Special Schools Therapies and Nursing Service

What our service does

We provide an on-site multi-disciplinary service in Haringey special schools including:

• Speech and Language Therapy
• Occupational Therapy
• Physiotherapy
• School Nursing
• Dietician
• Consultant Paediatrician

This is for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities who attend the borough's special schools. We work in collaboration with families and carers offering support and intervention.

We offer support for:

• Speech, language and communication including deafness
• Difficulty or discomfort in swallowing (dysphagia) - including nutrition and hydration)
• Postural management throughout the day (e.g. seating systems, hydrotherapy)
• Functional intervention for daily living
• Environmental adaptations to support specific learning needs
• Management of daily health including medications, continence etc.

The support we offer is needs-led. Children have a care plan outlining their specific needs and interventions.

Children receive a package of therapy if an assessment indicates a need. This will often include ongoing support given the nature of their disability.

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Where the service is located and the areas it covers

• Services are located in special schools.

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Who our service provides for

Our service provides for children with a range of disabilities:

• Deafness: from 3 months to 17 years
• Autism, Physical and Learning disability: from 3 years to 19 years

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How a child or young person can start using the service

Most children are assessed for our service in school. All other referrals come through the education service, including educational staff (advisory teachers for the deaf).

There is no waiting list for our service at present.

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How decisions are made about eligibility for our service

Eligibility is according to the needs of the child, and the severity of the impact on their specific area of functioning (e.g. communication/ physical ability) and therapies’ policies.

Parents are fully informed of decisions and the reason for them.

We use interpreters where necessary and pupil-friendly communication in a supportive setting to enable pupils and parents to understand decisions made.

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How we communicate with service users and how they are involved in decision-making/planning

Individual school websites have information about our service and leaflets about therapy services are available in educational settings.

We use interpreters on a regular basis.

We seek the views of our users in a range of ways, through:

• questionnaires
• parent/carer groups
• clinic (medicals and feeding clinics)
• parents’ evenings
• annual review and education planning meetings

Depending on pupil/parent need the medium can be British Sign Language, Makaton signing, symbols, photos or written word.

Parents will know how well their child is doing through regular opportunities to meet with therapists and nurses - for example at planning meetings, school medicals and clinics, and through home visits.

Regular parent/carer training is a core part of service delivery and is very important for children and young people’s development. Collaborative working includes specific parent groups and individualised training at home.

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How accessible our service is

Services are based within special schools and therefore accessible for the specific learning and physical needs of those children e.g. wheelchair accessible with appropriate changing facilities for children and adults, auditory (hearing) environment (for Blanche Neville School).

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Training our staff have had in supporting children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities

All therapists and nurses are registered with Health Professionals Council as well as with their individual professions, for example Chartered Society for Physiotherapy, Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, Royal College of Nursing.

All our staff will receive training for their specialism in line with guidance from their professional body. All our staff also receive regular training and updates in other related areas, eg child protection, disability awareness.

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Who a service user should contact if they want to raise a concern or complain about something

Service users should contact the Lead Therapist for the individual schools, via the schools or the direct therapy telephone line at each base.

Contact details for each school are available on their websites.

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