It is important that families know what happens when Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) come and inspect local services for children and young people with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) in Lambeth, and how you can get involved once an inspection is announced.
Ofsted and CQC work together to inspect education, health and care services for children and young people with SEND aged 0-25 in a local area, to make sure they are effective. This is called an area SEND inspection. Inspections are carried out in line with the area SEND inspection framework and handbook. We use the information from inspections to improve services for children and young people with SEND across Lambeth.
Local area partnerships are inspected at least once every 5 years. Lambeth’s last area SEND inspection was in January 2020 and the report is available to view below. We do not know when the next inspection will take place in Lambeth.
How you can be involved
Your views are very important. Once an inspection is announced, Ofsted will be keen to hear from parents, carers, children, young people, and practitioners about your experiences. Before inspectors are on site, you will be invited to complete a survey. The survey will ask you about any support your child gets for their education, health and care needs and their social life, and to prepare them for the next stage of their life. Surveys will also be available to children and young people with SEND and practitioners who work with children and young people with SEND in Lambeth.
We will let you know once an inspection has been announced and the link to the survey will be published on the Local Offer. Paper copies will also be available.
You can watch this video explaining how the inspection will take place, or you can read the area SEND inspection guides (available in EasyRead and BSL).
Lambeth Local Area's first inspection was in January 2020
To find out what the inspectors thought, read the Ofsted and CQC joint inspection letter:
You can also download our easier to read summary of the main findings: