In Stockport Family, we want:
- all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) who live in Stockport to have the best start in life
- all children and young people to be happy, prepared for adulthood and able to achieve their goals
- families to feel supported, confident, resilient, and connected to their community
We’ve worked together with parents, carers, young people, and workforces across the local area to co-produce a set of outcomes that we all want to achieve for children and young people. These are set out in our outcomes framework that was launched in November 2020. The agreed statements are:
- I feel safe
- I feel part of my local community
- my voice is heard and acted upon
- I enjoy good health and wellbeing
- I’m happy and have people I can trust
- I’m confident and able to reach my goals
- the people who love and care for me are enabled to do this
Most children and young people with SEND will thrive and have their needs met by universal services. These are services that anyone can use such as:
- GPs
- health visitors
- schools
- community activities and services
Some children and young people with SEND need more support such as personal care and other practical assistance. This is called social care. Some disabled children and young people and their parents will need practical support both inside and outside the home. We have legal responsibilities to help families with disabled children.
How we define disability
The Equality Act 2010 defines disability as someone who has a physical disability or Special Educational Needs (SEN) impairment that has a 'substantial' and 'long-term' negative effect on their ability to do normal daily activities. This would include people who have:
- sensory impairments
- learning disabilities
- communication difficulties
- physical impairment
- a chronic or life limiting condition
- complex health care needs