Congratulations to Bexley Area Partnership

Congratulations to Bexley Area Partnership for attaining Youth Justice SEND Quality Mark Status

It has been a pleasure working with Severine and her wider team over the past year to identify areas of strength, of which there were many, as well as areas that needed further development. The quality of supporting documentation was excellent. The team is child-centered in everything that it does, and this commitment is tangible.

We acknowledge:

• significant progress in formalising relationships between the Youth Justice and SEND Team, building on good informal working relationships. This includes the co-construction of an effective and comprehensive protocol of joint action, that will inevitably lead to better outcomes for young people with SEN in youth justice pathways
• An effective and comprehensive professional development programme for front-line staff
• A focus on effective multiagency work to identify children at risk of entering youth justice pathways through panels such as early intervention, Horizons, inclusion meetings, etc. (evidenced by lower-than-average first-time offending rates)
• Significant contributions made by your collocated professionals (SaLT, Ed Psych etc.)

It is also wonderful to see how effective practice within the youth justice service, through engagement at Board Level, is triggering new thinking and new ways of working across other Children’s Services Teams: The Communication Passport is a case in point.

Bexley is well-placed to build on these solid foundations and push forwards towards Quality Lead status in due course. We wish you the very best on your journey.