Important Announcement

Thank you for looking up the SERSEN website. The DCSF have decided to close the Regional Partnerships from 31st March 2008 and we in the South East partnership would like to thank all colleagues and partners for your work and support over the development of SERSEN since we were set up as a project in 2000.

This website will stay open at least until September 2008 as there will be ongoing regional activity in Sensory Impairment (supported by DCSF and led through Kent County Council) and updated information about other work strands. The SERSEN office will close on 31st March 2008.

After that date Lesley Johnson (SERSEN administrator) will be working for Surrey County Council and her email address will be the same, should you need to contact her. Lindsey Rousseau can be contacted on lindsey.rousseau@btinternet.com

Developing Provision Management for Children and Young People with Sensory impairment

SERSEN has a national lead within the Regional Partnerships for SI. Its work in this area is managed through a long established SI Provider Task Group which has wide representation from 22 LA services within the South East and London Boroughs and also from 6 I&NMSS and 6 voluntary organisations. You can download examples from the document below.

• Contents and Summary
• Every Child Matters Provision Wheel
• Provision maps
• "Teaching and Learning"
• order form

What's new in the library?

Turner Syndrome and Specific Mathematics Difficulty (Dyscalculia)
These notes were written following discussion at a local forum of SEN coordinators where the question of the link betwee..

Social Skills and Friendships ( and underlying mechanisms ) in Autism and ASD
lity or reluctance to apply any understanding that has been gained ).

SPECIFIC LANGUAGE IMPAIRMENTS
This review of recently published findings begins with a study linking language impairments with reading disability ( an..

Funded Training

Story Links: Working with Parents of Pupils at Risk of Exclusion The first 3-day Story Links training course will run in Horsham this term and is open to professionals from all local authorities.  Story Links is a 10 week intervention that uses Therapeutic Storywriting to support parents and individual pupils at risk of exclusion because of behaviours related to attachment difficulties. There will be an evaluation of the impact of the training on pupils' emotional well-being and their reading skills.

The project  is supported  by the TDA and the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation and there will be no charge to schools for this training. Suitable for SENCOs, SEN support teachers, school counsellors, educational psychologists and inclusion managers supporting pupils with BESDs at KS1 & 2.

Location: Central Sussex College, Horsham
Dates: 15th May, 5th & 19 June 2008
For more details and booking form visit:
http://www.therapeuticstorywriting.com or ring 01273 235666.

Therapeutic Story Writing

Here is some news of forthcoming Therapeutic Storywriting courses, including the funded Story Links training, and some lectures/conferences taking place this term.
You might also like to visit our updated website with it's new 'resources' section where you can find suggestions for story openings to use with pupils:
www.therapeuticStoryWriting.com

3-day Training: Setting up Therapeutic Storywriting Groups There are a couple of places left on this training which starts on 1st May.
Research has shown this intervention improves pupils' writing skills while developing emotional literacy. The intervention has been used as a DfES case study of good inclusive practice. Suitable for SENCOs, HLTAs, SEN teachers, Educational Psychologists, Learning Mentors & School Counsellors.

Location: Brighton
Dates: 1st, 8th & 22nd May 2008
Booking form can be downloaded from http://www.therapeuticstorywriting.com
or ring 01273 235666.

Story Links Project (funded training)
The first 3-day training course 'Story Links- Working with Parents of Pupils at Risk of Exclusion' will run in Horsham this term. Open to professionals from all local authorities. Story Links is a 10 week intervention that uses Therapeutic Storywriting to support parents and individual pupils at risk of exclusion because of behaviours related to attachment difficulties. There will be an evaluation of the impact of the training on pupils' emotional well-being and their reading skills.

As the project is supported by the TDA and the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation, there will be no charge to schools for this training. Suitable for SENCOs, SEN support teachers, school counsellors, educational psychologists and inclusion managers supporting pupils with BESDs at KS1 & 2.

Location: Central Sussex College, Horsham
Dates: 15th May, 5th & 19 June 2008
Booking form can be downloaded from http://www.therapeuticstorywriting.com
or ring 01273 235666.

Forthcoming Lectures/Conferences

Caspari Foundation, Evening lecture:
Holding the Balance
Louise Emanuel will describe her role as a counsellor in a primary school setting, giving case examples to illustrate how brief interventions, using a psychodynamic therapeutic approach, can effect change, supporting staff and children in schools. Tuesday 13 May 2008 7.30pm.
More details from www.caspari.org.uk

SEBDA: 'Attachment Matters: the First Two Years of Life Stay With You for Ever.'
One of the keynote presentations will be from Marion Bennathan, who developed the work on Nurture Groups. London, Tues. 10th June. More details at www.sebda.org

Centre for Emotional Development: Working psychotherapeutically with children and adolescents who resort to violence (Marianne Parsons).
This Saturday morning workshop will be of interest to those of you working as school-based counsellors or therapists. Brighton, 17 May 2008. More details from www.emotionaldevelopment.co.uk

Understanding Christopher

Christopher and his mother, Gillian, were first interviewed in 2001 when Christopher, then aged 18, was in his last year at school.

This video can be viewed in a new window by clicking on the photo or here.

It is a large file and lasts for 32 minutes but should stream happily with a broadband connection. It is viewed using Windows Media Player 10.

To order a copy of the video please contact Lesley Johnson at SERSEN where a small admin charge will be made.

You can also the video.

An Exciting new venture

SERSEN, working with English Federation of Disability Sport and Sure Start have been engaged in an exciting research project looking at Inclusive Leisure opportunities for Children and Young People aged 8 to 16. We have looked at available resources and good practice in the six local authorities in the south east region for children and young people with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

The report and a summary of the recommendations can be downloaded by clicking on the following links

Remodelling the School Workforce

Remodelling the School Workforce is a national agreement intended to tackle teacher workload and raise standards by allowing teachers time to teach. The agreement is statutory and applies to all qualified Teachers paid under Teachers pay and conditions. The agreement is to be implemented over a three year period which began in September 2003. A national website (www.remodelling.org) provides background documents and support materials for remodelling.