The Local First Inclusion programme

It is being developed and delivered working in partnership with Norfolk's education leaders and in partnership with the Department for Education (DfE), with around £100m of additional DfE funding.

How Local First Inclusion works

The programme sets the framework for the council to improve its support for early years settings, mainstream schools and academies, and further education providers to ensure you have the resources and expertise you need for all children and young people with SEND to get a consistently high-quality education with the right support for their needs, in their local area first.

The main aim of Local First Inclusion

The aim is to ensure children can thrive, wherever they are learning, with the support they need to be happy and healthy, achieving their full potential in their education now, laying strong foundations for their adult lives in the future.

For the majority of children and young people this will be learning in well-supported mainstream provision or a specialist resource base (SRB) place in the mainstream, with the minority with the most complex needs learning in special schools.

As confidence within schools and with families develops, we anticipate fewer Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) will be required as more children and young people are successfully supported in the mainstream.

The Local First Inclusion programme ultimately aims to achieve a financially sustainable and effective SEND system in Norfolk with the right number of places for children at the right time to enable them to achieve positive outcomes into their adult lives.

The challenge and the need for change

The council is lobbying the Government for reform of the SEND system and as part of the programme, is proactively seeking opportunities to work innovatively with the DfE, take a leading role nationally in driving change.

This is a huge challenge which will require effective partnership working if we are to achieve these ambitious aims. It will include working with health partners and teams across Children's Services, including EHCP co-ordinators.

We as a council are determined to be by the side of education leaders, working together to achieve the best for children and young people with SEND. This is an exciting time in the Norfolk education landscape where the council is providing more flexible and funded support for inclusion than ever before.

Local First Inclusion's seven key projects

1. The SEND and Inclusion Support Model which focuses on providing early help and intervention, wrapping support around mainstream schools within the new zones to ensure provision of a consistent level of quality SEN Support across the county to improve inclusion. It includes the new SEND and Inclusion phoneline for parents and professionals, Zone Inclusion Partnerships, and Teams Around the School (TAS).
2. Ordinarily Available Provisionwhich ensures children's needs can be identified in a consistent way; outlines the processes and the options for how SEN support should be assessed and provided; organises wider services and support for children, families and schools; supports transitions from one setting to another whether from early years to school, changing schools or moving onto further education; and models best practice for small group provision, known as Enhanced Support Provision (ESPs).
3. In partnership with school leaders, remodelling the way Element 3, also known as top up funding, works.
4. Alternative Provision (AP) for secondary schools to support children and young people at risk of exclusion from school. Based on a three-tiered approach, it will deliver: new outreach services and early intervention support; 19 new school-based social, emotional and mental health (SEMH) centres; and specialist placements in registered AP settings.
5. Securing the best value for money in the independent special school sector.
6. An increased outreach offer brokered by the council for special schools to provide more support and expertise for early years settings and mainstream schools to support inclusion.
7. Building and creating more specialist places- building two more special schools, more Specialist Resource Bases (SRBs), expanding existing special schools to provide more places; and improving the special school admissions process.

Local First Inclusion and NASAPS

The Local First Inclusion programme sits within the Norfolk Area SEND and Alternative Provision (AP) Strategy (NASAPS) 2024-29, which has a broader scope, aiming to improve the lives of Norfolk's 29,000 children and young people (age 0-25) with SEND by working on: learning and development; changes and new beginnings; preparing for adult life; family support; and friends and activities.