Special Needs Jungle, In Conversation

SNJ's Renata Blower and Tania Tirraoro discuss aspects of the SEND Review Green Paper with Minister for Children & Families, Will Quince MP.  We covered a range of issues, including plans for mandatory mediation, ringfencing schools' SEND budgets, teacher training for SEND and much more over 45 minutes of in-depth conversation.  If you want to know more about the Green Paper, check out our dedicated page here

On this episode of SNJ in Conversation, young disability campaigners, Siena Castellon and George Fielding talk to Special Needs Jungle's Renata Blower, discussing their lives, their achievements, what it was like growing up with a disability and the challenges that has presented. They offer advice for other young people - and their parents. Find the main post for this podcast on the SNJ website https://wp.me/p3S8eh-7y4

On this episode of SNJ in Conversation, Tania Tirraoro & Matt Keer chat to Nick Whittaker, Ofsted HM Inspector and its specialist SEND Adviser, about how Ofsted is supporting & evaluating SEND provision during the coronavirus pandemic.  You can also watch this episode as a video on YouTube.  Find the blog post for the article on the SNJ website. Nick will be doing more of these chats in the coming months. Tell us what you want to know

The teaching assistant is vital to enable many children with SEND to be in mainstream schools. But often teachers have had no training in using them to the best effect, and with no minimum standards, quality training for TAs can be hard to find. SNJ's Tania chats with Assistant Professor Rob Webster of UCL's Institute of Education, and Bren Prendergast, specialist teacher and trainer, about research into TAs and what needs to happen to improve training Don't forget to take the SNJ SEND Autumn Survey about your child's provision, whether they're in school and  Theme tune by Luca Tirraoro

Part Two SNJ in Conversation: SEND law now and EOTAS. Specialist SEN lawyers Hayley Mason and Nicole Lee talking to Tania Tirraoro about what parents should be expecting from their child's school for their support right now. And why Education Other Than at School or EOTAS shouldn't be confused with Home Education.   Help us to help you by please taking our Autumn SEND Education survey to find out if your child has the provision they should: http://bit.ly/autumn-send SNJ in Conversation theme tune: Luca Tirraoro

SNJ in Conversation: SEND law now and EOTAS, with specialist lawyers Hayley Mason and Nicole Lee talking to Tania Tirraoro.  What's happening with SEND Law right now? And why if you're thinking of educating your disabled child yourself, you mustn't confuse Education Other than at School (EOTAS) with Home Education. This is part one of a two-part episode. Please help us to advocate for your family by taking our autumn SEND survey to find out how much of their stated provision your child is currently receiving: http://bit.ly/autumn-send Find the post for this episode here on Special Needs Jungle Theme Music by Luca Tirraoro .

On this episode of SNJ In Conversation, Tania Tirraoro chats to Anne Heavey, Director of Whole School SEND, and Hannah Moloney, expert SENCO and Dyslexia specialist, who've all created a resource for school leaders to improve their SEND knowledge. The discussion includes a brief history of SEND and why training in the UK is so far behind that in some other countries. Find the article that goes along with this video at https://www.specialneedsjungle.com/snj-in-conversation/

Tania and Renata chat to Anne Heavey, specialist curriculum lead for the online Oak Academy resource bank, developed to support children during lockdown and now backed by the Department for Education. Anne is also the director of Whole School SEND and is working to make sure Oak has more to offer to children and young people with SEND for the year ahead.  Find the web post for the episode at https://www.specialneedsjungle.com/snj-in-conversation/

SNJ's Renata Blower talks to our assistant editor, and former headteacher, Marguerite Haye, and to Venessa Bobb, SEND parent and advocate about their experiences as black women and parents of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities. The discussion ranges from disproportionality of black children and exclusion, intersectionality in SEND and how to change things for the better. Find the webpage with more information about this episode and the links referred to in the conversation here  https://wp.me/p3S8eh-6xV (from 7 Aug 2020)

Tania and Renata from SNJ chat with Dame Christine Lenehan, Director of the Council for Disabled Children about children's social care, what the pandemic has revealed, and what needs to change.  You can find the original post for this episode here on Special Needs Jungle  The CDC describes itself as, "the umbrella body for the disabled children's sector bringing together professionals, practitioners and policy-makers." In other words, it's the lynchpin of the SEND sector and is, in turn, part of the National Children's Bureau.  Special Needs Jungle is also a member of the CDC. Christine has been involved with supporting disabled children for 40 years, including authoring a number of Government reviews. So, if there is someone who knows everything there is to know about the history of SEND, it is Christine. Renata and I caught up with her via Zoom, for a wide-ranging discussion covering children's social care, the SEND reforms, what's gone wrong and what the CDC is doing to try to fix things.