Special Educational Needs (SEN) Statutory Assessment Service

Service Outline

The SEN Casework Service has involvement from when a statutory assessment is requested either by a school, parents/carers or outside agencies. It also issues statements of Special Educational Need and provides the following services:

• manages and co-ordinates the SEN statutory assessment procedures;
• produces and maintains statements of SEN;
• co-ordinates the placement of children with statements and is therefore key in achieving departmental targets on inclusion of children with statements in mainstream schools;
• monitors and supports Annual Review Meetings for children with statements or identified and agreed Special Educational Needs;
• provides advice to schools, parents/carers on statutory assessment and statement procedures;
• represents the local authority (LA) at Disagreement Resolution meetings and SEN and Disability Tribunal hearings;
• works closely with other services within Manchester Education Partnership;
• works closely with Children's Services and Health on placements of children in out of city schools;
• manages the LA's SEN budgets; and
• chairs and services the SEN Panel, which determines requests for statutory assessment and decides the level of additional funding to be allocated to individual pupils with a new statement who are placed in mainstream schools.