Be honest and open

Be honest and open with parents/carers about the support in place for children and young people, and how systems and processes around SEND work. Ensure understanding and manage expectations around SEND support in your setting and timeframes, so that everyone understands what is happening, when and why (the Parent/carer section of the Graduated Approach Toolkit has resources that you can use to support this).

It is not possible to get things right all the time; acknowledging mistakes and saying sorry if things go wrong is important. SENCOs shared that it is important to never give up on building relationships and connections with families. 

An 'open door' policy helps create a welcoming and open ethos and supports parents/carers to feel confident to share ideas and concerns.

Parents/carers tell us that it is important to work together to find a compromise wherever possible.