All too often we see children struggle long before they get any sort of specialist support. We know something isn’t quite right. We see attendance drop, anxiety spike, behaviour slip or learning starts to become more difficult. But getting specialist help can feel like forever. By the time that help arrives needs have snowballed, families are burnt out and school staff are doing everything they can to keep things buoyant.

So, when the Government first announced their proposed initiative “Experts at Hand”, it was met with some discussion around the sector. Like many within education I had questions. How would this look in reality? Would schools be expected to do more? Would services already stretched beyond their limits be stretched further?

I’m sure these are questions being asked in teams up and down the country. The pressure schools are under right now can’t be ignored. SENCOs are managing pupils with increasing complex needs on top of ensuring the classroom runs smoothly. But despite these valid concerns, if done right, Experts at Hand has the potential to address what feels like one of the biggest frustrations with the current system, waiting for much-needed support.

Currently, schools are working within a reactive system. Support isn’t available until concerns reach a level that is serious enough to require a formal process. Referrals, assessments and external support can take months. By then, schools have likely spent a lot of time pouring over reads and support plans themselves and getting more and more worried about their child.

Imagine if that wasn’t the case?

What if specialist expertise was available earlier? What if teachers and SENCOs could access advice, consultation and guidance at the point concerns first arise, rather than several months down the line? That could be game changing.

The earlier children can access support not only improves outcomes for children and families but can help schools too. The sooner parents and teachers reach experts, the sooner small problems can be picked up before they escalate into bigger barriers to learning, attendance or mental health. For some children, early intervention could stop the need for more intensive support later down the line.

Experts at Hand also has the potential to build confidence across the whole school workforce. Teachers are educational experts. SENCOs are experts at coordinating support and fostering inclusion. But no employee knows everything there is to know about every disability. By having access to a team of educational psychologists, speech and language therapists, OTs, mental health experts and specialist practitioners when it’s needed will help reassure schools, they can manage situations when they arise.

More than that, specialist support isn’t about taking over. It’s about sharing expertise with schools and helping staff feel confident to support children. By working collaboratively with teachers and school staff, Experts at Hand has the potential to help schools who are already doing a great job supporting pupils with SEND.

We’re already seeing this kind of approach work successfully in schools and local areas all over the UK. Some schools are pooling resources and developing multi-disciplinary outreach teams who can support a group of schools. Others are creating inclusion hubs to help share expertise between teams. And some are using consultation models to allow schools to access advice without the need for formal referrals.

Different locations require different solutions but by working collaboratively and keeping the focus on what’s best for children and families all these projects are tackling the issue of accessibility head on.

So, what can schools do now?

The Experts at Hand team have been engaging with schools and services over the last year so whilst we don’t know all the answers yet, there’s plenty of work that schools can do now to lay the foundations for success.

Ask yourself:

• Where are the gaps in accessing specialist support at the moment?
• What advice do teachers need most?
• Who are the pupils who would benefit from earlier support?
• What partnerships are already in place? Can these be strengthened?
• How can specialist knowledge and advice be shared between schools?

Every area will have different answers to these questions but by working out where you’re currently struggling to access support, you can start to think about how you can reach expertise sooner.

And remember… that despite systems and processes, at the heart of it all are children. Too often these big discussions about funding and services can forget about the children that these reforms will ultimately affect. Children, young people and families just want support that works for them. They want professionals to talk to each other. They want support that responds as soon as they raise concerns, not when things become unmanageable.

The hurdles that the SEND sector faces are big. Budget shortages, a sector struggling to meet demand and these are things that schools, specialist services and local authorities can’t ignore.

But there is an opportunity here. If we can work together to provide proactive, responsive support for children then Experts at Hand could be the beginning of a system that helps children receive support at the right time, not when it’s too late and that would be a game changer for the schools and children they work with.