Other Leaflets In This Series:
1. Your Partnership with School
2. The Special Education Needs Coordinator
3. Supporting Pupils With Additional
Needs
4. Statutory Assessment
5. Statement of special educational needs
6. Annual reviews
7. Your guide to ‘Ed Speak’
8. Professionals and what they do
10. Moving up to secondary school
11. Independent Parental Supporter
12. School Exclusion
13. Exclusion Appeals
Parent Partnership Services,
Unit 7, Wirral Business Park,
Arrowe Brook Road, Upton, CH49 1SX
Tel: 0844 880 1500 Fax: 0151 670 1600
E-mail: contact@wired.me.uk
Website : www.wired.me.uk
The leaflets were developed in association with:
Birkenhead ADHD Support Group, Sundowns, Wallasey
Mencap and Wirral Autistic Society
Published May 2010
In accordance with the SEN Code of Practice (2001)
and the Education Act (1996)
PARENT PARTNERSHIP SERVICES
PROFESSIONALS
AND WHAT
THEY DO
(ADHD) Attention Difficulties Advisory Teacher
To support schools in their planning and provision for
children with attention (and related learning and
behavioural) difficulties. Much of the role involves
observation and consultation work within schools as well
as the provision of training. The role also involves liaison
with relevant colleagues within the Health Service, both in
relation to individual children and also to strategic issues
and planning. There are no criteria that have to be met in
order for schools to access the service and children do not
need to have a diagnosis, other than that parental consent
has been gained.
Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) Specialist Teachers
The ASD Specialist Teachers are available to all
mainstream schools where there are ASD pupils, both
statemented or school action plus, with a diagnosis and
five units of support. The main focus is working with
school staff to ensure that appropriate targets and
strategies are in place.
The Social and Communication Specialist Teachers are
based at Solar Campus. They offer support from KS1
upwards. They are happy to advise on specific targets and
strategies and offer training where appropriate for pupils
with –
 ASD
 Asperger Syndrome
 Social and Communication Difficulties.
The Service will always respond to requests for information and
advice on any aspects of visual impairment relevant to a
particular child’s progress. Pupil-specific assessments with
follow-on advice and/or taught programmes in elements of the
specialist “vision” curriculum will be provided for all children who
are experiencing difficulties as a result of reduced vision.
For further information about the Service, advice about the
possible curriculum implications of a specific visual condition or
to request INSET, please contact the Head of Service – Peter
Davies, Tel: (0151) 6376108, email:pjdavies@wirral.gov.uk.
Wirral Hospitals’ School/Home Education Service
Wirral Hospitals’ School and Home Education Service is a coeducational community Hospitals’ School for pupils age 3 to 19
years who are unable to attend their school for health reasons.
The school is located on several sites across Wirral so as to
best meet the needs of students and parents. The Community
Base at the Solar Campus offers support to a growing number
of anxious and vulnerable pupils and for pupils who are
recovering from periods of hospitalization and from other
chronic and debilitating conditions. In addition to this community
base we also have a classroom at Arrowe Park Hospital for
those children who are in hospital for any period of time. Within
the health field, we work with the Health Trust at Adcote House
where students are admitted for assessment by Clinical
Psychologists. We also operate the Home Education Service for
pupils who cannot leave their home for medical reasons. In
addition we operate a satellite service for pregnant schoolgirls
and schoolgirl mothers who are taught either at home or in a
classroom with crèche facilities at the Seacombe Ferry Centre.


Facilitate liaison between home and school to
enable full access to educational services is
achieved and to develop relation ships supportive to
the pupil.
Encourage the use of voluntary community support
where translation is essential or other needs are
identified.
Vision Support Service
The Vision Support Service offers a comprehensive range
of services to Wirral schools, parents and pupils to support
successful inclusion of children and young people who
have a visual impairment from the ages of 0 to 19.
Qualified specialist staff work both at Solar Campus in
Wallasey and in the specialist resource bases located at
the Pensby High Schools and Sandbrook Primary School.
The team of qualified teachers of the visually impaired,
rehabilitation officers and specialist teaching assistants
provide advice to schools and settings as well as
appropriate specialist assessment and support for children
and young people who are experiencing difficulties as a
result of reduced vision. In addition to pupil specific work,
the team offers training and information for school staff via
generic Vision Awareness training sessions and phasebased INSET.
The Service works in close partnership with local health
service colleagues to support monthly visual assessment
clinics and low vision aid service. Advice to parents and
training for children is not restricted to term time but is
also available in most school holidays.
Pupils referred should be on SEN register with primary
need identified as ASD (which includes ASD, Asperger
Syndrome and Social and Communication Difficulties).
Order of Priority
1. Pupils with a Statement of Special Educational Need
2. Pupils at School Action Plus, with 5 units of support.
3. Pupils at School Action Plus
Behaviour Manager
1. The Behaviour Manager offers a range of services to
primary and secondary school. The main role
includes:
2. Supporting schools to embed the National Strategy:
B + A in primary schools;
3. Supporting schools to embed Social and Emotional
Aspects of Learning and the Professional
Development Programme, NPSLBA in Primary
Schools, Secondary Schools and a range of
Services;
4. Whole school development and training in Behaviour
Improvement;
5. Working with schools to help school staff work in
partnership with parents to promote the Social and
Emotional Aspects of Learning through embedding
the following programmes:
 Family Works;
 Family Wise;
 Family Welcome.
Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS)
This Service is part of the Health Service, known on Wirral
as “Child & Family Service”.
The Child & Family Service of the Cheshire & Wirral
Partnership NHS Trust provides assessment and therapy
to children, young people and their families in cases of
psychological difficulty. These may include problems with
behaviour, emotional problems and coping with the effects
of chronic illness. The service provides direct clinical work
with children and their families, which may be individual,
group or family work. The service aims to be accessible to
all ethnic groups and children with disabilities. Referrals
are accepted from GPs, Paediatricians, Social Services
and Health Professionals. Schools are advised to consult
the above professionals if they have concerns.
Community Paediatricians
Community
Paediatricians
assess
children
with
additional/special needs. These may include physical,
medical, learning and behavioural difficulties. Community
Paediatricians work in teams and arrange referrals to
therapists (speech, occupational and physio) if needed.
Paediatricians frequently liaise with schools about
individual children. Referrals to paediatricians may be
made by GPs, Health Visitors, School Nurses or
Therapists.
Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCO)
The SENCO works closely with the head teacher, senior
management and fellow teachers and is closely involved in the
strategic development of the SEN policy and provision.
The SENCO has responsibility for day-to-day operation of the
school’s SEN policy and for co-coordinating provision for pupils
with SEN, particularly through School Action and School Action
Plus.
Speech and Language Therapists (SLTs)
Speech and language therapists (SLTs) are specialists in
speech, language and communication difficulties. SLTs work to
assess, diagnose and develop a programme of care to
maximize the communication potential of the people under their
care/referred to them. This will also include working with those
caring for the client, enabling them to communicate more
effectively in their everyday environments. SLTs also work to
support people with swallowing, eating and drinking difficulties.
Team for English as an Additional Language (TEAL)
The purpose of the team is to:
 Remove language barriers and provide access to the
school team.
 Enable pupils to achieve at the same level as their peers.
 Support mainstream staff in facing the challenges and
opportunities provided by the presence of pupils
acquiring English in their classes.
Social Care
The Children and Young People’s Department provide
services for children with complex disabilities which
include the:
 Specialist social work and family support services
for children with complex disabilities.
 Residential short breaks provision for children with
complex disabilities.
 Occupational Therapy assessments for adaptations
and equipment.
 Specialist play schemes – for children with complex
autism.
 Home and community based support via private
providers/agencies.
 Direct payments – for parents to pay their own
personal assistants.
 Information about carer services and/or support
groups.
Where there is a need for an assessment parents or
professionals should initially contact the Central Advice
and Duty Team on Tel: 0151-666 5262.
The Central Advice and Duty Team will take basic
information from you and pass the information to the
appropriate team who will accept the referral.
Children with a complex learning, physical disabilities or
sensory impairments or acute medical and health needs
will usually be assessed by the Children with Disability
Team based at Willow Tree Resource Centre. Children
with moderate or mild disabilities will be assessed by an
Assessment Team.
Educational Psychologists
Educational Psychologists aim to promote the educational,
social, emotional and behavioural well being of Wirral pupils.
An Educational Psychologist provides consultation to schools
and staff and discusses the concerns regarding the
psychological needs of the pupils. They also make a particular
contribution to those children who are undergoing a Statutory
Assessment of their special educational needs by the provision
of the required psychological advice.
The service is part of the Authority’s Emergency Response
Team and provides a Bereavement Response Service. The
Educational Psychology Team provides a Parent Consultation
Service, which enables parents to discuss their concerns about
their child’s development and receive advice as to how they
may best help them.
Education Social Welfare Service
The Education Social Welfare Service can offer help and advice
around a number of issues by liaising between home and
school, discussing concerns with school staff, working jointly
with other agencies and working with parents and children
individually or in groups. Issues they may be able to help with
include: Attendance at school; difficult to manage behaviour;
social and family problems; legal rights and responsibilities;
child protection; work with “out of school” pupils; pre-school
issues; special educational needs; children’s employment.
The Educational Social Welfare Service contributes to raising
educational attainment and reducing social exclusion by
building effective and supportive relationships with
children, young people and their families or carers. The
Service works in partnership with schools to enhance
pupils’ attendance and engagement with education. The
Education Social Welfare Service operates within a
statutory framework to meet the educational needs of
children and young people. The Service provides the Local
Authority with the necessary information in order to
prepare appropriate statutory orders or prosecutions
where parents fail to comply with action plans which offer
them support and guidance.
The Service has a number of projects to assist them in
supporting parents and young people.
Pressure Point Support Project (funded by the Children’s
Fund) – An early intervention project supporting families
through some of their most difficult times. Issues
addressed include bereavement, self esteem, bullying,
transition (for example from primary school to secondary
school), and a range of other issues.
Konnecta Bus Project – Innovative multi-disciplinary
outreach project, facilitated by the service and youth
service. The project uses an outreach approach to connect
with young people on the streets during school hours. Its
mission is to contact disengaged young people at risk of
social exclusion and support them back into education or
training.
visit the mainstream primary schools. The service provides a
vision and hearing screening programme and the school based
vaccination programme.
The service includes health assessments; advice and support
for children and young people and their carers; confidential
“open access” service for secondary schools; health education
and health promotion in conjunction with teaching staff and
supporting the healthy schools agenda.
SENAAT (Special Educational Needs Advisory and
Assessment Team)
The SENAAT team works in most mainstream primary and
secondary schools. They will undertake any of the following:
 Assessment of individual pupils where they provide
reports with recommendations.
 Advice on any matter relating to SEN, this could be about
teaching methods/materials or organization/strategic
matters.
 Inset for individual schools and some central inset.
 Liaison concerning the transfer of SEN pupils between
phases.
Pupil Advocate
The Pupil Advocate works with children and young people
aged between 5 – 13 years old with any disability,
additional need or support need. The pupil advocate’s role
is to advocate the thoughts, views and opinions of the
children and young people. S/he works for the young
person to help them to voice any issues concerning them
and aid them to become their own advocate.
Pupil Services Section
The Mainstream Admissions & Transport Section is a
team within the LA who can offer information and advice
regarding: availability of places and admissions
procedures in the Local Authority’s primary and secondary
schools; advice to parents on what to do if their child is
excluded from school, including how to appeal against the
exclusion; help with finding an alternative school place
should your child be excluded and home to school travel.
Information about free school meals, grants for uniform
can be obtained from any of the One Stop Shops.
School Nursing Service
School nurses are employed by Wirral Hospital Trust and
are able to offer a confidential service to pupils, parents
and carers. They are qualified nurses supported by
ancillary staff. Each school has a named school nurse and
they are the link between home, health and education.
They work closely with all agencies concerned with the
welfare of young people. Generally, the school nurses are
based in the secondary and special schools and go out to
Hearing Support Service
Wirral’s Hearing Support Team offers a range of services to
deaf children from 0-19 and their families.
Early Years Staff offer support to families after diagnosis,
working in homes, audiology clinics and early years’ settings.
They provide parents/carers with information about
language/communication and educational options and empower
parents/carers to provide a stimulating environment in which
their deaf child’s language & communication skills can flourish.
Primary staff provide training and information for teachers at
Key Stage 1 and 2 and can, where appropriate, support deaf
pupils in class or during individual sessions to ensure access to
the curriculum and to promote, assess and review
language/communication and social/emotional development.
The Secondary Team provides training and information to
teachers and tutorial and can, where appropriate, provide in
class support to enable access to the curriculum at Key Stages
3 and 4 and to provide support and advice at transition to post16 provision.
Advice and support is given with regards
arrangements for examinations and assessments.
to
Advice and support are available at key transition points.
special
In addition, Wirral’s Hearing Support Service can, where
appropriate:
 Test children’s/young people’s hearing in school
 Monitor deaf children who do not require regular
support on a regular (usually termly) basis
 Provide/loan out assistive technology
 Provide information about other services which
might provide assistance to deaf children/young
people and their families.
Physical/Medical Needs Co-ordinator
The Co-ordinator supports children in mainstream by pulling
together any additional services needed. Support is given to
schools by developing the Schools’ Accessibility Plans.
Direct contact with carers and families is maintained throughout
all settings and staff liaise continually with other agencies, e.g.
physiotherapy, occupational therapy, paediatricians etc.
Paediatric Occupational Therapy
Occupational Therapists work with children with physical
and learning difficulties, providing practical support and
advice in order to improve function in everyday living
activities. S/he works with the child and their family to
develop function and promote independence, enabling the
child to meet their maximum potential.
Physiotherapy Services
Offers advice and support for parents and carers on all aspects
of physical management of children at home and in other
appropriate settings. Assessment, advice on specialized
equipment and group or individual therapy sessions are offered
as appropriate. Therapy and support are also offered to children
with developmental, neurological, respiratory, orthopaedic and
oncology conditions on both an inpatient and outpatient basis.
(This service is part of the Health Service).
Practical support is provided through play activities,
socializing, specialist treatment and school access. They
advise, assess and make recommendations for equipment
and adaptations.
Pre-School Service (Portage)
The Pre-School Team consists of teachers and nursery nurses
and is lead by a senior Educational Psychologist.
Support is also provided for family and carers in order to
reduce the impact of disability within the home
environment and enhance the quality of family life. (This
service is part of the Health Service).
The role of the service is to provide the Portage hometeaching
program for pre-school children with special educational needs,
where parents/carers are seen as the first and most effective
teacher of their child. The aim is to increase the child’s rate of
progress so that as many children as possible can eventually be
successfully included in their local schools. The team also
delivers training to Early Years Practitioners and may run parent
support groups to help them address a range of difficulties they
may experience with the children.