Participation of children and young people with SEND

Youth involvement

It is important that children and young people with SEND have the chance to contribute and have their say about their own lives, such as being part of the review of their education, health and care plan, and their adult care and support plan.

They should also have a chance to have their say in how council services are developed. We have been working to make sure that youth involvement is embedded across our services, and that we always include the voices of children and young people where possible.

We want to consult with children and young people in groups that already exist. These spaces provide the ideal setting to carry out consultation and engagement activities, where children and young people are comfortable. They are led by adults that they know and trust, and who understand the most effective communication methods to enable them to contribute their views.

Our ‘All About Us’ network of groups exist in mainstream schools, special schools and youth groups across the borough. So far, they have been established in the following settings:

• Waverley School
• West Lea School
• Bell Lane SEND Youth Club
• Cheviots Children’s Disability Service

We are keen to increase the number of All About Us groups so that more children and young people can have their say. If you're interested in setting up a group, please email sarah.mclean@enfield.gov.uk.

Projects and workplan

Each term, 'All About Us' groups are sent an update that tells them about upcoming projects, and the outcomes of projects they have given their views on:

• September 2022 update (PDF, 200.06 KB)
• Spring term 2023 update (PDF, 230.84 KB)
• Autumn 2023 - update (PDF, 124.06 KB)

The most significant project was the CYP Play and Leisure Survey (PDF, 200.7 KB). This survey was taken to find out about the activities that children and young people already do, and what activities they would like to do in the future. 82 children and young people were able to give their views. As a result of the survey, the following activities have been developed:

• The activity that young people most wanted to do was swimming and we were able to work with Fusion Leisure to develop the weekly Disability Family Friendly Swim at Edmonton Leisure Centre
• Our Sports Development Team and Fusion Leisure submitted a successful bid to London Sport for £10K of funding to develop free swimming lessons (PDF, 235.76 KB) for children and young people with SEND
• A SEND youth club was set up

Other areas 'All About Us' have worked with us on, are:

• choosing the logo
• making a video - to be launched spring 2023
• commenting and agreeing the easy read information about Preparing for Adulthood (PDF, 3156.48 KB)