Swindon SEND Families Voice work with Swindon Borough Council, BSW CCG (BANES, Swindon and Wiltshire Clinical Commissioning Group who commission our health services) and other agencies, host workshops, support groups and activities for the benefit of Parents, Carers and families of children and young people aged 0-25 with SEND in Swindon.
We gather the views of local families and then working in partnership with the local authorities, educational settings, health providers and many other service providers to highlight where local services and processes are working well. We challenge where needed, when changes or improvements are to be made.
We support families by hosting free workshops and support groups, answer questions one to one over the phone, online or in person, and are a listening ear whenever we are needed.
We encourage parent and carer participation, through surveys, focus groups, consultations and face to face conversation. By sharing your experiences with us we are able to be the collective voice of as many parents and carers in Swindon as possible.
It’s not always be possible to attend an event or to give your views in person, but you can have your say by taking part in our on-line surveys, which are available here on our website On-going Surveys
We organise local groups and workshops to bring parents and carers together for practical and emotional support. Topics have included challenging behaviour, puberty and preparing for adulthood. At our support group ‘Branches’ which we host jointly with Hop, Skip and Jump, we have regular speakers from local agencies attend to offer useful advice and answer questions. We also have an online support group called The SEND Room.
Our social media platform allow parents and carers to access up-to-date resources, support networks and events. You can also join our mailing list. We offer our workshop places to those on the mailing list first.