Gateshead SEND Thresholds
Gateshead’s SEND Youth Ambassador, Harry Vincent, has taken part in a major system-wide initiative to develop and implement a new ‘SEND Thresholds’ model across Gateshead.
The SEND Thresholds - sometimes called ‘Ranges’ - will provide a framework for all professionals working with children and young people with SEND, as well as giving greater clarity for parents, families and carers in terms of what their child’s needs are and the support they should receive. They will provide a helpful reference point in identifying the level of need and will support children and young people with additional needs with consistency across schools, colleges and other settings.
Harry - who is currently undertaking a Business Admin Level 3 Apprenticeship in Gateshead Council’s SEND Team - was asked by SEND Educational Consultant, Anne Hayward, to gather the experiences and opinions of young people with SEND in Gateshead to ensure that the document was relevant and valuable to young people’s lives. Harry created fully accessible animated videos, one of which explained the importance of the document to children and young people with SEND. He arranged sessions with members of the Gateshead SEND Youth Forum to ensure that their exact words were used in the finished document, which has a dedicated section for Young People’s Voices. He also used their quotes to create another accessible video which was used in the official launch event.
Quote from Harry Vincent
"I have really enjoyed my role this past year as part the Gateshead SEND team and the SEND youth forum. It has been a pleasure to develop my own skills whilst having the opportunity to make a real difference by working on projects such as the SEND Thresholds. An aim of mine is to ensure that what I'm doing has a positive impact on others and that the voices of young people are heard and genuinely acknowledged."
More details and an electronic version of the Thresholds can be found on the Gateshead SEND Local Offer website: https://gateshead-localoffer.org/send-thresholds/