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Contents

1. When a Child becomes Looked After  
2. The Personal Education Plan (PEP) 
3. When a Child Moves into a New Local Authority 
4. When a Child Needs or Joins a new School  
5. When a Child has no School Place 
6. Additional Support for Looked After Children
7. PEP Reviews 
8. Young People with Special Educational Needs
9. English as an Additional Language-Refugees/Asylum Seekers (EAL)
10. Young People Involved in the Criminal Justice System
11. When a Young Woman becomes Pregnant
12. Absence from School 
13. School Exclusions 

1. When a Child becomes Looked After

Notification

Before or as soon as a child Becomes Looked After, the child’s Social Worker must notify the school the child attends. The notification will be initially by telephone and must then be confirmed in writing.

If the child is placed outside the borough, the authority into which the child is placed must also be notified.

Lead Officers for LAC in Education and Children’s Social Care in every local authority can be found at Department for Education website.

Where the child does not have a school place - see Section 5, When a Child has no School Place

The First Personal Education Plan - non-residential schools.

The first Personal Education Plan (PEP) should be in place within ten working days of a child becoming looked after.

A meeting must take place as soon as possible with the school, the Carer and the Social Worker; and should involve the child as far as is appropriate and possible

The meeting should usually be chaired by the Social Worker

Its purpose is to draw up the first PEP.

The first PEP should:

• Identify the child’s immediate needs (e.g. to maintain the current school place, make transport arrangements, find a new school, obtain short-term interim education)
• Establish contact between Carer, school or other education Staff and Social Worker - the basis of a working partnership .This would be an ideal time to contact the Lewisham Edlac team (Education of Looked after Children's team) as they have a wealth of valuable information and can provide pertinent details that can minimise time frames. T: O20 8314 8413
• Establish boundaries of confidentiality
• Agree how and when the next (full) PEP is going to be drawn up.

The First Personal Education Plan - residential schools and educational placements.

The first Personal Education Plan (PEP) should be in place within ten working days of the child becoming looked after.

A meeting must take place as soon as possible with the education and residential Staff and should involve the child as far as is appropriate and possible.

The first PEP should also:

• Identify the child's immediate needs (e.g. literacy and numeracy, behaviour management, assessment of ability and knowledge) At this stage data collection is essential as it  acts as a benchmark for future input. Not an exact science but an

  • average 7 year old should be on Level 2
  • average 11 year old level 4
  • 14 year old level 5
    
    these  can be based on external exams SATS or teacher assessment, if a child is not reaching these benchmarks then other factors are at play i.e. maybe a special need and requires further investigation.
• Establish contact between education Staff and Social Worker - the basis of a working partnership
• Agree how and when the next (full)  PEP is going to be drawn up.

Second and subsequent  PEP’s:

Second and subsequent PEP’s should correspond with the Looked After Review cycle and PEP decisions and recommendations must be available to chairs at reviews. See Looked After Reviews Procedure

Provision of education for pupils with Statement of Special Educational Needs can be changed only by amending the statement at an annual review.

2. The Personal Education Plan (PEP)

The Personal Education Plan (PEP) is the central platform for the education of Looked After Children, and is incorporated within or attached to each child’s Care Plan.

All Looked After Children of compulsory school age must have a Personal Education Plan (PEP), whether or not currently in education.

It is the social workers responsibility to initiate PEP meetings and come an agreement with the designated teacher as who will chair the PEP meeting.

Following the meeting, it is the social worker's responsibility to ensure that the PEP form is completed and includes contributions from the school and other partners and is then circulated to all workers involved with the child.

A key part of conducting PEPs is the partnership working and the joint responsibility to promote the education of the looked after child.

When a child is attending school, the school’s Designated Teacher or other identified member of Staff is also responsible for ensuring that a child has a PEP, in consultation with the Social Worker.

The Social Worker should convene and chair meetings, as necessary, to ensure the PEP is completed.

If the PEP meeting is organised to coincide with other reviews/meetings, for example, an annual review of a Statement of Special Educational Needs, or the drawing up of an Individual Education Plan (IEP), the Social Worker should agree with other participants in advance how responsibility for the meeting is to be shared.

A PEP must be based on accurate and up-to-date information.  Everyone relevant should be consulted about both their views and their ability to contribute to  the child’s educational progress. 

Decisions by participants should aim to achieve small, concrete, observable improvements. These should be significant and realistic and involve positive changes to the current situation.

Recommendations from the planning meeting should go to the Looked After Review for approval - changes of school, increased expenditure, etc.

If the pupil is subject to a Statement of Special Educational Needs, any  recommendations relating to school and the content of the statement must go via the annual review of the statement (which can be brought forward if necessary).

The Social Worker must also ensure that Parents are involved in these events as far as is appropriate, and that copies of the child’s school reports are sent to the Parents.

3. When a Child Moves into a New Local Authority

If a child is placed out of the borough but continues to attend the same school as before becoming Looked After, the Procedure outlined in Section 2, When a Child becomes Looked After.

If the child is to be placed out of the borough and will need a new school, efforts to obtain a school place should (unless it is an emergency placement) begin well before s/he moves to a new placement.

Whenever possible a child should not be moved to a new placement until s/he also has a school place.

Where the child does not have a school place - see Section 5, When a Child has no School Place.

Pupils With Statements of Special Educational Needs

The Statement of Special Educational Needs Department of the Local Education Authority where the child lives (unless in residential accommodation)  is responsible for the placement and provision for a pupil who has a statement of special needs.

Applications to schools are made by the LEA maintaining the statement. If the LEA agrees to adopt a statement then it will need to be amended . This needs to be planned for as early as possible as it can cause long delays.

4. When a Child Needs or Joins a new School

Choosing and applying to a school place is primarily the Social Worker’s responsibility but may be delegated to or shared with others (e.g. the Carer, a local education authority officer).

Notification

At least one member of Staff in the school  - the Designated Teacher for Looked After Children or the Head Teacher - must be informed that the child is a Looked After Child. Other members of Staff should be identified at the Personal Education Plan (PEP) meeting, taking into account the child’s wishes concerning confidentiality.

Pupils With Statements of Special Educational Needs

A pupil who has a Statement of Special Educational Needs applies to schools through the special needs section of the LEA maintaining the statement, not directly. Similarly, a change of schools at any other time needs the agreement of the LEA to approach the school and for the statement to be amended. This needs to be planned for as early as possible as it can cause long delays.

The social  worker should ensure that he/she is aware of the current position of the statement and whether any additional support is provided and by whom.

The First PEP in a new school

The meeting should usually be chaired by the Social Worker.

A new or updated Personal Education Plan (PEP) should be in place within ten working days of the child becoming looked after.

Subsequent  PEPs should correspond with the statutory review cycle. PEP decisions and recommendations must be available to Reviewing Officers at statutory reviews. See Looked After Review Procedures

The first PEP in a new school should:

• Identify the child’s immediate needs (e.g. English as an Additional Language, literacy support, behaviour management)
• Establish contact between Carer, school Staff and Social Worker - the basis of a working partnership
• Agree who contacts whom about what
• Establish boundaries of confidentiality
• Share important information - perhaps including the Placement Information Record
• Ensure records are forwarded from previous school and/or Carer
• Agree how and when the next full PEP is going to be drawn up (this needs to take account of the statutory review cycle because the PEP has to be ready before or at the Review; but also term dates, Parents evenings, school target setting days, Individual Education Plan (IEP) Reviews, annual reviews of Statement of Special Educational Needs)

5. When a Child has no School Place

Finding a school place is primarily the Social Worker’s responsibility but may be delegated to or shared with others (e.g. the Carer, a local education authority officer).

Looked After Children in need of a mainstream school place are usually entitled to preferential treatment for admissions.

PEPs

Children without a school place should still have an up-to-date Personal Education Plan (PEP). It should address immediate educational needs and longer-term planning.

Contact details:

To view Contact Details of the relevant team/person in Education click here.

Children Placed Within the borough

Where the child does not have a school place because one cannot be found, or because mainstream school is not appropriate to their needs, the child’s Social Worker should notify the relevant Education Team (see end of this Section).

The local authority should identify a school place within 20 working days at the latest; and should be asked to provide alternative education if a school place cannot be found immediately or is not appropriate.

Children Placed Outside the borough

Where the child does not have a school place because one cannot be found, or has been placed at very short notice, the child’s Social Worker should notify the relevant Education Team (see end of this Section) and request that a school be identified for the child as soon as possible. 

That local authority should identify a school place within 20 working days at the latest; and should be asked to provide alternative education if a school place cannot be found immediately or is not appropriate.

Local authority contacts can be found at Department for Education website.

Pupils with Statements of Special Educational Needs

A pupil who has a statement of special needs applies to schools through the special needs section of the LEA maintaining the statement, not directly. It requires the agreement of that LEA to approach the school and for the statement to be amended. This needs to be planned for as early as possible as it can cause long delays.

Contact details for The Education Team

Lewisham Looked After Children placed in Lewisham contact:
Education Admissions Team on 0208 3148282

Lewisham Looked After Children placed out of Lewisham, contact the Admissions Team for that area

For Looked After Children who have a SEN Statement, contact the SEN Team for the area where the child is placed

For ALL Lewisham Looked After Children the Social Worker should also contact the Education LAC Team on 0208 314 8413

Lewisham Education of Looked after Children's team

The EDLAC team is placed within the Lewisham Education department but it works closely with social services. It comprises of

• An advisory teacher
• A specialist teacher
• 2 senior Education Welfare Officers focusing on school attendance
• 2 part-time tutor Coordinators
• An information officer

The team should be consulted at all times as they are very familiar with all procedures and the different education establishments that exist, they can pre-empt many problems and are a valuable contributor to PEP meetings.

The team can be contacted on 0208 314 8413.

6. Additional Support for Looked After Children

Looked After Children are entitled to all the support on offer to their peers and this should be raised at PEP meetings. However there are additional funds that can be accessed such as

• Pupil premiums

What are pupil premiums?

Pupil premiums are held by the school and are intended to provide additional support to looked after children. Decisions about the use of Pupil premiums rest with the school but can contribute to the Personal Education Plan. The use of the Pupil Premium should be raised at the PEP meeting.

Tuition support

There may be additional tuition and classroom support available to looked after children through the looked after advisory teacher.

Contact 0208314 8413 for further details. 

7. PEP Reviews

Second and subsequent Personal Education Plans (PEP) should correspond with the Looked After Review cycle and PEP decisions and recommendations must be available to Reviewing Officers at reviews.

Timing of the meeting - non-residential schools

The Social Worker will convene a meeting to review the PEP, timed to take place not more than four weeks before the child’s Looked After Reviews (or at the end of the Summer term, if the Review is due during the school holidays).

Timing of the meeting - residential schools and educational placements

If care and education are provided together it may be more appropriate to review and plan education and care at the same time. The meeting should still explicitly address educational needs and result in a PEP.

Preparation for the meeting

Preparation or consultation forms should be sent to all likely participants two weeks before the meeting. How best to consult with the child must be considered, and support or advocacy arranged if necessary.

The PEP meeting - arrangements

The meeting should involve the child, Carer(s), the appropriate member(s) of school Staff, LEA representatives if necessary, and Parents if appropriate.

The meeting should usually be chaired by the Social Worker.

If the PEP meeting is organised to coincide with (for example) an annual review of a statement or the drawing up of an Individual Education Plan (IEP), the Social Worker should agree with other participants in advance how responsibility for the meeting is to be shared.

The PEP meeting - purposes

Second and subsequent PEP meetings should:

• check that the  previous PEP’s decisions and recommendations have been implemented
• check that the  previous PEP’s decisions and recommendations have been implemented
• acknowledge the successes achieved
• address current concerns
• and agree new decisions and recommendations accordingly.

PEP Decisions

The participants should agree what action they will each undertake to achieve the improvements in the child’s education that they have identified through the consultation/preparation process.

PEP Recommendations

Proposals that would lead to significant changes in arrangements (e.g. a change of school, a request for a statutory assessment of Statement of Special Educational Needs) and/or to increases in Children’s Social Care expenditure (private tuition, a jointly-funded placement) should be made in the form of recommendations to the Looked After Review.

8. Young People with Special Educational Needs

Any child which is not meeting the developmental norms of its peers could have a special need and an Statement of educational Need can be applied for if academically 2 years behind its peers or showing emotional/behavioural distress. The statement brings to the school additional funding and specialised support. It is a long and arduous route and takes on average 1 to 2  years as various strategies have to be implemented and given time to succeed before the next intervention. So early identification is essential. The PEP is the ideal time to raise any concerns.

All schools have SENCO's  Special Education Needs Coordinator who are familiar with the process and can collate the evidence and submit the paperwork to the local authority.

The Statement of Special Educational Needs Department of the Local Education Authority where the child lives (unless in residential accommodation)  is responsible for the placement and provision for a pupil who has a statement of special needs.

Applications to schools are made by the LEA maintaining the statement. If the LEA agrees to adopt a statement then it will need to be amended . This needs to be planned for as early as possible as it can cause long delays.

Once a young person has a statement of need e/she will have a named SEN officer from the providing authority. They should be consulted on for future PEPs and  Reviews.

Lewisham's SEN team can be contacted on 020 8314 7910

A pupil who has a Statement of Special Educational Needs applies to schools through the special needs section of the LEA maintaining the statement, not directly. Similarly, a change of schools at any other time needs the agreement of the LEA to approach the school and for the statement to be amended. This needs to be planned for as early as possible as it can cause long delays.

The social  worker should ensure that he/she is aware of the current position of the statement and whether any additional support is provided and by whom.

9. English as an Additional Language-Refugees/Asylum Seekers (EAL)

As high numbers of Looked after children are Refugees/asylum seekers/unaccompanied minors english may not be their first language but this should not prevent them from accessing a school place. Schools are well catered for EAL students with EAL departments that offer intensive english lessons before they join the main school.

Schools maintain an EAL register and this denotes the level of need:

• Stage 1 New to English
• Stage 2  Demonstrates a growing command of vocabulary, structures and comprehension in English
• Stage 3 Appears to be orally fluent in informal contexts but has difficulty coping with the academic language demands of the curriculum
• Stage 4 Confident user of English in most contacts
• Stage 5 Fully Fluent user of English comparable to monolingual child of similar age and ability.

Level should be ascertained at PEP meetings.

Lewisham fund many Supplementary/Heritage schools that run after school and at weekends, these provide valuable cultural experiences, social networking situations and additional educational support. A list can be found on the Lewisham Education Intranet or contact

10. Young People Involved in the Criminal Justice System

When a young person becomes involved with the criminal justice services education must where ever possible be maintained. Early intervention is key to prevent young people getting heavily involved in youth crime.

Lewisham Yisp/Diversion team  can be contacted and advice sought plus diversionary strategies put in place. They can be contacted:

23 Mercia Grove
Lewisham
London
SE13 6DH

T: 020 8297 0896

If a sentenced is allocated Lewisham Youth Offending team should be contacted as there will be an appointed youth offending officer appointed to ensure Asbos/orders/community service are adhered too. They can be contacted:

Lewisham Youth Offending Team
23 Mercia Grove
Lewisham
London
SE13 6BJ

T: 020 8314 6228 

11. When a Young Woman becomes Pregnant

Becoming pregnant is not in itself a reason to stop attending school, nor to cease education.

Where a young woman becomes pregnant, the Social Worker must ensure that the young woman remains in education if at all possible and arrange for her to receive support from LEA in which she lives and/or the LEA of the school she attends. Advice can be obtained the Advisory Teacher for Looked After Children.

12. Absence from School

Full attendance at school is crucial for all children as highlighted by one of the five outcomes for Every Child Matters. It is a particularly important for looked after children in building their resilience and social networks. The Government drive, Every Lesson Counts, aims to reduce the number of children being taken out of school.

Lewisham’s approach for our looked after children matches the Government’s emphasis that every lesson counts and we, as corporate Parents, start from the principle that all children should be in school.

For this reason we will not normally agree to looked after children being taken away from school for holidays. Teachers and Governors say that taking children out of school disrupts the class – for the child, for their classmates and for the teacher. Children may miss crucial lessons resulting in falling behind.

Lewisham will only give permission for holidays to be taken during school time in exceptional circumstances based on the children’s needs and with the approval of Designated Manager (Looked After Children). 

These circumstances are likely to be unusual and particular to the child. 

If a child is likely to be absent, the Carer must notify the school and the Social Worker immediately.

In any case where the child has been absent from school for more than 10 days, the Social Worker should liaise with the school, the child, Carers and others to address:

• the reasons for the absence
• how to ensure the child returns to education as soon as possible
• whether and how the child can be helped to catch up on what s/he has missed.

Lewisham has commissioned a service known as WELFARE CALL to monitor and track all of their looked after children in and out of borough on a daily basis. They call the school  and if absent call the carer and if no response the social worker. The Edlac team is also informed and with 2 designated Attendance officers all absences are followed up. Welfare call produce weekly records of a young person's attendance and though not wanting to over burden s/workers with paper these are valuable documents at PEPs as patterns of non attendance can be detected and strategies put in place. For further details contact:

Specialist Attendance and Welfare Officer

T: 020 8314 9478

Where necessary, Children Missing from Home Procedure, should be followed.

13. School Exclusions

Where a child is excluded from school for a fixed period, the school will provide work for the child. The Social Worker must liaise with the Carer about suitable arrangements for supervising the child’s doing the schoolwork during the day. Lewisham schools have agreed not to permanently exclude any looked after child. However, it may be suggested that a managed move is arranged with another school.

The reasons for the exclusion will be communicated by the school to the Carer and the Social Worker.  Whoever is the most appropriate one to do so will discuss this with the child. The Social Worker should inform the Parents.

The Social Worker must seek advice from the Looked After Advisory Teacher and the Inclusions Officer as to whether to appeal - a permanent exclusion should always be appealed unless there are clear reasons not to.

When a child is permanently excluded but is remaining in the same foster or residential placement, the Social Worker will liaise urgently with the LEA in which the child is living to find an alternative school placement.

End