They say education begins at home and we couldn’t agree more. But if you’re a parent or carer of a child with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), you might need a little extra help. Not only to ensure your child receives the education they need, but also to give you the knowledge and SEN resources you need to support your child’s journey.
Finding the right special educational needs resources to help you and your family can be an exhausting and time-consuming exercise. But Seashell has done the hard work for you with our top 8 SEN resources that will keep you empowered, informed and ready for anything.
Top 8 special educational needs resources
Here are our top 8 special educational needs resources for learners, parents and carers to help you to get the right educational support you need. We’ve also included some free SEN resources for you to use at home with your child if you’re home schooling or simply need some extra resources to stimulate your child out of school.
1. Your Local Authority
The first port of call for parents of learners with special needs is your Local Authority. Every Local Authority is legally obliged to provide local support (including health, education and social care) for children and young people with SEND. You can find your Local Authority’s website quickly and easily here.
2. Seashell
We couldn’t bring you a list of SEN resources without plugging ourselves! Seashell provides education, care and support for people aged from 2 to 25 years at our outstanding school and college, our residential homes, through our community facilities, and through the services we offer beyond our Cheadle Hulme site.
3. Twinkl
Twinkl is an online provider of teacher-made teaching resources for primary and secondary aged school children. It is predominantly aimed at teachers, childminders, nursery workers, home educators and parents. Most of their content is accessible on a paid subscription basis, but they do have some free SEN resources that you might find useful at home.
4. Contact
Contact is the charity for families with disabled children. As part of their work to support families, bring families together and help families take action for others, Contact offers a wide range of education and learning resources. These cover everything from early years support to school choices and bullying.
5. Information, Advice and Support Services Network (IASSN)
The Information, Advice and Support Services (IASS) is funded by the Department for Education (DfE) to help local authorities to ensure all children and young people in England with SEND and their parents have access to an impartial Information, Advice and Support (IAS) service.
6. National Autistic Society
The National Autistic Society offers support and advice for parents and carers of autistic children. Their EarlyBird (under 5), EarlyBird Plus (4 to 9), Healthy Minds and Teen Life (10 to 16) support programmes for parents and carers offer advice and guidance on strategies and approaches to working with autistic children.
7. Mencap
Mencap is a national charity focussed on changing the world for everyone with a learning disability. Their vision is a world where people with a learning disability are valued equally, listened to and included. Mencap provides a wide range of advice and support, including how to get the right learning support for your child.
8. Independent Provider of Special Education Advice (IPSEA)
Independent Provider of Special Education Advice (IPSEA) is a registered charity in England that offers free and independent legally-based information, advice and support to help get the right education for children and young people with all kinds of special educational needs and disabilities.
For more information about who we are, what we do, and our facilities, please get in touch on 0161 610 0100 or email info@seashelltrust.org.uk. You can make a difference today by making a donation to Seashell. With your support, you are helping to change the lives of the children and young people we care for. Thank you!
