Merseyside Send Support Network

Families asked to share their views on SEND services - Knowsley News Ofsted and the CQC will be visiting Knowsley to inspect the local arrangements for children and young people with SEND.

🌞 Summer Savings for Families 🌞
Great news for families this summer! The Great British Summer Savings Scheme is running from 25 June - 1 September 2026, helping to ease the cost of holidays and days out 💛
✨ What’s included?
🎢 Reduced VAT on days out – including soft play, adventure centres & theme parks
🎭 Cheaper children’s tickets for theatres & cinemas
🍽️ Savings on children’s meals when eating out
🚌 PLUS: Children aged 5–15 can travel FREE on local buses across England throughout August
👉 Find out more: Summer Savings - Summer Savings - https://costoflivinghelp.campaign.gov.uk/

💡 This is alongside other support available for families - https://costoflivinghelp.campaign.gov.uk/

Please share this with your parents, carers and families through your usual channels 📢

Liverpool has been chosen as one of twelve areas in the Local Youth Transformation Programme, funded by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. This programme will help improve youth services in Liverpool by listening to young people, building stronger partnerships, and creating a clear plan for good‑quality youth work across our city.

A review in 2025 showed that Liverpool does not have a full and up‑to‑date list of youth activities and services. This makes it hard to see what is available, where the gaps are, and what young people need.

To change this, Liverpool City Council is creating a new database of all youth provision in the city to help us:
💜 Understand what support young people can access
💜 See where more services are needed
💜 Plan better for the future
💜 Build a public tool so young people and families can easily find activities near them.

Liverpool City Council has asked Merseyside Youth Association (MYA) to collect this information and make sure it is complete, accurate, and consistent. They will be contacting different organisations across the city to ask for their feedback and input into the programme. The work is expected to run until 1st July 2026.

Please share with your networks to ensure we're capturing the brilliant work going on across the city. Thank you for your support.

💛 Building Carer Friendly Communities

This year’s Carers Week theme focuses on building communities that recognise carers, listen to their experiences and make sure they’re not left to cope alone.

Carer friendly communities include workplaces, local services, health settings and neighbourhoods anywhere carers feel seen and supported.

If you’re caring for someone, registering with Knowsley Carers’ Hub means you can access free, personalised support designed around you.

📞 0151 549 1412
✉️ [email protected]

NEW POST: Helen Hayes Education Committee this week got its long-awaited Inquiry response from the Department for Education, just in time to hear from the Secretary herself. It's clear to SNJ's founder, Tania Tirraoro, that the relentless march of SEND reform only hears views that fit the narrative https://www.specialneedsjungle.com/relentless-march-send-reform-only-hears-views-fit-narrative/

✈️ Travel Support for Families ✈️

We know that for some families, travelling can feel a little daunting, especially when additional needs need to be considered.

If you’re looking for tips, advice, and information around accessible travel, holidays, airports, and flying with a child or family member who is neurodiverse or has a disability, this Facebook group may be worth a look:

📍 Accessible Holiday Information Hints & Tips

A useful resource with plenty of travel advice from people with lived experience.

As always, MSSN is happy to share resources that may be helpful to our families. 💙

https://www.facebook.com/share/g/18nxQLxBVK/

✈️💙

The home to school transport guidance for pupils of compulsory school age has been updated to make clear that if a pupil is eligible for what is now called ‘targeted free school meals’, they may be eligible for free home to school transport.

Although the law hasn't changed, we have updated the guidance on our website: https://www.ipsea.org.uk/children-of-compulsory-school-age-aged-5-to-16

NHS University Hospitals of Liverpool (UHL) Group: 2030 Big Conversation Event

You’re invited to UHL 2030 Big Conversation – helping shape changes in healthcare

Healthwatch Knowsley, working in partnership with NHS University Hospitals of Liverpool (UHL) Group, is inviting patients, carers and members of the public to take part in a Big Conversation Patient and Public Engagement Session. UHL Group includes:

Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (Aintree University Hospital, Broadgreen Hospital and Royal Liverpool University Hospital)
Liverpool Women’s NHS Foundation Trust

The UHL Group 2030 Strategy rethinks how and where care is delivered to improve the health and quality of life of people across the Liverpool City Region. Through this Big Conversation, we want to hear directly from the people of Knowsley so that local insight, experiences and priorities help shape future changes and improvements.

This event is an opportunity for local people to share their views on how our hospitals can continue to improve the care they provide, the experience of patients and families, and how services work more closely with local communities.

Event details
Date: Tuesday 23 June 2026
Time: 10.30am–12.30pm
Venue: Old School House, St John's Road, Huyton, L36 0UX

Please let us know if you require transport to and from the event or have any accessibility needs, including if you require an interpreter.

To book a place or get more information, please get in touch with Healthwatch Knowsley by calling 0151 449 3954 or emailing: [email protected]

There’s no preparation needed – we simply want to hear your views and what matters most to you.

Your voice matters. What you tell us will directly inform future plans and decisions across the UHL Group.

Delivered by the MYA RAISE Team in partnership with Barnardo's Action with Young Carers, this bitesize session aims to increase awareness of the complex needs of young carers/young adult carers, and to understand how early identification and support for children & young people who have caring responsibilities can positively impact their mental health and overall wellbeing.

We'll explore who is a young carer and the reasons young carers can appear hidden. We'll also discuss the negative impact of caring responsibilities vs. the positive impact of caring. Understanding their needs, and what best practice looks like to support the mental health and well-being of all young carers.

Next session:
📅 1st July
🕛 10am - 11.30am

Book here> https://www.liverpoolcamhs.com/events/young-carers-identification-needs-and-barriers-4/