Janet O'Keefe

As an SLT working both for the NHS, Privately and for a major Charity I must say a huge thank you for all the time you have invested writing this book.

Put simply it’s a fantastic reference point for any professional working with children and adolescents with SEN and their families.

I like how the vastly complicated process of statementing is clearly described in terms of not simply what happens but when it should happen. When I was a newly qualified SLT I wish I had such a resource to refer back to as it has taken years of experience to get my head around (and I still don’t feel overly confident). I will definitely recommend this resource to NQT (and experienced) professionals who work with children with SEN.

Whilst the book does not expect a particular level of prior understanding of SEN having some certainly helps. The majority of (affected) families greet having more information on the SEN ‘with open arms’ however I do feel that due to the complexity of the process, and hence the complexity of the book itself, it is not accessible to all families. Personally I would recommend reading particular chapters to some of my families and the whole book to others.

I think the icing of the cake are the inspirational stories. Whilst they are heart breaking at points, the positive messages found are clear. I like the way they are categorised into SLCN diagnoses/disorders as it helps the reader to relate to particular children they know.

Finally, with all the cuts and changes happening across the UK it is very easy to become disillusioned; the ‘making it happen’ has lit my fire of enthusiasm and I can’t wait to go into work tomorrow and begin to make a difference!

by Chris Wade

Ian Ross from Vievolve will be leading a seminar on negotiation, mediation and conflict resolution. Ian’s skill is built on a long and successful commercial career spanning senior posts in a variety of organisations that include British European Airways and Team Training Europe. He is an experienced facilitator, negotiator, and executive coach based in the UK and working internationally. As a Director of Vievolve Ltd, he offers a rare combination of the highest accreditations possible in NLP (INLPTA Master Trainer), together with negotiation and conflict resolution studies at Harvard. With over 18 years experience of applying NLP in commercial contexts he provides access to learning from the absolute cutting edge of human leadership and personal development technology, alongside the academic rigour of negotiation and conflict resolution models and strategies available from the Harvard Law School.

Book your place now at http://www.wordswell.co.uk/conference/

Louise is Training Manager at the charity Child Brain Injury Trust; her role is to raise awareness about the issues that children, young people and their families face following the devastation of childhood acquired brain injury.  She has trained over 2,000 professionals across Education, Healthcare, Social Services and more recently with those working with young offenders and those at risk of offending. The aim of the training is to highlight that 90% of those affected by childhood acquired brain injury (ABI) have no physical sign of their disability and because of the hidden nature and lack of knowledge of ABI there injury is often unnoticed or even misdiagnosed.  Louise has also spoken at many conferences on this subject including SEN, Youth Offending and ABI conferences.  Since joining the Child Brain Injury Trust  in 2008 Louise’s passion for ensuring that these children and young people receive the appropriate support to enable them to achieve their full potential in life, has helped raise the profile of this hidden disability.

Book your place to hear Louise at http://www.wordswell.co.uk/conference/

Professor Heather van der Lely is Director of the Centre for Developmental Language Disorders and Cognitive Neuroscience and is one of Britain’s leading researchers into Specific Language Impairment. She will lead a presentation titled, “The grammar and phonology screening (GAPS) test: quick, simple, affordable and accurate: so why isn’t there national screening?”

Book your place now at http://www.wordswell.co.uk/conference/

Charlie was the youngest Headteacher in the West Midlands to run SEBD schools for teenagers who been excluded from the mainstream system. Twenty five years later he is now a Consultant Child and Educational Psychologist providing hands-on services to the National Autistic Society,  Mainstream Academies and Health and Prison services on working effectively with students with complex needs – especially those with Autism and damaging behaviour difficulties.

Inez Brown is a Senior Associate with Anthony Collins LLP in Birmingham where she leads on the educational support for individuals. She has vast experience in educational matters providing support on statutory assessment of children with special educational needs and admission/exclusion issues arising from maintained schools. She has experience of dealing with appeals to the SEN and Disability Panel. In the wider field, Inez has also been involved in a number of judicial review cases appealing a failure to comply with the provisions of SEN statements together with a failure to undertake the relevant social care assessments or produce a care plan. Inez has experience of dealing with the practical side of litigation – of issuing proceedings, liaising with the court, other solicitors and Counsel. Inez also has extensive experience representing claimants in Clinical Negligence and Personal Injury claims with a proven track record of achieving successful outcomes for her clients. Currently she leads on a wide range of cases including medical misdiagnosis, obstetric cases resulting in severe brain injury including cerebral palsy, road traffic accidents resulting in brain damage, fatal accident claims and hospital acquired infections. Clients praise her proactive approach and ability to explain the law in simple terms. Inez’s excellent approach to individuals ensures that their needs are always her primary concern.

Kevin joined Dyslexia Action as CEO on 1st April 2011 from the NHS, prior to that he was with the RNIB as Chief Operating Officer and has spent most of his career in the public sector. He has worked with the Open University as a tutor, was a trustee/governor of City Lit FE College for eight years and is currently a trustee of the Institute of Fundraising and of Contact a Family. Kevin has enormous experience, not only of the third sector, but of managing complex organisations with a strong set of values. Kevin is passionate about education and values how life changing education can enable people to stretch themselves and lead enriched lives.

This book describes the present legal process for establishing an adequate educational ‘statement’ of the needs of a child with a disability, or appealing against one that is deemed to be inadequate.  The author has gathered together parental accounts of their experiences of that process and these form the main body of the book.  It does not make an entirely easy read emotionally: some of the stories are raw in the telling but in sum form a tribute to all the parents and professionals who have dedicated themselves to enhancing children’s prospects without compromise.  

This book forms the precursor to a weightier volume which will be written when radical reform of the present special needs education legislation (in England) has been settled.   The road to the point where reform has been acknowledged as necessary has sometimes been rocky.  The present legislation, although working well for many, has caused anguish for some parents as they saw their child’s needs go unrecognised or compromised by provision that did not suit them. They have had to fight their way through a lengthy and complex process to gain the right level of provision for their child, sometimes supported by expert professionals, sometimes alone. 

In producing this book, the editor and her team hope that we can learn from experience and, despite the present economic challenge, move towards a system that is workable and honest in its ambition. We can all (both parent and professional) contribute towards that positive future by making our voices heard, telling it as it is and saying how it should be.  

Dr Hilary Gardner, Department of Human Communication Sciences, The University of Sheffield, September 2011

Please join us at the book launch in Newbury Berkshire at 7pm on Friday 14th October 2011.   Cost £50 including a 3 course meal.

http://www.wordswell.co.uk/conference/

Friday October 14th 2011 

9.30 am – Registration and Refreshments

 9.45 am – Welcome to Mary Hare and the Arlington Arts Centre – Tony Shaw

 9.50 am – Welcome Address – Robert Ashton

10.00am – Keynote Presentation – Kevin Geeson – CEO, Dyslexia Action ‘The impact the SEN Green Paper could have on literacy and the long term economic and social problems that getting it wrong could cause’

10.45am – Presentation – Inez Brown legal implications for children with special needs, current funding arrangements and future funding arrangements

11.30am – Presentation – Louise Wilkinson the issues that children, young people and their families face following the devastation of childhood acquired brain injury ‘The Hidden Disability’,

12.15 am – Exhibition, Networking, and Lunch

1.00pm – Charlie Mead – how Acadamies can find ways to meet the needs of students with complex needs

1.45 pm – Presentation – Prof Heather van der Lely “The grammar and phonology screening (GAPS) test: quick, simple, affordable and accurate: so why isn’t there national screening?”

2.30 pm Refreshments

2.45pm – Ian Ross – Negotiation, Mediation and Conflict Resolution

4.45pm Robert Ashton/Janet O’Keefe/Ian Ross – Clarity Foundation

5.45 pm – Closing remarks from Janet O’Keefe and end of Day at 6pm.

Please book your place at http://www.wordswell.co.uk/conference/