in the last year is in the under 5s (14%) which has seen a growth of 55% since 2017. • The number of children in a Solihull school with an EHCP totals 1411. Of these pupils 279 live outside of Solihull. • Autism remains the highest primary need for Solihull resident pupils. The percentage of pupils identified as having autism as their primary need is nearly double regional and national levels in our schools and 6 to 10% higher in Solihull special schools.

• A child born male in Solihull, or who attends a Solihull school is over 2.7 times more likely to have an EHCP than if they were born female. • In terms of ethnicity, children and young people with an EHCP in Solihull schools, or with a Solihull maintained EHCP, reflects the ethnicity of the population group as a whole.

SEN Support by Gender – Solihull schools

Total SEND in Solihull schools

% of school population

Female 1855 EHCP 3.5% Male 3434 SEN Support 13.1% Grand Total 5289

• The change in numbers of Statements/ EHCPs in Solihull since 2015 has been erratic. • In 2017 numbers rose above national (12%) to 15%, but from 2018 -19 only rose by 1-2% below the national figure of 11%. In 2020 numbers then rose by 11% and in 2021 by 8%.

EHCP in Solihull school by gender at

birth % Solihull EHCP by gender at

birth %

Female 379 27% Female 462 27% Male 1032 73% Male 1281 73% Grand Total 1411 Grand Total 1743

Appendix 2

Presence and Participation

Attendance of pupils with SEND SEND Pupil Placements (source SEN2 Jan 2021) – figures are rounded so may not add up to 100%

Solihull EHCP by type of provision for 2021 Total % Mainstream 672 39% Additionally Resourced Provisions (ARPs) 93 5% Special 660 38% Pupil Referral Unit (PRU) /Alternative Provision (AP) 14 0.8% No Provision 47 2.7% Independent/High Cost placements 225 13% Ehe 24 1.4% Home Tuition 8 0.5% Total 1743

• Specialist provision located in Solihull is comprised of 6 special schools, 1 of which is an Academy and 1 is an independent special school; 8 ARPs located within mainstream schools (increased to 10 during 2021). • The number of commissioned places in our special schools is increasing year on year to meet the growing demand for specialist provision. Places have grown by 18% in the last 5 years. • 17% of all pupils in Solihull special schools are resident outside of Solihull this equates to 120 special school places. • At September 2020, 142 places were commissioned in Solihull ARPs. • A number of ARPs located in Solihull do not require pupils to have an EHCP to access the provision. The SEN2 data only includes Solihull pupils with an EHCP, however the January census shows that ARPs located in Solihull are catering for 110 Solihull pupils in total, plus 17 pupils that live outside of Solihull. • The number of EHC Plans that the Solihull Council maintained in January 2021 which named maintained special school or special academy placements, reduction by 2% in January 2021.

Alternative Provision

• January 2021 - 7 pupils with EHCPs were on roll at Summerfield PRU and 4 at the Triple Crown Centre. • 7 pupils with an EHCP are placed at Solihull Academy, this is double the number placed in the previous year. In total 8% of pupils with an EHCP are placed in Alternative Provision.

Independent School Placements

• Despite a growing number of commissioned places in maintained special schools and special academies in Solihull, at January 2021, 152 (9%) of Solihull pupils with an EHCP were placed in the independent sector. • This is a growth of 19 placements (14%) since January 2020. The most significant part of this growth is in independent mainstream schools which grew by 12 placements (48%) in the last year. The majority of these placements are for pupils with autism and Semh needs.

Post–16 Placements

• The data show very little increase in the overall number of students in the 16 to 25 age group between 2020 and 2021. • However, there has been a significant shift between those students identified as educated in general Fe/tertiary colleges, a drop of 29%, and those in specialist post 16 institutions, an increase of 167%. As with independent placements, specialist post-16 placements tend to meet the needs of those students with more complex needs.

Exclusions data for Solihull

• Permanent exclusions decreased in 2020 (55 in 2019 and 41 in 2020), possibly linked with the impact of the pandemic and numbers educated at home. However, data below for 2019/20 indicates that Solihull’s rates of permanent exclusion in both the primary and secondary sector are higher than national figures, as are suspensions in primary. National data for comparison was not collected in 2020-21 due to the pandemic. • Fixed Term exclusions fell, alongside the average number of days missed by pupils; from 4.4 days to 3.7 days in 2020. • Permanent exclusions for pupils with an EHCP has been higher than national figures historically, particularly in primary. Solihull’s aim is for this figure to be zero in all our school.

Solihull National Phase Rate 2017/18 2018/19 2019/20 2019/20 State-funded primary

Permanent 0 0.8 0.32 0.13 Suspension 11.21 13.2 13.33 10.05 1 or more suspension 5.14 6 6.98 4.63 State-funded secondary

Permanent 0 0 0.3 0.19 Suspension 7.96 18.84 12.42 22.74 1 or more suspension 5.31 7.9 6.67 9.85 State-funded special

Permanent 0 0 0 0.04 Suspension 7.68 6.17 6.01 7.64 1 or more suspension 4.67 3.9 4.16 3.77

Elective Home Education

• There has been a significant rise in the number of children who are home educated. In 2015, 131 children were registered as home educated. This has risen to 258 in 2020; an increase of 96% and 197% since 2013. • Whilst many families who elect to home educate are providing a broad and balanced education, this cohort includes an increasing number of more vulnerable children who, it is reported, have been withdrawn from school because they were not managing well, rather than it being a positive decision to home educate.

Children not receiving suitable, full time Education

• Not every child in Solihull is receiving a suitable, full time education. In the last full academic year, there were 252 children in this cohort, with in excess of 42,000 days being lost to education.

• These children are not typically representative of the child population and tend to reflect those more vulnerable families who have difficulty engaging with, or navigating the system. • Whilst unauthorised absence is 1.2% and lower than the national (1.8%), Solihull’s authorised absence level is at 4.2% and places us at 131st of all LAs. • Attendance data for children and young people with an EHCP indicates some concerns in our primary and secondary schools that need to be addressed.

Children and Young People with an EHCP

2018/19 Census Solihull

2019/20 Centrally held data

2018/19 National data Primary % absence 7.1 10.6 7.0 % Persistent absence 19.7 Na 19.8 Secondary % absence 9.9 11.9 8.6 % Persistent absence 24.5 Na 23.7 Special % absence 7.6 8.1 9.9 % Persistent absence 19.6 Na 28.1

Not in Employment, Education or Training (Neet)

• In 2019, 3.4% of young people in year 12 and 13 were Neet, up from 2.8% the year before. However, of those young people with SEND this figure rises to 5.4%.

Progress, attainment, achievement and wider outcome measures

Data provided by Solihull’s Education Data Performance Team

Outcomes for most children and young people in a Solihull School are good. Pupils generally perform in line with, or above, national averages on the majority of measures at all key stages. Attainment is generally good and Solihull regularly ranks in the top quartile. In 2019, Solihull pupils had a higher average attainment 8 score per pupil and ranked 48th nationally; 6th in comparison to statistical neighbours. A higher proportion of pupils (68.5%) achieved level 9-4 in English and maths compared to the national (59.8%) and Solihull ranked 36th for this measure. Progress at Key Stage 4 was 0.05, meaning that pupils average progress for pupils in mainstream schools was in line with those nationally.

However, this success masks some areas of relative weakness:

• Attainment at post-16: whilst improving with students at the end of Level 3 (A-Level study) achieving an average points score (Aps) of 32.64 per entry in 2019, which is higher than the West Midlands (31.26), it is lower than the national average point score and that of Solihull’s statistical neighbours (33.77 and 33.44 respectively). • The achievement gaps between the performance of disadvantaged pupils and their peers remain wide at all Key Stages and the gaps widen as pupils move through the school system, although there has been some narrowing of the gaps for some cohorts. • Solihull currently has around 477 children in care with a quarter of these children having an EHCP (in line with national figures). Once children in care have a school place, they make progress, but there is a significant gap between their outcomes and those of their peers e.g. 36.4% achieving a 9-4 pass in English and maths, compared to 68.5% of their peers.

The pupil Health Related Behaviour Survey indicates that the majority of pupils feel happy and satisfied with life. They report experiencing less bullying than before and feeling safer in school. Whilst primary aged pupils are living healthier lives, secondary pupils reported sleeping less and many not having a balanced diet. Girls’ self-esteem is of particular concern, as is the significant fall in the enjoyment for all pupils of lessons. The number of pupils worrying also increased for all ages.

Early Years

• 72.6% of all children reach a good level of development, which whilst above the national figure, is lower than our statistical neighbours. Fewer children from low income families reach the expected level of development. • In 2019 the percentage of children eligible for free school meals who achieved a good level of development at the end of their reception year was 56% - a decline of 6% on the previous year. • The inequality gap for Solihull is 35.5 and ranks us 108th nationally, with fewer settings rated outstanding in the most deprived areas.

Post 16

• Although students generally attain well post-16, at level 3 there is a gap of 28.8% between disadvantaged students and their peers which is above the national average of 25.3%. • There has been some success in closing the gap for students with SEND, however there still remains a 20.3% gap between those with an EHCP and those without, ranking us 109th of all local authorities.

Appendix 3

Definitions of programmes and acronyms referenced within the Strategy

Dingley’s promise

Dingley’s Promise have been awarded funding through Comic Relief to help tackle the challenges

facing the childcare sector across the UK, and build the skills and confidence of nurseries to provide

childcare that’s inclusive for all, including children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities

(SEND). They aim to do this by training 10% of practitioners in the UK, and working with 30 local

authorities to develop local strategies for inclusion, underpinned by widespread understanding and

confidence in inclusive practice. Solihull is one of the LA’s that they will be working with.

Anna Freud Link programme

The Link Programme is an evidence-based initiative led by Anna Freud Centre and funded by the

Department for Education. This programme brings together education and mental health services in

a series of workshops led by Ccg/ICBs to deliver sustainable change in the delivery of children and

young people’s mental health services.

Ceps Community Education Psychology Service

Csie Centre for studies in Inclusive education

Cyp Children and Young People

Eis Education Inclusion Service

Ga Graduated Approach

iAP inclusion Action Plan

iQFT inclusive Quality First teaching

I Can The Children’s Communication Charity

Janb Joint additional Needs Board

Mat Multi Academy Trust

Pcv Parent Carer Voice

Seis Solihull’s Education Improvement Service

SIGs School Inquiry Groups

Sip School Improvement Plan

Sssab Solihull Schools Strategic Accountability Board

Tac Team Around the Child

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