Community Groups and Services
There are a number of organisations in Haringey that support parents of children with special educational needs or disabilities.
We’ve listed some key organisations below, but you can also check for more organisations with the Bridge Renewal Trust (external link).
- Markfield Community Centre
- SENDIASS
- Haringey Information, Advice and Support (Haringey IAS) Service
- The Challenge Group
- Haringey SEND Parent Carer Forum
- Autism Hub and Actually Haringey
- Disability Action Haringey
- NAS Enfield
- Resources for Autism
- Mums In Mainstream
Markfield Community Centre
Markfield community centre promotes the dignity, choice, independence and community inclusion of disabled people and their families.
In addition to the Parent Partnership Service (see below), Markfield provides a range of other services and initiatives:
- Information, Advice and Advocacy
- Training and events for people with disabilities and their families
- MPower Youth Leadership group
- Planning and setting up social enterprises by adults with learning disabilities
There is more information on the Markfield website (external link).
Autism support:
If your child has been recently diagnosed with autism, or they are on the waiting list for an autism assessment, Markfield offers one-to-one support for parents with advice on how to navigate the autism assessment process. See the Autism support for parents flyer (PDF, 260KB) for details.
Markfield also hosts a monthly social club for young people with autism aged between 12 and 17 years old. See the Autism support for young people flyer (PDF, 247KB).
SENDIASS
The Haringey Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Information, Advice and Support Service (SENDIASS) is provided by Markfield. SENDIASS is a free, impartial and confidential service for Haringey residents.
They offer the following to parents, carers, and children and young people who have (or may have) SEND:
- Help to navigate and understand the procedures and services to support children and young people with SEND, aged from 0 to 25 years
- Advice about your options to access education, health and social care services
- Support to contribute your views to assessments and reviews, fill in forms and prepare for meetings
- Help when things go wrong, including support and disagreement resolution and mediation
- Support around school exclusions, and with complaints/appeals on SEND-related matters
Contact details
Please contact the SENDIASS team:
- Email sendiass@markfield.org.uk
- Phone 020 8802 2611
Helpline times:
- 9.30am to 5pm, Monday to Friday, plus extended hours in school term times:
- until 7pm on Wednesdays
- until 6pm on Thursdays
If you cannot get through, please leave a short message with your phone number and they will call you back.
Family Club drop-in
Drop-in to SENDIASS's monthly Family Club at the Markfield Centre, in Markfield Park, Tottenham, N15 4RB.
This takes place on the second Saturday each month in school term-times - from 11.30am to 2.30pm.
See the SENDIASS brochure (PDF, 1MB) for more information on their services.
Haringey Information, Advice and Support (Haringey IAS) Service
The Haringey Information, Advice and Support (Haringey IAS) Service is provided by Markfield community centre. It is a confidential service that:
- supports parents to get their views and the views of their child known, understood and valued
- helps parents to make informed decisions
- listens to parents’ concerns
- advises parents on special educational needs (SEN) procedures
There is more information on the Markfield website (external link).
The Challenge Group
The Challenge Group is a Christian Organisation that welcomes those of all faiths and none. It is free to attend and offers a playgroup and support group for families with a baby or child with additional needs, massage, homemade cakes, fruit, tea and coffee and a space to feel welcomed and heard.
All the team are DBS checked.
- Challenge play/support group details (PDF, 912KB)
- Read more: The Challenge Playgroup (PDF, 174KB)
- There is more information on the Challenge Playgroup website (external link)
You can also check for more organisations with the Bridge Renewal Trust (external link).
Haringey SEND Parent Carer Forum
The Haringey SEND Parent Carer Forum is open to all parents and carers of children and young people (up to 25) with Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities who live, or access services, in Haringey.
Our main role is to gather parents’ and carers’ views on the services that our children and young people receive, and to represent these views in meetings with the Local Authority, Health, Education, and Social Care departments.
Our aim is to improve the lives and outcomes of Haringey’s children and young people by improving the services on offer, and to empower their parents and carers in the process.
Find out more about the Haringey SEND Parent Carer Forum (external link).
Autism Hub and Actually Haringey
In Waltheof Gardens, N17.
A day Centre for Autism with learning difficulties, and a separate centre for adults with Aspergers/ high functioning autism with a wide range of activities and sessions, and advice.
Find out more about Actually Haringey
Disability Action Haringey
For help with welfare benefits, housing, care, transport, Blue badge and other issues. Based at Winkfield Centre, Winkfield Rd, N22
Find out more about Disability Action Haringey (external link)
NAS Enfield
Coffee mornings, children's trampolining and more. Find out more about NAS Enfield (external link)
Resources for Autism
Lots of activity groups for children and adults with autism, art therapy, holiday playschemes, advice, behavioural support, volunteer befrienders and more. Mostly in Temple Fortune but some groups in Haringey. Find out more about Resources for Autism (external link)
Mums In Mainstream
Mums In Mainstream is a support group for Mums of kids with an autism diagnosis. We provide a peer network and a supportive environment for all stages of the autism journey.
It is not a group for professionals working within the field of autism and is not a general SEN group. Our ethos is "neurodiversity-positive" meaning we exist to support ourselves and our kids through their autistic journeys and consider autism as a different way of being and not a deficit or illness which needs curing.
We operate through our Facebook page where we aim to inform and discuss issues of relevance and we also arrange regular social events in the Haringey area (as well as workshops and talks) aimed at furthering our understanding of autism and the related issues. All these events are listed on our Facebook page. Our kids attend mainstream and special schools, autism provisions, colleges and in some cases, no school at all.
We are currently independent, unaffiliated, and unfunded. We are warm, friendly and welcoming. For all enquiries contact us through the Mums In Mainstream Facebook page (external link) or direct message via Facebook.
