Educational Psychology Service

We also have an understanding of the legal framework for the education of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

We very much hope that the school year 2021/22 will mark the start of a new post-COVID era. The EPS will continue to support local provisions with the impact of Covid however. Please speak to your link EP about the specialised support, advice and resources available. We will continue to work in collaboration with schools to respond to individual school communities and plan support and input accordingly.  Educational Psychologists will continue to deliver training on, for example, Wellbeing, Loss, Grief and Bereavement, and Managing Critical Incidents – as well as the usual range of SEND themes. 

As part of the local authority’s Special Educational Needs and Disability Service the H&F EPS has strong and positive links with schools and with other council and partner agencies, children’s and adult’s social care and health, as examples.  The advice and support the service offers is therefore very well integrated into the broader systems of support for children and young people with disabilities and those with SEND and their families.

The local authority’s Special Educational Needs and Disability Service funds a core EP service to meet statutory requirements at no cost to schools, for example providing psychological advice for EHC Needs Assessments, supporting Panels, attendance at Tribunals etc.

Purchasing additional time from the H&F EPS for the Academic Year 2021/22 (‘Tier 3’)

The benefits that you will see as a result of purchasing additional EP input over and above your statutory and core consultation sessions include:

• A planned, protected service that you know is in place for your school without the need for further commissioning.
• Supporting the school with the return to the ‘new normal’ and the added pressures on staff and children that this may bring.
• Services that build upon good professional relationships and specialist knowledge and skills
• An EP team with a wide range of skills and expertise.
• Services that make use of a detailed knowledge of your school and context, including the wider community and Local Authority.
• Improved staff confidence, knowledge and skills for intervention programmes and practical strategies that we know work (e.g., up to date evidenced based/informed approaches).
• School development work that fits your particular requirements and time scales.
• Project work that engages a wide range of multi-agency partners and resources with academic rigour to maximise outcomes.
• Creative, well-qualified and experienced EPs who draw on up to date knowledge and research about child development, education and the evidence base of what works and why.
• Support from an EP team who are passionate about sharing psychology in an accessible way and working together with school staff, families and communities to promote positive changes for young people.

Summary of the H&F Educational Psychology Services Offered:

• Tier 1a: SEND commissioned work (e.g., Statutory and related functions).
• Tier 1b: Children’s Services commissioned work (e.g., Critical Incident support).
• Tier 2: LA Allocated Visits to schools (e.g., to support the LA in carrying out some of its core statutory duties and to support strategic planning).
• Tier 3: Traded EP Sessions/Visits (e.g., the provision of packages of EP time to meet individual school’s needs, commissioned and funded by the schools (see Table 1).

Your link EP will contact you in June/July 2021 to plan your traded request for the year which will start on the 1^st September 2021.  Please discuss with your EP if you would like to buy in for the first time, keep to your present level or increase/reduce your number of visits. You may request a package with 3 days as minimum, however, we would recommend a minimum of 6 days in order to meet a school’s needs and to fully implement a consultation model of service (see below).

We look forward to working with you and your school! 

Download full service offer here