My Support Plan information and guidance

Introduction

The My Support Plan (MSP) has been in place in Kirklees since the introduction of the SEND reforms in September 2014. A working group of SENCO champions, early years practitioners and representatives from Health and Social Care have been meeting during the autumn term (2015) to develop the My Support Plan template in order to: a) improve its ‘usability’ as an effective planning tool in response to feedback from schools and settings, and b) to reflect developing thinking, both locally and nationally, as the implementation of the SEND reforms progress.

This information and guidance is primarily to support schools and settings but may also be useful to other practitioners who are involved in developing My Support Plan(s) for children and young people with special educational needs. It should always be read prior to starting a new My Support Plan (MSP) on the new template (MSP – Version 2(V2f)). It explains key elements of the new approach to meeting SEND as detailed in the SEND Code of Practice 2014, which needs to become fundamental to our thinking right from initial identification of special educational needs, and all of which must be considered within a My Support Plan. This guidance should be read in conjunction with other Kirklees guidance listed in point 9.

What are we aiming for – a reminder

‘Our vision for children with special educational needs and disabilities is the same as for all children and young people that they achieve well in their early years, at school and in college, and lead happy and fulfilled lives.

…….the aspirations for children and young people will be raised through an increased focus on life outcomes, including employment and greater independence’.

Foreword to the SEND Code of Practice 2014

1.The Golden Thread

There should be a golden thread directly from the aspirations to the provision and this is achieved by thinking about outcomes as steps on the journey towards the aspirations.

What does the Code say?

1.39 ‘With high aspirations, and the right support, the vast majority of children and young people can go on to achieve successful long-term outcomes in adult life.’

8.10 ‘Children and young people’s aspirations and needs will not only vary according to individual circumstances, but will change over time as they get older and approach adult life.’

8.11 ‘Planning must be centred around the individual and explore the child or young person’s aspirations and abilities, what they want to be able to do when they leave post-16 education or training and the support they need to achieve their ambition.’

SO the system needs to support children, young people and their parents to have high aspirations for the future. We must seek to raise aspirations by not only thinking about what is possible now but thinking creatively about what could be possible in the future.

Aspirations must be challenging

What does the Code say?

Page 15 xiii. ‘A child or young person has special educational needs if they have a learning difficulty or disability which calls for special educational provision to be made for him or her.’

6.27 ‘A detailed assessment of need should ensure that the full range of a child or young person’s needs is identified, not just the primary need. The support provided to an individual should always be based on a full understanding of their particular strengths and needs and seek to address them all using well-evidenced interventions targeted at their areas of difficulty.’

6.28 ‘Special educational needs are linked to the 4 broad areas of need as outlined in the Code of Practice. Cognition and learning, Communication and interaction, Social, emotional and mental health and Sensory and/or physical.’

Sometimes a child or young person has health needs that relate to their SEN or social care needs that relate to their SEN and as such have an impact on their learning progress. This is where a collaborative approach across services is particularly important (please refer to Point 8 of this guidance – Sharing Outcomes across Education, Health and Social Care).

What does the Code say?

9.66 ‘An outcome can be defined as the benefit or difference made to an individual as a result of an

intervention. It should be personal and not expressed from a service perspective; it should be something that those involved have control and influence over, and while it does not always have to be formal or accredited, it should be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time bound (SMART)’

9.21 ‘Planning should start with the individual and local authorities must have regard to the views, wishes and feelings of the child, child’s parent or young person, their aspirations, the outcomes they wish to seek and the support they need to achieve them.‘

9.68 ‘Outcomes will usually set out what needs to be achieved by the end of a phase or stage of education in order to enable the child or young person to progress successfully to the next phase or stage’.

IMPORTANT:

9.67 ‘When agreeing outcomes, it is important to consider both what is important to the child or young person – what they themselves want to be able to achieve – and what is important for them as judged by others with the child or young person’s best interests at heart.’

9.68 ‘From year 9 onwards, the nature of the outcomes will reflect the need to ensure young people are preparing for adulthood.’

SO outcomes describe a positive difference towards the aspirations and life outcomes, are holistic (i.e. are shared between education, health and care where appropriate), person-centred, last for a phase or stage, about things that can be influenced, based on what is important to and important for the child or young person and remain SMART for that individual. This is quite a challenge!

The steps towards outcomes might be shorter term outcomes which would lead towards the achievement of the longer term outcome. They should be expected to be relevant for at least a year and possibly longer.

Steps towards outcomes might be expressed separately for education, health and care. Even though they may cover a shorter time period all of the other principles for outcomes should still apply.

Shorter term targets are set at the level of the school or other institution where the child or young person is placed.

Professionals working with children and young people may agree shorter term targets with the parents/young person that can be reviewed and amended regularly to ensure that the individual remains on track to achieve the outcomes specified in their plan. Regular progress monitoring should always be considered in the light of the longer term outcomes and aspirations that the child or young person wants to achieve.

Shorter term targets should be SMART so that progress can be monitored.

Provision is the intervention/resource that is to be provided in order to work towards attaining the outcome.

What does the Code say?

Page 16 – xvi. ‘Special educational provision is provision that is additional to or different from that made generally for other children of the same age.’

6.50 ‘The support and intervention provided should be selected to meet the outcomes identified for the child/young person, based on reliable evidence of effectiveness, and should be provided by staff with sufficient skills and expertise.’

Page 166 – ‘Provision should be specific and normally quantified, in terms of type, hours and frequency of support and level of expertise.’

Specialist services can work with schools and settings, and involving parents, to agree teaching approaches, appropriate equipment, strategies and interventions to support the child or young person’s progress. They should agree together the outcomes to be achieved through support, including a date by which progress will be reviewed.

Other resources to use and refer to:

1. Guidance - Coordinated planning approach & pathway - My Support Plan
2. My Support Plan – Guidance for every section complete with examples of descriptions of need and outcomes.
3. Person Centred Planning and Writing SMART Outcomes – training resources (from Sheffield City Council)
4. Children & Young People with SEN:Guidance –School Based Support

External resources:

SEND Code of Practice
EHC Outcomes Pyramid
Developing outcomes in EHC Plans
Online training, Council for Disabled Children

Local Offer external links

This video explains SMART outcomes

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Last updated: 21/01/2021