Educational Psychology

Support for schools

All of our work relates to the key themes of the SEND Code of Practice. Assessment of children and young people is holistic and broad based and recognises the unique nature of every child and their context. We will work with you, the child or young person and their family to draw information together in order to develop a formulation of their strengths, needs and aspirations. With this information we will work with you to find the right approach to interventions and support that will be helpful. Statutory work carries no charge and is available to any child/young person who needs it, in whatever context they are receiving education. This includes preparation of psychological advice to the authority as part of Education Health Care (EHC) needs assessments and supporting the council to understand needs and provision if a change of placement or provision is requested.

Very young children who may need provision, which is additional to or different from that which is usually available for a child of similar age, is also available to any child that has been identified as needing it, wherever they are receiving their education. Service Level Agreements (SLAs) are taken out by schools, groups of schools and other educational settings for other EP work. This is very varied in nature and can include support with:

• school development, capacity building and training relating to inclusion, well-being, teaching and learning, and specific areas of need for example, autism or literacy
• consultation and problem solving in relation to individual children and young people, psychological assessment of children and young people.
• Individual casework focuses on understanding the strengths and needs of a child/young person in their context and using this understanding to work with education staff, families and the child to plan interventions that achieve clear outcomes; an approach explicitly required within the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) Standards of Practice as an EP
• direct delivery of therapeutic interventions with children and young people, or helping a school/setting to set up their own interventions
• mentoring and coaching with school staff
• solution circles for staff
• collaborative working with other professionals to support a child/young person

At certain times of the school year demand can be high although no school/setting expressing a concern will be left with unmet need. If you have concerns about a child please contact us for advice and support.

Costs

Illustrative packages

• Basic Package 1: Three days, one day per term £1,310
• Package 2: Six days, one day per half term £2,570
• Package 3: 15 days, one day per fortnight £5,290

Any number of days can be purchased at a unit cost of £420 on top of the basic three day package. Increasingly more individualised packages are being offered in combination with other services to clusters of schools or Communities of Learning (CoL). Contact Educational Psychology Service for more information.

Our team

Our team includes main grade Educational Psychologists (EPs), specialist and senior EPs, all of whom must abide by the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) standards of practice. We also invest in the training of EPs who are completing their doctorate EP qualification. Our trainees have very high levels of professional support and supervision on a weekly basis to ensure that they reach and maintain appropriate standards of practice.

We have a key role in strategic developments across the council, with a Senior EP holding the strategic lead role in each of the four SEND areas; and specialist Educational Psychology input to each of the four areas of SEND. The EP team is organised into four geographical areas with each are being served by a locality team.