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Chesnut Lodge Specialist School

Transition to Post 16

Transition can be an exciting time for our pupils and their families. The prospect of growing up and moving on presents a lot of new opportunities, however, it can also be extremely daunting for families that aren't sure where to start when thinking about moving their children on.
The information below explains what to expect during the transition planning period (year 9 to year 11) and gives some possible ideas about where to start when thinking about placements.
What will happen?
The transition planning process will be slightly different for everyone, however the general order of things will usually remain the same. The chart below gives you an idea of what to expect at each stage of transition.
Key Questions from Families Going Through Transition
 
How will the local authority know where I want my child to go?
- The annual review of a child's statement or EHCP has a section where the requested placement for a child should be listed. Usually this will just be recorded as 'Maintain the current placement', however in year 10 this is the place where you will formally request the placement for a post 16 provider.
The local authority also attend many of the annual reviews during the transition period to ensure that they have an idea of where families may be considering for their child.
Will my child get transport to their post 16 provider?
Transport is organised by the local authority. If you are hoping to get transport support for your child then this should be recorded in the annual reviews. Transport decisions are made in a very similar way to those for school age pupils and will be based on the distance to be travelled, the needs of the young person and which provider has been selected. The local offer transport page has all the information regarding applying for transport.
Where will my child move to?
 
There are several options for post 16 placements in Halton including mainstream sixth form and colleges, SEN sixth form placements and the supported Foundation Studies provision at Foundation Campus at Riverside College. For pupils living out of borough, or for those with the most complex needs a more specialist placement may be required.  The list below contains the contact details for some of the post 16 providers that past pupils have attended or been to visit in Halton and surrounding boroughs. 
Halton's local offer is a full website detailing the services available to young people and children with SEND. This is another great place to start finding out about transition for your child and about what is available to Halton children and young people.
Information, Advice and Guidance
 
All schools are required to provide Information, Advice and Guidance (IAG) on careers routes and options for Preparing for Adulthood. We complete a lot of this work in school and we also employ a company called TAGS to support us in this. A TAGS advisor will meet with pupils from year 9 and attend annual reviews form year 10 onward. They will also prepare short reports on the potential options available for pupils before an annual review. 
Our link advisor is currently Louise Farrington.
TAGS can be contacted by visiting their website: www.tags.careers