SEND team roles and responsibilities

15 December 2020

Following a request from the Cheshire East Parent Carer Forum and due to a number of new starters within the Cheshire East Council SEND team we recently published a copy of our current structure with job titles, names and contact details.

In addition to this we are now publishing our SEND team roles and responsibilities to show how the team works together to decide the best outcomes for our children and young people.

Business Support Officers ( BSO's ) do the most important behind the scenes work. Moving tasks along on our tracking system, completing requests for information from services, sending communications.

Families will hear from the BSO's when they receive letters, draft and final plans and some updates via email.

When families contact the team inbox, the BSO's will respond to enquiries or make sure they get to the right person who can respond fully.

EHC Plan Writers will complete the initial 20-week process for new assessments for most cases. This will include keeping in touch with families, leading working together meetings, and collating advice to write EHC Plans.

The plan writers will also process some annual reviews and can amend EHC Plans following reviews where changes are needed. This would include at times of heightened demand for annual reviews, such as secondary school transfers.

SEND keyworkers will process any change of placement requests which are highlighted through the initial needs assessment. They will support with some complex casework for new assessments.

SEND keyworkers process and action a majority of the annual reviews. They will check paperwork, update plans, prepare information and send requests for changes to funding or placement to panel.

SEND keyworkers may link with families before, during and after annual review meetings (where changes are being requested) to ensure they have all the required information. They are not able to attend all review meetings but will do their best to attend where needed.

It may be appropriate for colleagues from other Cheshire East Council services to attend or hold reviews, such as medical needs team or elective home education team instead of the SEND team. Information from these reviews will be processed by the SEND Keyworkers.

BSO's , plan writers and SEND keyworkers work alongside each other within their locality.

They all maintain up to date records for each child or young person so there can be a clear exchange of information when going from new assessment to the annual review process.