• SENCO Induction Pack (NASEN) revised edition | Whole School Special Education Needs (SEND)
• SENCO Induction Conferences and Workshops on the Support Services for Education website
• SENCO Workshops (Access to Inclusion (A2I), Support Services for Education)
• SEND Network meetings – Somerset SEND Network groups on our website

• Support Services for Education website for Early Years SEND Service, Early Years Area SENCos and Inclusion Advisors. Includes Early Year funding, supporting documents and useful tips
• Somerset’s Graduated Response Tool – includes identification of need, ideas for support and Early Year funding
• Contact us by email: InclusionSENsupportservices@somerset.gov.uk
• Early year 0 to 5 Autism and ADHD (Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) assessment pathway – Autism assessments for 0 to 5 year olds (pre-school)
• Support with education costs
• GOV.UK – Early years funding: 2023 to 2025

If you have problems accessing the Special Education Needs and/or Disabilities (SEND) portal, you can find more help at the SEND Professional Portal on the Professional Choices website.

Read more about our Somerset Graduated Response Tool, school age and early years. Including:

• Graduated Response flowcharts.
• Quick checkers for broad areas of need.
• Universal Barriers and Strategies.
• Pupil Passport template.
• Teacher SEN referral process and form template.
• APDR template.
• Whole school and individual funding templates.
• ABCC chart and prompt.
• Information videos.
• SEND Funding information.

Also see the web page Supporting tools, documents and signposting

You will find information on the Somerset Local Offer Early Help page and on the Professional Choices Early Help page.

There is also training for the Early Years sector on Support Services for Education (SSE): Early Years Area SENCos and Inclusion Advisers Resources which is in the Early Help Assessment section of the site.

You can find information, including training, on the Inclusion Somerset offer of support page and other useful training can be found on:

• The Somerset Council Trauma Informed Somerset page
• The website Support Services for Education – Somerset Council | Training Portal
• The Somerset Safeguarding Children Partnership – Safeguarding training website

• There is information on the Somerset local Offer Somerset Inclusion Tool page.
• You can get Support from Access to Inclusion advisory teachers about using the tool, or Business Support advice around setting it up, or IT support for the tool. Email: accesstoinclusion@somerset.gov.uk

• You can find a list of EHCP related questions and information on the Somerset local Offer Education, Health and Care Plans page.
• To make a request for an EHCP visit the Local Offer Making a request for an Education Health and Care needs assessment page.
• For information about EHCP annual reviews, visit the Local Offer Education, health and care plan annual reviews page.
• If you intend to hold an Early Annual review (EAR) – If there are considerable changes to a child’s needs and you have new supporting evidence to suggest a change is needed, you can hold an early annual review. You can request someone from the Statutory SEND Team to attend by emailing Sendreviewinghub@somerset.gov.uk Please note – in most cases an officer will not attend, but continue to hold the EAR and submit all supporting evidence.
• If you do not agree with a decision, visit our Local Offer What if I do not agree with decisions surrounding SEND processes? page.
• You can ask for an EHCP Assessment Checklist by visiting our Local Offer Making a request for an Education Health and Care needs assessment page.

Contact the SEND team about an EHCP assessment by email: SENDassessmenthub@somerset.gov.uk

Contact the SEND team regarding an EHCP by email: SENDreviewinghub@somerset.gov.uk

• You can find information in the Somerset Graduated Response Tool on page 12. And you can find Early Years Funding information on page 13 of the Early Years Somerset Graduated Response Tool.
• The Local Offer Somerset’s Graduated Response Tool page gives more information about what to expect from education.
• GOV.UK has guidance on the notional SEN budget for mainstream schools: operational guide 2024 to 2025
• The Local Offer Available funding page also has more information.
• Early Years Area SENCos and Inclusion Advisers Resources | Support Services for Education (SSE) – Early Years High Needs Funding Guidance document.
• Support with education costs – Early Years version of banding descriptors is available on this page.
• GOV.UK – Early years funding: 2023 to 2025

You can find information on the Somerset’s Graduate Response Tool – Complex Medical Needs page.

• If you have concerns about a young person who is at risk of exclusion, follow steps 1 and 2 on our Children at risk of exclusion – Checklist of expectations page. Make sure you have completed a pastoral support plan. You can find more information on the Somerset Pastoral Support Plan page.
• If you have questions about a permanently excluded child, you can find information on the Support for Education Specific Situations page. Email: EducationEngagement@somerset.gov.uk for contact.
• GOV. UK has information on their Behaviour in schools: sanctions and exclusions page.
• To report an exclusion or suspension, visit the School reporting forms page.
• If you are concerned about violence in school, you can report violent incidents and find out when to contact the police on the Avon and Somerset Police website.

You can find supporting documents and forms to make reports about attendance on the Support Services for Education Attendance Support page.

You can find guidance on the Education Engagement page on the Support Services for Education website.

You can find information about Elective Home Education on the Support Services for Education website.

You may also find the School admission arrangements useful.

If you are thinking about offering Alternative Provision to a young person, you can find information and a list on the Somerset Council Alternative Provision Directory page.

• You can find information about how to access services – including Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) – Somerset emotional and mental health route map on the Somerset Children and Young People Health and Wellbeing website, on the Mental Health Toolkit and the Somerset Wellbeing Framework
• To request wellbeing support for a child or young person, visit the Young Somerset website
• You will find more national and Somerset local area support and on the Somerset Children and Young People Health and Wellbeing website

• There is information on the Somerset Council Young Carers page and on the Somerset Carers website
• To get access to Young Carers support, please visit the Somerset Safeguarding Children Partnership website
• You will find information for parents and families who are carers on the Somerset Carers website

You can find information in the Somerset Works section of the Somerset Council website.

• Connect with other professionals in your area on the Connect Somerset Champions page.
• You can signpost for families about food, health, housing and other issues at Connect Somerset – Help 4 All
• You can find family support for children and young people with SEND on the website of the not-for-profit, community interest company Somerset Parent Carer Forum 
• There is information about Early Help Assessments (EHA) and supporting documents on the Professional Choices EHA page.
• If you have any concerns, please complete regular Team Around the Family (TAF) meetings. There is guidance on the Somerset Safeguarding Children Partnership website
• Safeguarding is everybody’s business. If you are worried about a child or young person who could be in danger, please contact: Children’s Social Care on 0300 123 2224 or email childrens@somerset.gov.uk. For the Police, phone 101 or, in an emergency, 999
• There is more information about how to report a concern on the Somerset Safeguarding Children Partnership website

Families and professionals often have questions about referrals. In response, a Children and Young People’s Neurodevelopmental Partnership Advice Line has been set up.

This line is open to parents, carers, young people or practitioners from health, education, or social care.

• Phone the Advice Line on 0303 033 3002, open 9am to 12pm every Wednesday and Thursday.
• You can find more information, including Pathway tool kits on our page Autism and ADHD Pathway
• Early year 0 to 5 Autism and ADHD assessment pathway – There is more information about assessments on our page Autism Assessments for 0 to 5 year olds (pre-school)
• If a child has not already been supported by the Children’s Autism Outreach Team (CAOT), it is recommended that the family use them. It can be very helpful.
• Any family with an Autism diagnosis, or on the pathway, can attend the events listed on the Children’s Autism Outreach Team (CAOT) page.
• If or when the Child or Young Person receives a diagnosis, you can gain access to direct support from the CAOT team by completing an EHA. There is more information on the Professional Choices EHA page.

• You can find information about strategies and access to services to help. There is supporting information starting on page 51 of Somerset’s Graduated Response Tool
• And there is more information on our page Universal – Cognition and Learning

Occupational Therapy

Occupational Therapy Referrals Form for Professionals

Support Services

The Support Services for Education website will help you access services including:

• Assistive technology team
• AV1 Robots
• Early years area SENCOs
• Educational psychology service
• Hearing support team
• Virtual school
• Access to inclusion
• Education engagement service
• Ethnic minority achievement service (EMAS)
• Inclusive communication
• Occupational Therapy Team
• Vision support team