What is Bucks SENDIAS
Why SENDIAS needs your young person's consent
If a young person is over the compulsory school age, we will need their consent to:
- discuss the details of their situation with you (their parent or carer)
- help you with options for decisions about them
- help you with paperwork
- confirm you can attend meetings
We are required to ask for consent because of the Mental Capacity Act 2005.
They are over the compulsory school age if they turned 16 by the end of the school year, and are under 25.
To be able to give consent
For anyone to be able to give consent, they need to:
- Understand relevant information about the decision.
- Retain that information long enough to make the decision.
- Use or weigh that information as part of the decision-making process.
- Communicate their decision (by any means).
Helping your young person to understand
Please share information about our service with your child (if this would be appropriate). This is so they understand what they are consenting to.
This information may help:
- watch a 5 minute animation that explains the SENDIAS service
- watch a 90 second film that explains how Bucks SENDIAS works
- read our 'what to expect from Bucks SENDIAS' page
Please let us know if:
- this information is not accessible for your child
- gaining consent will be difficult
We can help with these things.
Please let us know. In this case, we can only give you general information about the law, processes and what is available locally.
For further advice view our webpages and if you need to, contact us online.
Alternatively, try our webchat service by clicking the pop up on our webpages on Mondays (1pm to 3pm) or Fridays (10am to midday), term time only.
Please let us know. We have specialist advisers who can work with your child (and with you too) if they wish.
Please let us know.
For example, some young people who attend a special school or college (for students with learning difficulties) may not have the capacity to make a decision about SENDIAS involvement.
How your child can let us know their consent
Your child can choose for:
- you to work with our service on their behalf
- us to work directly with them
- us to work with both them and you
If appropriate, please ask your child to do one of the following:
- complete our online contact form, with options to upload evidence of consent including:
- photo
- audio file
- document
- leave a message on our voicemail: 01296 383754
- email [email protected]
- speak to one of our team face to face or over the phone
Examples of what your young person can say to us
Your child could say something like:
I want my Mum or Dad to get help from SENDIAS for me.
I want to be involved too.
I know SENDIAS will keep information about me safely.
It’s ok for SENDIAS to see my private paperwork like my SEN Support plan and EHC plan.
How to tell us your child is not able to give consent
Complete our online contact form, which includes ways to upload evidence of a lack of capacity to consent.
Consent is not permanent
At any time your child can change their mind.
Anyone’s capacity to consent can change over time.
Please let us know if anything changes.
In addition, every year you contact us we will check again about their consent.
Definitions
Mental capacity
Mental capacity is not a fixed state of affairs. Mental capacity is the ability to make a decision – a specific decision at a specific point in time; it is not about decision making powers generally.
Compulsory school age
A child is of compulsory school age from the beginning of the term following their 5th birthday until the last Friday of June in the year in which they become 16, provided that their 16th birthday falls before the start of the next school year.
Parent
Under section 576 of the Education Act 1996, the term ‘parent’ includes any person who is not a parent of the child, but has parental responsibility or who cares for him or her.
Young person
A person over compulsory school age (the end of the academic year in which they turn 16). From this point the right to make decisions about matters covered by the Children and Families Act 2014 applies to the young person directly, rather than to their parents.
More information about giving consent
Read the information under the 'Mental capacity and decision making' heading in the section 4 dropdown (Community inclusion) on our preparing for adulthood page.