A big thank you to the staff and pupils at Wyre Forest School for welcoming us in to talk all things special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
Officers from the county council and NHS Herefordshire and Worcestershire joined the visit to hear directly about the outcomes children and young people with SEND want to see.
The team spent time chatting with pupils while they prepared lunches, made crafts and served customers in the local community café. Young people also prepared thoughtful questions for our Director of Children’s Services, Adam Johnston, NHS Director of Operations, Jade Brooks, and Voices United forum members Matthew and Myah.
Questions covered everything from funding for adult services, transport to college and accessible sports clubs, to adding widgets to our websites - alongside some lighter ones about favourite football teams and fast cars!
Over the past few months, our Co-Production Officers have been working with Voices United Worcestershire (our forum for children and young people with SEND) and have gathered views from more than 400 children and young people about what matters most to them and what a ‘good life’ looks like.
From this, young people created the following outcomes:
- I feel welcome, included and part of a community where I belong
- I feel safe and supported
- I am listened to, understood and involved in decisions about my life
- I am helped to be healthy in my body and mind
- I enjoy life, have fun and am supported to reach my full potential
These outcomes will now be rolled out across the Local Area Partnership and sit at the heart of how we plan, develop and design services for children and young people with SEND. We know there’s more to do, but we’re glad to be working alongside our NHS partners, Worcestershire Parent Carer Forum and Voices United Worcestershire to make this happen.
If you’re a young person and would like to find out more about Voices United, see how to get involved: www.worcestershire.gov.uk/SENDcoproduction.
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