Your views about Gateshead's Local Offer

We welcome your views about our Local Offer. If you think information is missing or needs to be added or updated you can tell us using the contact details below. We also want you to tell us if you couldn't find a service you were looking for so we can either signpost you in the right direction or work towards filling that gap in provision.

Email: senteam@gateshead.gov.uk
Phone: 0191 433 3626

Your views on SEND developments

We are committed to ensuring that children and young people with SEND and their parents and carers are fully involved in the way SEND services are developed and provided so we will post information about developments we are working on below to ask what you think about them.   

How we plan to spend our SEND Capital Allocation 2018-2020

The SEND Capital Provision Allocations support local authorities (LAs) to make capital investments in provision for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities. Local authorities can invest in new places and improvements to facilities for pupils with education, health and care (EHC) plans in mainstream and special schools, nurseries, colleges and other provision. Gateshead has been allocated a total of £500,000 for the period 2018-19 to 2020-21.

Local authorities are required to complete and publish a concise plan to show how they intend to invest their share of the fund.  You can view the plan here:

Gateshead SEND Capital Fund Plan [105.54KB]

Gibside School in Whickham has been deemed to continue to be "Outstanding" following its most recent inspection in March 2017. It currently meets the needs of pupils aged 3 - 11 with learning difficulties. It also meets the needs of pupils with autistic spectrum disorders (ASD). The school has further developed its Early Years Foundation Stage provision at Blaydon/Winlaton Children's Centre for pre-school children. 

At present there are 130 children on roll, however despite recently extending the school, the demand for places at Gibside School from within Gateshead has exceeded the accommodation available. In addition, there are significant transport issues due to the constraints of the site. There is also insufficient space within Blaydon/Winlaton Children's Centre to expand further. 

The proposal is to develop a new build special educational needs school for pupils aged 3 through to 11 years. The new school will be built in a geographically central area of Gateshead, providing teaching accommodation for 170 pupils. The bespoke facility will include hydrotherapy facilities and will cater for the needs of children with profound and multiple learning disabilities as well as those with other complex communication and medical needs. 

We consulted with parents/ carers on the above proposal via our Local Offer website, our Local Offer Facebook page and via our Parent-Carer Forum, Parents in Power and no responses were received.

We consulted with a group of pupils at Hilltop School; the results are below:

• Hilltop pupils views [119.58KB]

More information is available on the Gov.uk website 

You Said, We Did

The feedback we have received so far and what we have done as a result can be found in our ' 'You said, we did' summary [222.06KB].

The Views of children about the SEN support provided at their school report [3.85MB] highlights the views of 241 children and young people with SEND who were interviewed in groups at their school/placement by the Council's Disabled Children's Involvement worker during September-December 2016. We shared this information with schools to improve how we ensure the views of children and young people to be heard.  

How to raise a concern or complaint

Visit our webpage for more information on raising concerns or making a complaint.

Who can help you put your point across

There are a range of organisations in Gateshead independent from the Council that can help you put your views across and voice any concerns you may have. 

• Where to get advice, help and support
• Gateshead SENDIASS
• Voluntary and Community Organisations Booklet [597.65KB]

How we gather the views of young people

Gateshead Council is committed to gathering the views of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities which helps us to improve and shape services and identify any gaps in service provision. The diagram below highlights how we do this and the difference it makes.

Diagram - How we gather the views of young people with SEND [380.58KB]

Your views on services

We want to ensure that the services you receive are excellent quality and encourage service providers to actively seek your views about the level of service you receive. If you receive a survey or questionnaire or are invited to give your views in any other way about a service, please do so, as it will help the service provider to improve. If you are dissatisfied about a service, you should contact the service provider directly to discuss this or to make a complaint. If you have already done this and are still dissatisfied you can contact Gateshead Council for further advice on 0191 433 3626 or email senteam@gateshead.gov.uk

If you are concerned about a child's safety, you should immediately contact Gateshead Council on 0191 433 2410 (office hours) or 0191 477 0844 (out of hours).