Sefton Council's Consultation Hub

We carried out a baseline parent and carer survey in 2019 to monitor experience, involvement and satisfaction around the key areas of Education, Health, Social Care, information provision and on how the system is working together. The SEND Continuous Improvement Board  wanted to do a short survey to capture opinion and to see if there has been any improvement.  We carried out this survey in September 2020.

In summary, parents and carers said:

• The SEND support pathway isn't clear to us
• Diagnosis and timescales to support takes too long
• That mainstream schools are not always inclusive
• The short breaks offer is not easy to understand or access
• That there is an improvement in the way health, education, social care and the SEN Casework team are working together to help and support them but coordination and communication between professionals could be further improved
• You feel that there is some improvement in parents and carers are being listened to in the development and review of their child/young person’s EHCP

In summary, here are some of the things we have done/are doing:

• Strengthened the SEND Casework team with £400k additional investment into the service
• Strengthened SENDIASS through additional funding from Council and CCG and additional staffing to support families to navigate complex services
• Preparing for Adulthood (PfA) workshops delivered and feedback fed into the Preparing for Adulthood Guide which has been co-produced with parents, carers and young people.
• Implemented a new appointment system at Alder Hey which is more user friendly and has led to fewer cancellations
• Improvements to the prescribing system at Alder Hey to make it easier for families to re-order medications.
• Leaflet to be given to parents at start of pathway process to be reviewed and co-produced with parents / carers. ASD Post Diagnostic Feedback Booklet & Advisory Session Booklet have already been done and approved Jan 2021
• Started to develop an Education Strategy with Inclusion as one of its key priorities
• Inclusion task group established reporting into the SEN School Forum
• Shared the parent and carer feedback with our teams and directed professionals to offer a person-centred approach when communicating with parents and carers
• We have established reviews of both the Aiming High short breaks offer and the Springbrook overnight respite offer
• Casework Officers now share mobile phone numbers when they first contact families which has improved communication

Please see the published results section for a more detailed You Said/We Did/Are Doing 

Southport has the opportunity to bid for up to £50m of central Government funding as part of the Town Deal Fund, to boost economic growth and town wide regeneration.  As part of the stakeholder engagement for the submission, a  consultation exercise was undertaken to gather feedback on a number of Big Ideas that would inform a wider Vision for Southport.

Each of these Big Ideas included  a number of project ideas that we thought had  the potential to attract wider investment both from the Government and from the private sector. We asked what you thought of these Big Ideas and what you think we might have missed.

The Town Deal Board received over 2,033 completed questionnaires, with 826 detailed comments from the questionnaires. In addition to this, we received 40 emails, 5 phone calls and 4 letters.

Following the online consultation, the Town Deal Board also engaged with a number of other stakeholder groups including university students, college students school children, visitors and local business owners.

A summary of all the responses received in the full consultation report.

Southport Town Investment Plan Consultation Report

This engagement has informed the Town Investment Plan (TIP) which was submitted to government at the end of October 2020. Key points of influence from engagement include: 

• The importance of the TIP including projects which enhance the appeal of visitor attractions including Pleasureland and the Southport Theatre and Convention Centre
• The importance of developing a new attraction in the Marine Lake which will attract more visitors to the town
• The importance of connecting the town centre and Waterfront
• Necessity of finding new uses and attractions for vacant shops in the town centre. The importance that different areas and attractions are well connected via the public realm, pedestrian and cycling facilities
• The need for the TIP to address seasonality in the economy. The TIP should also facilitate the attraction and growth of different industries to the town centre with stakeholders highlighting gaps in the business accommodation offer for co-working space and digital and creative industries
• The majority of the priorities identified by stakeholders under the Green and Clean theme have non-Towns Fund delivery or funding routes. The consultation does highlight an important role that the Towns Fund can play in ensuring that major regeneration developments in the town centre and waterfront can be reached on foot and by cycling, thereby minimising the need for short vehicular journeys in the town

The priorities expressed by consultees that have not been included in the TIP  will be addressed using funding and delivery routes other than Towns Fund.

The Town Deal Board will continue the conversation with residents, visitors and businesses as the Town Investment Plan progresses.

Southport has the opportunity to bid for up to £50m of central Government funding as part of the Town Deal Fund, to boost economic growth and town wide regeneration.  As part of the stakeholder engagement for the submission, a  consultation exercise was undertaken to gather feedback on a number of Big Ideas that would inform a wider Vision for Southport.

Each of these Big Ideas included  a number of project ideas that we thought had  the potential to attract wider investment both from the Government and from the private sector. We asked what you thought of these Big Ideas and what you think we might have missed.

The Town Deal Board received over 2,033 completed questionnaires, with 826 detailed comments from the questionnaires. In addition to this, we received 40 emails, 5 phone calls and 4 letters.

Following the online consultation, the Town Deal Board also engaged with a number of other stakeholder groups including university students, college students school children, visitors and local business owners.

A summary of all the responses received in the full consultation report.

Southport Town Investment Plan Consultation Report

This engagement has informed the Town Investment Plan (TIP) which was submitted to government at the end of October 2020. Key points of influence from engagement include: 

• The importance of the TIP including projects which enhance the appeal of visitor attractions including Pleasureland and the Southport Theatre and Convention Centre
• The importance of developing a new attraction in the Marine Lake which will attract more visitors to the town
• The importance of connecting the town centre and Waterfront
• Necessity of finding new uses and attractions for vacant shops in the town centre. The importance that different areas and attractions are well connected via the public realm, pedestrian and cycling facilities
• The need for the TIP to address seasonality in the economy. The TIP should also facilitate the attraction and growth of different industries to the town centre with stakeholders highlighting gaps in the business accommodation offer for co-working space and digital and creative industries
• The majority of the priorities identified by stakeholders under the Green and Clean theme have non-Towns Fund delivery or funding routes. The consultation does highlight an important role that the Towns Fund can play in ensuring that major regeneration developments in the town centre and waterfront can be reached on foot and by cycling, thereby minimising the need for short vehicular journeys in the town

The priorities expressed by consultees that have not been included in the TIP  will be addressed using funding and delivery routes other than Towns Fund.

The Town Deal Board will continue the conversation with residents, visitors and businesses as the Town Investment Plan progresses.