School Support Partnership (SSP)

Previously known as the Education Inclusion Partnership

What are the aims of the Schools Partnership?

• to help schools to build knowledge, skills, and confidence so they can support children if they begin to experience Social, Emotional & Mental Health needs (SEMH)
• to enable staff to see when children’s Social Emotional and Mental Health needs have changed and to act at the earliest possible opportunity, so their needs are not missed, misunderstood, or misidentified. For example, if a pupil is struggling to understand instructions because they have an unidentified communication need, they may refuse to comply at school because they don’t understand what is being asked of them and this could be identified as a behaviour issue and even put them at risk of exclusion. Children are often very good at hiding their language difficulties, showing other ‘symptoms’ that are more recognisable or easier to understand – poor literacy, poor behaviour, low self-esteem and few friendships
• helping schools to confidently identify and unpick the complex causes of Social Emotional and Mental Health and to understand the impact these may have on a child’s ability to make progress, thrive and reach their own full potential
• establish this change in practice so that a whole school inclusion ethos becomes the norm

How will this be achieved in school?

• whole school training, school audits of need, identifying areas for development and action plans for each school
• advice, consultations, and support for school staff from a range of Social Emotional Mental Health specialist professionals. A toolkit of professional support. (See diagram in the School Support Partnership Parent Information Leaflet on this page)
• Senco Networks: Information and services updates.sSupport for some identified individual children through a direct referral
• multi-agency approach to ensure a coordinated approach for some individual children where behaviours are beginning to escalate or placement in school is at risk

How is the individual support for my child arranged?

• each school has a linked Social Emotional Mental Health (SEMH) Specialist teacher to enable early identification of children who may be at risk on not reaching their own potential. Initially this will be anonymous discussions with school
• if the Social Emotional & Mental Health Specialist teacher decides further support is required for a child, you will be asked to sign a form giving permission for their direct involvement
• once this work has been completed, if the school and the Social, Emotional & Mental Health Specialist teacher feel other support from the toolkit is required, school can make a referral to the School Support Partnership.  parental consent is required for this
• the School Support Partnership Coordinator will process this referral and observe the child in school. An action plan to support the needs of the individual child will be developed. The school will share this action plan with parents/ & carers. If a different pathway of support is recommended this will be shared with the school and parents/carers
• for Secondary pupils, the process is different. Monthly meetings are held with school in collaboration with the Inclusion team to identify pupils at risk and plan support for identified needs
• real life examples of how the SSP works and has made a difference can be seen in the download section on this page

Frequently asked questions

Can I access individual support for my child if they have an Education Health Care Plan (EHCP)?

No. The School Support Partnership is a pathway to support schools with identification of needs at the earliest window of opportunity.

Is there a time limit on the support offered to individual children?

No. Cases remain open unless the child moves out of the County, or they receive a final EHCP. Cases will remain inactive if children are happy and thriving in school. Further support can be accessed and allocated by the coordinator if the circumstances change. A new referral is not required.

Can my child access support if we live outside Rutland?

Yes. The partnership is based on the school the child attends, not the postal home address.  Individual children in both primary and secondary phases can access the individual support if this is assessed as the right pathway.

Why do you have a Speech Therapist in your toolkit if you are supporting Social, Emotional & Mental Health needs?

Some children with underlying communication issues such as difficulties with social interaction or understanding language which can be missed or misidentified leading to behaviours schools find challenging. Our Speech Therapists are supporting schools with this identified area.

What is the Graduated Response on the School Support Partnership Referral form?

This is a range of audits and information schools complete to demonstrate they have used Quality First Teaching and made all reasonable adjustments to curriculum planning and delivery to support the child in school before referring for additional support.

What is the Toolkit?

The toolkit is a range of Social, Emotional & Mental Health professionals. They work with school staff and some pupils. The support is flexible to meet the changing needs of the school and the pupils.