WHATS

ON

OUR VISION

To build an inclusive, credible and evolving forum that provides parents and carers a vehicle to voice their opinions and influence the decisions that affect all SEND families in the future.

WE NEED YOU!

Please share our Facebook posts so that we can spread the message about what we do and how we can help. Find our Facebook page HERE


Post your ideas on our ‘Have your say’ page so we can get your views and ideas. Complete our surveys and share with us your real life experiences - HERE


Our aim is to represent all SEND children/young people whatever the disability or need.

 EVENTS AT SSIF

We know that the world of SEND can be overwhelming and complicated to navigate.


In order to overcome this we organise various Events throughout the year, presenting opportunities to empower Parent Carers with knowledge, information and wellbeing techniques to make their journey a little easier. 


One of our favourite Events is our regular monthly coffee morning, where Parent Carers can get together to share their experiences. Every month we have the Local Offer and the SENDCo teams represented and available to offer guidance and advice, plus, we usually have one additional special guest too.


OUR EVENTS

A flyer for the education , health , and care plan.

Education, Health, and Care Plan (EHCP) Annual Reviews

April 2, 2025
Education, Health, and Care Plan's

DROP-IN FRIDAYS. Come and meet your ParentCarer Forum

March 10, 2025
We know that some of you have shared that coffee mornings can be difficult to attend so we have organised a Drop-In Event once every half term. The session is open to everyone, ParentCarers looking to find out more about what the Forum does, professionals who want to understand our role and those who would just like to join us for a hot drink and a natter. We will be sharing the dates of the sessions on our social media channels so be on the lookout for future dates. We look forward to seeing you there!

SSIF Coffee Mornings

February 28, 2025
One of our favourite Events is our regular monthly coffee morning, where Parent Carers can get together to share their experiences. Every month we have the Local Offer team with us and invite 1 or 2 additional special guests from for example Health, Social Care, Education and more, to offer guidance and advice. There is also a sensory play creche available for your little ones aged 0-5 with Chaos & Calm. Come along and chat to other ParentCarers, get advice from one of our SEND support service guests and enjoy a hot drink with something sweet. Booking is not required.

SSIF Seminar - EHCNA (Education, Health and Care Needs Assessment)

February 24, 2025
Southend SEND Independent Forum (SSIF) continues its series of valuable informative events for ParentCarers of children with SEND with the fourth seminar of the year: "Education, Health and Care Needs Assessment (EHCNA)”. This seminar is aimed at ParentCarers who have applied for or are thinking about applying for an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP), but would like to find out if it is necessary or right for their Child or Young Person. We will aim to answer questions such as: What does an EHCNA entail? Which services are involved? What happens after the assessment? What is my role and responsibility as a ParentCarer? We have a panel of professionals from the Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities (SEND) Team, Health and Education, who will talk about the assessment process. They will also bust some common myths. We are inviting ParentCarers to submit any questions they have for the panel by email, by Monday 10th March 2025, via email, to jody@southendsendindependentforum.org.uk . This is to save time in the room on the day as our speakers will build their presentations around the answers to these questions. There will also be an opportunity for people to participate in a co-production session to develop a useful route map/flow chart of the EHCNA process. Book your tickets here.