Kent local area partnership SEND strategic improvement plan 2026-2029 (draft)

Kent Local Area Partnership

SEND Strategic Improvement Plan

2026-2029

Kent County Council, NHS Kent and Medway Integrated Care Board, Education, Health and Care Partners.

Prepared in response to the July 2026 Area SEND inspection

Action plan aligned to the six Areas for Improvement identified through the July 2026 Area SEND inspection

1. Introduction: The Kent Local Area Partnership is committed to improving the experiences and outcomes of children and young people with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

The July 2026 Area SEND inspection found that the partnership has made significant progress and identified a number of strengths. It also found that children and young people continue to have inconsistent experiences and outcomes and that further improvement is required.

The inspection found that some children and young people receive timely, well-coordinated support that helps them to participate and make progress. For others, there are delays, uncertainty about support and differences in access depending on where they live and the services available to them.

The central challenge for the partnership is therefore to make the improvements already achieved more consistent and equitable across Kent.

This Strategic Improvement Plan sets out how the partnership will respond to the six Areas for Improvement identified through the inspection.

It builds on Kent's existing SEND Strategy and proven improvement arrangements. It focuses on the changes required following inspection and the difference these changes should make for children, young people and families.

2. Our ambition: Our ambition is that children and young people with SEND in Kent receive the right support at the right time and are able to participate, achieve and prepare well for adulthood.

We want children and young people to:

• Have their needs identified and understood early; • Receive effective support without unnecessary delay; • Participate fully in education and community life; • Experience coordinated education, health and care support; • Understand decisions about their support; • Be listened to and involved; • Be supported to prepare well for adulthood; and • Have equitable access to support and opportunities across Kent. • For parents and carers, this means a system that is clearer, better coordinated and more reliable.

3. Building on progress: The inspection identified important strengths within the Kent SEND system that ensure the necessary environment for further improvements.

These include:

• Stronger shared leadership across education, health and social care; • A collaborative partnership culture; • Generally effective newer EHC plans; • Developing needs-led approaches that reduce reliance on diagnosis as the only route to support; • Improving use of data and intelligence; • Increased opportunities for children, young people and families to contribute; • Effective examples of multi-agency working; • Increasingly strategic commissioning; • Effective oversight of residential and out-of-area placements; • Strengthened quality assurance of alternative provision; • Effective use of the Dynamic Support Register; and • Developing workforce capability.

Our approach is to build on these strengths while addressing the areas where practice and outcomes remain inconsistent.

The inspection identifies a clear theme across the six Areas for Improvement: effective practice exists, but it is not yet experienced consistently by children and young people across Kent.

4. Our six Areas for Improvement: The partnership will focus on the six Areas for Improvement identified through the inspection.

For each area, we have set out what needs to change, what we intend to achieve and the main actions we will take.

Detailed milestones, measures, accountable officers and delivery risks will be maintained through the partnership's operational improvement plan and reported to the Kent SEND Partnership Board.

Area of Improvement 1:

Area for Improvement: Strengthen data, monitoring, quality assurance and evaluation Narrative from the report: The partnership’s use of data and intelligence is improving, but leaders do not yet have a sufficiently strong understanding of the experiences and outcomes of some children and young people. Oversight needs to improve for children and young people on part-time timetables, experiencing disrupted education, attending alternative provision or otherwise not accessing SEND support or full-time education. Stronger information is also needed for commissioning, sufficiency planning, waiting-list management, placement planning and resource allocation. Governance Group: Kent SEND Partnership Board Linked Strategy Ambition: Improving the Lived Experience of children and families Lead Partner/s: Joint leadership by Kent County Council and NHS Kent and Medway Integrated Care Board, working with education settings, health providers, social care, parent carer representatives, children and young people and other partners.

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Area of Improvement 2:

Area for Improvement: Improve the quality, timeliness and oversight of EHC plans and the annual review process Narrative from the report: The quality and timeliness of newer EHC plans were identified as a strength. The challenge is to sustain this improvement and ensure plans continue to reflect children’s changing needs and circumstances. Annual reviews, decisions and amendments are not always timely, some older plans do not sufficiently reflect current need, and the quality and timeliness of professional advice need to be more consistent. Governance Group: Kent SEND Partnership Board Linked Strategy Ambition: Achieving the Best Outcomes through inclusion and participation Lead Partner/s: Joint leadership by Kent County Council and NHS Kent and Medway Integrated Care Board, working with education settings, health providers, social care, parent carer representatives, children and young people and other partners.

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Area of Improvement 3:

Area for Improvement: Strengthen communication, co-production, transparency and information-sharing Narrative from the report: The inspection identified positive examples of engagement but mixed experiences for children, young people and families. Some families are unclear about how decisions are made, why support is agreed or declined, what support is available or what happens next. Schools and settings can also be unclear about changes, processes, commissioning and funding. Information is not always shared effectively between services, creating duplication, delay and repeated storytelling. Governance Group: Kent SEND Partnership Board Linked Strategy Ambition: Working Together with CYP with SEND and their families Lead Partner/s: Joint leadership by Kent County Council and NHS Kent and Medway Integrated Care Board, working with education settings, health providers, social care, parent carer representatives, children and young people and other partners.

Action Ref Strategic Improvement Priority Accountable Partner To be fully completed by What is the expected impact How will the Partnership know outcomes have improved for children and young people?

Strengthen consistent use of Kent’s existing co- production arrangements, with clear expectations for how children, young people and families influence strategy, commissioning and service development.

KCC / ICB January 2029 Clearer evidence that co-production has influenced strategy, commissioning and service development.

Record involvement, influence and resulting changes, and test experience with children, young people and families.

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Introduce a regular “You said - We did - Difference made” approach so that children and families can see how their feedback has influenced improvement. As well as clearly articulate why not all feedback can be actioned and provide alternative approaches wherever possible.

Comms and engagement teams April 2027 Children and families can see how their feedback has influenced improvement.

Publish and review regular updates showing feedback received, action taken and the difference made.

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Review priority SEND communications so that decisions, reasons, next steps, timescales and routes for further advice are clear.

Audit priority communications and seek feedback on clarity, timeliness and usefulness through KCC Parent Survey.

Comms and engagement teams September 2027 Improved family understanding of decisions and next steps.

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Work with schools and settings to develop communication pathways about services, funding, commissioning and significant changes with clear engagement expectations across all partners.

Comms and engagement teams September 2028 Greater provider confidence in partnership communication.

Use provider feedback and communication reviews to test whether information is clear, timely and consistent.

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Improve information-sharing in priority pathways where duplication or repeated storytelling is contributing to delay or poor experience.

Use pathway review, case audit and lived experience to identify and reduce duplication, delay and repeated storytelling.

KCC/NHS health providers January 2028 Fewer families report repeated storytelling and better coordinated communication across services.

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Area of Improvement 4:

Area for Improvement: Improve consistency of support and address gaps in provision and sufficiency Narrative from the report: Developing needs-led approaches and effective early support were recognised, but these are not yet consistent across Kent. Some children and young people experience long waits in specialist pathways, inconsistent support while waiting, delays in provision or placement decisions and differences in access to specialist support. Gaps remain in early intervention, specialist provision and alternative provision. Governance Group: Kent SEND Partnership Board Linked Strategy Ambition: Access to the Right Support at the Right Time in the Right Place Lead Partner/s: Joint leadership by Kent County Council and NHS Kent and Medway Integrated Care Board, working with education settings, health providers, social care, parent carer representatives, children and young people and other partners.

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Area of Improvement 5:

Area for Improvement: Strengthen preparation for adulthood and post-16 pathways Narrative from the report: Positive examples of supported internships, employment opportunities, community participation and effective transition support were identified. However, these opportunities are not experienced consistently. Preparation for adulthood is particularly inconsistent for young people with SEND who do not have an EHC plan. Governance Group: Kent SEND Partnership Board Linked Strategy Ambition: Preparing for a Successful Future at the Earliest Opportunity Lead Partner/s: Joint leadership by Kent County Council and NHS Kent and Medway Integrated Care Board, working with education settings, health providers, social care, parent carer representatives, children and young people and other partners.

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Area of Improvement 6:

Area for Improvement: Ensure a more equitable offer across Kent Narrative from the report: Geographical variation is a significant theme. Children and young people with similar needs can experience different levels of access to services, specialist support, workforce and opportunities depending on where they live. Kent is a large and diverse county, but geographical differences should not result in unjustified differences in access, experience or outcomes. Governance Group: Kent SEND Partnership Board Linked Strategy Ambition: Access to the Right Support at the Right Time in the Right Place; Improving the Lived Experience of children and families Lead Partner/s: Joint leadership by Kent County Council and NHS Kent and Medway Integrated Care Board, working with education settings, health providers, social care, parent carer representatives, children and young people and other partners.

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