Cornwall Sendiass offer advice, support and information to children and young people aged 0-25 and their parents/carers around Special education needs law and local policy and procedures. They support people understand the local offer, personal budgets, prepare and attend meetings, provide support to resolve disagreements and offer mediation and tribunal support. Sendiass also help with the following:
- Transport
- Disability Discrimination
- Exclusions
- Transitions: Reception, Secondary and Post 16 transfer
- Signposting to other agencies and professionals for support
- Advice and support in Appeals (SEND & Disability Discrimination)
- Training/workshops and information on SEND law and guidance
- Annual reviews
- EHCP’s
- Social care and health enquiries
Their helpline is open between 10-3 Monday to Friday Sendiass also provide training/talks to professionals, parents and young people and have an interactive website which enables parents and young people to self-help where this is appropriate.
What we don’t do:
- contact other people on your behalf without your prior consent
- pass your information on to other organisations without your agreement
- make decisions on your behalf
- attend meetings or provide reports in your absence
- provide transport to/from meetings (except in exceptional circumstances).
- Offer information, advice or support on issues that are not linked to SEND, for example, financial matters like benefits, Disability Living Allowance, carers’ allowance or health and social care not connected to an EHCP and we cannot complete forms that address issues not related to SEN.
- Deliver emergency support or interventions for service users – this is for the local authorities to have in place.
- Offer to automatically complete paperwork on behalf of service users – we use our discretion based on the individual needs of the service user on a case-by-case basis.
- Allocate a named advisor within the IAS team to a case.
- Automatically check EHCPs for service users unless there is an access need on the part of the service user.
- Spend time re-addressing an enquiry that has already been addressed by another member of the IAS team.
- Take a grievance or complaint forward on your behalf
- Continue to support you if you have instructed a lawyer or are getting advice and support from another person/organisation this is to avoid confusion and ensure we are making the best use of our limited capacity.