Local area SEND Inspection

Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) revisited Northumberland between 19 and 21 May 2021.

Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) revisited Northumberland between 19 and 21 May 2021 to address whether SEND services in the county had made sufficient progress in the three areas of significant weakness outlined in the previous SEND inspection report published on 29 November 2018.

Inspectors spoke with parents and carers of children and young people with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and met with local authority and National Health Service (NHS) officers. They spoke with frontline practitioners from education, health and care services in the area and reviewed a range of performance data and information, including the area’s SEND strategy, self-evaluation, joint commissioning strategy and outcomes framework.

During the visit inspectors found that the Northumberland local area services have made sufficient progress in addressing the three areas of significant weakness identified at the initial inspection. You can read their findings from the inspection here.

We want to take this opportunity to say thank you to the children, young people and their families, schools, settings and partners who have worked with us to support the delivery of these improvements. While noting that significant improvement has been made, it is also important to also acknowledge there is more work to be done.

As a local area we will continue to work hard to further improve support for children, young people with SEND and their families. If you would like to be kept informed about developments across Northumberland about SEND, please sign up to our newsletter here.