Waiting/learning well

It's not just about the length of the wait but the quality of the wait and how an individual experiences it. And the way to understand this is through communication. Chris McCann (Director of Communications, Campaigns and Insights at Healthwatch)

In line with many other local authorities Wiltshire is currently experiencing a very high number of requests for statutory assessment. The level of demand on services means that we may not always be able to follow processes within normal timescales. This is a national challenge, which is also affecting children and young people in Wiltshire.

All services in Wiltshire have worked hard to reduce outstanding assessments and subsequent delays, by increasing staffing capacity and improving systems and practices for conducting assessments. We are making progress, but we acknowledge there is still more work to be done.

We are sorry for any delay you may experience. If this is going to be the case, we will contact you 2 weeks before the end of assessment decision is due (to help you to know what to expect).

Steps we are taking to support you and your child or young person

Please be reassured that we are putting things in place to help to continue to meet children and young people's needs in the event of a delay. Schools will automatically receive Temporary Support Funding from the LA if the EHC needs assessment reaches the end of the statutory assessment timescale without a decision being made. This will help the school to support your child whilst waiting for an assessment or decision to be made. You can discuss this with your school if you have any queries or concerns about this.

We understand that during this time clear, regular and timely communication is crucial to help you understand what is happening, if and why there are any delays, and when you can expect updates. We have put in place a consistent approach for regular communication throughout the process so that you will always be aware of progress. We will also be hoping to capture your experience of the process in order to inform future service delivery.

We are continuing to recruit additional staff to increase capacity in the Assessment team and EP service. This includes interim support from external EP providers, and more staff is the assessment team to ensure we can assign a point of contact to your family. Alongside this we are committed to making sure that the staff in those roles receive the correct training in how to share information to help you feel supported whilst you wait.