SENDIASS - Information, Advice and Support Service

The information, advice and support service can provide support for parents and young people in arranging and attending meetings as well as offering advocacy support. The service is confidential and free for young people aged 0-25 and their parents. It is impartial and provided at arm’s length from the local authority and Cheshire and Merseyside Integrated Care Board (ICB).

You can contact Sefton's Information, Advice and Support Service by telephone 0151 934 3334, by completing this online form SENDIASS

We are an all year round service that works flexibly to suit the families that we support, we have flexible working patterns and work between the hours of 8.30am and 6pm.

Link to Sefton and NHS - Compliments, Complaints, Disputes and Disagreements

What information and advice can the service give me?

It can provide information and advice on all matters relating to SEN including:

Local policy and practice.
The local offer.
Personalisation and personal budgets.
Education law on SEN and related law on disability, health and social care, through suitably independently trained staff.

What kind of advice should we expect?

The advice and support offered to children, young people and parents should include:

Individual casework and informal advocacy.
Support in attending meetings, contributing to assessments and reviews.
Participating in decisions about outcomes for the child or young person.
Help when things go wrong, including resolving disagreements and providing support to manage mediation, appeals, exclusions, and complaints on matters related to SEN.
Directing parents, young people and those who support and work with them to additional support services where needed, including services provided by the voluntary sector. These services should include housing support, careers advice and employment support and may include volunteer supporters trained by the information and advice service.
Working separately and impartially with young people and their parents if they disagree about any support or about the contents of an EHC plan.
Working closely with their local Parent Carer Forum and other representive groups. This ensures that the views and experiences of children, young people and parents inform policy and practice.
Contributing to strategic development of services by the Local Authority / ICB.