ForDisabledChildren

sefton.gov.uk/aiminghigh

15 Winter2014

A family takes time out toenjoy their lunch at a WellYoung Person Family Fun Dayduring the Summer holidays. Find out more on page 6

02 Aiming High

Hello

Welcome to the Autumn / Winterissue of Aiming High for DisabledChildren, the first that I am luckyenough to be involved with. For those of you who don’t know me I amActing Service Manager for EarlyIntervention and Prevention, familysupport. I am experienced withinintervention and prevention services andhave been a manager within youngpeoples services for a number of yearsand have worked with key roles supportingyouth engagement, youth voice,challenging risk taking behaviours, socialinclusion, as well as communityengagement and development alongsideour partners in voluntary and faithorganisations. I am looking forward tomeeting many of you in my post andwelcome any feedback on Aiming Highprogrammes and services; if you have anyideas that you feel will improve our serviceplease email me:Adele.Maddocks@sefton.gov.uk

The biggest development taking place for

local children and young people age 0-25yrs with a special educational need ordisability (SEND) is Sefton’s Local Offer. TheLocal Offer was launched on 1st Septemberand is constantly being reviewed andevolved. The Local Offer is there to helpchildren, young people and their parents /carers to understand what services theycan expect from a range of local agencies,including early-years settings, schools(including academies and free schools),colleges and other services, such as healthand social care. You can access the LocalOffer as it is currently, atseftondirectory.co.uk/localoffer

Alongside the Local Offer and a verysignificant part of it, has been theintroduction of Education, Health and CarePlans for children and young people age0-25yrs. These plans aim to make surethat all the support that a child or youngperson with a Special Educational Need ordisability needs, not just their education, isagreed in one place. Eligibility for anEducation, Health and Care Plan will not benoticeably different than the currenteligibility for an SEN Statement, but you canfind out about the move to an EHCP at:http://bit.ly/1rQtlMi

Looking to recognise great work andexciting developments that are takingplace in Sefton, overleaf you will see anarticle covering the recent opening of afantastic sensory garden that has beenadded to Jake’s Sensory World at theNetherton Activity Centre (NAC). Officiallyopened by Cllr. Peter Dowd, Leader ofSefton Council, the new garden is abespoke environment tailored to the needsof children.

It was another bumper summer of shortbreaks activities accessed by recordnumbers of children and young people,with much needed respite for parents,carers and children. You can read aboutthis summer’s programme on Page 4.

Staying with short breaks, Sefton’s ShortBreaks Statement is nearing completion.The statement is for all children and youngpeople in Sefton age 0-19yrs with adisability or additional needs and theirfamilies. It provides a lot of usefulinformation, including who is eligible for ashort break, the range of short breaks onoffer and how they meet the needs andaspirations of everybody who takes part.The statement would not have beenpossible without the fantastic input of allparents and carers who took part in thelengthy consultation, I would like to takethis opportunity, on behalf of everyone atAiming High, to thank all of those parentsand carers who took the time to give theirinsights and ideas.

Last but not least, I want to look ahead to akey date in our calendar, the Moving Onevent for young people with SEN anddisabilities age 14-25yrs. Taking place on11th November at Dunes Splash World inSouthport, the event supports youngpeople, their parents / carers and familiesin thinking about the various choices opento them as they enter adulthood and leaveschool. You can find out more on Page 7.

Kind Regards,

Adele Maddocks, Acting Manager, Early Intervention and Prevention, Sefton Council.

Sefton SEN andInclusion Servicehave moved Sefton Council’s SEN and Inclusionservice has now moved to theAinsdale Hope Centre, SandringhamRoad, Ainsdale, PR8 2PJ. The movebrings all related services under oneroof and will aid the delivery ofSefton’s Local Offer for children andyoung people aged 0-25yrs with SENand disabilities.

The service includes: • The SEN Casework Team.• Portage.• Early Years.• Inclusion Support.• Inclusion Consultants.• Specialist Teachers.• Educational Psychology.• The Visual, Hearing and

Complex Needs Teams.

You can contact the SENand Inclusion Service on:0151 934 2347

Turn2Us are providing replacementboilers and home insulation to helphouseholds with their energy costs.Find out more at: turn2us.org.uk

Turn2Us is a free service that helpspeople in financial need accessbenefits, grants and other support.

Freereplacementboilers andhome insulation

03Aiming High

A special sensory gardenhas opened in Netherton asa tranquil area for disabledchildren and their families torelax.

Jake's Sensory World opened itsdoors in 2012 and was named afterJake Hall who was from Waterlooand born with complex needs.

Jake's mum, Jo, used to visit asensory world in Preston but wantedsomething nearer to use. Along withfriends and family, she helped planthe unit, which offers special facilitiesfor children with disabilities and theirfamilies.

Sadly Jake died last year and aspecial plaque is laid in the newsensory gardens to remember hislife.

Cllr Peter Dowd, Leader of SeftonCouncil, officially opened the newgardens with Jake's mum, Jo.

He said: "Jake's Sensory World is anamazing facility for disabled childrenand their families and the newgardens are another excellentaddition.

"Funding through Aiming High wassecured to help set up the gardens,which look really fantastic and I amsure they will bring immensepleasure to many people.

"The gardens have taken two yearsto complete and many volunteersand staff from various Sefton Councildepartments have all been involvedin making it happen. They have alldone an excellent job and it was areal honour to officially open thegardens."

The gardens can be used byanyone using Jake's SensoryWorld, which has two main rooms- a sensory room and a soft playroom. All of the facilities can bebooked for exclusive use or youcan pay as you go. For moreinformation about Jake's SensoryWorld contact Netherton ActivityCentre on 0151 525 5106 or byemail: Julie.Murphy@sefton.gov.uk

Jake'sSensoryGarden

The new garden at Jake's SensoryWorld in Netherton Activity Centre(NAC) is run by Sefton Council andwas officially unveiled earlier thismonth.

The garden has been decorated withspecial plants that are sensory forchildren to touch and smell and thereis a seating area for wheelchair use.As the gardens mature, staff arehoping to grow vegetables and arealso keen to recruit volunteers to helplook after the floral area.

The Paediatric Continence Service(North Sefton) has relocated itsHampton Road Base to FormbyClinic, 1 Phillips Lane, Formby, L37 4AU as of 22nd August 2014. For more information call TraceyPattison, Continence Nurse on 01704 835515 / 07788 300 809.

RelocatingPaediatricContinenceService (North Sefton)

The Cerebra Library has a list ofbooks available to parent / carers ofchildren and young people withattention-deficit hyperactivity disorder(ADHD).

For a full list of books available visit:http://goo.gl/g0U6YO To borrow a book contact theCerebra Librarian on 01267 244203or by email: janetp@cerebra.org.uk

Cerebra ADHDLibrary

Successful Summer ReadingChallenge participants were amongthose who enjoyed the launch of thesensory garden.

Cllr. Ian Moncur celebrates thisyoung man's Summer ReadingChallenge success in the sensorygarden.

04 Aiming High

The rain could not dampenthe spirits of local families asthe Aiming High Short BreaksTeam celebrated the end ofits Summer holidayprogramme at a Family FunDay on 29th August.

Building upon a hugely successfulpirate themed fun day in May 2013,the latest Family Fun Day was one offour as part of the team’s biggestsummer to date. The holidayprogramme was enjoyed by over200 disabled children across fourdifferent venues: Rowan Park School;Larkfield Primary School, NewfieldSchool and Merefield School. Therewere also sessions of Wheels for Allcycling programme at LitherlandSports Park and Dunes Splash Worldin Southport, Netherton ActivityCentre, Jake’s Sensory World,Ainsdale Discovery Centre andRowan Adventure Park. The teamextended thanks to all of thosecentres and facilities that supportedthe programme.

Young people gained a great deal of

confidence and personal fulfilmentfrom the trips and excursionsorganised by the Aiming High ShortBreaks team, which included: watersports and crabbing at CrosbyLakeside; days out at Chester Zoo,Farmer Teds, the Children’sAdventure Farm Trust, as well aschannelling their inner thespian,enjoying West Side Story at theEmpire Theatre in Liverpool.

Feedback from children, families andsupporting organisations alike wasvery positive and warmly received bythe team:

“I just wanted to send a quick emailto commend your carers on the waythey have looked after and interactedwith the children they brought toFarmer Ted’s today. They were calmand organised, well presented,interested in the children and the

activities on offer and finally, unlike alot of others, they were not constantlyon their mobile phones!”

“Kids really enjoyed the outdoor playactivities. Nice for parents to be ableto step back as there are lots of staffand volunteers to help out.”

“It was perfect — thank you!”

“The scheme has worked well thisyear and all who organised andworked on the scheme deserve a bigthank you.”

The Aiming High Short Breaks teamis always keen to gather feedbackand suggestions from young peopleand their families, so that they canimprove the service; the evaluationsheets completed after each FamilyFun Day are already providing theservice with new ideas for next year.If your family attended the AimingHigh Short Breaks programme thisSummer, please take some time tocomplete the Summer 2014Evaluation Sheet accompanying thisnewsletter. If you would prefer tocomplete an electronic copy, pleasego to: sefton.gov.uk/shortbreaks

Aiming Highfor SummerSuccess

Courage and nerve were the order of the day for these young girls!

All aboard with Aiming High!

05Aiming High

CAPR Style deliver handmade adaptive clothing forchildren and young people with disabilities and specialneeds, the individual designs give style whilst catering forthe requirements of the wearer. They work to offer acomplete line of adaptive clothing, with alterationsavailable to meet your specific needs.

For more information contact CAPR Style on 07804512 186 or visit: capr-style.com

Adaptive Clothing

Hi Everyone,

Hope you all had a great summer.

My family and I went to stay in Oxford for a few days tovisit my elder sister. We saw an outdoor play, visited amuseum, enjoyed a couple of picnics, and looked roundthe shops. The highlight of my trip was punting on theriver on a lovely sunny day. We also went for some greatmeals - I love food!

I’m still volunteering at the Scope charity shop two days aweek. As well as assisting customers I work on the till,help to sort the clothes, DVDs, CDs and other stock.

Recently, I have been helping out at the ‘Choices forLiving’ event organised by the ‘Living Well Centre’. Adviceand activities were available for people living withdisabilities.

I am looking forward togoing back to the youthclub at Parenting 2000because the building hashad a makeover and Iwill be catching up withmy good mates again.

Bye for now,

Diane

Diane's News

Here I am with my Certificate ofVolunteering from Scope.

A proud moment.

Parents and carers in Sefton are being offered therespite of 15 hours FREE childcare per week for theirtwo year olds, if they meet the eligibility criteria.

The free childcare has many benefits for you and yourfamily, including:

• The chance for your child to play, learn and socialisewith other children, while accessing quality childcare tomake them school ready.

• Free time for you to use as you wish, whether attendingcollege or training, or spending more time with yourother children.

You are eligible for this excellent offer if:

• Your two year old receives Disability Living Allowance oran Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP).

• Your two year old is looked after / fostered by you.

• You are a Care Leaver aged under 25yrs.

• You receive Income Support.

• You receive Income-based Job Seekers’ Allowance orIncome Related Employment and Support Allowance.

• You receive Child Tax Credit / Working Tax Credit and anincome less than £16,190.

• You receive the guaranteed element of State PensionCredit.

• You receive support under Part VI of the Immigrationand Asylum Act 1999.

The free childcare is organised by Sefton Council’s SchoolReadiness Service, who use a range of providersincluding children’s centres, childminders, participatingschools and private, voluntary and independent nurserysettings.

If you want to know more call into your local children’scentre, nursery or speak with your Health Visitor.

Alternatively visit sefton.gov.uk/2yearolds or callthe School Readiness Team on 0151 933 6021.

Are youentitled toFREE childcarefor your Two Year Old?

06 Aiming High

Sefton Council’s Well YoungPerson Team recently tooktime to thank Aiming High forDisabled Children andCrosby High School for thecontinued support of theservice’s Family Fun Day,which was a huge success.

Families were treated to an arts andcraft day, a nature day, water sportsat the Crosby Lakeside Activity Centreand a day at Brockhole in the Lake

Well young people aimhigh at Summer FamilyFun Week

This year is the 10thanniversary of Wheels for Allin Sefton.

To celebrate this landmark, on 15thOctober there was a free anniversaryopen session at Litherland SportsPark, which in keeping with sessionsover the previous ten years, was verywell attended and enjoyed by thosewho took part.

Through a wide range of cyclingproducts and support, theprogramme makes cycling accessiblefor people of all abilities, age orneeds.

In 2004 Sefton launched its firstWheels For All centre at the DunesSplash World in Southport. In 2006 thescheme opened a second centre atLitherland Sports Park.

As a result of Wheels for All there aremany people who benefit fromregular cycle sessions at both centres,enjoying the health and socialbenefits that come from cycling withother like-minded people: “The regular Wednesday sessions atLitherland are really good andenjoyable for our group. The staff aregreat and always on hand to giveadvice and assistance.” Alison,Dunningsbridge Centre.

For further details of how to accessthe scheme please contact BrianNener, Cycling Development Officerat Sefton Council on 0151 934 4638 orby email: Brian.Nener@sefton.gov.uk

There’sWheels for Allwith localcyclingprogramme

District. Among the manyorganisations who helped to makethe event successful were: Dave andKaren from Sefton’s Play Council,OPERA, the Feel Good Factory, JamesMealing and Kevin Leavitt and all theinstructors at Crosby LakesideAdventure Centre, the Bug Box, S&RBirds, Shy Lowen Pony Sanctuary,Lets Travel and Tamarillos Café inBootle.

Families provided positive feedbackof the day:

“We get to enjoy each other’scompany and do fun things”.

“We have had a wonderful time andit has made us feel stronger as afamily”.

For more information on the WellYoung Person Team and how theycan support children and youngpeople with SEN and disabilities,contact Joanne Benbow,Development Worker at the WellYoung Person Team on 0151 9343180 / 07971 793 876 or by email:Joanne.Benbow@sefton.gov.uk

Young people make waves at Crosby Lakeside.

Megan is surprised to meet Hedwigfrom Hogwarts!

07Aiming High

Do you know that young peoplewith learning disabilities aged14yrs+ and over should now behaving an annual health checkthrough their GP practice?Previously the scheme focused onthose aged 18 and above.

There is strong evidence that patientswith learning disabilities have morehealth problems and die at ayounger age than the rest of thepopulation.

Along with carrying out the checks,practices should also be developinghealth action plans for your youngperson and are now alsoencouraged to maintain a learningdisabilities health check register.

If you would like to know aboutthe scheme, please contactTracy Reed, Primary HealthcareFacilitator for LearningDisabilities at South Sefton CCGon 0151 247 7272 or by email:tracy.reed@southseftonccg.nhs.uk

GP healthchecks foryoung peoplewith learningdisabilities

The Aiming High Transitions Co-ordinators are hosting the fantastic ‘MovingOn’ event on 11th November, 10am-2pm at Dunes Splash World, TheEsplanade, Southport, PR8 1RX. The event supports young people with SENand disabilities aged 14-25yrs, their parents/carers and any professionalswho wish to find out more about what their education, training, employmentand volunteering options are as they move into adulthood.

There will be a range of interesting, informative stalls present on the day fromareas such as education, colleges, training providers, supportedemployment, day services, health services and leisure providers.

Don't miss out on this crucial event, a one-off opportunity to find outeverything you need to know to inform those critical choices about your child's future.

To find out more, you can contact Sefton’s Transitions Co-ordinators Jane Backland / Sonya Wall on 0151 9343887 / 3845 or by email: Jane.Backland@sefton.gov.uk /Sonya.Wall@sefton.gov.uk

Aiming High supportsyoung people ‘MovingOn’ to adulthood

Local young people are just Dada aboutDrama!Young people from the Buddy Upmentoring project and Snakes andLadders SEN school leavers projectrecently enjoyed a trip to theEveryman Theatre in Liverpool, withthe support of staff from Sefton CVS.

During the trip in July, the groupwatched the Young DaDaFest, adrama organisation that encouragesand empowers disabled and deafyoung people through creativity.Young people make key decisions onthe running of Young DaDa and theyplan and perform in a cabaret styleevent each year with singing, dance,drama, comedy, poetry and film inthe line up.

The young people from Sefton arecurrently applying for funding tosupport their own drama project,which like that of Young DaDa, willbe driven by the decisions of theyoung people and will enable themto use drama and creativeperformance to address the issuesthat matter to them.

To find out more aboutparticipation in creativeprogrammes for young people withSEN and disabilities, contactCaroline Scott, Arts in ParticipationOfficer at Sefton CVS on 0151 9200726 ext 222 or by email:caroline.scott@seftoncvs.org.uk

Young people are Dada to be at The Everyman with Sefton CVS staff.

A new training facility wasrecently launched in Seftonfor travel training and roadsafety.

Ainsdale Hope Travel Training Centreis a bespoke facility to deliver arange of training for young peopleand adults including those withlearning, mental health or physicaldisabilities.

The centre is the only facility of itskind in Merseyside, and includes an

GroundbreakingTravel TrainingCentre Opens

outdoor practical training area whichfeatures a simulated highway scene,including the fully operationalpedestrian crossing and bus stop.

Created by Sefton Council, the centrewill help people with disabilities toovercome a range of travel barriers,while also teaching road safety skillsto children.

Cllr John Fairclough, Sefton Council'sCabinet Member for Transportation,said: "This is a fantastic facility thatwill allow really important skills to be

taught in a safe, traffic freeenvironment.

Travel training will help some ofSefton’s vulnerable residents toovercome barriers and accessopportunities for work, educationand training that might not otherwisebe an option.”

For more information, contactSefton Travel Team on 0800 073 1767 or email:sefton.travelteam@sefton.gov.uk

Sefton’s children’s centresonce again played host tosummer fun and frolicks foryounger children age 0-5yrsand their families, whilstproviding a much neededbreak for parents and carers.

Summer Funin Sefton’sChildren’sCentres

Aiming High funding meant thatfamilies were able to access activitieswith the support of Sefton CarersCentre, including sessions atchildren’s centres, such as sensoryrooms, four Family Fun Days ran bythe Aiming High team, day trips outto Jake’s Sensory World, WindmillFarm and Worden Park, as well as‘stay and play’ sessions. All activitieswere well attended, with everyonehaving a great time.

Not only did children benefit, theirparents and carers took a breakfrom their caring duties and madethe most of respite sessions andevents that took place across Sefton,reducing the stress of isolation andfinancial burdens. During one respitesession at Thornton Children’sCentre, horses from the Shy Lowensanctuary made an appearance tothe delight of children, parents andcarers alike.

Feedback for the programme wasvery positive and warmly received bythe teams at Aiming High and SeftonCarers Centre:

“We are very thankful for the respite,this is priceless”

“It was a lifeline — such a relief tohave a few hours to myself”

“My daughter loved every minute”

“Gave me a much needed break andtime to spend with my other child”

If you have any ideas or would likefurther information on schoolholiday activities for children age5yrs and under, please contactCaroline Roberts at Sefton CarersCentre on 0151 288 6064 or byemail:caroline.roberts@carers.sefton.gov.uk

08 Aiming High

Eleanor takes time out to relaxamong the mayhem of summer fun!

Harry enjoys feeding a pony fromShy Lowen.