Wiltshire Local SEND Reform Plan 2026

Local SEND Reform Plan Developing a Local SEND Reform Plan is an important first step for local areas to set out how they will lay the foundation for reform, and design an approach tailored to their local context. A shared plan which focuses on co-designing the local approach as system partners and with children, young people and families will help foster collective responsibility for delivering the reforms. It is critical that all system partners, including health, education and childcare settings, work together to design and deliver the Local SEND Reform Plan, under the local authority’s leadership. It is also crucial that representative family carers e.g. the local Parent Carer Forum, are involved in the development of the plan. The expectation is that this plan is discussed, agreed, and signed off at your relevant SEND Governance Board. As a minimum, the plan must be formally signed off by the Local Authority Chief Executive (CEO), the Integrated Care Board (ICB) Chief Executive, the Local Authority Director of Children’s Service (DCS), the Integrated Care Board NHS Place Director, and the Local Authority Chief Financial Officer (CFO/Section 151 Officer). We encourage other colleagues and partners who have contributed to also review and sign-off the plan, particularly early years, school, college and trust leaders. Name of Local Authority: Wiltshire Council Name of Integrated Care Board: NHS B&NES, Swindon, Wiltshire ICB Local SEND Reform Plan SRO: Jen Salter, Corporate Director for Children and Education (DCS) Signatories

Executive Summary A brief summary of your local system ‘change story’ – your local context, where you are now, where you want to get to in the next 3 years, how you know you are succeeding and how you will know you have achieved your vision for the next 3 years. Please include a brief qualitative summary. This summary should also include your assessment of current and forecast performance against the headline metrics.

Please structure your ‘change story’ using the following aims:

 Build a 0-25 system where children and young people receive support to achieve and thrive through (a) more inclusive settings and (b) stronger local partnerships

 Improve capacity and capability of the mainstream and specialist workforce to identify and meet need

 Improve confidence of children, families, and stakeholders in reform and readiness of the system

 Stabilise finances and improve value for money

500 words Wiltshire is an effective local area partnership with strong performance outcomes and a track record of improvement. Our recent inspections recognise that children and young people with SEND are valued and prioritised, and we have improved performance in areas such as Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP) timeliness, attendance, attainment and progress. We have also built strong foundations in co-production, working in partnership with parent carers and young people across a large rural county.

However, we are not complacent. Demand for EHCPs continues to rise, particularly in neurodevelopmental and Social Emotional Mental Health (SEMH) need, and we need to intervene earlier and differently. In practice, the way for families and schools to access support has been through an EHCP. This has created a system where statutory processes are seen as a gateway to support rather than a last resort. This is the problem we are determined to solve.

Our ambition is to build a coherent 0-25 system where children and young people receive support to achieve and thrive through inclusive settings and strong, accountable partnerships. Over the next three years, we will fundamentally rebalance the system so that inclusion is everyone’s responsibility, and when additional support is required, it is easier to access, earlier in the child’s journey, and available without escalation. We will move from a system where families must “wait or push” for help, to one where support across Education, Health and Care is predictable and routinely available at the point of need.

This plan is rooted in lived experience and supported by clear data analysis. We have engaged schools, parent carers, children and young people through workshops, surveys and existing forums to build a strong evidence base. The message was clear: families want earlier help, clearer pathways, and confidence that needs will be met without entering statutory processes.

Our approach is built around four connected shifts: consistent inclusive practice within settings; earlier and easier access to specialist support; strong system leadership and partnership; and shared accountability for inclusion. These are underpinned by improvements in workforce capacity and capability, integrated data and insight, clear pathways including to Health support and Family Help, and capital investment aligned to inclusion.

We will know we are succeeding through measurable changes. We expect to see reduced EHC needs assessment requests, improved attendance and engagement, and more children supported effectively within mainstream settings. Fewer families will report difficulty accessing support, and confidence from early years through to post 16 for families will increase as the system becomes more predictable and responsive.

This reform will also stabilise the system financially and improve value for money by shifting investment upstream, reducing reliance on high-cost specialist and independent placements and ensuring resources are used earlier, where they have the greatest impact.

Wiltshire’s change story is therefore bold and deliberate: building on strong foundations and lived experience to deliver a step change from a system where inclusive practices are not consistent and early intervention is provided too late, to one where all children are genuinely included, help comes early, easily and routinely, so that every child and young person can thrive, with their holistic needs having been determined and met.

Section 1 – Vision and Goals 1. What the local area partnership is trying to achieve? Please set out your goals for your local system. These should be clear, aligned to the vision set out in the Schools White Paper, small in number and measurable. These goals should include clear reference to:

 Outcomes for children  Confidence of parents, carers and young people in the system  Management of finances to secure value for money

250 words The co-produced vision for Wiltshire’s SEND, Inclusion and Alternative Provision (AP) Strategy 2024-2029, is “To create a future where every young person in Wiltshire has the tools and support needed to thrive and achieve their dreams. We want to support children and young people to be aspirational and hopeful, to increase their confidence, to have the resources to live the futures they want to live and to foster a culture of empowerment and inclusion.”

This vision commits Wiltshire to a SEND system that is ambitious, inclusive by default, and focused on enabling positive life outcomes, aligned with the School’s White Paper. Our SEND Reform Plan translates this ambition into goals focussed on improving outcomes by supporting inclusive mainstream settings, reducing avoidable escalation into high-cost provision, and using public resources more effectively through earlier intervention.

• Children and young people with SEND achieve positive life outcomes across the whole county Measured through attendance, exclusions, and educational outcomes.
• Wiltshire’s mainstream settings are consistent, capable and accountable for meeting a wide range of needs Measured through patterns of demand and variation in SEND outcomes between settings.
• Families and young people experience a SEND system that is clear, responsive and trustworthy Measured through survey data, qualitative feedback and timely escalation.
• Support is coordinated around need through joined-up, timely system responses Measured through timeliness and qualitative feedback.
• Resources are used earlier, locally and deliberately to secure long-term sustainability Measured through INMSS reduction, finance data, and value for money analysis.

Please note, throughout this plan, coverage of the Core Requirements is flagged using [TAG5] in square brackets.

The key for these tags, as well as an index of their locations, can be found in Annex 1 along with a Glossary of Local Terms.

Section 2 – Strategy 2. Where the local area partnership expects to be in the next 3 years

A description of what your local system would look like in the next 3 years in line with the national vision set out in the Schools White Paper and set within the context of where you are starting from as a local system.

In particular, as commissioning system partners, you should reflect on and agree what your fully fledged Experts At Hand Offer model should be and how this will be deployed via mainstream settings and providers (including those not based in your area – e.g. further education colleges attended by your young people) to build their capacity as well as identify and meet the needs of children and young people earlier and without the need for a statutory assessment for Education, Health and Care.

To help you fully consider the scope and scale of change required, you may find it useful to structure your response using these 4 building blocks of an inclusive system, reflecting on what is working well in your system, what you are most worried about, what needs to change, and how the enablers will help you achieve your 3 year vision.

When summarising where your local area partnership currently is, please include an assessment of where you are in reference to the core minimum requirements above and how you bridge the gap, making reference to and attaching additional documents that provide underlying evidence for your summary.

system, driven by continued growth in EHCPs (7,171 as of June 2026, +6.3% year-on-year) and a 5-year increase concentrated in SEMH, Speech, Language and Communication Needs (SLCN) and Autism, which together account for 88.8% of growth. Demand is further characterised by increasing complexity of need and pressure at transition points, particularly into secondary and post-16 provision. [SPP1]

While mainstream pupil numbers have grown by only 2% since 2019, special school populations have increased by 63%, reflecting system reliance on specialist provision. Wiltshire also has comparatively low special school capacity and continued reliance on independent placements, creating financial and sufficiency pressure. [SPP1]

Wiltshire has a strong early years market with good overall availability (sufficiency) of childcare places across the county. Early years SEND provision is supported through district specialist centres and targeted early years pathways, with increasing alignment to Family Hubs. [EPU7]

However, provision for children with complex and emerging needs is uneven, with variability in provider confidence and access to specialist input. Demand pressures linked to rising neurodevelopmental need and speech, language and communication needs are not yet fully matched by consistent, locality-based early years SEND capacity. [EPU7]

Our HN Capital Plan (Annex 5) is anchored around supporting CYP to be educated locally, minimising travel times, wherever possible. Our MSS coverage and plans in all main areas of Primary Need supports a clear geographical offer with journey times typically less than 45 mins. Similarly our existing/planned SRB and PRB coverage and Enhanced Learning Provision proposals prioritise the need to offer local solutions within all main county towns, supporting typical travel times of 20 mins or less. [SPP8]

Capacity and pathway pressures across education, social care and health mean specialist support can arrive late, particularly therapies, adult social care and mental health support, leading to unplanned escalation to statutory or crisis support requests. [EPU3, EAH7, PSX2]

There are no signs that parent carers are concerned about the independence of SENDIASS in Wiltshire, and it is seen as a trusted (if underused) resource. [CPR3]

information. This parental access, which is seen as a local priority, will be balanced through the staff that Wiltshire Council is using to augment the EAH offer, not funded from the EAH grant itself. [EAH7, CPR3, EPU8]

EAH governance sits within the SEND and AP Improvement Board, and it is supported by the Principal Educational Psychologist as single SRO for the Experts at Hand delivery. Reporting into that role are the QA leads, who monitor delivery and the quality of advice being given. [EAH9, PRT1]

Children and young people will have access to a coherent continuum of provision, with support available at the right level at the right time supported through a Local Authority led, mature Experts at Hand model which operates from Early Years to Post 16. [SPP6, EAH1]

Alternative Provision will be fully integrated as a purposeful part of the system, supporting reintegration and positive outcomes, aligned to the three-tier model. AP capacity challenges will have been reduced through a system-design response, reducing existing levels of reliance on AP. Where this is insufficient, targeted contracting will be used to increase flexible, short-term capacity. [EAH4, EAH5]

Wiltshire will strengthen collaboration with MATs and schools through a structured co-planning approach to sufficiency, moving from opportunistic site identification to a jointly owned pipeline of provision. This includes:

annual sufficiency planning sessions with MATs aligned to updated demand analysis (including EHCP growth and primary need trends)

shared mapping of available estate capacity, including opportunities created by falling rolls and underutilised space

early engagement with trusts to identify potential host sites and assess readiness (leadership capacity, inclusion maturity, estate suitability)

joint development of business cases for inclusion bases, including agreement on cohort, model and long-term sustainability

consideration of rurality, travel distances and local demand concentration when determining scale, location and model of provision

This approach builds on increasing proactive engagement from MATs, with trusts now actively approaching the local authority to develop new provision aligned to national reform expectations. [SPP3, SPP4, SPP7, SPP8]

A strengthened local offer, focused on both inclusive provision and inclusive practice, will enable more children to be supported close to home. Delivery models will be flexed to reflect Wiltshire’s rural geography and dispersed communities, including blended outreach, hub-and-spoke provision, and flexible use of estate to ensure provision remains viable, accessible and context- appropriate across all localities. [SPP7]

Wiltshire will implement a comprehensive early years sufficiency model that brings together:

a refreshed assessment of childcare place availability across all localities

mapped and expanded specialist early years SEND provision, including district specialist centres and inclusive mainstream capacity

a shared analysis of current and future demand for children with complex and emerging needs.

This will be underpinned by integrated data from education, health and Family Hubs, enabling proactive identification of gaps and targeted development of provision. [EPU7]

Together, these steps directly respond to identified sufficiency pressures by increasing mainstream capacity to accommodate EHCP growth, reducing reliance on specialist and independent placements, and aligning provision growth to demand trends set out in Annex 5. [SPP1, SPP2] System leadership, local partnership collaboration and co-production System leadership, partnership collaboration and co production System leadership, partnership collaboration and co-production

We have a good baseline through our Annual Survey with parent carers (450 respondents), schools (120 respondents) and children and young people (workshops led by Wilthsire CIL and the LA’s Voice and Participation Team). We are looking to expand so that we can monitor experience across the SEND System.

We have a strong co-production baseline, validated by OFSTED/CQC who said “Coproduction is consistently embedded across the system, with children, young people and families actively shaping design, delivery and evaluation of services. [CPR1, CPR2]

The next step is to make this more consistent across all workstreams, with stronger feedback loops, wider reach into under-represented groups (e.g. those accessing AP), and clearer evidence of how lived experience shapes decisions. [CPR2]

We are currently reviewing the funding that goes to the PCF to ensure that they receive what they need for effective service delivery, and that the system is getting value for money. The council has a strong history of providing financial support to the PCF for discrete pieces of work (eg. funding of a PINS co-ordinator to ensure the PCF had capacity for that work) [CPR1]

School, Setting and peer-led improvement is developing but not yet consistent across the system; the role of SENCOs as strategic leaders of inclusion is variable, with capacity and influence often constrained by operational pressures rather than being fully utilised to drive whole- setting and system-wide improvement.

Early years, schools, MATs and further education settings currently sit on all partnership boards, with appropriate links to Schools Forums to support coherent engagement across all settings [PRT2]

Wiltshire has strong dispute resolution outcomes, with 86% of appeals resolved without a Tribunal hearing (compared to 43% nationally). Most cases are concluded through early, constructive engagement and compromise with families, demonstrating a system that listens, responds and seeks agreement wherever possible. [MED1, MED2, PRT5]

Governance is maturing, but decision-making challenges remain for differences in statutory frameworks i.e. thresholds for adult social care as young people transition to adulthood from children’s services.

The Local Authority’s Family Help offer alone cannot provide all preventative support to families, leaving unmet need if families are unable to access resources from the voluntary sector or settings are unable to provide the required level of preventative support. [EPU3]

In Wiltshire, this building block means creating a system where education, health and care partners work as one: sharing leadership, accountability and decision-making with children, young people and families.

The system will operate with clear, aligned governance and shared accountability across education, health and care with joint governance and shared accountability aligned to national reform expectations. [PRT1, EAH10]

The Annual SEND Survey will continue to be undertaken monitoring experiences in Wiltshire and identifying opportunities to continue improving. This survey captures the voice of schools, children and young people and parent carers. The survey covers confidence in inclusion, where people go to get advice (including monitoring the use of and trust in the PCF and SENDIASS), and quality of services and advice. [CPR1, CPR2, CPR3]

Co-production will be consistently embedded across planning, delivery and assurance, with children, young people and families routinely shaping priorities, testing change and seeing clear evidence of impact through strong feedback loops. We will ensure that the PCF are properly resourced to provide the support needed in our system. [CPR1, CPR2]

A strong school-led, peer-led system where SENCOs operate as strategic leaders of inclusion within and across settings, with protected capacity and clear system roles, driving consistent practice, supporting workforce development and leading improvement through locality clusters. Schools and settings (including Early Years and Post-16) will continue to play a substantive role on the SEND and AP Improvement Board, and will drive system priorities. [PRT1, PRT2]

Wiltshire will strengthen mediation through an independently commissioned regional service, with enhanced co-production, service-user feedback and robust KPIs on experience, timeliness and outcomes. Improved data capture and shared learning across authorities will ensure continuous improvement and that system partners can address issues early and consistently, supported by transparent escalation routes. [MED1, MED2, PRT5]

The Family Help model will be consistently understood and applied, providing coordinated, multi-agency early support. There will be strong recognition of the child and the family context, and for holistic responses to be in place which respond to individual and familial need. Partnership working will be embedded across reforms, with clear roles and responsibilities. Co-production will be a core feature of decision making and delivery, with children, young people, the PCF and families influencing decisions and shaping services through consistent feedback loops. [EPU3, PRT1, CPR1, CPR2]

Encouraging inclusive culture and behaviours Encouraging inclusive culture and behaviours Encouraging inclusive culture and behaviours

There are strong areas of inclusive culture and practitioner commitment across the system.

Although experiences and outcomes are typically positive for children, young people and families in Wiltshire, the partnership is not complacent. There is a well-defined ambition to meet the needs of all, as set out in the current SEND, Inclusion and AP Strategy.

Quality assurance is improving and can be described as strong in parts of the system e.g. QA of AP; Qa of EHCPs. However, this QA practice is not yet consistently applied to reduce variation in the inclusion offer

In Wiltshire, this building block means creating a culture where inclusion is expected, lived and championed across the system, so that every setting takes shared responsibility for meeting need well.

There will be a consistent, system-wide expectation of inclusion shaped by CYP and families, with strong leadership at all levels reinforcing shared accountability for outcomes. Variation between settings will be reduced through robust quality assurance, feedback from CYP and Families (where appropriate, led by the PCF), peer support and challenge. Children, young people and families will experience a more predictable and equitable system, with clearer pathways and improved confidence in the support available. [CPR1, CPR2, PRT1]

3. What is the local area partnership’s strategy for delivering on the above? A brief summary of your local system’s theory of change or reform strategy. Reflect on the output of your Local Partnership Maturity Assessment Tool, particularly your Local System ‘change story.’

Wiltshire’s maturity assessment and recent OFSTED/CQC inspections show a strong foundation for the next phase of reform. System leadership and governance are established, the workforce is increasing ly confident and connected, and co-production with the Parent Carer Forum and voluntary sector is well embedded. The system is already aligned behind a SEND, Inclusion and AP Strategy that reflects the direction of national reform and is integrated with wider programmes, including Families First Partnership, Best Start in Life, improving Preparation for Adulthood and Neighbourhood Health, supporting earlier intervention and more coordinated support around children and families. Development of this plan, and the EAH model, has focussed on engaging partners on shaping what the offer needs to look like to go further. [PRT1, CPR1, EPU3, EPU6, EAH2, PSX1] Our strategy for change is to build on these strengths, using the levers across aligned reform programmes to strengthen the universal and targeted offer and drive consistently high standards across the county. This will enable more children and young people to have their needs met earlier in mainstream settings, reducing reliance on statutory processes and avoid able escalation to specialist placements and ultimately into higher intensity Adult Care Packages. Through this approach, we will continue the transformation journey begun under Safety Valve by prioritising earlier identific ation and intervention, supported by Experts at Hand and a clearly defined universal offer, so that needs are

met in mainstream wherever possible. [EAH3, EPU1, EPU3, SPP2, PSX1] The maturity assessment also identifies the areas that now require the strongest focus: further strengthening partnership working, improving the use of data so the system becomes genuinely insight led, and ensuring children, young people and families can consistently access the right support at the right time. These priorities are reflected explicitly in the first year delivery plan, with clear governance, oversight and joint accountability across education, health and care for implementation and impact. [EAH10, PRT1, PRT3] Success will be seen in improved inclusion, attainment and attendance, reduced avoidable escalation including EHCP demand, st ronger confidence among families, schools and settings, and improved value for money through a more integrated system. Wiltshire is confident that this next phase is credible and deliverable because it is grounded in an agreed partnership model, a sequenced first year programme of work, and routine performance review to identify slippage early and take corrective action where needed. [PRT1, PRT3]

• Please upload a completed copy of the Local Partnership Maturity Assessment Tool.

Included as Annex 2

5. What is the local area partnership roadmap for the next 3 years? Reflecting on the broad timescales and expectation for deliverables set out in the Schools White Paper, key documents and core minimum requirements set out in this document, please provide a high-level roadmap for the next 3 years. Please highlight key milestones and a trajectory to the target metrics identified above, including leading indicators. In the 2026-27 column, in particular, please reference how you plan to meet the core minimum requirements in your narrative, including details and evidence in supporting documents. You can insert or upload supporting documents including graphics/visuals that illustrate your data trajectory.

earlier intervention, stronger mainstream inclusion and more consistent delivery across the county. (EAH1, EAH10, EAH11, EPU1, EPU3, PRT1, PRT3]

Strengthening inclusion across education settings

 Consistent, high-quality inclusive practice across all settings

Reducing variation Reducing variation Reducing variation  Work with SENCOs and Cluster Leads directly to co-design tools to support implementation of the inclusion offer, including review of the Inclusion Toolkit to align with National Inclusion Standards [EPU1, EPU2]  Support further embedding of the Graduated Response, reducing risk of unnecessary escalation without appropriate implementation of ‘assess, plan, do, review’ activity. [EPU1, EPU3]  Support schools and settings to create and publish Inclusion Strategy plans, detailing quality first teaching, adaptive strategies, evidence-based interventions, and impact measures. [EPU1, EPU3, EPU4]  Expand access to lived-experience-informed training, scaling the PINS approach, to ensure our work is focussed on evidence-based interventions that will make a difference. [EPU4, CPR2]  Use confidence surveys completed with Mainstream Inclusion School Advisor (MISA) support to baseline confidence in provision of SEND Support [PRT3]  Embed inclusive practice standards and accreditation model [EPU1, EPU4]  Development of shared inclusion dashboard to support benchmarking and evidence-based decision making [PRT1, PRT3]  Strengthen transitions protocols and practice, informed by consistent information flow and timely, effective specialist support. [PSX2, EPU9]  Develop a fully co‑ordinated SEND workforce development and accountability framework across the whole partnership. [PRT1, PRT3, PRT4]  Inclusion embedded as universal practice [EAH10, PRT1, PRT3, EPU3, SPP2]  Consistent expectations across schools and settings  Embed inclusion as “everyone’s business”, reducing reliance on specialist escalation. [EPU1, EPU3, SPP2]  Evidence reduced variation in SEN Support practice and confidence. [EPU3, PRT3, PRT4]  Focus on: o Reducing variation through shared commitment to agreed inclusion standards o SENCo leadership at a strategic level and practical measures to ‘free up’ these experts from operational burdens o Securing consistency of ordinarily available provision o Developing Neurodivergence/EBSA / SEMH practice so that needs are identified and met earlier.

SENCO leadership  SENCOs operating as strategic system leaders within clusters [PRT4, EPU3]  Protected time universally implemented and sustained to ensure consistent delivery of the universal offer across schools [EPU1]  Established career pathway and succession pipeline  SENCOs co-leading:  locality planning  inclusion QA  workforce development [PRT1, PRT3, PRT4] SENCO leadership  SENCOs operating with protected time and clearer strategic remit, with reduced operational burden and increased focus on whole-setting inclusion and early intervention [EPU1, EPU3, PRT4]  SENCOs actively leading and influencing practice across locality clusters, including peer review, workforce development and shared problem-solving for complex cohorts [PRT1, PRT4, EPU3]  SENCOs embedded within system leadership and improvement architecture, contributing to inclusion QA, cluster-level decision-making and deployment of support (including Experts at Hand as set out in Annex 3) [EAH1, PRT1, PRT4] Consistency of ordinarily available provision SENCO Leadership  Application of OAIP should clearly deliver impact on practice and outcomes which are demonstrated in clear quantitative and qualitative data. [EPU3, EPU4, PRT3]  Demonstrate that OAIP is shaping day‑to‑day decisions, not just documentation [EPU3, EPU4, PRT3]  Review and map SENCO provision and qualifications  Produce guidance and support outlining SENCO roles and responsibilities and support leaders to adopt [EPU1, EPU3]  Offer peer to peer support as well as SENCO networks [EPU3, EPU4]  Ensure there is an emphasis on pastoral support for SENCOs and their teams.

Consistency of ordinarily available provision Neurodivergence / EBSA / SEMH practice  Continued audit of OAIP in schools and settings, refining (improving) the offer in line with maturity of the local system.  Working with the teaching school to ensure SENCos and teachers have the right qualifications and skills through audit and collaboration  Increasing retention and recruitment of SENCOs through appropriate support and succession planning  Fully embedded preventative EBSA model across all settings [EPU3, EPU4]  Holistic EBSA pathways integrating education– health–family help to ensure CAMHS alignment with EAH [EAH3, EPU3, EPU4]  Evidence of: Ordinarily Available Provision  Refresh OAIP, co-designing it with schools through workshop and consultation, and align it to the National Inclusion Standard [EPU1, EPU2]  Enhance the Wiltshire “Best Practice Library” to include a searchable list of inclusive practice in schools, post-16 and early years. [EPU4, EPU6] o reduced persistent absence linked to EBSA o earlier identification of neurodivergence [EPU3, EPU4, PRT3]  Schools routinely using:  Support Leaders to adopt SENCo Guidance Neurodivergence / EBSA / SEMH Practice o relational practice o trauma-informed and neuro-affirmative approaches [EPU4]  Strong family partnership model in place linked to the model set out in Annex 3. [CPR1, PRT1]  Create task and finish groups to identify how to action the recommendations of the report, removing structural barriers to inclusion for neurodivergent learners, including the creation of supporting environments and the promotion of a greater understanding of different ways of thinking and learning. (Neurodivergence Task and Finish Report Feb26) [EPU1, EPU3, EPU4]  Begin work to co‑design the preventative EBSA approach, starting with high‑risk clusters, to identify underlying causes for high rates and evidence-base to address, using a graduated approach. [EAH1, EPU3, EPU4]  Raise awareness that children’s neurodevelopmental needs are frequently expressed via an EBSA presentation in Wiltshire, and guidance around taking a neuro- affirmative approach in this context [EPU3, EPU4]  Using mentoring and the maturing needs- led approach we will improve support for EHE and vulnerable cohorts, including those whose needs may be best understood through a neurodevelopmental pathway. [EPU3, EPU4] Neurodivergence / EBSA / SEMH practice  Embed preventative EBSA approach, ensuring greater parity across settings with specific reference to neurodivergence [EPU3, EPU4]  Schools have attended training around anxious non-attendance in the context of neurodivergence and this is evidenced in behaviour policies and management of individual young people [EPU4]

Access to specialist support and local placements

 Earlier, more predictable access to specialist support

Access before EHCP Access before EHCP Access before EHCP  Clearly define Tier 1 support from Experts at Hand to partners to support and guide around the Universal Offer, including integration with other services (those which are part of the wider EAH offer and those outside it). [EAH1, EAH3, EPU1]  Clear partner expectations to enable communication with partners, settings, schools and parents), this will include the signing of a formal MOU to deliver EAH together. [EAH1, PRT1, PRT4, CPR1]  Recruit Experts at Hand staff [EAH7, EAH8]  Commissioning / mobilisation of outreach capacity from high-quality specialist providers [EAH6]  Review provision of training to co-ordinate national and local offers and bridge gaps providing support at all levels.  Skills and confidence audit on existing school and setting staff (EAH Offer). [EAH7, EAH8, PRT3]  Develop early identification and intervention in the early years, establishing the integration  Develop AP as an integral part of an inclusive approach and embed its position as part of Wiltshire’s SEND continuum, continuing to protect Wiltshire’s very low permanent exclusion rates. [SPP1, SPP2, EAH4]  Embed Best Start Family Hubs as a key access point for early identification and intervention, with clear referral pathways, shared data and integrated support offers across education, health and care. [EPU8]  Utilise cluster infrastructure and greater access to data to improve clear transition pathways from early years to primary and from primary to secondary. [EPU9]  Embed improved transition processes and monitor improved outcomes. [EPU9]  Focus on: o Access before EHCP, without unnecessary barriers/thresholds Locality-based support  Place and integrated sufficiency should be reflected in places + expertise + quality assurance + commissioning [SPP1, SPP6, PRT1]  Routine QA of inclusion bases, specialist bases, AP and outreach offers [PRT3, SPP4, SPP6]  Consistent entry/exit criteria enforced through governance, not negotiation. [PRT5]  Clear, enforced thresholds for AP and inclusion bases [EAH11, PRT5]  MATs operating as co-commissioners of inclusion capacity within clusters, with shared accountability for sufficiency and outcomes [SPP3]  Clear consequences where inclusion bases drift into de‑facto exclusion, including transparent escalation routes. [SPP4, PRT5] o Locality-based support o Therapies / EP access to be increased/improved o Introduction of SALT Advanced Practitioner o Reducing bottlenecks and securing clear ‘waiting well’ principles Locality-based support  Scale peer clusters and implementation support to ensure clear practice around evaluation [EPU3, PRT3, PRT4]  Embed continuous professional learning through a multi‑agency professional learning hub.

 Embed consistent quality assurance framework for Inclusion Bases and ELP, including outcome tracking and experience measures. [SPP4]  Jointly agree pipeline of inclusion base developments across MATs aligned to geographic location, rurality, excess capacity and primary need gaps [SPP3, SPP5, SPP7]  Embed inclusion within school and setting improvement processes, with high quality adaptive teaching as a non-negotiable expectation across EY settings, colleges and schools. [EPU1, EPU4, PRT4]  Improve transparency of school and setting inclusion strategy and SEND funding use [PRT1, PRT3, PRT4]  Co-produce parent engagement strategy with clusters [CPR1, PRT4]

 Fully implement sufficiency and capital strategy to meet identified need, including adaptation to existing school environments [SPP1, SPP6]  Reduce reliance on high-cost out-of-area placements [SPP1, SPP2, SPP6]  Start work to support the alignment of pastoral and SEND teams (particularly in secondary) so that behaviour/ SEMH is understood as a communication of unmet need and potential neurodivergence is identified more quickly [SPP1, SPP2]

with Best Start Family Hubs, enabling earlier identification of SEND need, improved access to advice and support for families, and clearer pathways into the graduated response.” [EPU8]  Mapping early years transition pathways. [EPU9]  Wiltshire continuum of provision defined and published. [EPU3]

Locality-based support  Use existing maps of Resource Base provision (Annex 5) as a starting point to baseline provision of support bases to develop strategy for future provision of Bases. [SPP1, SPP6, SPP4]  Establish joint LA–MAT-Diocesan sufficiency planning cycle, including annual review of demand, estate capacity and site opportunities [SPP3]  Collaborative mapping of potential Inclusion Base sites with MATs and schools, including review of existing school premises, adaptation opportunities within the current estate, and use of falling rolls or surplus mainstream capacity where this offers a viable route to creating local provision. [SPP3, SPP4, SPP5]  Agree criteria with MATs for hosting provision (capacity, leadership, inclusion readiness, geography) [SPP3]  Undertake a comprehensive early years sufficiency assessment across the system, including availability of childcare places, specialist SEND early years provision and identification of gaps for children with complex and emerging needs, working with Best Start Family Hubs and partners to inform highly targeted sufficiency planning. [EPU7]  Develop and publish Wiltshire Inclusion Base Framework, including quality standards, cohort definitions and operating model [SPP1, SPP6, SPP4]  Develop a co-produced Wiltshire Primary and Secondary Specialist Base Strategy [SPP1, SPP4, SPP6] Therapies / EP access through EAH  Consistent access, across all schools and settings, without EHCP dependency as set out in the Three Tier Model in Annex 3 [EPU3, EAH11]  Stable workforce model across Salt, Ot, Ep and CAMHS links [EAH1, EAH3, EAH7]  Demonstrable: Therapies / EP access through EAH o reduced waiting times o increased early intervention o improved functional outcomes in education settings [EPU3, EPU4, EAH7]  Therapies embedded into:  Deliver locality-based integrated therapy model (Ep, Salt, Ot) [EAH3, EAH7]  Standardised triage and referral process across education and health to ensure equity of access [EAH3, EAH7, EAH11]  Measurable reduction in waiting times and improved pre-EHCP access [EPU3, EAH7, PRT3]  Joint education health review of impact [EAH10, PRT1, PRT3] o locality teams o school planning o system QA processes [EAH3, EPU4] Reducing bottlenecks  Sustained low levels of delay across EHCNA, placement and therapy access [EPU3, EAH7]  Majority of needs met at non-statutory level without escalation [EPU3, SPP2]  Increased provision of support for post 16 pathways from multi-agency teams utilising relevant specialist support. [PSX1, PSX2]  Strong early intervention pathway preventing system pressure [EPU3, SPP1, SPP2, PSX1]  Through strengthened early intervention and consistent access to group‑based specialist support within mainstream settings, more needs will be met earlier and locally, reducing escalation into out‑of‑area placements and associated travel requirements. [EPU3, EPU5]  Transparent system flow data used for continuous improvement [PRT3] Reducing bottlenecks  Reduce delays through: - earlier help pathways - improved advice timeliness (EP/health contributions) [EAH3, EAH7, EPU3]  Scaling of improved post 16 pathways, supporting young people to access education, training, employment and supported internships. [PSX1, PSX2] Wider Experts at Hand  Scale up Experts at Hand offer, bringing more registered professionals into the team [EAH1, EAH7, EAH8]  Scaling and embedding specialist outreach and short-term inreach placements from high-quality specialist providers, as a core function [EAH6]  Ensure clear multi-agency pathways, including integration with services funded elsewhere, and consistent access [EAH3, EAH11] Therapies / EP access through EAH  Agree ICB–LA joint access principles for therapies (Salt, Ot, CAMHS, EP) aligned to graduated response [EAH7, EAH10, EAH11]  Map current therapy capacity, referral routes, thresholds and waiting times (Wiltshire- specific) [EAH7, PRT3]  Introduce “waiting well” model co-designed with health, including school-based strategies while awaiting input, to include those on the Wider Experts at Hand  Experts at Hand fully embedded as standard system infrastructure with clear authority, access and accountability, including high- quality outreach offer commissioned from specialist providers where appropriate, and performance monitoring through regular  Embed within workforce development and inclusion practice neurodevelopmental pathway [EPU3, EPU4, EAH3, PRT1]  Establish multi-agency consultation model (no referral required) for schools via Experts at Hand, accessible to all schools and settings including out of area FE colleges that have local young people with SEND attending [EAH7, EAH11]  Develop integrated therapy pathways (education + health) for key cohorts (Nd, Ebsa, SEMH) aligning the EAH offer with wider sets of services [EAH3, EAH7, EPU3, EPU4]  Recruit SALT Advanced Practitioner in partnership with other LAs in the Cluster. This role will begin to direct strategic approach for: reporting to the EAH Assurance and Monitoring Group, and SEND and AP Improvement Board. [EAH1, EAH6, EAH10, EAH11] o triage need earlier o support school staff capability o reduce inappropriate referrals [EPU3, EPU4, EAH3, EAH7] Reducing bottlenecks  Continue the Maintained Special School Build Programme (e.g. increasing places through the special free school programme) to improve ratio of provision reducing pressure on INMSS [SPP1, SPP2, SPP6]  Planning and piloting options to improve post 16 pathways, supporting young people to access education, training, employment and supported internships. [PSX1, PSX2] Experts at Hand (set out in Annex 3)  Create clear architecture for Experts at Hand aligning support, advice and expertise, including integration with other services or offers funded separately [EAH1, EAH3, EAH11]  Shape the requirements for the Expert at Hand offer, including role descriptions, allocation and monitoring [EAH1, EAH3, EAH8, EAH9]

System leadership, local partnership collaboration and co-production

 Integrated system leadership and joint accountability

Governance simplification ICB engagement ICB engagement  Reduce duplication of boards and forums,  Strengthen governance clarity, decision  ICB fully embedded as equal partner in SEND  Focus on: improving clarity and transparency of escalation routes. [PRT1, PRT5]  Develop a multi‑agency workforce strategy, pathways and ICB engagement [PRT1, PRT5] system leadership [PRT1, PRT2]  Shared accountability for: o outcomes o spend o waiting times [PRT1, PRT3, PRT5]  Joint workforce, commissioning, and data o ICB engagement as restructure concludes o Governance simplification, reflecting alignment of national reforms beyond SEND e.g. Best Start in Life, Families First Partnership Programme o Joint commissioning at scale o Alignment with Families First Partnership and Best Start in Life delivery plans o Co-production feeds into all decision making Governance Simplification  Single, coherent governance system starting with a shared training needs analysis. [PRT1, EAH8, EPU1]  Undertake a Maturity Assessment a year after understood across all partners [PRT1, PRT5]  Undertake a Maturity Assessment to monitor progress [PRT3]  Fully implement integrated SEND governance systems fully aligned [PRT1, PRT3, EAH10] the initial one was completed (Feb 27) to monitor progress [PRT3] Governance simplification structure (LA + ICB + education partners)  Settings, Schools and Multi Academy Trusts will be key drivers of the reforms with collective responsibility for improving outcomes, reducing variation, and ensuring that children and young people’s needs are met as early as possible within mainstream provision.

 Scale up Wiltshire Cluster Model to incorporate  Undertake a Maturity Assessment to ensure we maintaining formal representation from WPCC, early years, schools, MATs and further education. [PRT1, PRT2, PRT5, CPR1]  Clarify decision-making authority and all schools and settings with clear governance and localised decision-making processes so system partners can address issues early [PRT4, PRT1, PRT5]  Creation of task and finish groups for key plan are ready to implement SEND Reforms [PRT3]  Mediation and dispute resolution outcomes are routinely monitored and used alongside performance and experience data to drive system improvement and maintain high levels of early resolution. [MED2] accountability at each level [PRT5, PRT1]  Introduce single reporting dashboard across  Focus on: o Implementing trust and ‘responsible body’ wide inclusion strategies aligned to Wiltshire’s inclusion framework and national standards o Actively identifying and addressing variation in practice and outcomes between schools within their trust (or for the relevant responsible body) o Deploying expertise and resources flexibly across their settings to meet need earlier and more effectively o Participating in and shaping locality cluster arrangements to support collective accountability priorities to drive delivery led by practicing head teachers seconded into the LA [PRT1, PRT4]  Map all SEND governance forums and identify partnership [PRT3, PRT1] Joint commissioning Alignment with Family First Partnership and Best Start in Life  Alignment with Family First Partnership and where simplification or clearer purpose is needed to make the flow of decisions more transparent. [PRT1, PRT5]  Examine existing staff structures within LA and  Seamless 0–25 pathway aligned to Family Help Best Start in Life [PRT1, EPU3, EPU6]  Pilot pooled / aligned budgets for priority and early years systems [EPU6, EPU3, PRT1]  Clear front door and navigation for families and cohorts (Nd/Semh/EBSA) [PRT1, EAH10, PRT5]  Introduce a consistent mediation performance professionals [PRT1, PRT5]  Early intervention significantly reducing structure to meet needs of future developments  Develop QA process for clusters [PRT3, PRT4]  Align SEND delivery with Family Help front framework, including metrics on timeliness, resolution rates and effectiveness, with regular reporting into governance to support monitoring, accountability and continuous improvement. [MED2]  Embed value-for-money and outcomes tracking escalation into SEND statutory systems [EPU3, PRT3] door and early help pathways [EPU3, PRT1]  Ensure SEND is embedded in BSIL and Family Coproduction feeds into all decision-making Help delivery plans [EPU3, EPU6, PRT1]  Clarify navigation for schools and families  Co-production fully embedded and influencing all levels [CPR1, PRT1] across services [PRT1] [PRT3, PRT5]  Shift investment toward early intervention and Joint commissioning  Develop joint LA–ICB commissioning practice local provision [EPU3, SPP1]  Align commissioning decisions to impact and [PRT1]  Agree shared outcomes framework (education value-for-money evidence [PRT3, PRT5] + health + care) [PRT3, PRT1]  Develop baseline spend map across LA and Coproduction feeds into all decision-making  Support schools and health providers to ICB [PRT3, PRT1]  Identify quick-win commissioning changes (e.g.

implement the minimum co-production standard, including through self-assessment and audit [CPR4]  Ensure that “You Said, We Did” feedback loops

block therapy capacity, locality offers) [PRT5, PRT1]  Begin pooled budget exploration for therapies

are being used by decision-makers to ensure voice of CYP is continuing to drive improvement.[CPR2]

and early intervention [PRT1, EAH10] Coproduction feeds into all decision-making  Complete review of the funding received by the PCF and consider additional requirements to support SEND Reforms. [CPR1]  Publish engagement & co-production strategy, setting out a minimum co-production standard that makes clear how partners should engage with parent carers, including through the PCF, children and young people, and schools or settings. [CPR1, CPR2, CPR4]  Implement “You Said, We Did” feedback loops, including how the voice of children and young people has changed our system [CPR1, CPR2, PRT3]  Launch co-production audit and training [CPR1, CPR2]  Strengthen local mediation and dispute resolution arrangements to ensure timely, accessible resolution for families and aligning these processes with wider co-production and feedback loops. [MED1]

Encouraging inclusive culture and behaviours

 Clear expectations and accountability for inclusion

Challenging outliers Challenging outliers Challenging outliers  Identify initial outlier settings using baseline data, and enable local leaders to address concerns [PRT3, PRT5]  Introduce support-first model:  Structured challenge and support for outliers [PRT5, PRT4]  Outlier model fully embedded within peer-led accountability system [PRT4]  Clusters routinely use local decision-making processes to: o identify variation o intervene early o Minimal reliance on top-down challenge [PRT4, PRT5]  Focus on: o Challenging outliers using new accountability measures, such as new inclusion standards (national and local) o System ownership – building on existing co-production principles and practice in the local areas. o Consistent expectations across schools and settings – inclusion standards and ordinarily available provision.

System ownership  Embed co-production into all areas of leadership and governance [CPR1] o Peer review through clusters o Agree escalation pathway where insufficient improvement occurs [PRT4, PRT] Consistent expectations across schools  Develop single multi-agency CYP dataset [PRT3, PRT1]  EY Setting, School, College and MAT leaders will: System ownership System ownership o Ensure consistent and high-quality implementation of a graduated response o Take early, evidence-based action to meet emerging needs o Work proactively with families and partners to prevent escalation o Make effective use of system support, including Experts at Hand, as part of a broader inclusive offer rather than as a substitute for setting-based action  Develop provision of peer-to-peer support and challenge model [PRT4]  Locality clusters leading peer accountability to clearly articulate change over 3 years [PRT4, PRT5]  Clusters operating as self-improving systems [PRT4] Consistent Expectations across settings  Define inclusion in Wiltshire and what is the universal support offer aligned to national Inclusion Standards [EPU1, PRT1]

Enablers

Integrated Data and Systems Integrated Data and Systems Integrated Data and Systems Integrated Data and Systems  Turn our data into insights. Need to understand the “what?” but also the “so what?” with a focus on impact, not just activity  Improve feedback loops, especially where experts by experience can see impact of contribution  Need to link LA and health data together to address gaps, with urgent requirement for Wiltshire specific health data to be provided by commissioned services (not data for whole ICB footprint)  Shift reporting from activity to impact so  Introduce predictive analytics to identify high- risk cohorts and emerging pressure points earlier. [PRT3, EPU3]  Embed real-time dashboards into school improvement, cluster reviews, commissioning and inclusion challenge to enable system partners to address issues early and consistently. [PRT3, PRT4, PRT5]  Strengthen the multi-agency dataset, with better Wiltshire-specific visibility of waiting times, access, outcomes and locality variation. [PRT1, PRT3]  Use integrated data to inform place planning, workforce deployment, commissioning and Qa. [SPP1, EAH1, PRT3]  Embed impact evaluation so reform is judged by access, outcomes, confidence and value for money, not just action completion. [PRT3,]  Begin transparent system-wide reporting that combines data, lived experience (including from CYP) and partner interpretation. [CPR1, CPR2, PRT3]  Education, health and care partners will jointly plan provision, manage demand and deploy resources through one shared intelligence system. [PRT1, PRT3]  Predictive and real-time analytics will routinely identify pressure points and enable early intervention. [PRT3, EPU3]  Wiltshire-specific health, education and care data will provide a single view of outcomes, access, waiting times and pathway flow. [PRT1, PRT3]  Clusters and governance forums will use shared insight, lived experience and evaluation to challenge variation and agree local responses. [PRT4, CPR1, PRT5]  System-wide reporting will be transparent, trusted and focused on earlier, more effective support closer to home. [PRT3]  Data will be used to solve system problems, reducing reliance on statutory escalation. [PRT1, PRT5] partners understand the “what”, “so what” and “now what”. [PRT3]  Use data to target Experts at Hand to pressure points, priority cohorts and areas of variation. [EAH1, EAH3, PRT3]  Build lived experience into routine reporting and governance alongside quantitative data. [CPR1, CPR2, PRT3]  Strengthen data sharing, especially on SEMH, Workforce training and capacity  Variable capability across settings and need for a secure baseline  SENCo capacity issues (operational and strategic)  Lack of consistent expectations for workforce skills and confidence neurodivergence and CAMHS-linked demand, with Wiltshire-specific health data. [PRT1, PRT3]  Complete a whole-system gap analysis on outcomes, access, waiting times, sufficiency and variation. [PRT3, SPP1]  Start a shared dataset for sufficiency and local Joint commissioning and integration  Health not fully aligned due to underdeveloped data  Post-16 commissioning gaps (especially P-19)  Therapy capacity issues delivery across education, health and care. [SPP1, PRT3]  Establish cluster-level use of data, supported Pathways and system clarity by the LA but owned locally through leadership and peer challenge. [PRT4, PRT3]  Clearer understanding of the Family Help offer (schools and settings) Workforce training and capacity Workforce training and capacity Workforce training and capacity  Transition support is a priority  Information sharing challenges across setting types  Set a countywide baseline of workforce  Implement a coordinated multi-agency workforce framework with consistent expectations for inclusive practice, coaching and supervision. [PRT1, PRT4]  Embed the multi-agency professional learning hub as the main route for ongoing development. [EPU4, EAH7]  Strengthen SENCO retention, recruitment and succession planning, with clearer protected time and strategic influence. [EPU1, PRT4]  Use workforce confidence and skills data to target support and investment where capability remains uneven. [PRT3, EPU3]  Expand Experts at Hand and outreach capacity so consultation, coaching and specialist input become routine. [EAH1, EAH6, EAH8]  Track CPD impact through changes in practice, confidence and outcomes, not just attendance. [EPU4, PRT3]  Wiltshire will have a stable, confident and connected workforce with shared expectations for inclusive practice. [EPU1, PRT1]  SENCOs will operate as strategic system leaders, with protected time, clear career pathways and a strong pipeline. [PRT4, EPU1]  The professional learning hub will be embedded as core system infrastructure. [EPU4, EAH6]  Experts at Hand and wider specialist capacity will be fully integrated with locality delivery. [EAH1, EAH7, EAH8]  Workforce development will be demonstrably linked to better practice, reduced variation and improved outcomes. [PRT3, EPU4]  Recruitment and retention pressures will reduce through clearer workforce models and stronger locality support. [EAH8, PRT1] capability, confidence and training need, including SENCO capacity pressures. [EPU1, EAH8, PRT3]  Develop a shared workforce framework for Capital investment and sufficiency  Delivery of inclusion bases and specialist bases within mainstream settings aligned to sufficiency strategy  Delivery of flexible provision models, allowing dual-registration, as part of Wiltshire’s continuum of provision  Delivery of the required special school places driven by demand analysis, alongside creation of new high needs places within mainstream settings.

inclusive practice, adaptive teaching, graduated response and partnership working. [EPU1, EPU4, PRT1]  Review existing training and support to reduce

duplication and identify gaps for Experts at Hand and clusters. [EAH7, EAH8]  Launch a multi-agency learning offer focused

on neuroaffirmative practice, EBSA, adaptive teaching, speech and language, and early intervention. [EPU3, EPU4, EAH7]  Strengthen SENCO leadership through

guidance, networks, pastoral support and a clearer strategic role. [EPU1, PRT4]  Complete a skills and confidence audit to

Joint commissioning and integration shape the Experts at Hand offer and workforce investment. [EAH8, PRT3] Joint commissioning and integration  Joint commissioning will be fully outcomes- focused, using shared evidence, priorities and accountability to shape investment and service design. [PRT1, EAH10, PRT5]  Aligned or pooled investment will support pathways where integrated delivery has proved effective. [EAH10, EPU3]  Commissioning will increasingly reflect value for money, reduced escalation and stronger local provision. [PRT3, PRT5, SPP2]  Best Start in Life, Family Help, SEND reform and preparation for adulthood will operate through one integrated children’s system. [EPU3, EPU6, PSX1, PRT1]  Therapies, locality support and post-16 pathways will have clear, sustained commissioning arrangements providing timely, effective specialist support. [EAH7, PSX2, PRT1]  Move from joint planning to more mature joint commissioning, using shared priorities, aligned investment and agreed review points. [PRT1, EAH10]  Pilot pooled or aligned budgets for neurodivergence, EBSA, SEMH, therapies and early intervention. [PRT1, EAH10, PRT5]  Use shared outcomes and cost data to shift investment toward early intervention, locality delivery and support closer to home. [EPU3, SPP1, PRT5]  Strengthen therapies, post-16 and transition commissioning through clearer accountability and better data. [EAH7, PSX1, PSX2]  Align commissioning with Families First, Best Start in Life and wider children’s transformation. [EPU3, EPU6, PRT1]  Embed value-for-money tracking to test whether reform is reducing reliance on high- cost responses and improving outcomes. [PRT3, PRT5] Joint commissioning and integration  Develop a shared LA–ICB commissioning approach for SEND reform, with agreed principles for design, prioritisation and oversight. [PRT1, EAH10]  Agree a shared outcomes framework across education, health and care. [PRT1, PRT3]  Complete a baseline spend map across LA and ICB investment. [PRT3, PRT5]  Identify quick commissioning changes to improve access and reduce pressure, including therapies, locality support and post-16. [EAH7, PSX1, PRT1]  Begin exploring pooled or aligned budgets for therapies, neurodivergence, SEMH and early intervention. [EAH10, PRT1, PRT5]  Strengthen integration with Best Start in Life, Family Help and preparation for adulthood. [EPU3, EPU6, PSX1, PRT1] Pathways and system clarity  Pathways will be well understood and easy to navigate, with clear thresholds, responsibilities and support routes. [EAH11, PRT5]  Families, settings and professionals will access help earlier without needing to push for statutory escalation, informed by the priorities of children and young people. [EPU3, CPR2, EAH11]  Transitions into post-16 and adulthood will be well coordinated, with embedded information sharing and planning. [PSX1, PSX2]  The roles of Family Help, clusters, therapies, AP, inclusion bases and wider provision will be consistently understood. [PRT1, EPU3, PRT5] Pathways and system clarity Pathways and system clarity  Clarify how Family Help, SEND support,  Embed the Wiltshire pathway architecture so roles, thresholds and routes are consistently understood, including those for FE colleges out of Wiltshire who have local young people with SEND attending. [EAH11, PRT5]  Strengthen transitions across early years, primary, secondary, post-16 and adulthood, improving information flow. [PSX1, PSX2]  Introduce more standardised triage, access and referral across education and health. [EAH7, EAH11]  Improve communications and navigation tools so support can be accessed earlier and therapies, inclusion bases and Experts at Hand connect to ensure equitable access to all schools and settings. [EPU3, EAH11, PRT5]  Publish the Wiltshire graduated provision pathway and continuum, including thresholds, routes in and expected responses. [EPU3, EAH11]  Map and improve transition pathways and information flow, especially into adolescence, post-16 and adulthood. [PSX1, PSX2]  Develop clear expectations and communications so families and settings know  Greater clarity will improve confidence, reduce escalation and create a more equitable experience for families. [PRT3] what support should be available without escalation. [PRT4, CPR1, EAH11]  Address information-sharing gaps across consistently without statutory escalation. [CPR1, PRT4, EAH11]  Reduce ambiguity at pressure points, especially in therapies, EBSA, SEMH and neurodivergence pathways. [EPU3, EPU4, PRT5] phases and provider types. [PRT1, PRT5, PSX2] Capital investment and sufficiency  The sufficiency strategy will be fully implemented so more children and young people are supported locally through a coherent continuum of provision. [SPP1, SPP2, SPP6]  Place planning will be routinely informed by integrated data, QA and locality intelligence. [SPP1, PRT3]  Inclusion bases, specialist bases, AP and outreach will operate with clear purpose, strong QA and consistent thresholds. [SPP4, PRT5]  Reliance on high-cost and distant specialist placements will reduce as local provision becomes stronger and better distributed. [SPP2, SPP6, SPP8]  Mainstream environments will be more inclusive through sustained investment in accessibility, flexibility and fit-for-purpose spaces. [SPP7, SPP8]  Capital and sufficiency decisions will support fewer avoidable escalations, more local support and better value for money. [SPP1, SPP2, PRT5] Capital investment and sufficiency Capital investment and sufficiency  Refresh sufficiency planning so capital delivery  Translate the sufficiency and capital strategy into delivery, linking place planning to expertise, QA and commissioning. [SPP1, SPP6, PRT1]  Review the need to commission further AP to meet capacity challenges identified [EAH5]  Agree inclusion base locations and phased development with schools and trusts. [SPP3, SPP4]  Introduce routine QA of inclusion bases, specialist bases, AP and outreach. [SPP4, SPP6, PRT3]  Implement clearer entry and exit criteria so bases and AP do not drift into de facto exclusion. [PRT5, SPP4]  Use live demand and outcome data to reduce reliance on high-cost out-of-area placements. [SPP1, SPP2, SPP6]  Strengthen mainstream environments and reduce travel times through capital adaptations, flexible provision and assistive technology. [SPP7, SPP8, EPU4] aligns to the reform model, prioritising inclusion, local support and early intervention. This should include consideration of improvements needed to the physical environment within existing schools. [EAH5, SPP1, SPP2, SPP6]  Baseline specialist bases, support bases and Alternative Provision to identify gaps by area, phase and cohort. [SPP1, SPP4, SPP6]  Develop Wiltshire frameworks for inclusion and specialist bases, linked to purpose, quality and thresholds. [SPP4, PRT5]  Identify priority schemes and sequencing for specialist and inclusion place growth, including a reduction in travel time to under 20 minutes for inclusion bases and 45 minutes for specialist placements. [SPP1, SPP3, SPP8]  Explore flexible provision, including dual registration, adaptive environments and assistive technology. [SPP2, SPP7, EPU4]  Link the Maintained Special School Build Programme and wider capital programme explicitly to reform delivery. [SPP1, SPP2, SPP6]

Success measures

• Attainment for SEND and EHCP students Stabilise and early improvement
• Attainment for SEND and EHCP students on a clear upward trend
• Attainment for SEND and EHCP students reaches target threshold
• Attainment: % Children with SEN (Isp) or EHCP achieving 4+ in English and maths
• Exclusions or suspensions stop increasing and aim for early reduction of 1%
• Suspensions have a significant reduction to 4%
• Exclusions and suspensions meets 6% and 20% Targets
• Attendance: % Children with SEN (Isp) or EHCP who are

Permanently Excluded, Suspended or on Reduced Education Provision (REP)

• EHCNA requests stabilise to 97 per month
• EHCNA requests below 95 per month.
• EHCNA requests below 90 per month.
• Start to increase EHCP in mainstream settings to 58%
• Continued increase of EHCP in mainstream setting to above 59%
• Increase EHCPs in mainstream settings to above 60%
• Demand: 12-month rolling average of EHCNA requests
• Local Provision: % of Children with an EHCP who are placed in

mainstream school (with and without the support of an Inclusion Base)

• Parent/Carer and young people’s

confidence in settings baseline completed and early improvement to 50% of parents reporting difficult to access help

• Strong improvement to Parent/Carer and

young people’s confidence in settings with only 45% reporting difficulty accessing help

• Sustain improvement of Parent/Carer and

young people’s confidence in settings less than 40% reporting difficulty to accessing help.

• Confidence: % of schools and parent carers who report that it is difficult or very difficult to get support improves.

6. What will the local area partnership deliver in the first year? Please outline the key workstreams, milestones and trajectory your local area partnership will deliver and achieve in 2026-27 as well as how you plan to spend the investment allocation that will help fund this year’s delivery. Please share key milestones and anticipated dates, success measures, cost breakdown and category. These should incorporate the core minimum requirements, be mapped to the building blocks above and should reflect a more detailed trajectory to the narrative, milestones and target metrics outlined in the 2026-27 column above.

2026-27 Local delivery plan Q2 Q3 Q4

Workstream outline – mapped to building block

Responsible lead per workstream –

Milestones per workstream

Target trajectory per workstream

Milestones per workstream

Target trajectory per workstream

Milestones per workstream

Target trajectory per workstream

Outcome - what you want to achieve with this workstream

accountable for the delivery of the workstream and the identified outcome.

What key milestones will enable you achieve your targeted trajectory

Where do you expect your data to be?

What key milestones will enable you achieve your targeted trajectory

Where do you expect your data to be?

What key milestones will enable you achieve your targeted trajectory

Where do you expect your data to be?

Success measures – how you measure progress drawing on metrics from the accompanying data template

Reducing variation Reducing variation Reducing variation  Baseline established for inclusion practice and variation  Core inclusion metrics framework agreed  70% or more schools engaged with SENCO networks  Early stabilisation of REP, suspension rates and EHCNA demand  50–60% schools consistently using OAIP and graduated response  Slowing EHCNA demand  Qualitative data shows increased workforce confidence in inclusive and neuroaffirmative practice  Annual survey results show small increase in school confidence in mainstream inclusion  100% schools aligned to Inclusion Framework and Strategy Plans  Sustained reduction in REP, suspension rates and EHCNA requests  Improved attendance (including EBSA cohort)  Measurable improvement in confidence in delivering inclusive practice  Reduced variation in inclusive practice evidenced through agreed metrics (OAIP use, EHCNA rates, attendance, confidence measures)  Early improvement in SEND attainment and progress, including attendance and engagement measures

Strengthening inclusion across education settings

Louise Lewis- Head of School Effectiveness

 Wiltshire Inclusion definition agreed and published [EPU1]  Inclusion Framework scope, governance and co-design plan agreed [EPU1]  Baseline audit completed and priority schools/clusters identified [PRT1, EPU3]  Best Practice Library framework designed [EPU1]

 Draft Inclusion Framework published for consultation [EPU1, EPU2]  Inclusion tools piloted in priority clusters, including graduated response review [EPU3, PRT4]  Inclusion Strategy Plans in development across at least 50% of schools [EPU1]  Best Practice Library populated with validated examples [EPU4]  Training and support needs for Inclusive Practice identified through co-production workshops and drawing on annual survey responses [EPU1, EPU2]

 Final Inclusion Framework formally adopted and launched [EPU1, PRT1]  Inclusion Strategy Plans published across all schools and settings in scope [EPU1, EPU4]  Best Practice Library live and in active use across clusters [EPU4]  Training and support for Inclusive Practice trialled and rolled out through Clusters [EPU1, EPU2]

Consistent, high-quality inclusive practice across all settings

Workstreams:  Reducing variation through shared commitment to agreed inclusion standards  SENCo leadership at a strategic level and practical measures to ‘free up’ these experts from operational burdens  Securing consistency of ordinarily available provision  Developing Neurodivergence/EB SA/SEMH practice so that needs are identified and met earlier.

SENCO Leadership  SENCO role operating more strategically across the system, evidenced through cluster and school practice [PRT4]  Countywide SENCO network and support model embedded SENCO Leadership  SENCO provision, qualifications and capacity starting to be mapped [PRT3, EPU3, EAH8]  Draft SENCO role and leadership guidance produced and tested with schools and settings through SENCO networks [EPU2, PRT4] SENCO Leadership Ordinarily Available Provision  SENCO peer support, network and pastoral offer active  Leadership guidance tested with Headteachers through  Strengthened OAIP completed and tested, through direct engagement, across a  Peer network and pastoral support offer established for SENCOs representative groups and early adoption secured in pilot schools [EPU1, EPU2] representative range of settings and phases [EPU1, EPU2] Neurodivergence/Ebsa/Se Mh Practice Ordinarily Available Provision Ordinarily Available Provision  Lived-experience- informed training, including the voice of parent carers and CYP, scaled more widely across the system [EPU4, CPR1, CPR2]  Neurodivergence, EBSA and SEMH approaches embedded in framework, guidance and pilot practice [EPU4]  Improved support pathways in place for EHE and vulnerable cohorts [EPU3,]  OAIP strengthening continues and tested across a representative range of settings and phases [EPU1, EPU2]  OAIP refresh begun and co- production process underway [EPU1] Neurodivergence/Ebsa/Se Mh Practice Neurodivergence/Ebsa/Se Mh Practice  Lived-experience- informed training, including the voice of parent carers and CYP, offer expanded [EPU4, CPR2]  Neurodivergence and EBSA barriers analysis completed, aligned to the Task and Finish report [EPU3, EPU4]  New approach pilot clusters and cohorts agreed, including links to Family Help and EHE [PRT3, PRT4]  Neuroaffirmative practice guidance and training delivered [EPU3, EPU4]  EBSA and SEMH pilot approaches implemented in priority clusters [EPU3, EPU4]  Initial targeted approach for EHE and vulnerable cohorts in place, with Family Help links demonstrated [EPU3, EPU4] Access before EHCP Access before EHCP Access before EHCP  Baseline data established for EHCNA requests where Early Help has been accessed  Improved timeliness of advice and support  Qualitative data shows increased workforce confidence in accessing specialist support  Increase in the proportion of EHCNA requests where Early Help was accessed prior to application  EHCNA request levels hold steady  Baseline data established for EAH wait times  Baseline data established for EAH access by educational phase  Increase in the proportion of EHCNA requests where Early Help was accessed prior to application  EHCNA request levels hold steady  EAH wait times <10 working days  Number of EAH contacts broken down by the type of support delivered

Access to specialist support and local placements

Lisa Fryer- Head of Inclusion and SEND

 Experts at Hand delivery model, access principles and core offer agreed with partners, the offer is designed to support mainstream settings (including FE colleges our of Wiltshire) directly, ensuring staff are able to meet need confidently within their provision. [EAH1, EAH11, EAH10]  Wiltshire provision continuum updated with partners and partner expectations agreed [PRT4, EAH11, EPU3]

 Initial Experts at Hand offer launched in clusters with clear referral-free consultation routes with clear approach to ensure equitable access [EAH7, EAH11]  Wiltshire updated provision continuum published in draft and tested with schools, families and partners [EPU2, EPU3]  MOU signed between the ICB and the LA to agree delivery of Experts at Hand [EAH1]

 Experts at Hand fully rolled out with agreed access routes and published expectations [EAH1, EAH11]  SEND front door model and graduated provision pathway finalised and published to ensure equitable access [EAH11]

Earlier, more predictable access to specialist support, reducing reliance on EHCPs and preventing escalation through a coherent, locality-based model.

Workstreams:  Access before EHCP, without unnecessary barriers/thresholds  Locality-based support in Wiltshire community areas  Therapies / EP access to be increased/improved Locality-based support  Locality cluster model embedded in all planned areas with clear operating arrangements [PRT4]  Wiltshire Inclusion Base framework and Locality-based support  Introduction of SALT Advanced Practitioner  Reducing bottlenecks and securing clear ‘waiting well’ principles across each partner’s piece of the system  Skills audit of existing school and setting workforce begun to inform delivery model [PRT3, EAH8]  Alignment with FFPP/ BSIL early help offer principles agreed [EPU3, PRT1]  Baseline data established for EAH access variance between clusters  Additional specialist placements delivered specialist base strategy agreed for implementation [SPP1, SPP4, SPP6]  Locality cluster delivery active, including first wave of advisory support, coaching and modelling [PRT4, EPU3]  Inclusion Base framework and specialist base strategy developed in draft [SPP4, SPP6] Therapies / EP access and SALT Lead  Therapy and EP access principles agreed and operating to ensure support is not disproportionately accessed by the most proactive schools and settings. [EAH7, EAH11]  Salt Advanced Practitioner function operational within the Experts at Hand model [EAH1, EAH7] Locality-based support  Cluster model agreed, governance defined and localities confirmed [PRT1, PRT4]  Baseline mapping of support bases, outreach and locality assets completed, including clarity over any surplus mainstream capacity [SPP1, SPP5, SPP6]  Wiltshire Inclusion Base framework and specialist base strategy developed [SPP4, SPP6] Therapies / EP access and SALT Lead  Multi-agency consultation model established for schools and settings through Experts at Hand, including out of area mainstream further education settins attended by local young people with SEND [EAH3, EAH7, EAH11]  Integrated therapy pathways for priority cohorts drafted with health partners, including seamless integration into existing therapies offer [EAH3, EAH7]  Salt Advanced Practitioner appointed or interim arrangements in place [EAH7, EAH8] Reducing bottlenecks / waiting well  Waiting well model, consultation routes and support architecture fully in place [EPU3, EAH7]  Priority bottlenecks identified with corrective actions agreed through governance [PRT3, PRT5] Therapies / EP access and SALT Lead  ICB–LA joint access principles for therapies and EP agreed in draft [EAH7, EAH10]  Wiltshire-specific mapping of therapy capacity, thresholds, routes and waiting times completed [PRT3, EAH7]  Salt Advanced Practitioner role scoped and recruitment launched in partnership with others in the region [EAH7, EAH8]  Evaluation and recommendations from pilot of MDT delivery of post 16 support [PSX1, PSX2] Reducing bottlenecks / waiting well  Waiting well offer tested in pilot clusters, including school-based strategies while awaiting specialist input [EPU3, EPU4]  Coordinated training offer launched across partners and settings [PRT4, EPU4] Reducing bottlenecks / waiting well  Waiting well principles designed with health and education  Continued pilot of MDT delivery of post 16 partners [EAH3, EPU3]  Service, pathway and training map completed, including Family Help and FFPP links [PRT3, EPU3] support, focussing on improved data and information flow [PSX1, PSX2]  Pilot MDT delivery for post 16 support, helping young people to access education, training, employment and supported internships. [PSX1, PSX2]  Baseline established for SEND referrals through BSIL Family Hubs  <80% of delivery milestones RAG rated Green  <75% of key workstreams have documented co- production input  Annual Survey results do not show an increase in parents or schools who find it difficult to access support  Increase in SEND referrals through BSIL Family Hubs  <80% of delivery milestones RAG rated Green  Increase in SEND referrals through BSIL Family Hubs  <80% of delivery milestones RAG rated Green  100% of key workstreams have documented co- production input

System leadership, local partnership collaboration and co-production

Kathryn Davis- Director of Education and Skills

ICB engagement as restructure concludes

ICB engagement as restructure concludes

ICB engagement as restructure concludes

 Shared principles for ICB and health partner accountability agreed [EAH10, PRT1]  Health representation, escalation routes and decision points clarified through governance mapping [EAH10, PRT5]

 Formal health accountability and escalation arrangements operating through revised governance [EAH10, PRT5]  Shared workforce priorities agreed with health partners and translated into delivery actions [PRT1, EAH10]

 Formal shared accountability with health embedded through routine delivery oversight and escalation [PRT5, EAH10]  Agreed multi-agency workforce priorities translating into joint delivery and performance review [EAH10, PRT3]

A single, coherent system with shared accountability, clear governance, and embedded co-production driving consistent decision- making and delivery.

Workstreams:  ICB engagement as restructure concludes  Governance simplification, reflecting alignment of national reforms beyond SEND, such as Best Start in Life and Families First Partnership, under a unifying umbrella of Children’s Transformation  Joint commissioning at scale  Alignment with Families First Partnership and Best Start in Life delivery plans  Co-production feeds into all decision making Governance simplification  Governance mapping completed and simplification options agreed [PRT1, PRT5]  Priority task and finish groups established with named leads and outputs [PRT1, PRT4]  Initial alignment agreed across SEND, FFPP and Best Start governance [PRT1, EPU3] Governance simplification, Governance simplification  Governance fully embedded with reduced duplication and clear flow of decisions [PRT1, PRT5]  Undertake Maturity Assessment to understand progress being made across the system [PRT3]  Cluster and peer challenge arrangements functioning consistently across the system [PRT4, PRT3]  Revised governance structure (Phase 1) implemented with clear decision pathways [PRT1, PRT5, EAH10]  Task and finish groups actively delivering priorities and reducing duplication across boards [PRT1, PRT5] Joint commissioning at scale Joint commissioning at scale  Shared outcomes framework and baseline spend map commissioned [PRT1, PRT3]  Initial joint commissioning priorities translated into delivery plans [PRT1, PRT3] Joint commissioning at scale  Initial joint commissioning priorities identified, including therapies and early intervention [PRT3, SPP6]  Shared outcomes framework informing commissioning and investment decisions [PRT1, PRT3]  Joint commissioning operating against agreed priorities, outcomes and oversight arrangements [PRT3, EAH10]  Commissioning decisions increasingly informed by shared outcomes, demand and value-for-money evidence [PRT1, PRT3] Alignment with FFP and BSIL Alignment with FFP and BSIL  SEND delivery aligned to Family Help, Families First and Best Start governance and pathways [PRT1, EPU3, PRT4]  Navigation and front- door arrangements clarified for schools, settings and families [EAH11]  Initial alignment agreed across SEND, Family Help and Best Start governance and delivery pathways [PRT1, EPU3]  Navigation and front- door arrangements will be implemented to ensure access is equitable, including out of area mainstream FE settings attended by local young people with SEND [EAH11, PRT3] Alignment with FFP and BSIL  SEND delivery operating coherently within wider children’s transformation governance and pathways [PRT1, PRT4]  Family Help and Best Start alignment improving the consistency of whole- family responses [EPU3, PRT1] Co-production feeds into all decision making  “You Said, We Did” feedback loop operating consistently [CPR1, EPU2]  Co-production training and assurance processes embedded including a co- production minimum standard [CPR1, CPR4, PRT1, PRT3] Co-production feeds into all decision making  Complete review of the funding received by the PCF and consider additional requirements to support SEND Reforms. [CPR1]  Engagement and co- Co-production feeds into all decision making  Co-production embedded across all major workstreams, with evidence of how the voice of children and young people have influenced design and implementation [CPR1, CPR2]  Shared data, feedback and lived experience routinely informing governance decisions [PRT3] production strategy drafted and tested [EPU2, CPR1]  You Said, We Did approach designed and partner engagement plan published [CPR1, EPU2, PRT4] Challenging outliers Challenging outliers  Establish baseline data for variation of EHCNA requests, suspensions and REPs between schools  Establish school-level data baseline of the  Exclusions and suspensions for children with SEN fall  Hold variation between schools steady  >20% of schools engage in peer  Exclusions and suspensions for children with SEN fall  Hold variation between schools steady

Encouraging inclusive culture and behaviours

Louise Lewis- Head of School Effectiveness

Challenging outliers  System-wide inclusion metrics agreed [PRT3]  Skills audit launched across schools and settings [PRT3, EAH8]  Shared data and performance framework agreed [PRT3]  Cluster-level dashboards  Insight-led reporting embedded in governance cycles to identify and challenge variation [PRT3, PRT5] A system-wide culture of inclusion where expectations are clear, practice is consistent, and partners are collectively accountable for outcomes.

Workstreams:  Gap analysis translated into targeted support and challenge actions for outlier settings [PRT5, PRT3]  Initial system gap analysis completed [PRT3]  Baseline established for inclusion practice and variation [EPU3, PRT3]  85% schools meeting the agreed inclusion expectations  >40% of schools engage in peer review/challenge activity  Reduction in complaints or mediation activity linked to unmet need % of children with additional needs who have an EHCP developed and rolled out [PRT3, PRT4]  Initial quality assurance framework tested to identify variation and outlier practice [PRT3, PRT5] review/challenge activity  Challenging outliers using new accountability measures, such as new inclusion standards (national and local)  System ownership – building on existing co-production principles and practice in the local areas  Consistent expectations across schools and settings – inclusion standards and ordinarily available provision  Setting, school and MAT leaders will ensure consistent use of the graduated response, take early evidence-based action, work proactively with families and make effective use of system support including Experts at Hand, with an extended model in place for EY settings and FE colleges System ownership System ownership  Peer challenge model embedded with stronger local ownership of inclusion improvement [PRT4, PRT5]  Lived experience and co-production feedback shaping ongoing quality assurance and improvement activity [CPR1, PRT3] System ownership  Local expectations for system ownership and peer accountability agreed with schools and clusters [PRT4]  Schools, settings and clusters supported to interpret and use inclusion data in partnership with families and stakeholders [PRT4, PRT3]  Peer support and challenge model piloted with system- wide ownership of improvement [PRT3, PRT4] Consistent expectations across schools and settings  Baseline for ordinarily available provision and inclusion expectations established [EPU1, EPU4] Consistent expectations across schools and settings Consistent expectations across schools and settings  Quality assurance framework fully implemented across clusters against agreed inclusion expectations [PRT3, PRT4] Consistent use of the graduated response  Leaders are engaged, through discussion, in the early stage expectations-setting process for graduated response and use of system support [EPU1, EPU2]  Schools and settings supported to interpret inclusion standards and apply them through local quality assurance [PRT3, PRT4] Consistent use of the graduated response Consistent use of the graduated response  School and MAT leaders using data, peer challenge and Experts at Hand support to drive more consistent graduated response and earlier intervention [EPU3, PRT4, PRT3]  Peer review and challenge begin to test consistency of graduated response and school-led action [PRT3, PRT4]

7. How will the local area partnership deliver the first-year plan?

Please set out how you will ensure the required capacity and capability is in place from organisational corporate functions to support implementation of the plan. This could include reference to how you plan to build or bring in project delivery capability to manage delivery against the plan, support prioritisation, and effective use of resources; and how you plan to build the capacity and capability in data and analytics to support effective tracking against the measures in the plan and reporting that informs decision making.

250 words Delivery of the first year plan will be managed through an integrated programme model, with SEND Reform aligned to Families First Partnership and Best Start in Life as part of a single children’s transformation programme. This will enable shared priorities, coordinated delivery and efficient use of resources across related reforms. Accountability for delivery will remain clearly with the SEND and AP Improvement Board, which will provide strategic oversight, monitor progress against milestones and outcomes, and oversee risk management and mitigation. [PRT1, PRT3, PRT5] The partnership will build on the established SEND Transformation team developed through the Safety Valve programme, which already provides strong programme management, financial oversight and delivery coordination. This capacity will be strengthened through targeted use of DfE transformation funding to increase programme, business analysis, communications and administrative support, and through secondment of serving headteachers to ensure implementation is practical, credible and grounded in operational leadership. [PRT1, PRT4, EAH8] In parallel, the partnership will strengthen its data and analytical capability, including a shared performance dashboard and a move from descriptive reporting to insight led performance management. This will support timely identification of delivery risks, stronger oversight of impact, and evidence informed decision making at both operational and strategic level. [PRT1, PRT3, PRT5]

8. Other funding Local Authorities.

Block Transfers: If you have made a block transfer (Schools Block to High Needs Block) for 26-27, please set out how your plans for this funding align with the activities outlined above.

250 words Wiltshire Schools Forum agreed a transfer of 0.25% (£1m) from the Schools Block to the High Needs Block for 2026/27. This investment is being used strategically to support existing SEND transformation activity that is fully aligned to the Local SEND Reform Plan and its emphasis on earlier intervention, stronger mainstream inclusion and reduced escalation. In particular, it supports the Mainstream Inclusion School Advisors (MISAs) and the Secondary Behaviour Support Service, both of which are designed to strengthen school capacity to meet need earlier, improve inclusive practice and reduce reliance on more costly specialist responses over time. These interventions are intended to help more children and young people remain and thrive in their local mainstream school, while also contributing to improved professional confidence across schools to meet need and a more sustainable use of high needs resources. [EPU3, SPP2] Wiltshire will expand the EAH model (Annex 3) by integrating council employed staff alongside the DfE grant funded workforce, creating a delivery model that increases capacity while maintaining a multidisciplinary mix of expertise to meet holistic needs. This approach will provide additional delivery days, coaching and whole setting support in schools, strengthening the reach and sustainability of mainstream inclusion activity. By combining DfE inv estment with local authority resource (including that funded by block transfer), the model builds system wide capacity to deliver earlier, more consistent support in mainstream settings and reduces reliance on escalation to statutory processes. [EAH1, EAH3, EAH7, EPU3] The impact of this investment will be monitored through the SEND and AP Improvement Board as part of wider reform delivery, including its contribution to improved inclusion, reduced demand for statutory escalation and better value for money. [PRT1, PRT3]

Capital: We have announced at least £3 billion in high needs capital between 2026-27 and 2029-30 to support children and young people (CYP) with SEND, or those requiring alternative provision (AP). This funding is intended to support place delivery across the full 0-25 age range, including early years and post-16. We expect funding to support the following outcomes:

a. Inclusion at the core of high needs sufficiency strategy, resulting in more children and young people with SEND accessing suitable places in mainstream settings, across all phases

of education

b. Every child or young person who needs a place in an inclusion base can access one

c. Fewer children and young people with SEND needing to travel a long way to access a suitable placement

d. Improved suitability of the mainstream estate to support children and young people with SEND, with adaptations to improve inclusivity and accessibility of the physical environment

We also welcome innovative uses of high needs capital to drive inclusion, for example, investment in assistive technology for use in mainstream settings.

Please outline your strategy for how this funding will meet the outcomes above, with reference to the core minimum requiremen ts and other workstreams in this reform plan where appropriate. We would like to see detail around your plans to increase capacity for inclusion bases (formerly known as SEN units, resourced provision and pupil support units – SU/RP/PSUs), such as schools, colleges or early years providers identified, engagement with relevant settings and trusts, and target cohort of needs.

If your plans include increases to places in special schools or specialist post-16 institutions, please include a clear rationale, showing the need that is being met, and why it cannot be met through other types of provision, such as inclusion bases.

If you are receiving additional capital funding to replace one or more planned special or AP free schools, please set out how this funding will meet need in your area, and plans for engaging relevant trusts in your sufficiency planning.

500 words Wiltshire has a higher proportion of learners with EHCPs educated in mainstream than national and regional averages. This is a strong foundation from which we will maximise inclusive capacity in mainstream wherever possible, ensuring children achieve and thrive without unnecessary escalation into specialist provision. We will invest £37.1m over three years (HNPCA, Safety Valve and borrowing) to strengthen this continuum, prioritising mainstream inclusion before expanding specialist places. Following this principle, we did not progress an AP Free School and instead redirected £4.08m to create at least 80 high needs places within inclusive local provision. [SPP2, SPP6] Avoiding growth in special school placements is a core objective. Decisions on capital investment will be informed by:  Trends in EHCP demand and levels of need  Evidence of unmet need within mainstream settings  Impact of inclusion strategies (e.g. OAIP, clusters, Experts at Hand)  Parental preference and travel distances  Cost effectiveness and sustainability of provision  Capacity and outcomes within existing mainstream and specialist settings [SPP1, SPP6, SPP8] Where AP capacity is constrained, the local authority commissions places from registered providers such as Brunel College and works closely with system leaders to ensure that any expansion of alternative provision is appropriately targeted to meet local need. [EAH5] Investment will prioritise earlier intervention and mainstream capacity, including changes to the physical environment of schools and settings, before specialist expansion. The continuum includes strengthened ordinarily available provision (OAIP), a consistent countywide support base offer, and expanded specialist bases within mainstream schools. We will also explore innovative uses of capital, including assistive technology and flexible learning environments to increase accessibility within mainstream settings. This will increase the number of children whose needs can be met locally, reducing reliance on high-cost independent placements. Target cohorts include SEMH, autism, and complex cognition and learning needs and delivery will be agreed in partnership with schools and settings through cluster governance and sufficiency planning. [SPP6, SPP2, EPU4] Our existing Resource Bases will transition into Specialist Bases, and the Local Authority will work with MATs and schools to identify host schools where there are gaps. This gap analysis has been underpinned by sufficiency data, demand trends and geography, including an aim to reduce travel time to the nearest Specialist Base to less than 20 minutes. A summary of this is contained in Annex 5. Wherever possible, we will utilise existing school estates, exploiting opportunities created by falling rolls. We will spend time in year 1 of this plan co-designing local guidance for inclusion bases, especially ‘support bases’, to help schools understand what is required. [SPP1, SPP3, SPP4, SPP5, SPP6, SPP8] In 2026/27, £8.62m HNPCA funding will be directed primarily to mainstream inclusion:  £3.91m for inclusive initiatives across early years, schools and post-16  £4.11m for specialist bases within mainstream settings  £0.60m to pilot primary SEMH specialist bases with a reintegration focus [SPP6, SPP2] Wiltshire has significantly increased resource base capacity (315 to 607 places between 2020–2026), with strong geographical coverage. Review findings show increasing complexity of need within these bases, informing the next phase of development. Expansion of secondary specialist bases and the strengthening of Secondary Enhanced Learning Provision (ELP) will be prioritised to ensure mainstream schools can meet more complex needs. [SPP6, SPP4] Specialist provision will only be expanded where robust evidence demonstrates needs cannot be met through strengthened mainstream and inclusion base capacity. Decisions will be based on clear thresholds, including sustained demand trends, evidence that mainstream and inclusion base capacity and expertise has been fully utilised, and demonstrable gaps in provision for specific cohorts. [PRT5, SPP1] Where additional specialist provision is required, this will be targeted and phased, ensuring it responds to clearly evidenced gaps rather than driving demand. This includes our ambition to ensure that no child has to travel for further than 45 minutes to reach their closest suitable special school. Planned schemes, which have already been begun and have funding identified, include:  Exeter House ‘Wellington’ – opening 2026 (Autism and Cognition)  Northwood Centre – opening 2026/27 (SEMH)  Bitham Park Free School – opening 2027/28 (SEMH)  Expansion of Springfield Academy and SAIL – phased from 2026 Alongside this, investment in accessibility and adaptations will enable more children to remain in mainstream provision. [SPP6, SPP2, SPP8] Overall, this strategy ensures that special school capacity is only expanded where strictly necessary, with clear evidence and sequencing, while the system continues to shift towards earlier intervention, local provision and inclusive mainstream practice (as set out in Annex 5). [PRT5, SPP2, SPP6]

9. System partner and stakeholder engagement, and co-production. Please outline how the local area partnership plans to engage system partners and stakeholders to develop and implement the plan – include planned engagement with schools and early years settings, alternative providers, FE and post-16 providers (including those your young people attend that are not within your local area), Parents and Carers and children and young people with SEND, with reference to the core minimum requirements. Consider changing roles and responsibilities in the context of the Schools White Paper and how you work collaboratively to manage the transition. Please indicate where additional support is required to engage partners or stakeholders - senior officials at the Department for Education will be available to contribute to summer term events with education leaders and parent carer forum leaders.

500 words Wiltshire’s Local SEND Reform Plan has been developed through co-production, building on an established partnership culture and a strong evidence base from sustained engagement. Over 120 schools and settings, more than 70 parent carers, and a wide range of children and young people have shaped priorities, tested proposals and validated the proposed future system. [CPR1, EPU2] Co-production will now move from design into delivery and assurance as a core mechanism within programme governance. The SEND and AP Improvement Board, Families and Children’s Transformation (FACT) Board and locality clusters will systematically use stakeholder feedback, lived experience and partner insight to inform decision-making, prioritisation and service design. This includes ongoing development of the universal offer, Experts at Hand, and locality delivery models.

To ensure consistency and impact, Wiltshire will implement a co-production benchmark aligned to recognised standards (including NHS England guidance). In year one, this will be supported by a system-wide audit of co-production activity to identify strengths, gaps and improvement actions. [CPR1, CPR4, PRT1]

The co-production benchmark will focus on:  Early involvement – Children, young people and parent carers shape delivery at system, cluster and service level, influencing priorities, design and success measures at the earliest stage.  Shared ownership – Schools, MATs, health partners, the Parent Carer Forum, and children and young people are represented across governance and delivery structures. Partners co-design and test solutions, with clear shared accountability for outcomes and implementation.  Accessibility and inclusion – Engagement reflects the diversity of lived experience, including targeted approaches for seldom-heard groups (e.g. EHE, complex needs, transition to adulthood), and flexible methods of participation.  Feedback and impact – “You said, we did” reporting will be routinely published through the Local Offer and partnership communications. Insight will be systematically fed into governance to inform commissioning, service redesign and prioritisation. Co-produced experience measures will be used alongside performance data to assess impact. [CPR1, PRT1, CPR2, PRT3] Co-production activity will be proportionate and delivery-focused, using a mix of workshops, targeted engagement and survey methods. This approach ensures that engagement informs decision-making without delaying implementation. Key partners, including SENDIASS, Wiltshire Parent Carer Council and the voluntary sector, will play an ongoing role in refining delivery and shaping resource allocation. [CPR1, CPR3, PRT1] A structured approach to engagement, performance data and quality assurance will ensure that stakeholder insight is triangulated with system data and informs decision-making at all levels. This creates a continuous cycle of design, delivery, evaluation and refinement, ensuring co-production is embedded as a core delivery mechanism rather than a parallel activity. [PRT3, CPR1]

10. Risks and Mitigations What are the key risks that could affect the successful implementation of your Local SEND Reform Plan, and what mitigation strategies are in place to manage these risks? Please include a maximum of 5 risks with impact and likelihood RAG for each risk. See Annex C for suggested risk matrix.

11. Dependencies

Please detail the key areas of the local area partnership’s proposed SEND future state and roadmap that may be impacted by wider reforms nationally and locally and outline how you will manage these. We expect these will include but not be limited to:

 NHS reforms

 Local Government Re-organisation

 Reforms to Children’s Social Care

 Best Start in Life, including Family Hubs

 Best Start In Life Strategy

 Curriculum and Assessment Review

500 words Wiltshire’s SEND future state and three year roadmap are designed to be adaptive, integrated and reform ready, recognising that outcomes for children and young people with SEND are shaped by the combined impact of education, health, social care and early years reform. The partnership will manage these interdependencies through a single system governance approach, ensuring all major reform programmes are delivered as one, with a sustained focus on early intervention and inclusion. This ensures that the strategic vision and reform alignment is translated into delivery through a single governance structure, which has been put into place and has been live from March this year. This is the Families and Children’s Transformation (FACT) Executive, chaired by the Director of Children’s Services, and Operational Board co-chaired by the Director of Education and Skills and Director of Families and Children, with task and finish groups beneath. These forums are multi agency and membership is at the level where decisions can be made and progress achieved. [PRT1, PRT2, PRT5] Alignment will be secured through shared governance, common outcomes and integrated delivery. The multi-agency SEND and AP Board will oversee all reform activity, supported by a shared outcomes framework, joint KPIs and integrated programme management across workstreams. Delivery will be aligned locally through clusters and neighbourhood models, ensuring consistency across education, health and care. Joint commissioning and workforce planning with the ICB will further reduce fragmentation and support coordinated delivery. [PRT1, PRT3, PRT4]

1. NHS reforms and neighbourhood health

National reforms to establish neighbourhood health services will shape how health partners contribute to SEND identification, assessment and support. The shift to place based, multidisciplinary teams align with Wiltshire’s ambition to deliver earlier, coordinated support and reduce escalation. Risks arise if SEND is not embedded within new commissioning and workforce models. Wiltshire will address this by ensuring SEND is a defined priority within neighbourhood health design, aligning systems such as the Dynamic Support Register (DSR), Neurodevelopmental (ND) pathway and Experts at Hand model to neighbourhood geographies, supported through SEND governance with the ICB. [PRT1, EAH3, EPU3]

• Children’s Social Care reform – Families First Partnership Programme

The Families First Partnership Programme ensures Family Help, multi-agency child protection teams and strengthened family network support. This directly affects children with SEND and emerging needs. Wiltshire’s approach aligns SEND with Family Help, embedding SEND expertise within multidisciplinary teams through locality based provision for children and families, mapped to clusters for schools and settings, and supporting shared assessment, planning and leadership. This will strengthen early support, reduce duplication and prevent unnecessary escalation into statutory processes. [EPU3, PRT1]

3. Best Start in Life and Family Hubs

Family Hubs will act as a key delivery platform for early years SEND. Services will be integrated where appropriate, aligning early identification, parenting support and inclusion pathways. Wiltshire will ensure SEND services are accessible through hubs wherever appropriate, enabling a more coherent early years system and reducing fragmentation for families with young children. Spurgeons, as Wiltshire Council’s family hub commissioned provider, will stabilise and mature hub links with early years (EY) settings and the Local Authority (LA) Early Years Childcare and Quality team. Shared outcomes and commissioning arrangements will ensure SEND is fully embedded. [EPU6, EPU8, PRT1]

4. Wiltshire’s Best Start in Life Strategy

The SEND Reform Plan aligns directly with this strategy through shared governance, co-production and outcomes. Delivery will be place based, ensuring a consistent approach from conception onwards. Outcomes for children with SEND in the early years remain a shared success measure across programmes. This will be achieved, for example, through implementation of Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) reviewed interventions, such as Nuffield Early Language Intervention (NELI) and utilisation of learning from the change programme in implementation of Early Language Support for Every Child (ELSEC). [EPU6, EPU8, PRT1]

5. Curriculum and Assessment Review

SEND reform will be embedded within mainstream education improvement. Strengthened ordinarily available provision, aligned inclusion standards and improved use of data will support better outcomes for pupils with SEND, ensuring SEND is integral to wider education reform. ‘Strengthening Inclusion’ responsibility will sit with Wiltshire’s school effectiveness service, delivering on our commitment to securing best practice in mainstream inclusion via high quality teaching and learning. Inclusion is a school improvement issue. Similarly, Wiltshire’s SEND reform plan will deliver against the P16 Skills White Paper commitment to reduce the NEET gap for YP with SEND, focusing on establishing local flexible and vocational routes to training and employment utilising Wiltshire College and University Centre as a key delivery partner. Across all programmes, alignment will be maintained through shared governance, common data, local integrated delivery and continuous joint decision-making, enabling the partnership to adapt to national reforms while maintaining a clear and consistent focus on early intervention and inclusion. [EPU1, EPU3, PRT1, PRT3, PSX1]

In addition, delivery of the future state will need to remain aligned to wider education reforms, particularly the development of National Inclusion Standards, evolving expectations of mainstream inclusion and school accountability, reforms relating to alternative provision, and strengthened preparation for adulthood and post-16 pathways. These dependencies will be managed through the same integrated delivery framework, with implications for schools, settings, trusts and post-16 providers reflected in phased implementation, shared accountability and routine review of milestones, risks and outcomes. [PRT1, PRT5, PSX1]

Section 3 – Monitoring and Evaluation

12. How will the local area partnership know delivery is on track?

Please set out how you will monitor and track progress referencing:

▪ Monitoring tools and processes - the specific tools, systems, and data you will use to track delivery milestones and measure the impact on outcomes.

Some Local Area Partnerships hold data in a central SEND operational dashboard. This is used by teams on a weekly basis to identify trends in demand or inform conversations with local school or setting leaders.

In some Local Area Partnerships, a view of the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) is reviewed monthly by a SEND Board to take decisions on prioritisation, resourcing and delivery of services informed by regular data.

Please set out how you will use data to track demand (e.g., EHCP applications for assessment), Service delivery (e.g., Speech and Language Specialists deployment; places created), Service quality (e.g., parental satisfaction) and outputs (e.g., pupil attendance; pupil exclusions)

▪ Feedback and adaptation mechanisms - what feedback loops and stakeholder input you will use to review progress and adjust your approach.

500 words We will expand the central SEND operational dashboard that integrates data from education, health, and care systems to provide a single, shared view of performance. This dashboard will be used by operational teams, governance boards and clusters to monitor trends, manage demand, and identify emerging pressures. adjustment. A focused set of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) will be agreed and reviewed at Board, informing prioritisation, resource allocation, and service delivery adjustment. [PRT3, PRT5]

Tracking demand

• EHCP requests and assessments (volume, timeliness, outcomes)
• Requests for early help, SEN Support, and specialist advice
• Referrals into therapies (e.g. Speech and Language, CAMHS)
• Elective Home Education (EHE), NEET and EBSA indicators. [PRT3, PRT5, EPU3]

Tracking service delivery

• Deployment and reach of Experts at Hand (contacts, time to support, case types)
• Access to specialist services (e.g. EP advice, therapy sessions delivered)
• Capacity metrics (e.g. specialist placements created, Inclusion Base utilisation)
• Uptake of training and workforce development activity [PRT3, EAH7]

Tracking service quality

• Parental and carer satisfaction (via surveys, complaints, and co-production feedback)
• School and SENCO confidence measures (surveys)
• SENDIASS usage, satisfaction and impact
• Timeliness of responses and adherence to expected pathways
• Audit of Inclusion Plans and Graduated Response implementation [PRT3, PRT5, CPR1, CPR3]

Tracking outputs and impact

• Pupil attendance (including persistent absence and EBSA cohorts)
• Exclusion and suspension rates
• Reduction in escalation to EHCP where needs are met earlier
• Progress of pupils with SEND (attainment where appropriate, but with a broader focus on inclusion and engagement) [PRT3, PRT5, EPU3]

Insight-led reporting will turn data into action by identifying the causes and implications of emerging trends, not just describing the historic position. For example, if EHCP demand rises in one locality, reporting would highlight whether this is linked to gaps in inclusion practice, delayed access to therapy, or rising EBSA, so that support can be targeted quickly and appropriately. [PRT3, PRT5]

Data will be triangulated with qualitative insight to ensure the system can adapt rapidly and proportionately.

 Regular agreed monitoring cycles will identify emerging risks (e.g. increases in EHCNA requests or waiting times). Where thresholds are exceeded, escalation routes will trigger targeted action (e.g. additional expert capacity, focused support to specific clusters).  Cluster-level dashboards and peer review will enable local areas to interpret their own data, identify variation, and agree responsive actions, supported by the Local Authority.  Co-production and stakeholder feedback (parents, CYP, SENCOs and leaders), gathered through forums, surveys and “You Said, We Did” reporting, will provide insight into experience, accessibility and quality of support. This will directly inform service redesign priorities and workforce development.  Quality assurance activity (case audits, thematic reviews and peer challenge) will be used to identify whether practice is consistent and effective. Findings will inform revisions to guidance, training and the Experts at Hand offer.  At a system level, the SEND Board will use combined data and feedback to adjust delivery in-year. [PRT3, PRT5, CPR1, PRT4]

This approach ensures a continuous cycle of Monitor, Understand, Act, Review and Adapt enabling the partnership to respond dy namically, reduce variation, and maintain focus on improved outcomes for children and young people. [PRT3, PRT5]

13. Reporting to DfE

Using the attached data template, the local area partnership is required to provide quarterly data returns to DfE against selected key metrics. DfE will, in turn, provide quarterly data reports with visualised analysis and benchmarking that will support your local delivery, monitoring and evaluation. This will include data the department holds on Attendance, Exclusions, and Unauthorised absence.

Please use the attached data template to upload your initial data return to DfE.

Included as Annex 6

Section 4 – Governance 14. How will the local area partnership ensure delivery of plans remain on track?

Please outline the governance structures in place to oversee delivery. Clearly set out who is responsible for overseeing reform delivery, what each governance group or individual is accountable for, and how these arrangements ensure progress is monitored and decisions are made transparently. Please identify where the named SRO for the Local SEND Reform Plan sits within the governance structure and ensure your response incorporates the core minimum requirements.

Section 5 – Central Government Support

15. How can we help you? Please outline any practical support you need from central government to implement your plan effectively. This may include:

• Access to specialist expertise or advisory support
• Help with workforce development or recruitment challenges
• Tools or templates to support data collection, reporting, or evaluation
• Facilitation of peer learning or regional collaboration
• Support with system-level coordination across education, health, and care
• Guidance on navigating regulatory or policy barriers

250 words Wiltshire requires targeted support from DfE to enable effective delivery of the Local SEND Reform Plan to include:  Clear and timely national guidance is essential. This includes early visibility of emerging policy and structured walkthrough sessions as guidance is published. Current guidance is often high-level and open to interpretation; more detailed exemplification and direct engagement would support consistent implementation.

 Consistent advisory support is required at local level. Continuity with the existing DfE advisors to ensure understanding of the Wiltshire context would support effective challenge and reduce variability in interpretation of national policy.

 Workforce constraints remain a significant delivery risk. National action is needed to increase training capacity and recruitment pipelines for Educational Psychologists and speech and language therapists, alongside wider specialist workforce shortages.

 Greater clarity on the purpose of individual data lines (e.g. assurance, improvement, intervention) would allow local areas to prioritise effort effectively, and support with interpretation. Current baseline methodologies limit meaningful comparison between areas, and duplication with existing statutory returns increases burden without improving insight. A smaller, standardised core dataset focused on key system drivers, aligned to statutory definitions, alongside clearer guidance on appropriate aggregation and forecasting expectations, would improve consistency, robustness and usability of data.

 Clarity on multi-year capital funding is required to support strategic sufficiency planning, including development of inclusive provision and local specialist capacity.

 Additional support is required to strengthen post-16 and post-19 commissioning arrangements across education, health and care, particularly in relation to transitions to adulthood and alignment of responsibilities across partners.