Issue - meetings

The Board will consider the Local Area SEND Inspection response and the Big SEND plan – Part 3.

Contact: Jo- Anne Sanders, Service Director, Learning and Early Support and Adrian Wisniewski,Programme Manager

Stewart Horn, Head of Children’s Commissioning, and Adrian Wisniewski Programme Manager Strategy Innovation and Planning, attended the meeting to provide the Board with an update on the Local Area SEND inspection response and the Big SEND 15-26 Plan Part 3.  In summary, the Board was informed that the information being presented is the third in the series of ‘Big Plans’ for children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) for aged 0 to 25.

The Board received an update on the ongoing transformation plan, which set out how partners will work together to improve provision and outcomes for children and young people. The latest iteration of the plan had been developed in response to the SEND Area Inspection carried out by Ofsted and the CQC in June 2025. The inspection reviewed the full range of SEND provision across Kirklees, including schools within the local authority, health providers, the ICB, and other partners. The findings highlighted inconsistencies in the support offered to children and young people and identified areas requiring improvement. These areas were formally set out in the inspection report and gave four areas to improve.

The Board was informed that the purpose of the update is to set out how the revised plan will be developed, what it will involve, and what will be required from partners and the wider system. The focus is on identifying how collective action across the system can deliver the changes needed to achieve the required improvements.

The Board was reminded that an initial draft of the plan had previously been presented due to the short timescale for responding to the inspectors. The revised version, containing additional detail, was brought back to further inform the Board.

The Board had previously advised that the strengths already demonstrated should continue to be built upon, and therefore the same format has been used as with the earlier Big Plans. This approach has received positive feedback from both the inspectors and the DfE and has been recognised nationally as an example of innovation and good practice.

The Board was advised that today’s item would provide a brief overview of the detail within the plan which has been fully endorsed by partners, despite the very tight timescale required to progress it. The Board was advised that this is not a new programme of work; partners have been collaborating on these priorities for a while and the current iteration builds on existing knowledge, established activity, and the feedback previously provided by the Board.

The Board was informed that a similar format to previous Big Plans has been used, because it was well?received and it provides a logical structure. The document begins by addressing an important question readers typically have regarding purpose and relevance, and this section has been kept concise. It was also recognised that although those involved in the work are familiar with it, not everyone will have a detailed understanding of what a local area SEND inspection entails, therefore this explanation has also been  ...  view the full minutes text for item 31