This update includes:

• Thank you to schools
• Feedback from SENCo Summer Briefings
• What's coming up for SENCo's next year?
• OAG stories of implementation - working with parent carers
• Ordinarily Available Guidance - the last 12 months and coming soon...
• DBV - the last 12 months and coming soon...
• Speech and Language Therapy updates 
• OT Fun with Food 
• OT Host a Sensory Circuit 
• OT Newsletter
• The importance of eye care health for cyp with cognition and learning needs
• Breathe Collective Choir – Looking for new members
• Birmingham Adults Community
• Training events coming up

Thank you to schools

Thank you to all schools involved in the recent Ofsted /CQC SEND inspection 

We would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to all the schools who participated in the recent three-week inspection by Ofsted and CQC, which concluded on 27 June 2025. Your co-operation throughout the process has been invaluable. 

A special thank you goes to those of you who spoke directly with the inspectors. Your insights and openness played a crucial role in making the inspection thorough and meaningful. 

What happens next? 

• In 14 days’ time, we will receive a draft report outlining the inspectors’ findings and outcomes. 
• We will then have 10 days to review the draft and highlight any minor amendments or corrections. 
• Finally, five days after our response, the final inspection report will be published. 

We appreciate your ongoing support and will keep you updated of the outcome. 

 *Please note that the timelines outlined are general estimates and may be subject to change. 

Feedback from Summer SENCo Briefings

The briefings this term were attended by 280 SENCos from across the sector and focused on: 

Understanding the Engagement Model

The Engagement Model was introduced in 2017 following the Rochford Review and changes to the primary assessment and accountability and the removal of the P-Levels for assessment of children working below the level of the National Curriculum.  

The Engagement Model is a framework to support the assessment of any pupil in KS1 or above, who is not yet able to access subject specific study. It focuses on assessing the engagement of young people in the following 5 areas:  

• Exploration 
• Realisation 
• Anticipation 
• Persistence 
• Initiation 

The Engagement Model is not a curriculum and in the briefing sessions we began to look at the tools schools are already using that would support them in assessing and planning a curriculum for these young people.  

In the session we shared a video of a pupil to support understanding the engagement behaviours – this video can also be viewed via this link: www.youtube.com/watch?v=swH0wOPWYaQ

This session was aimed to build understanding of the Engagement Model and further training will be available in the new academic year which will focus on the wider use.

More information about these sessions will be shared in the Autumn Term.  

Feedback and Updates for Delivering Better Value Workstream 2

Pauline Bromfield, who leads workstream two joined the briefings to share information relating to: 

• background to the work 
• overview of the current funding systems 
• actions taken so far  
• feedback from the spend analysis and SSPP review 

Next steps for this workstream include a series of task and finish groups focusing on: 

• The systems Birmingham could adopt for allocating high needs funding for pupils with EHC plans 
• Options for allocating high needs funding for pupils on SEN Support 

For further information, please see the DBV updates below. If you have any questions or queries regarding the DBV workstream please email these to DeliveringBetterValue@birmingham.gov.uk

View the briefings slide deck

What's coming up for SENCo's next year?

We’re really pleased to share a new programme of induction for SENCos who are new to post in Birmingham, building on feedback from SENCos over the past two years who have attended the ‘Briefing for new SENCos’. 

The offer will include the ‘Briefing for new SENCos’, as well as free access to the SENCo Survival two-day course during their first term, with 6 additional free days of training on a range of SEND topics i.e. 

1. Understanding the four areas of SEND – including the OAG 
2. Good Autism Practice 
3. Understanding your role and responsibilities as the strategic SENCo  
4. Planning provision – SEN Support and EHCPs 
5. Two-day full PCR training. 

We hope that this will support new SENCos in their role, as well as ongoing access to training and professional development through both their Local SENCo groups and through strategic input from the SEND advisory teams. The training grid gives further details and dates for the above; places will be prioritised for new SENCos next term with limited places for SENCos new to role within the last 12 months. Please contact Heather Wood for further information heather.wood@birmingham.gov.uk  

We are also changing the timing of the SENCo Noticeboard publication; as from September ‘25 all new issues will be available online from the afternoon of the second Thursday in every half term. We hope that this will support SENCos in their forward-planning around SEND – please see the 25-26 calendar of communications. 

Please keep sharing your feedback around how we are communicating with schools with regards to SEND as this really helps to inform and shape future work. 

OAG Stories of Implementation - working with parent carers

Over the past year, seven Birmingham schools have taken part in a collaborative action research project with a focus on partnerships with parent carers. We’re delighted to share this celebration of their work and invite you to explore their Stories of Implementation, which capture how schools and families worked together to improve understanding and confidence in the support available as we develop Birmingham’s Ordinarily Available Guidance (OAG). 

This project, developed in partnership with the Birmingham Parent Carer Forum (BPCF), asked two key questions: 

• Do parent carers know what support is ordinarily available for their child with SEND? 
• Are they confident that this support will meet their child’s needs? 

Using structured, co-facilitated discussion sessions, schools and families explored these questions together. Parents then worked alongside school staff to co-design practical improvements that responded directly to their feedback. 

Examples of parent carer-driven actions included: 

• Monthly SEND bulletins to keep families informed of changes and support in place. 
• Drop-in sessions with the SENCO or senior staff to encourage ongoing dialogue.
• Co-produced one-page profiles, with parents contributing to how their child is understood and supported. 
• Updated SEN Information Reports and new visual guides explaining ‘what’s ordinarily available’ in accessible, parent-friendly language. 
• ‘We Said, We Did’ charts showing clearly how parental feedback was acted on. 
• Workshops and Q&A sessions helping families understand how the school supports children with additional needs. 

Parents reported increased confidence in their child’s provision and greater clarity about what to expect. They also described stronger relationships with staff, more open communication, and a sense of being genuinely included. 

These voices reflect a wider shift in how schools are approaching co-production, not as an add-on, but as a key part of inclusive practice. 

Each school has shared their journey in a one-page Story of Implementation, which includes what they did, what changed, and what they learned. These are practical, real-world examples of co-production in action, and we encourage you to take a look. 

Download Parent Carer Action Research Project Stories of Implementation

Please take time to explore these stories with your local SENCo and parent carer groups. They offer inspiration, practical ideas and approaches that can support your own journey towards greater parent confidence and inclusion. 

Ordinarily Available Guidance - the last 12 months and coming soon...

A lot of work has been happening over the last academic year with the Ordinarily Available Guidance (OAG), building on work with schools engaged with action research as well as feedback from SENCo briefings and the OAG survey. The following is a summary of this activity as well as plans in place for the next 12 months, including reviewing the school-age OAG. 

Early Years OAG

The EYS OAG has now been drafted following work across the sector and with the Council for Disabled Children, and can be accessed on the Local Offer. The EYS OAG was launched in June this year with EYS settings, and we have had 12 settings express an interest in testing this through action research projects during the autumn term and into spring 26; we’re excited to see a really good mix of primary schools, nursery schools, PVI Group settings and Child-minders within this action research group. 

If you are interested in finding out more about this, then please get in touch with Heather Wood heather.wood@birmingham.gov.uk or Karen Jones karen.a.jones@birmingham.gov.uk.

Post-16 OAG 

A post 16 working group have just completed the draft OAG for the sector (including school 6th forms); there has been strong engagement from post 16 settings in developing this, with a keen interest to testing this next term. A Post 16 sector launch event is planned for the Autumn term and we will be seeking expressions of interest around involvement in action research projects during this term and into Spring 26; if you’re interested in finding out more then please get in touch with Heather Wood or Natalie Cooper natalie.d.cooper@birmingham.gov.uk  

Schools Age OAG

In May 2025 we shared a number of ‘Stories of Implementation’ from schools who have been using the OAG as part of an action research project over the last twelve months. These ‘Stories’ showcased what they did, how they did it and celebrates the impact this has had on their provision and practice – schools who have looked at these stories so far have told us how useful they have been in planning their own OAG implementation.

Download stories of implementation from schools

Developing the Principles of inclusive practice within Section One of the OAG 

Work has been taking place around refining and further developing the 10 principles of good inclusive practice, with two of these areas engaging with action research projects over the last two terms i.e. 

• Transition: 11 schools and settings have engaged in their own Phase transition action research projects, using the guidance developed from work across the sector during the Autumn term 24. We hope to be sharing their ‘Stories’ of how this worked next term and the impact of these will further inform the updated guidance for this Principle. 
• Co-Produced and Family Centred:  7 schools engaged in action research projects to improve their ways of working with parent carers – please see the section on OAG stories of implementation with parent carers - Work from this will also shape the revised guidance for this principle. 
• Guides for Parent carers: a Parent Reference Group (PRG) has been established to inform how parent carers can access the OAG and to shape a parent carers version of this. Work has begun on developing one-page guides for each of the 10 principles in the first instance, and we are looking for groups of parent carers in schools to look at these and share their views. If you have an active parent carers group who would be interested, then please get in touch with David Hill at david.w.hill@birmingham.gov.uk  

Further work is planned for the Autumn term to develop and refine the 8 other principles, as part of revising the whole OAG – for further information or to get involved with this, please contact Heather Wood.

Forward plans during the academic year 25/26: 

• Task & Finish groups to revise and update the different parts of Section Two i.e. Autism; Cognition & learning; Speech, Language & Communication; Social, Emotional & Mental Health; Physical and sensory needs. 
• Learning & Development planning around using the OAG across the whole sector. 
• Parent version for Section Two 
• OAG Parent Champions programme developed and tested 
• Online and interactive version of the OAG that spans 0 – 25 yrs. 

DBV - the last 12 months and coming soon...

DBV Workstream one (led by Heather Wood, Head of SEND Advisory) 

This workstream has been looking at developing a shared understanding of what needs can and should be met across mainstream resource base and special schools. The four main areas of activity have included: 

• further development and embedding of the OAG (see above),  
• Improving the Transition offer - see OAG section above 
• SEND advisory Service redesign, bringing in the Tiered approach to include dedicated time for strategic input as well as a pupil focus, 
• Developing guidance around what good provision looks like. 

As part of developing guidance around what good provision looks like, there have been two Focus Groups (made up of colleagues from Education services, schools/settings, Social Care, and Health), looking at ‘autism-friendly schools / settings’ and ‘Curriculum Pathways’. Through work facilitated by the Derby Research School, we have developed a three-year action plan for both areas, and we are looking forward to launching these during the Autumn term 25. 

DBV Workstream Two (led by Dr Pauline Bromfield, Head of EPS) 

This workstream has been looking at high needs funding arrangements including a review of SSPPs. A survey was carried out in Spring 25 to gather feedback on how these were being used by schools, which highlighted specific strengths, areas for development and possible alternative options that resonated with other SENCOs across the city.  This feedback has been analysed and is being fed back into the task and finish groups for this area. The workstream also undertook a review of a number SSPP case studies with a multi-agency group, including SENCOs, which has supported the triangulation of the findings from the survey. 

A High-Needs spend questionnaire was completed by HTs/SEND leads in the Spring term 25, with returns received from mainstream schools, resource bases and special schools.  An analysis of these have been used to feed into the options development phase of the workstream; through task and finish groups with headteachers a number of different options of future funding frameworks have been considered – this includes for those pupils with EHC Plans as well as pre-statutory funding for pupils on SEN Support.

Speech and Language Therapy Updates

Working Together Agreement  

A Working Together Agreement has been coproduced by NHS SaLT and education colleagues, to outline expectations from SaLT and school to facilitate collaborative working.

Speech and Language Therapists will introduce the agreement to SENCOs during initial planning meetings in the autumn term.  

SaLT Survey Feedback  

A survey was sent to all schools in May 2025 to gather feedback about how the Balanced System is working to support children’s speech, language and communication. 129 schools completed the survey.  88% reported that they had an allocated Link SaLT for the academic year 2024-2025 and 72% reported that the NHS SaLT Service has supported good outcomes. Key themes included positive feedback and suggestions for improving the way in which SaLT are working within the system, for example:  

• It’s been positive to have access to on-site SaLT support 
• The school as a whole is more communication friendly 
• Teachers are supporting SLCN more in class 
• Parents feel listened to  
• Children are accessing assessment and support tailored to their needs earlier 
• More regular SaLT visits are needed  
• More capacity from SaLT is needed  
• Reports need to be received in a more timely way from SaLT  
• It’s difficult when there is a gap in Link SaLT support e.g. if a Link SaLT is not in work  

SaLT Allocations for New Academic Year  

SaLT School Age Coordinators (SACOs) are currently working on allocation of Link SaLT time for the next academic year. SACOs will e-mail SENCOs with details of their Link SaLT and allocated time at the start of the autumn term.  

Secondary Elklan Course  

SaLT are excited to announce that there will be an accredited course on offer for school staff working with young people aged 11-16 years from September 2025 to December 2025.  

The course provides information and strategies to develop the communication skills of all young people but especially those with speech, language and communication needs via blended e-learning. Please contact Claire Davies (SLT) for more details, claire.davies85@nhs.net

Download the Elklan course flyer

OT Fun with Food

Join us for our FREE Fun with Food Group. 

Fun with Food is a NEW group that has been running in early years nursery settings in Birmingham. This group has now been extended to reception children in mainstream schools. The group has an Occupational Therapy and Speech and Language Therapy focus supporting children with food play. 

An early year’s staff member will be supported to run a Fun with Food group in their setting/school, to support children to engage in food play through a multi-sensory approach. 

Weeks	Topic
1	Introduction to 'Fun with Good' group and expectations/commitments (virual for 1 hour)
2-4	The SEND team suppor with carrying out a 'Fun with Food' group in person, in the early year's evironment
5	The SEND team support with carrying out a 'Fun with Food’ group in person, in the early year’s environment, Parents are encouraged to attend this session

Please view our poster for further information.  

Email us on bchc.sendtherapy@nhs.net to show your interest and join our waiting list. 

The group is open to 1 or 2 staff members per early years setting/school, preferably the staff member/s who will be running the sessions, the SENCO can attend as the second staff member.  

We look forward to supporting you with running your groups in your settings/ reception classes. 

OT Host a Sensory Circuit`

Would you like to host a training session on Sensory Circuits? 

The training package is FREE. 

We have two options available for you: 

• Host a circuit training for your school staff members or 
• Host for parents/carers of children in your school and local area to attend 

This training is designed to learn the following: 

• What is a sensory circuit? 
• Who would benefit from using a sensory circuit? 
• How can I create a sensory circuit for my school? 
• How can I create a sensory circuit for my child?  

If you are interested, please email us for booking and or more information: bchc.sendtherapy@nhs.net. 

Please view our poster for more informaton.

OT Newsletter

Our SEND Occupational Therapists and Senior Therapy Assistants deliver FREE universal and targeted support to private, independent, voluntary (PVI) settings, local authority (LA) nursery schools and mainstream schools in Birmingham.

We have a variety of training available; we cover topics around feeding, sensory, activities of daily living and motor skills. We provide family webinars, online training and face to face training for mainstream settings.

If you would like to attend our FREE webinars, please scan the QR code (you can also find this in our newsletters).

 

If you would like to book any SENCo advice meetings or sign up to any of our face-to-face training (FunMoves, Sensory Circuits, Fun with Food, Ready Steady Reception, OT Champs) please email us at bchc.sendtherapy@nhs.net

Please view our SEND OT Newsletters below: 

• Early Years Newsletter
• Primary Newsletter
• Secondary Newsletter

The importance of eye care health for cyp with cognition and learning needs

As SENCO’s working with CYP across Birmingham you will all work with pupils with cognition and learning needs. We would like to bring to your attention the high prevalence of vision difficulties in children and young people with learning difficulties and the need for all of us to be vigilant and encourage families to ensure the children and young people have their eyes tested regularly. 

This short film is produced by the National Charity SeeAbility.  

SeeAbility releases new film to improve eye care for people with learning disabilities | SeeAbility 

Thank you for taking the time to watch the video. If you have any concerns or queries about support for a pupil in your school who has had their vision checked by an Optician/Ophthalmologist please contact the Vision Support Team on the following email address VSTreferrals@birmingham.gov.uk . 

Breathe Collective Choir - Looking for new members

‘Breathe Collective’ is an inclusive choir for individuals of any age who are disabled, neurodivergent and for those with additional needs and their carer's. This is an important part of our outreach offering space for all-inclusiveness and a respite for carers.

The choir launched on Wednesday 6th November 2024 and will rehearse on the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of each month from 2.30-3.30pm at Bournville Parish Church.

For more information, please contact: godwin_laura@hotmail.com  or phone 07817617923

Birmingham Adults Community

Find out what’s going on across Birmingham in the Adults Community between 7th July and 1st August 2025. Click here to see the timetable of events.

If you would like to book on to any of these events, or for more information, please call 0121 427 6404.

Training events coming up

Emotionally Based School Non-Attendance Training (EBSNA)

This training will provide participants with an understanding of Emotionally Based School Non- Attendance (EBSNA) for both primary and secondary settings, highlighting the importance of early intervention and creating a reflective space to explore who is at risk, what the early warning signs are and what can be done to support children/young people and their families when barriers to attendance arise. The training will provide staff with tools and ideas that they can take back to their settings to support children/young people at risk of non-attendance. 

View the EBSNA flyer to find out more.

Supporting children with ADHD primary schools

This two-hour, in-person training will be delivered by an Educational Psychologist and will explore what ADHD is and how the traits associated with the diagnosis impact children in primary school. It aims to dispel common myths by exploring how the condition is presented in popular media and developing staff understanding through evidence-based information about the condition.  

This training will provide staff with practical, evidence-based, inclusive strategies which they can use in their classrooms when supporting children who have ADHD. The training will include discussion time and support so that staff feel able to make practical plans for implementation of the strategies presented within their own practice. 

More information is availble in the 'Supporting children with ADHD' flyer

An introduction to using cognitive behavioural approaches in schools 

This engaging training offers a practical introduction to cognitive behavioural approaches for staff working with children and young people. Learn how to support pupils in recognising the links between their thoughts, feelings, and behaviours—empowering them to manage: 

• Low mood 
• Anxiety and worry 
• Social difficulties 
• Low self-esteem 
• Stress and anger 
• School avoidance 

Participants will gain insight into the theory behind cognitive behavioural approaches and take away actionable strategies to help pupils build resilience and cope better in school. Find out more.

Supporting pupils using the SCERTS Framework  

SCERTS (Social Communication, Emotional Regulation, Transactional Supports) is a strength based, multiagency approach, building on what is already working and bringing together parents/carers and professionals who support the child. It’s an evidence-based approach that can be used in all settings, with children who are nonverbal, to those with lots of language who may be struggling with the social rules of interaction. A child doesn’t need an Autism diagnosis to use this framework. SCERTS utilises an assessment process that allows the most important outcomes for the child to be identified and then follows a plan/do review cycle. SCERTS provides progress data, so is helpful for pupils who may already have a EHCP or are working towards one of these and so require a graduated approach. 

SCERTS Flyer