School meetings about you or your child with SEND don’t have to be scary. The secret to successful meetings is all in the preparation. In this episode, we discuss the steps to prepare for a school meeting to ensure it goes smoothly and you get what you need out of them!

Joining your host Vic Elizabeth Turnbull in this episode is Laura Nardella an adviser at SENDIASS Manchester and Siarah, a parent who explains her experience of how she’s prepared for school meetings.

In episode 3 ‘Conducting and following up school meetings’ we share what the next steps are after you’ve prepared - listen in our podcast feed.

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Talking points in this episode

[00.00] Podcast and episode introduction
[01:16] Laura introduction
[01.35] Who this episode is useful for
[02.28] What is an EHC plan?
[03.02] Statutory guidance for school meetings
[05.25] Why it is important to prepare for school meetings
[06.19] The emotional side of school meetings
[08.08] First stage of preparation
[09.16] Who do you want to meet with?
[10.16] What is a SENCO?
[10.49] Asking for the meeting
[12.41] Preparing for the meeting
[15.31] Why write things down
[16.36] Importance of being specific
[16.54] Example of being specific
[21.43] Other things to prepare - your child’s voice
[24.19] Sharing your notes
[26.22] The parent - Siarah
[26.32] Siarah introduction
[28.42] Her son’s challenges
[30.12] Being called to the first meeting
[31.23] Getting help for the first meeting
[32.13] Experience of the first meeting
[34.17] Approaching schools’ meetings now
[35.40] Support from SENDIASS
[36.55] Siarah’s advice for parents
[37.50] Outro with useful further information and contact details
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More information

Visit the SENDIASS Manchester website for further information, support, factsheets and our contact details if you want to reach out.

www.sendiassmanchester.org

You can also visit IPSEA www.ipsea.org.uk