Wiltshire SENDIASS provides a free, confidential and impartial support service to children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), and their parents and carers. We offer information, guidance, support, and signposting, either by phone, Teams calls, on an individual or targeted basis where needed, or through events and workshops. We aim to provide easy-to-understand information to raise awareness of options available to those using our service, and support you in making informed decisions about these options.
How it works
We offer guidance and support to children and young people under the age of 25 and their parents and carers through a range of channels, including phone, Teams calls, email, website, social media, and face-to-face interaction, if capacity allows, at local hubs and community outreach centres.
We offer information and guidance about:
- Education, Health and Care plans (EHCP) including annual reviews, informal & formal mediation and tribunals
- The law on special educational needs and disability
- Personalisation and personal budgets
- The Local Offer – sharing information about the services, activities and support available in the local Wiltshire area
- Managing mediation, tribunals, appeals, exclusions and complaints
- SEND support in early years provision, mainstream schools and post-16 institutions
- Local provision in mainstream, resourced mainstream and special schools
- What to do when things go wrong
Wiltshire SENDIASS Joint Statement About Service Delivery
We receive a high number of enquiries and requests for support and there are currently delays accessing our service, and we are sorry for any concern this may cause.
Wiltshire Council and Family Action are completing a transformation of SENDIASS so that you can receive the best support. Family Action run multiple SENDIASS services across the country and has experience of transformation work previously.
We understand that accessing support can be challenging because of the number of different agencies involved, and we want to reassure you that, whilst this transformation will take time to complete and embed, we have a plan that has been agreed with Wiltshire Council, and we are actively working together to continue to improve the service.
We are currently:
- Recruiting and training additional permanent staff
- Operating a system to assess and prioritise the most urgent inquiries. Other enquiries are placed on our waiting list and we will be in touch once we are able to progress
- Providing support for complex issues where necessary. This may involve attending mediation and tribunals if you have additional support needs that mean you cannot undertake these actions independently
- Signposting to other sources of information and advice so that you are able to exercise your legal rights. You may find answers to your question on this website, Wiltshire Council’s website or from IPSEA
- Directing you towards templates and examples for letters, emails and paperwork for you to complete
To help us be able to provide the most appropriate support as quickly as possible, please read our Privacy Notice prior to completing our contact form (below in contact us)
Your enquiry will have been logged upon your initial contact and additional contacts adds further demand on admin staff and will not speed up how quickly we are able to address your enquiry.
Thank you for your patience and understanding.
Further support and information
Visit Wiltshire’s Local Offer for information, advice and support on provision for children and young people aged 0 to 25 years, plus links to Wiltshire’s other Family services so you can search and find out how to access them, all in one place.
Family Action’s SEND information for parents and carers webpage offers useful information on topics as varied as money, health, leisure and education. You’ll also find a FAQs section and a list of national support organisations.
See the Wiltshire Parent Carer Council website – a resource by parents for parents and families.
FamilyLine is a free service available to support parents and carers manage the challenges of parenthood via telephone, text message and email. Whether it’s emotional support or practical advice on any aspect of parenting or broader family life, call: 0808 802 6666, text: 07537 404282 or email: [email protected].
For a wealth of information and advice about SEND law, please visit the IPSEA website: https://www.ipsea.org.uk/
Contact Us
You can contact Wiltshire SENDIASS Monday to Friday, between 9:00am and 5:00pm. We aim to respond to your query as soon as we can. However, please note that we are currently triaging and operating a waiting list due to unprecedented demand for the service and we thank you for your patience during this busy time.
- Phone: 01225 255266
- Email: [email protected]
- Complete our contact form
