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This website is only one part of the Local Offer. We also have a directory which you can visit at 1space.eastsussex.gov.uk/localoffer

What is the Local Offer?

Four adults thinking, looking confused with question mark symbols above their heads.

Describing the Local Offer

Welcome to the East Sussex Local Offer.

The East Sussex Local Offer is this website and a directory. It aims to provide information about what support is available for children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), and for their families.

The East Sussex Local Offer consists of:

The majority of information on this site can be found within the SEND Information and Services tab.

The Government asks that all local authorities provide SEND information as clear as possible. This is so that parents, carers, children and young people can make informed decisions.

This information must:

Our Local Offer includes SEND services offered from the Local Authority and via external services. This covers local and online organisations.

We have also created a flyer explaining the East Sussex Local Offer. To request the flyer, please contact localoffer@eastsussex.gov.uk and we will email it to you.

The Department for Education made the video below, which explains what a Local Offer is:

Please note, there is also a Local Offer for care leavers. It is different to this SEND Local Offer. To find out more, you can visit the main East Sussex County Council website:

What the Law Says About the Local Offer

There are many laws that govern the Local Offer.

The laws aim to ensure that professionals fulfill their duty to cooperate between services. This is for the benefit of families and young people. This includes:

The government has asked Ofsted to carry out local area SEND inspections. This aims to ensure all sectors and services are co-operating and working together to improve outcomes for children and young people with SEND.

How Our Local Offer Was Built

The Local Offer was built through 2021 with the help and guidance of parents, carers and SEND practitioners. We worked out a structure for the site and added new content. We tried to make sure the site is:

We opened the website up for a ‘test’ phase from November 2021 through to January 2022. This allowed us to hear from visitors and to learn from their views.

Each week during the testing phase, feedback we received was either minor adjustments which were made, or larger adjustments. These were read by senior managers in Education East Sussex. They agreed if any amendments or additions are required, and we did them on a weekly basis.

East Sussex 1Space is an online directory that first launched in 2012. Adult Social Care and Health created the directory. The East Sussex Local Offer joined 1Space in October 2021. This consisted of us adding our own section, categories and SEND-specific services. The services we list are both county-wide and online.

You can visit our directory on East Sussex 1Space.

Moving forward, we will continue to seek feedback and suggestions from everyone in East Sussex.

Local Offer Launch Day Event

On 19 January 2022, we launched the new East Sussex Local Offer website. An online question and answer (Q&A) session took place alongside the launch.

The Q&A invited everyone throughout the SEND community to join us.

We started the event by playing a video. The video aimed to bring awareness to various individuals and groups throughout East Sussex. Groups included:

The Q&A session included:

Ros and Nathan answered various questions. This includes questions about the new Local Offer website and directory:

Who Helps Develop Our Local Offer

We've worked hard to get the content right and to consult residents of East Sussex.  We created this website and continue to develop it through a process of consultation with:

We invite all residents of East Sussex to visit the pages of this site and to feedback any thoughts, ideas and advice. It doesn't matter if you are very experienced in the area of SEND or if you are new to it. We want to hear from everyone.

Please note, there are things about this website that will be more difficult to change at this stage. For example, the overall look and structure of this site will be tricky to change. The structure was co-produced. This is what was decided to be the best look and way of organising the information.

We can:

How You Can Provide Feedback

After looking through the website, there are various ways in which residents of East Sussex can give us their feedback.

We aim to produce various surveys throughout each year. Some surveys will provide questions about the Local Offer as a whole. Other surveys will be more specific, aimed towards:

You will be able to add as much or as little feedback as you like. The surveys will give you an opportunity to give feedback on both the things you like and things you think could improve.

Please visit our page called ‘Have Your Say’ to see what surveys are currently live.

If you would prefer to contact us by email, you can do so by sending your feedback to:

There are lots of ways that you can get involved with Education East Sussex as a whole. This includes joining groups such as:

Our page, 'Have Your Say', provides more information. It will also list SEND surveys and ways of getting involved offered by Education East Sussex throughout the year.

Please visit our page called ‘Have Your Say’ to find out more.

Someone sat on a chair, using the Local Offer on their laptop. On the Local Offer they're looking up SEND-specific information such as activities, events and short breaks, early years (0 - 5), school age (5 - 16), college and adult life (16+) and physical and mental health support.

Surrounding Counties Local Offer

East Sussex shares borders with Brighton & Hove, West Sussex, Kent and Surrey. If you live or study in any of these counties we recommend visiting their Local Offers:

Additional Help and Support

Amaze SENDIASS

Amaze SENDIASS (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Information Advice and Support Service) are a local charity. They offer free, independent, and impartial advice for all matters relating to SEND. Contact Amaze SENDIASS by:

Visit the Amaze SENDIASS web page.

East Sussex Local Offer directory of services

You can visit our SEND-specific online directory, hosted on East Sussex 1Space. The directory lists many different services both throughout the county and online. Services cover many topics, including:

Visit the East Sussex Local Offer directory.

NHS - Health A to Z

The East Sussex Local Offer aims to provide as much information as possible. There may be some conditions that aren't covered in thorough detail. The NHS website has pages that list all conditions. These pages provide information and advice on how to get extra support:

Visit the NHS Health A to Z web page.

Glossary of East Sussex SEND Terms

We explain some of the terms used on this website on our page, Glossary of East Sussex SEND Terms.

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