The role of a SEND Keyworker

• Act as a central point of contact for families during an EHC assessment.
• Submit the EHC Assessment request and supporting information to EHC Needs Management Board so they can provide advice about education, health and social care provision.
• Liase with professionals as appropriate during the assessment period.
• Lead co-production meeting with family, child/young person where appropriate, and any relevant professional where possible.
• Make admendments to the Draft EHCP, based on professional edvidence and parental views.
• Submit other requests related to the EHCP (such as personal budgets or specialist placement) to the EHC Needs Management Board for their advice.
• Consult with education settings and secure school placements (including parental preference wherever possible).
• Finalise the EHCP and send to family and advice givers.

• Process EHC Annual Review paperwork for Islington students, attending the meetings where there is a request from a family, key transition points or where the current placement is at risk.
• Amend EHCPs following review, if required and appropriate.
• Submit requests for changes of placement, provision, or funding to be reviewed by the EHC Needs Management Board.
  
• Attend Team Around the Child Meetings.
• Support with any other queries specifically related to EHCPs for children on their caseload, where neither their setting, nor the local Offer website areable to provide an answer.
• Support with funding or other queries related to a young person's placement.
• Liaise with link settings and provide support in relation to the young people with EHCP who are placed there.

We appreciate that communication is key to ensuring families are supported during their child or young person's education journey.

We follow Islington's communication standards and endeavour to:

• Respond to telephone calls within two working days
• Respond to emails within 10 working days

We will always try to respond more quickly but as staff are often in meetings or supporting other families they may not be able to immediately answer calls and emails.

As your Keyworker is your central point of contact, please whenever possible, wait for their response as other keyworkers or administrative staff are unlikely to know the detail for your young person's situation.

We want to help where we can, but there are some concerns or queries that your Keyworker will not be able to help you directly with. Below is some advice on common queries.

Choosing a placement or course

• Parents/carers/young people tell Keyworkers their prefered placement. We will always consider your preference and try to secure this if we can and it is appropriate. No professional or Keyworker can advise you on which setting to choose, nor agree to that setting or funding. The Local Offer website has information on all local settings and visits are arranged directly with settings.

Bullying

• This is an internal matter for schools to manage. Find further information on how to make a complaint to your child's school.

Referrals (health, therapies, housing etc.)

• These will be done by schools, GPs social workers, or parents/carers. This includes referrals for therapies, financial services, health services and housing. This also includes securing supported living or residential placements.

Home to School Travel

• Home to school transport requests are processed by our transport team.  Find information on our policy and how to apply if you feel that your child meets the criteria.

Attendance

• Where a child/young person is not attending a suitable placement, this is for the setting to manage, seeking support from relevant professionals, to support reintegration. An EHC Annual Review may be called if there is evidence that the provision or setting is no longer suitable.

Amending an EHCP

• Changes must be clearly requested by education settings in the EHC Annual Review paperwork, supported with clear evidence. A keyworker cannot consider unspecific changes, nor changes that are not formally requested via the EHC Annual Review.

Exam arrangements

• The school applies for these via the relevant exam boards. We cannot advise on or enforce this via an EHCP, but you can talk to your child's SENCo for further information.