Specialist Support Team for Children with Medical/Physical Needs

This team is one of a small number of specialist teams, working as part of Wirral council’s Children’s Services.

The Team works with mainstream schools to support the inclusion of pupils with medical and/or physical needs, from two-year-funded places to sixth form. Team members offer advice and support around curricula access, special educational provision, and equality of opportunity including reasonable adjustments. The Team works in partnership with schools to enable pupils to achieve their best:

• Individual Health Care Planning – supporting schools to produce robust, clear, and effective Individual Health Care Plans (IHCP) for pupils. An IHCP details the specific care that a child needs in school to manage a health condition.  It includes developing an understanding of the educational and emotional impact of a child’s medical/physical needs, and appropriate strategies to support learning and emotional wellbeing.
• Enhanced Transition Planning – helping schools to prepare to meet the individual needs of new pupils. This includes planning for equipment, staffing, training, physical access, and reasonable adjustments.
• Funding Requests – offering advice to schools on additional funding routes for children who require extra support in school to meet their needs. Providing information to the Local Authority to inform the decision making process around school requests for Individual Pupil Funding Agreements; monitoring existing agreements. Team members are well placed to do this because of their ongoing and regular involvement with pupils through the individual health care planning process.
• Learning Assessment – for pupils with medical/physical needs who are making less than expected progress, despite evidence-based interventions matched to a pupil’s area of need. The Team provides assessment reports including advice and recommendations as appropriate.
• ICT Assessment – coordinating assessments for pupils, who because of significant physical difficulties, are struggling with both curriculum access, and with written and spoken communication. Assessments are multi-disciplinary and must include advice from a pupil’s paediatric occupational therapist.   The need for specialist equipment provision (ICT) is considered as part of the assessment process.
• Specialist Equipment Provision (non-ICT) – supporting schools to make reasonable adjustments for pupils with physical needs. The Team coordinates specialist equipment provision to schools and monitors it through the IHCP process. Specialist equipment is provided on the recommendation of either Wirral’s Paediatric Occupational Therapy Service or Wirral’s Paediatric Physiotherapy Service, following clinical assessment.  Examples of specialist equipment include a mobile hoist, potty chair, complex seating.
• Access to the School Environment – the Team works in partnership with schools and appropriate health professionals to identify building adaptations that are required for individual pupils who have a physical disability. Building adaptation work is needs led and is reviewed regularly through the individual health care planning process.
• Accessibility Strategy – the Team informs the Local Authority’s Accessibility Strategy .