Information, Advice & Support Service for Windsor & Maidenhead

Memorandum of Understanding

Between

Adviza

and

Information, Advice & Support Service for Windsor & Maidenhead,

Parent Carer Council for Windsor & Maidenhead

Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead

Dated:3rd September 2014

Valid until: 31st March 2016

Background

Independent Support is a national programme funded by the Department of Education via the Council for Disabled Children (CDC), as part of the measures associated with the recent Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) Reforms and the implementation of the Children & Families Act 2014.

The Government has specified that Independent Supporters should be provided by private, voluntary and community sector organisations which are independent of the local authority but that they should work with and complement pre-existing local services including the local authority SEN arrangements and Parent Partnership Services in their key role in providing impartial IAS. To this end CDC has commissioned Adviza to provide Independent Support across Buckinghamshire, Berkshire and Oxfordshire in collaboration withlocal authorities, Parent Partnership Services, Parent Carer Forums and other supportive local delivery partners.

Purpose and Scope

This Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) sets out the agreement and understanding between Adviza andInformation, Advice & Support Service (IASS) for Windsor & Maidenhead, Parent Carer Council for Windsor & Maidenhead and the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in the delivery of Independent Support across RBWM from 1st September 2014 until 31st March 2016. It is not intended to and does not create any contractual right between these parties.

The Independent Support Service is designed to provide a specific function and has the primary purpose of providing time limited support to parents and/or young people during the EHC assessment and planning process, whether new entrants to the system or those undergoing the conversion of a statement to an EHC plan or the conversion of a Learning Difficulty Assessment to an EHC plan.

All parties agree that the service should be delivered in accordance with the requirements set out in clause 2.8 of the SEND Code of Practice: 0 – 25 and specifically that support will:

• Be impartial and provided at arm’s length from the local authority and Clinical Commissioning Groups
• Be free, accurate, confidential and in formats which are accessible and responsive to needs of users
• Help to promote independence and self-advocacy for children, young people and parents
• Ensure views and experiences of children, young people and parents inform policy and practice

Adviza’s Independent Support Service will be delivered by a mixture of paid and volunteer Independent Supporters (IS), managed and supported by Independent Support Coordinators (ISC) who will match cases to Independent Supporters.Across Berkshire there will initially be1 full-time paid IS and 2 full-time paid ISC (1 covering the east of the county – Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead, Slough and Bracknell and 1 covering the west of the county – Wokingham, Reading and West Berkshire). As the service develops it is anticipated that an increasing proportion of the cases will be handled by volunteer Independent Supporters.

RBWM Referral Protocol for Independent Support

Definitions:

• Parent/carer: has parental responsibility for child until end of school year in which child turns 16
• Young person: is over statutory school age (end of school year in which turns 16) but under 25 years old.
• Child: has not yet reached end of school year in which turns 16.

Eligibility:

Requests for Independent Support will be considered from parents and young people where the child/young person is undergoing either:

• an EHC needs assessment; or
• a transfer review for existing Statement of Special Educational Needs or Learning Disability Assessment to convert into an Education, Health and Care Plan.

Training

Before taking on the role of Independent Supporter, all IS staff (whether from Adviza or IASS for Windsor & Maidenhead) will be required to complete and pass the initial 4 days compulsory IS training provided by CDC. All Adviza staff will also be required to complete Adviza mandatory trainingas follows: E-Learning Academy Modules in Data Protection, Equality & Diversity, Health & Safety, Safeguarding and face to face training in Personal Safety and Risk Assessment. This training will also be made available to IASS for Windsor & Maidenheadvolunteers and we would look for a reciprocal arrangement for Adviza staff to attend any RBWM training.All staff will receive training updates as required and in addition all Adviza staff will receive regular support and supervision from the IS Co-ordinators.All staff have enhanced DBS checks.

Complaints Procedures

Any complaints about the provision of Independent Support in RBWM should be referred to the organisation providing the service. These will then be dealt with by the most appropriate senior manager in accordance with the policy of the organisation involved.

Review

This Memorandum of Understanding will be reviewed every 3 months.

Contact Details

Adviza

Tel. 0845 408 5060/0118 402 7177

Information, Advice & Support Service for Windsor & M aidenhead

l. 01628 683182

Parent Carer Council for Windsor & Maidenhead Tel: 07729 768267

Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead Tel: 01628 685878