Case Studies

In a changing landscape, this session will be of interest to those leading SEND developments across an organisation and brings an opportunity to hear about the Bishop Bewick journey to establishing a core SEND offer at Trust level:

• Why we have done what we have done – our intent
• What we have done over the past 2 and a half years – our implementation
• How we have done it

There will also be an opportunity to reflect on and discuss with each other your priorities for SEND leadership across your school, or group of schools.

The session will focus on how schools can implement trauma informed practices to support the whole school community. The session will explore the strategic and systemic changes that can take place and how to bring the staff and the wider school community on the journey of becoming a trauma informed school. The session will be focused on practical strategies as well as giving the delegates opportunities to reflect on their existing practices and whether they align with trauma informed approaches.

There is a growing expectation for schools to be “all things to all pupils,” but the reality is that when pupils have physical health needs/medical conditions, they may require an NHS-commissioned healthcare service — a role that schools cannot and should not be expected to fulfil. For pupils needing NHS-commissioned healthcare in school, a legal framework exists to ensure access. However, this is an area often marked by missteps and misunderstandings.

This session will provide an overview of the frameworks that support the integration of NHS healthcare services with education services and explain why this integration is essential. Additionally, practical tips will be offered on how schools can take proactive steps to enhance the coordination of NHS services, ultimately promoting greater inclusion for pupils, both with and without EHC plans.

This session will delve deeper into what life may be like for a child in care. It will explore the complexities around supporting the child, parents, carers and professionals involved in a challenging situation. Within this we will look at best practice for how the child can be supported in school with the hope of improving educational outcomes and emotional wellbeing.

The session will:

• Focus on understanding how attachment, trauma and ACE’s can present in the school environment (particularly with Children in Care)
• Provide practical strategies for how to support these children within school
• Share how to best advocate for the child and good practice examples when working with other agencies

An interactive and reflective session on how those with pastoral or safeguarding responsibilities can protect and prioritise their own wellbeing. These types of roles mean taking on a big emotional load, and it can get weighty. Join us for a session where we’ll explore how you can stave off burnout by thinking differently about boundaries, rest and making room for yourself.

• What’s happening in my body when something stressful happens, and how can I use this knowledge to protect myself from burnout? 
• How can I think differently about my personal energy levels to avoid the ‘sprint and collapse’ rhythm of term-time and holidays? 
• What are the seven types of rest and how can I benefit from them?

Join us for an insightful session led by a Senior HMI, exploring how Ofsted are working to improve education inspection with a focus on Alternative Provision, SEND and Inclusion.

This session will include:

• How schools and settings can participate in the consultation
• Background to the consultation
• About the consultation – who the 2025 education reforms will impact
• Ofsted’s proposals
• Report cards
• Education inspection toolkits
• Inspection methodology
• Types of inspection
• Identifying schools causing concern
• What Ofsted’s proposals mean for schools

Dame Christine Lenehan brings a wealth of experience and insight to this timely discussion on inclusion in education. In this session, she will reflect on the current landscape, drawing on her extensive work with children, families, and policymakers. With inclusion at the heart of educational conversations in 2025, Dame Christine will offer thought-provoking perspectives on where we are, the questions we need to ask, and the values that must guide us as we look to the future.

This session will focus on: 

• Discussing pathways to school exclusion and preventative solutions
• Presenting the extent of suspensions and permanent exclusions nationally 
• Sharing creative approaches (pullupachair) to co-production 
• Showcasing the importance of family and child leadership 
• Learning from parent/carer experiences 

Endeavour Academies is a cross-phase trust in Middlesbrough taking CYP from ages 2-18. They have been working with the Reach Foundation over the last 2 years to develop a Cradle to Career model of education. Central to this idea is the notion that the social problems affecting schools are now too complex for a single organisation, like a school, to be able to manage on their own. The Cradle to Career model encourages schools to develop a deeper understanding of the challenges facing the local community and then to work much more closely with community organisations to address them. The presentation focuses on the work Endeavour have done with Reach, in developing their own charity The Endeavour Foundation and cross-sector convening partnerships that have been established to enhance the work of their schools.

The session will look at changes Kepier have made to their SEN provision both academically and holistically to try and ensure meaningful inclusion is embedded as practice. Danny will provide examples of how Kepier have developed their provision in a mainstream Secondary School with principles and ideas that can be used in settings covering all age ranges and phases.

Danny will discuss how we have made changes to their transition programme to provide more holistic support, and how they have developed a mentoring and Inclusion Ambassador programme to support this. Alongside these initiatives they have also developed schemes of learning to deliver both a social skills and a pathway to adulthood programme, that is delivered as a complimentary curriculum.

In tandem with this holistic support, Kepier has also worked to develop a number of strategies to ensure staff are aware of the barriers to learning some children and young people face, which Danny will share.

For those interested in a look at some of these ideas prior to the session please take a look at Kepier’s website, which they have worked on with parents and children to share their vision for SEN support.