>> Supporting parents of children with learning difficulties and disabilities (LDD)

Our LDD team works in local special schools, and secondary school specialist units for pupils with disabilities and learning difficulties. On top of the help and advice given to all students, students with learning difficulties and disabilities receive additional support.

Help on offer:

• LDD Personal Advisers (PAs) can arrange to see parents of students in Y8 onwards to discuss any worries about options post 16
• PAs can attend all parents evenings and options evenings from Y9 onwards where you and your child will be able to talk to them
• PAs attend transition reviews to offer help and support
• PAs work with groups of students to discuss their options and meet students individually
• students will have their needs assessed by a PA before leaving school
• students with multiple problems will be offered lots of extra support
• information and advice on jobs/careers, learning and training will be made available for parents of Y9 through to Y13
• information can be made available in Braille or large print format
• parents of all Y9 students with a statement will be contacted by letter explaining the role of a Connexions PA, the purpose of the Transition Review, specialist further education colleges and the Disabled Students Allowance
• PAs are able to arrange specialist services for students with special needs including referral to specialist courses locally and specialist colleges outside our area if local provision is unable to meet needs
• students in mainstream schools with disabilities and learning difficulties may be referred to a specialist PA if it is felt they need additional support
• if your child has special needs it is possible for them to receive help up to the age of 25
• Help for Young People with Special Needs (217kb Adobe Acrobat PDF) briefly explains what we offer
• you can call into our local Centres in Dewsbury, Halifax or Huddersfield for help and advice too
• you can also telephone the LDD team on 01484 226700.

How can you help your child?

You might not believe it but parents and carers are the most important influence on young people’s career decisions!

You can help by:

• discussing the option choices with your child
• talking little and often rather than in long sessions. You can always ask for more help from your son or daughter’s PA but be encouraging from the start
• keeping in touch with school staff to stay up to date with their progress and work with staff to ensure you are aware of the best way to help and give encouragement!
• attending Options events and Parents Evenings offered at your child’s school, will give you the opportunity to talk to teachers and advisers. They can give you information about what is on offer
• remembering to ask about the routes available to your child – some routes will offer more specialist support than others. It may be possible to put in place the support your child needs to succeed in their choice
• considering the pros and cons of each option at 16+ as this will help you and your son or daughter identify which route seems best for them.