Lancashire Joint SEND Commissioning Arrangements 2024/2026

Lancashire County Council and Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Integrated Care Board

Improving the lives of children and young people with SEND, and their families

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Introduction

This document sets out the process for joint commissioning between agencies to meet the needs of 0–25-year-olds with Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities who are resident within the Lancashire County Council area.

It outlines the process for both those with an Education, Health and Care Plan and those with identified needs who do not require this level of provision. The Lancashire vision and priorities for children and young people aged 0-25 with Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities are set out within the Lancashire SEND Plan 2021-2025.

In developing these joint commissioning arrangements, we have been guided by:

The requirements placed on education, health and social care services for children with SEND as set out within the Children and Families Act 2014. Services for children with SEND should be integrated where this would promote wellbeing and improve the quality of provision for disabled young people and those with SEND.
The requirement on local authorities and Integrated Care Boards to make joint commissioning arrangements for education, health and care provision for children and young people with SEND.
The introduction of the Care Act 2014 which requires local authorities to ensure co-operation between children’s and adults’ services to promote the integration of care and support with health services and ensure smooth transitions.
The duties placed on local authorities and partners commissioning bodies for developing joint commissioning arrangements within the Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice: 0 to 25 years.

These arrangements will lead to improved access to appropriate services, greater choice and better outcomes for individuals.

For organisations, the arrangements will see commissioning for joint objectives, efficiency and streamlining of decision-making processes and better use of collective resources.

This document provides the foundation for partners to develop integrated commissioning arrangements for children with SEND. It is intended to be a “live” document to be continually reviewed and updated in order to take account of feedback from families and other key partners.

An action plan (Appendix 1) has been developed to support implementation. The action plan will be monitored through the Lancashire SEND Partnership Board.

Priorities

We will achieve our priorities through:

Improving the child or young person's SEND journey
Preparation for the adulthood that the child or young person & their family wants
Accessible services delivering what is needed, when it is needed
Listening and talking to each other
Taking ownership of any mistakes and putting them right at pace

Priorities: Lancashire SEND Plan, 2021-25

What do we know about SEND in Lancashire?

15.5% of pupils in Lancashire have an identified special educational need
A higher proportion of white children are identified as having a special educational need
Children eligible for Free School Meals make up 38% of the SEN population in Lancashire
More boys than girls have an identified special educational need
Over 58% of children in need and 49% of children in care have an identified special educational need
Early learning goals for children with an identified special educational need are lower than comparator groups
Speech, Language and Communication Needs are the most prevalent need in primary schools, and are increasing
Children with an identified special educational need are more likely to be absent from school, or excluded from school, than their peers
Social, emotional and mental health needs have risen substantially in secondary schools
More children in Lancashire with an identified special educational need go on to education, employment and training than in comparator groups
There has been a significant rise in the % of pupils whose primary need is linked to Autistic Spectrum Condition in primary schools, but the % has stayed relatively static in secondary schools

What does our needs analysis recommend as areas of focus?

The 2024 SEN Needs assessment identified 8 key recommendations for the Lancashire system, which have informed our priorities for joint commissioning.

The recommendations were that the Local Area should:

respond to the rising need for specialist services and alternative provision, including provision of appropriate school places.
strengthen support to meet the needs of the rising proportion of children, particularly at primary school age, with a primary need linked to Autistic Spectrum Condition.
continue to develop the Balanced System approach to identify and meet Speech, Language & Communication needs, recognising the significant rise in primary need in primary schools.
strengthen its inclusive offer, including a focus on inclusive schools and settings to reduce exclusions.
strengthen support to meet the increasing social, emotional and mental health needs of children and young people, particularly in secondary schools.
continue to strengthen support in the Early Years, helping to enable more children and young people with additional needs to have a good level of development.
develop a greater understanding of the reasons for the increase in primary need arising from Autistic Spectrum Condition, particulary in primary schools, and the reason for the levelling off in secondary schools.
develop a better understanding of disproportionality within the Lancashire SEND system, ensuring that the benefits of early identification and support are available to all children and young people where needed.

The Lancashire SEND Vision

"Improving the lives of children and young people with SEND, and their families"

Our approach to commissioning the SEND Vision

Personalised

Building on the strengths of the family and their community to find solutions through a person and family centred planning approach.

Integrated

Working to keep children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities in education and care local to their home by providing coherent and joined up arrangements across services and the community.

Local

Based and developed within local communities by families, children and young people with additional needs.

Our purpose and success measures will be judged by children, young people and their families

In Lancashire, we will see...

more young people in employment, education and training
more children and young people using public places and spaces
more children and young people having fun with friends and family

Children and young people in Lancashire will say...

they have lots of different things to do that they enjoy
they are happy to go to school/college and that they’re learning lots
their thoughts and ideas really matter and help to make a difference

Children and young people in Lancashire will feel...

happy, healthy and safe
they get the right help and support, when and where they need it
positive about their futures and reaching their goals

Our outcomes will drive the commissioning of support services

Identifying and responding to needs in a timely and effective manner.
Meeting needs and responding to increased demand for specialist and alternative provision.
Improving the experiences of children and young people so that their outcomes are consistently good.
Strengthening confidence with children and young people, their families and our partners.

Why is it important to Joint Commission

There are several reasons for putting in place arrangements for joint commissioning:

Children and Young People

Improving outcomes for children and young people
Increasing choice through use of personal budgets and joined-up support
Telling their story once
Move successfully into adult life
Move successfully into adult life
Greater consistency in services and in the eligibility to access the services

The wider system

Joint assessment and early planning to make the best uses of resources and interventions
Working towards the same objectives and outcomes
Make better use of data to help us improve the services and support we offer
Ensure the voice of children, young people and their families shapes all we do
Create stronger links between services to further improve how we work together
Ensure children and young people are well prepared for adulthood increasing awareness of the challenges facing children and young people and how best to help them overcome them
More efficient use of scarce resources

Lancashire's joint commissioning approach

Joint commissioning is the process by which partners across education, health and care agree at a strategic level what is needed in an area and how they will work together to commission and deliver it. Critical to doing this well is engaging with children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities and their families.

Joint commissioning is a continuous improvement cycle, which will enable partners to integrate the local support, reduce unnecessary duplication and improve the outcomes and user experience of accessing support.

The partners involved in commissioning services for children, young people and families with special educational needs and disabilities include:

Lancashire County Council – this is known as the local authority and refers to all early years, social care and education provision provided as well as universal health services commissioned such as health visitors and school nurses
Educational establishments including schools, academies, colleges and free schools – this may include any speech and language services, pastoral care and counselling services to support pupils provided by the setting
NHS Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care Board are the commissioners of health provision such as acute hospital care, GPs, dentists, pharmacies, community services including speech and language therapy, occupational therapy and physiotherapy and special health services for example, for children that require a ventilator for support at home.
NHS England are the commissioner for specialist provision such neonatal care and specialist children’s hospitals.

For the purpose of this strategy, these arrangements apply to all children and young people across Lancashire from birth to 25 who have SEND.

There are several different groups of children and young people with SEND that may require services and support to meet their identified needs, which include:

Some children/young people who are receiving SEND support in schools
Those children/young people up to the age of 25 with an education, health and care plan
Young people aged 18 years and older who are eligible for an EHCP
Children in care and care leavers who have SEND
Children on the continuum of need with SEND
Children who are eligible for continuing care
Young Carers with SEND
Children who require support in school to meet their medical needs

Three levels of Joint Commissioning

Lancashire's approach to joint commissioning is on three levels:

Individual
Operational
Strategic

Objectives at each Approach:

We will ensure our combined resources are used to best effect to meet the needs of the population, aligning and pooling resources to be most effective.
We will co-produce strategic plans whether that be on a Lancashire, or on a Lancashire and South Cumbria footprint, and put in place performance management and governance arrangements.
and Health and Wellbeing Strategy.
Key decisions will be by the Lancashire SEND Partnership Board, made in consultation with parents, children and young people.
Partners will work together to monitor outcomes in education, health and care to understand the impact of provision on needs of the population
The changing needs of the population of children and young people with special education needs and disabilities will also be reviewed closely to establish whether services put in place are effective

We will review and reform specific services within our Local Offer to address gaps in provision and improve outcomes.
There will be opportunities around personalisation to look at the most cost effective and appropriate services.
It will follow either the individual or strategic commissioning approach as relevant.

Personalised support for children and young people with SEND whose needs are normally identified through an EHC Plan, utilising Personal Budgets and direct payments where appropriate.
Co-production of plans between families/children and young people and the brokers of the finance (e.g. schools/colleges/settings/ local authority/ health).
Schools, other educational providers and colleges will provide services for pupils/ students with SEN as part of their own offer.
Agreement by a multi-agency panel will occur prior to the sign off of EHCPs, where additional funding is required.
A joint review process will take place to see if the support in place is enabling the child or young person to achieve their desired outcomes and identify necessary changes to the EHCP.

Planning joint commissioning

Successful joint commissioning will enable the local authority and the ICB to make best use of all the resources available to improve outcomes for children and young people in the most efficient, effective, equitable and sustainable way.

The joint commissioning process outlined in this document will support commissioners to plan and commission based on a clear assessment of local need. The Lancashire and South Cumbria Commissioner's Network will provide a forum to identify and plan to meet needs across the ICB foorptint.

Strategic commissioning decisions will be identified by the Lancashire SEND Executive and recommended to the SEND Partnership Board and the ICB Children and Young People’s Board, in advance of approval by individual organisations.

Task groups will be established as necessary, aligned to the priorities set out within the SEND Plan, to:

Resolve any day-to-day issues in joint commissioning
Develop joined up processes
Review levels of need and demand to identify potential opportunities for commissioning jointly
Monitor outcome of existing commissions to see what should be changed
Ensure feedback from children, young people, parents and carers are part of the commissioning process
Identify and agree changes required to the joint commissioning arrangements
Propose funding streams where necessary

Governance Structure

Lancashire Health and Wellbeing Board

SEND Partnership Board Key partners with oversight and responsibility or ensuring Statutory obligations are met and the SEND Plan is delivered

SEND Executive Group (Heads of Services/Strategic Managers) Decision makers with strategic oversight, check, challenge and scrutiny of Delivery

SEND Programme Management Team

SEND Operational Group Operational Leads - making sure actions are delivered on

Partner and Local Area Groups - Lancashire Parent Carer Forum/POWAR/VCFS

Delivery Themes - Improving Outcomes, Communications, Improving the SEND Journey, preparation for Sdulthood, Accessible Services

ICB Groups - Mental Health Delivery Group/Autlism Oversight Group

Lancashire Children's Safeguarding Assurance Partnership

Lancashire and South Cumbria ICB Children and Young People's Health Board

Children, Young People and Families Partnership

The Local Offer

Access to information is essential to enabling children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities and their families to have a choice and make informed decisions.

As part of the joint commissioning cycle, partners have worked together with children, young people, parents and carers to develop the Local Offer, mapping provision to meet the needs of children and young people with SEND in Lancashire.

The local offer details the services that are available locally, aims to support personalisation and empower people to find their own solutions and plan for the future and transition, by providing information that is accessible, high quality and effective.

The Local Offer is regularly reviewed and developed in consultation with children, young people, parents and carers. Representatives from the Parent Carer Forum and the Young People's Participation Group, POWAR, support the development and progress of the SEND local offer.

Measuring performance

We will be able to evaluate the impact of our arrangements and the quality of our offer through three key measures:

Outcome measures for children and young people
Feedback from children, young people and their families
Ofsted and CQC inspection feedback of the local area partnership

We will know we have made a difference when:

There is increased sufficiency within maintained, academies and free schools to better meet the needs of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities and a reduced reliance on independent non maintained provision
Family Hub Networks are making a positive difference to more children and families throughout Lancashire
Waiting times for education, health and care are reduced
Children and families feel supported whilst waiting for their needs to be assessed
More young people are supported to remain in a school
Services provide effective support for transition
Children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities and parent carers are integral to co-production of services.

The arrangements will be reviewed annually in January of each year. This will be carried out by a task group comprising commissioners and managers from the local authority and ICB and reported up through the Lancashire SEND Executive, Lancashire SEND Partnership Board and ICB Children and Young People’s Board. Account of feedback from parents, carers, children and young people and feedback from the Local Offer will form part of this process.

Progress against the attached action plan will be reported up to the SEND Partnership Board on a quarterly basis.