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Inclusion and Intervention Support Team (IIST)

We support children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) aged 0 to 19 across West Northamptonshire, with 2 distinct offers – Early Years and School Age - both of which provide a family offer

A toddler playing with a purple and yellow block, with the number 6 inside it

Early Years

We offer tailored Early Years Support as part of our Inclusion and Intervention Team Service

Early Years
A man in a flannel shirt sat beside a girl in a black shirt, helping her with homework

School Age

We offer tailored School Age Support as part of our Inclusion and Intervention Team Service

School Age
A father's, mother's and child's hand on top of each other

Family Offer

View the steps outlined in our Family Offers for Early Years and School Age support

Family Offer

Accessing Support for Children Aged 0-5 Years

If you would like support for a child aged 0 to 5 years - whether at home or in an early years setting - please complete our on line request form.

All requests are reviewed weekly by our panel. After the review, we will contact you and the requester with the outcome and details of the support available.

Accessing support for children aged 5-19 years

Support in schools

All West Northants (WN) schools have been assigned a linked worker from our team. These workers are making introductory contact with schools throughout September.

Support in the community

Following feedback from parents, we've made changes to how support is accessed
outside of school:

  • No referral needed: We've moved away from home-based referrals
  • Drop-in sessions: Our team is now available at Family Hubs and SEND parent
    groups for in-person advice
  • Dates and locations will be shared via the Local Offer website and Family Hubs
    social media

Our Family Offer

Bookable drop-ins across the local area:

  • Presence at Family Hub sessions throughout West Northamptonshire

Details will be published on the Local Offer once confirmed.

Has support for children aged 5+ been removed?

No, not at all. Support for children aged 5 to 19 is still available and has been improved
to include:

  • school-based support via linked workers
  • community-based support through drop-in sessions with no referral required

You can find out when and where our team will be available by visiting our Local Offer listing or Family Hubs webpages.

Why has the support offer changed?

We listened to feedback from over 130 parents, carers, schools, early help settings, and health professionals.

The key themes were:

  • a need for easier access to support
  • a desire for more community-based options

In response, we have refreshed our approach to better meet the needs of families with children aged 0 to 19 years.

Will the offer change again?

Possibly. This is a new approach, and we are committed to making sure it works well for families.

We have planned regular review points throughout the academic year. The first review is scheduled for December, where we will assess the impact and gather feedback from families.

Please keep an eye out for updates and opportunities to share your views.

Contact the IIST for general enquiries or specific support.

We have transformed our service following a review of our previous offer.

Transformation

In May 2025, the SEND Support Service paused their service offer and undertook a feedback and engagement period with service users and partners.

We gained over 130 individual pieces of feedback; from Health, Schools, Early Years settings, parents and WNC colleagues.

Based on that detailed feedback we have formulated new offers, including a service name change to reflect the updated, exciting new offers of support for children with SEND across West Northamptonshire.

Ongoing feedback and evaluation

We will be reviewing progress regularly and gathering feedback again at Christmas, which will be available on this webpage.

In line with our evaluation policy, we collect feedback and measure efficacy for every piece of work we complete with you. This helps us continuously improve and ensure we are meeting your needs effectively.

If you have any additional feedback, questions, or suggestions, please contact the relevant manager or email [email protected] to discuss further.

Key findings

Parents wanted an easier access model, with more community presence, without a referral or being made to engage with support.

Schools and Early Years settings wanted hands on demonstrations of support, easier access without referrals to ensure timely support, access to training and signposting for staff as well as parents.

Health colleagues wanted to continue partnership working and ensure a joined up approach for families from the start.

Key changes

Early Years – removal of a referral form and associated eligibility, now a simplified request form to capture key information and the priority focus of support needed. Investment and development of the Portage home teaching model, including developing support and understanding in settings.

Family Offer in Early Years – we continue to champion the Portage home teaching approach as a vital method for supporting families in their child’s development. Its impact is widely acknowledged, and we remain committed to its integration across our services.

Our practitioners maintain a consistent presence at Stay and Play sessions across Family Hubs and SEND groups, ensuring ongoing support and meaningful engagement with families.

School Age – no referral forms or eligibility, every school in West Northants now has an allocated, linked worker to offer support, advice, modelling and training following observations of key, priority children – up to 4 children per half term.

Family Offer in School age – presence at drop ins at the Family Hubs, bookable drop ins in key community locations and supportive training to match the input given in their children’s schools.