Support for parents and young people
Parents have told us that meeting other parents provides them with invaluable support and a way they can access useful information.
There are organisations in Camden that can help put you in touch with other parents who also have children with a special educational need and or disability, as well as provide you with information and advice.
Camden Special Parents Forum is the official parent carer forum parents and carers of disabled children aged 0-25 in Camden. It is part of the NNPCF, the National Network of forums, bringing together the voices of parent carers from across the country. The main local role of the forum is to bring parents together, provide useful information, workshops and advice and to work in partnership with Camden Council to help shape the services they provide to families with disabled children.
You can read more about the forum and sign here:
Keep an eye on their Facebook page where you will find regular updates about activities and opportunities for SEND families:
Camden Special Parents Facebook page
Local organisations offering support for parents. carers and young people
- Special Educational Needs and Disability Information, Advice and Support Service (SENDIASS)
- North and South Camden Community Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS)
- Camden Safeguarding Children Partnership
- KIDS
National organisations offering support for parents, carers and young people
- Preparing for adulthood
- Skills for Care
- Special Needs Jungle
- Special Needs Jungle SEND process flowcharts
- Children and young people’s continuing care national framework
- Autism help and support
- Foundation for People with Learning Difficulties
- Contact A Family
- Sibs
- The Care Act 2014, easy-read version
Advocacy
If you're a young person or a parent and you are finding it hard to get your point across, advocacy might be an option.
Advocacy means having someone who will speak up on your behalf. An advocate can help express your views and wishes, secure your rights, and represent your interests.
Visit the Advocacy page to find out more.
If we can’t agree
We aim to work closely with parents or carers and plan together the support a child or young person needs. We try to make sure that resources are shared so that all children who need it receive the support and services they need. For some services, we have to set eligibility criteria so that it is clear how we make decisions on which children can access these resources.
Sometimes families do not agree with the decisions we make. When that happens, we try to do everything we can to resolve the disagreement first through discussion.
If the discussion does not resolve the disagreement, we offer independent mediation.
Get about independent advice, complaints, disagreement resolution, mediation, and your right of appeal, on the If we can't agree webpage.
General advice and legal support
If you need general information or advice, or some basic legal advice to help with an issue there’s lots of local help available.
Camden Advice Partnership is a group of independent advice agencies in Camden providing free, confidential, unbiased advice and information on a range of issues affecting people.
Some of the members of the Camden Advice Partnership are:
Legal support
The Law Society gives independent legal advice. Before making a decision you can search the Law Society website to find a local solicitor. There may be charges so do remember to ask before.
The Council for Disabled Children provides resources and factsheets on a wide range of subjects including the Case Law Directory and useful reports.
Disability Rights UK is the UK’s leading organisation led by, run by, and working for disabled people. Find out more on the Disability Rights UK website.