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About our Local Offer and how to search it

The Local Offer provides information for children and young people in North Somerset with special educational needs or a disability - you may see this abbreviated as SEND both here and in various official documents.

We know that navigating through the range of services and support can be confusing and time-consuming, so the Local Offer aims to bring all of these resources together in a single place. Parents and carers tell us that knowing what support is available and how to find it helps them to plan ahead allows them to focus on their child rather than on the complexities of the system. We want the Local Offer to support parents in doing just that!

 

Who has contributed to the North Somerset Local Offer?

We have worked with a group of parents, carers and young people to discover what kinds of information and support are most important. We have also talked to our early year’s settings, schools, colleges and other service providers to ensure that the support they offer is reflected. 

The Local Offer is monitored by the North Somerset SEND Programme Board.

What's next for the Local Offer?

We want the Local Offer to work for all parents, carers and young people.  We will also continue to work with parents, carers and young people to make sure the information is clear, useful and meets your needs.

How to use the Local Offer

If you click on the subject headings, for example Childcare, Short breaks/respite etc  you will find the services, organisations and related advice and information contained within these groups.

You can also search the Local Offer by using the two search functions at the top of the page:

  • Keyword search
  • Place name or postcode search

To narrow your results list, you can then use the ‘Filter Results’ found on the left of the page

Each service that offers some assistance for children and young people with SEND has been tagged with the Local Offer symbol, you can also use the filter ‘Service has Local Offer – Yes’.

Keyword search

Less is more, for example if you are trying to find the Disabled Children’s Team it may be easier to find by using the (+) sign.  By using the + sign before a word it means that each of the results must contain that word.

Contact names

We try to avoid adding names to services as these become out of date quickly.

Postcode search

If you enter a full postcode the search results will bring back services which are closest to that postcode.  You can then choose the maximum distance you want to travel by clicking the ‘Max Distance’ button.  You can also choose to show the results on a map.

My Shortlist

This function will allow you to add services and view them again at a later date.  You can also print and email your shortlist.

Share functionality

Once you have found the service you are looking for you can send it to yourself or somebody else by using the ‘Share’ functionality.  Add the mobile telephone number that you wish to send to in the box and press ‘Send SMS’, alternatively choose ‘Social’ and then Tweet.

Web Accessibility

Our site is designed to be used by people with disabilities. However, you may find that you need additional tools to assist you.  Ability.Net has information on free resources for vision, hearing, motor and cognitive problems

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