Parent Carer Forums: Raising Your Voices for Better SEND Services

Parent Carer Forums exist to help raise your voices and shape the SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) services that your children rely on. By sharing your experiences, concerns, and suggestions, we can work together to improve the services that matter most to your family.

We regularly share surveys from trusted organisations that seek your views, and we encourage you to take part in these to help us gather feedback on the services your children use. Your input is invaluable in driving change, and by completing these surveys, you can directly contribute to the development of services.

It’s just one of the many ways we aim to create better outcomes for children with SEND.

Your Voice Matters: SEND Survey

Your Voice Matters: SEND Survey

We’ve created a survey specifically designed to gather the views of families like yours about SEND services. This survey is an opportunity for you to contribute to key reports and inquiries that can directly influence national policies and regional services.

How Your Survey Responses Will Help:

Solving the SEND Crisis Inquiry
Your feedback will be submitted as evidence to the Houses of Parliament as part of a major inquiry aimed at solving the SEND crisis. Click here for more information on the inquiry.
Law Commission Review of Disabled Children’s Social Care
Your responses will also inform a regional report for the Law Commission’s review, which is looking at how disabled children’s social care is delivered.
Supporting Local SEND Forums
The feedback you provide will support local Parent Carer Forums as they prepare for SEND inspections.

We truly value your voice, and this survey is your chance to ensure your experiences are heard and considered.

Deadline for survey responses: 5th February 2025

Click the button to complete the survey:

Sharing Your Stories: Case Studies on Disabled Children’s Social Care

We are also collecting real-life stories from families who have used social care services for their disabled children. These stories—referred to as case studies—will be submitted as part of our regional report to the Law Commission.

We are particularly interested in case studies that focus on the following:

-Strong support from disabled children’s social care services
-Positive examples of co-production (working together with professionals to shape services)
-The impact of changing thresholds for accessing services
-Challenges faced in getting social care assessments
-Family breakdown or harm due to lack of support
-Cultural barriers to accessing services

If you have a story that fits any of these themes, we would love to hear from you.

How to Submit Your Case Study:

Word count: We suggest keeping your story between 300-500 words.
Format: Please submit your case study in a separate document (e.g., Word or PDF).
Anonymity: We will anonymise all case studies by changing names and other personal details to ensure that individuals involved cannot be identified.
If you leave a contact address, we will share the final version of your story with you before submitting it.

Privacy Statement

We take your privacy seriously. All case studies will be anonymised, and any personal details shared will be kept confidential. Your responses and stories will only be used for the purposes outlined above, and your contact information will not be shared without your permission.

By submitting your story or survey response, you consent to us using the information in line with our privacy policy.

Thank you for taking the time to contribute to these important initiatives. Together, we can help shape the future of SEND services and ensure that all families receive the support they need.