Down Syndrome Specialist Outreach Service

Specialist Outreach is available to meet the educational needs of pupils with Down Syndrome in mainstream schools in Central Bedfordshire from Reception to Year 14. The service provides a range of advice and support through school visits, CPD and contributions to EHCP Needs Assessments and EHCP reviews.  

We aim to work collaboratively with mainstream schools in Central Bedfordshire to build capacity and confidence in meeting the needs of children with Down Syndrome.

How do schools refer?

  • The school needs to provide evidence of the Assess/Plan/Do/Review process, examples of documents for this purpose are a SEND Support Plan, an Individual Education Plan (IEP), Provision Map or equivalent to evidence implementation and impact of schools’ universal level strategies before targeted support is advised.
  • The schools submit their referrals via the Central Bedfordshire Single Referral Pathway

What happens once a referral is received?

  • Initial contact will be made with the school within 15 working days.
  • If a referral is received without sufficient evidence of implementation of appropriate strategies and reflection on the impact of the strategies, schools may be asked to provide further evidence.
  • If the outreach service is not deemed to be the most appropriate to offer support, the referral may be redirected to the relevant agency.

What happens once a referral is accepted?

  • The outreach team aim to visit within 4 weeks of receiving the referral
  • They will determine how many dedicated visits to the school setting can be made, and this will depend on the complexity of the case.
  • The support will include a written summary of recommendations, completed within fifteen school-working days of the visit.
  • Schools will be expected to share the reports with families.
  • The consultations are aimed at raising confidence and capacity in schools to meet the needs of pupils/students with SEND.
  • Schools will be asked to complete an evaluation form to monitor quality.

Prior to requesting Outreach please refer to the links below for ideas for resources and advice.

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Last Updated

Last updated: 04/07/2023