​Key findings:

  • Halton Local Area Partnership has taken ‘effective action’ to address four of the five areas for priority action identified during their initial inspection. The Local Area Partnership is a group of local organisations who oversee education, health and care in Halton and are responsible for setting strategy and overseeing its delivery to ensure children and young people with SEND are Safe, Happy, Healthy and Succeeding as per the Halton Children and Young People’s Plan.
  • Parents and carers in Halton now have a stronger voice and families feel more confident in sharing their experiences
  • Schools are being better supported with the ‘team around the school’ and specialist tools that help with support for children with SEND
  • Timeliness and quality of Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) significantly improved and now exceeds national benchmarks for new plans
  • The Local Area Partnership has made significant investment in staff, systems, tools and training to improve services and is committed to reducing waiting times across autism, paediatrics and speech and language therapy pathways

A joint Ofsted/CQC inspection has concluded that the Halton Local Area Partnership are making progress in improving services for children and young people with SEND across education, health and social care services. The full report is published on the Ofsted website.

In their report following a monitoring visit during January, Inspectors from Ofsted and CQC, said that parents and carers in Halton now have a stronger voice, with clear routes to raise their concerns, and leaders are improving their ability to listen and respond – which is helping families feel more confident in sharing their experiences. Parents are also playing a greater role in shaping the services they use.

While waiting for support, families now have access to more information and guidance to help them navigate services, with the Halton Local Offer making it easier for parents and carers to find the information and support they need.

Strong progress has also been made in the way the local area partnership supports schools, noting that the ‘team around the school’ model is now firmly in place. They reported that improved multidisciplinary working and better information sharing are reducing duplication for families and helping professionals identify needs earlier and coordinate support more effectively. Inspectors also found that schools and settings are increasingly using a wider range of tools, enabling staff to adapt their practice and plan support with greater confidence.

Inspectors noted purposeful efforts to improve both the timeliness and quality of Education, Health and Care (EHC) plans. Completion times for new plans now exceed national benchmarks, and schools report that recent plans are issued more promptly and more accurately reflect children’s needs. As a result, confidence in the EHC system has strengthened.

Inspectors saw a clear strategic commitment to ensuring that mental health support becomes a consistent offer for every child and young person. The Positive Behaviour Support Service, Mental Health in Schools Team, and implementation of programmes supporting mental health and behaviour in schools across Halton schools, are all delivering measurable positive impact, including substantial reductions in permanent exclusions.

Further investment in the Mental Health in Schools Team will see provision extended to all Halton schools. This planned expansion reflects a clear strategic commitment to ensuring that mental health support becomes a consistent offer for every child and young person

Inspectors concluded that the Local Area Partnership had taken ‘effective action’ to address four of the areas for priority action identified during their initial inspection.

However, their findings concluded that waiting times across autism, community paediatrics and speech and language therapy pathways remain extremely long which impacts the children, young people and families seeking support – addressing waiting times is a top priority for the partnership.

The Local Area Partnership accepts that much more needs to be done to help children and young people gain early access to specialist assessments and services.

Inspectors did find some progress in this priority action area with the partnership working closely with schools and early years settings and providing a range of tools to support staff to more quickly recognise and refer children who may need additional support and services.

The pathway has undergone recent change, with clinical risk assessments completed for all children on the waiting list and clearer roles across community paediatrics, neurodevelopmental nursing and community networks supporting families living with neurodevelopmental conditions. These developments are contributing to clearer post‑diagnostic support and improved liaison between services.

Inspectors also saw early signs of improvement in speech, language and communication support.

Councillor Tom McInerney, Executive Member for Children’s Education and Social Care reflecting on the findings of the Ofsted Inspectors said, “Improving SEND services is a large and complex challenge and it has taken us time to start turning things around – but we are making positive changes and Inspectors can see the clear strategic and partnership foundations are in place to improve local services for children and families navigating the system.

“However, we know that some children and families still have to wait an unacceptably long time for assessment or services.

“Reducing waiting times is a top priority for us and whilst we are making progress, we will be going further and faster to make improvements in waiting times and ensure that children and families get the proper support whilst going through assessment and referral pathways. 

“I would like to take this opportunity to recognise and thank our Parent Carer Forum and all parents and carers who are navigating a complex system to get care for their children. While we are pleased to see the positive progress recognised, we know that there is still much to do to ensure every child and family in Halton is given the timely support they deserve.”

Anthony Leo, NHS Cheshire and Merseyside’s Place Director for Halton, said: 

“The progress in the report is a result of the hard work of so many professionals across Halton especially those teams who see children, young people and families directly, doing their very best every day to offer services and support. Delivering good services across a complex SEND system is challenging but the Local Area Partnership is now in a stronger position and is making the improvements that are necessary.

“While we accept that more work is required to improve assessment and waiting times, improvements in this area are being seen with investment in diagnostic tools, earlier referrals and more effective multi-disciplinary and multi-agency working. But we will keep our focus on this area until better services and outcomes are available for every child and family in Halton.

“Everyone who is a member of the Local Area Partnership is absolutely committed to ensuring the continued progress of the priority action plan as quickly as possible so that Halton’s children and young people have access to the high-quality services and support they need and deserve.”