Help and Information: Coronavirus COVID-19 Outbreak
Easy Read Guides and Vaccine video
Vaccine video – this is a short film from NHS England and NHS Improvement developed for people with learning disabilities and/or autistic people. It describes what a vaccine is, how vaccines are made, why you should get a vaccine, whether a vaccine make you ill and how to decide whether to have a vaccine or not.
Easy Read Guides
- NEW Keep Safe UK Coronavirus Easy Read Posters, also in audio versions on lots of topics e.g. Bubbles, Vaccine, Lockdown
- Public Health England Advice about Coronavirus
- Mencap Coronavirus Guide
- Mencap Makaton Handwashing Guide
- Young Minds Looking after your mental health while self-isolating
- Covibook Interactive support to reassure children aged 7 and under (Help children express emotions during the pandemic)
- Talking Mats Guide to social distancing
- BBC Newsround Videos and information about the Coronavirus for children
- Carers UK Guidance for carers
- UK Youth and National Youth Agency Support for youth workers and young people
Visual Medical Guides-Easy Read
Guides produced by North West Boroughs Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
ChatHealth
Halton 0 – 5 Parents Service: 07507 327025
Halton 5 – 19 Parents Service: 07480 635988
Halton 11 – 19 Young People’s Service: 07507 330521
ChatHealth is an anonymous messaging service that provides a safe and easy way for service users to send a message to a healthcare professional and receive confidential help and advice.
The aim of implementing ChatHealth into Bridgewater is to further improve service user access to health and well-being support particularly in light of COVID19 pandemic.
Bridgewater Community Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust 0-19 Service (Health Visiting and School Nursing) aim to provide the best start for our children, young people and families. Their role is key to improving the health and wellbeing outcomes of our children and young people and to reduce inequalities. All staff provide evidenced based advice and support to local parents, carers, children and young people from pregnancy up to the age of 19 or up to the age of 24 for children and young people with a disability or complex need. Care is provided at a range of universal contacts alongside additional more targeted contacts, which are undertaken according to need. Our 0-19 Services utilise a whole system approach by working together with other professionals and services to deliver high quality care
Things that might be helpful
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- See, Hear, Respond – rapid support for children and young people affected by the coronavirus crisis
- Pubic Health England Coronavirus COVID-19 Information
- Halton Borough Council Coronavirus Advice
- NEW Contact for families with disabled children Covid-19 vaccination: your questions answered
- North West SEND Regional Newsletter Special Edition Coronavirus COVID-19
- Questions and Answers Coronavirus Guidance on vulnerable children and young people
- NHS England and NHS Improvement (19/03/2020) Coronavirus Information, Toolkits, e-Learning
- Active Halton Staying Active at home during COVID-19
Government Guidance - education and childcare
The Education secretary, Gavin Williamson, announced the government’s plans for the full re-opening of schools in September, separate guidance for special schools, early years and childcare providers and FE colleges and providers is now available. The expectation is that children and young people with SEND will be able to return to full-time provision from the beginning of the Autumn term.
Full opening guidance available below:
Information for children, young people and families for going back to school/educational provision
Halton Borough Council
- Welcoming children and young people safely back to school/education – here you will find lots of resources, video clips and information to support the safe return of pupils across the Borough
- COVID-19 School Additional Measures HBC Letter to Parents and Carers – 17 Sept 2020
Guide for children and young people the Children’s commissioner for England has published a guide for children to tell them some of the changes they might see when they go back to school this September as well as providing tips on how to cope if they’re feeling worried or nervous and helpful resources to stay safe
Support for parents/carers with many young people returning to school for the first time in many months Parent Info has published tips for parents and carers to help their primary and secondary school children and young people cope when returning to school
Department for Education blog features frequently asked questions around children returning to school in England
Contact important information about COVID-19 for for families with disabled children
AFTERMATH OF COVID-19 PANDEMIC - What is normal?
Dr Rhona Hobson, Halton’s Principal Educational Psychologist has produced guidance about the normal responses that we all have and feel in this difficult situation for what is normal?
Although it has been written for young people, the advice and suggestions provided will be helpful to us all as we move to the transition, recovery and learning phase in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Halton 0-19 Healthy Child Service Newsletter - COVID-19 Update
This newsletter reflects some of the fantastic work undertaken by the service during ‘lock down’ and explains some of their plans to continue to support children, young people and families in Halton as the restrictions are lifted
Ministerial Letters during COVID-19 pandemic
To all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), their parents/carers and families, and others who support them
NEW – Minister Ford open letter to CYP-families-SEND 14.1.2021
- Minister Ford open letter to the SEND sector 9.11.2020
- Minister Ford’s open letter to SEND sector schools opening 30.5.2020
- Joint Dept for Health & Social Care and Dept for Education Ministerial Letter 30.4.2020
Halton Borough Council's Update - EHC Plans
We are committed to continue to support the EHC Plan process, however, not all the assessment advice will be immediately available. Assessments for an EHC Plan may look different as these are not currently being undertaken face to face. We have moved to do this work by telephone or video calls where possible. Our decision-making panels will still take place but this work will be done remotely. We will continue to review these necessary changes.
Coping with your child’s anxieties and behaviour
- Make sure to take care of yourself. Remember the airline safety briefing that tells adults to “put on your own oxygen mask before helping others”? This same advice applies to challenging or traumatic experiences and children’s well-being too. Children cope better when their parents are resilient and have strong social supports
- Try to establish a “new normal” in terms of daily routines
- Children tend to like predictability and routines and it can be tricky without school to structure the day
- It might help to make a daily schedule while schools are closed so that kids know what will happen during the day and when it will happen
- National Autistic Society Coronavirus – Everything you need to know
- Autism East Midlands Autism, Anxiety and Coronavirus
- Council for Disabled Children COVID-19 advice and support
- World Health Organisation Helping children cope with stress during the 2019-nCoV outbreak
- Young Minds What to do if you’re anxious about Coronavirus
- Contact Coronavirus: Information for families with disabled children
- Cardiff & Vale University Health Board Supporting Children with Learning disability/ASD: coping with COVID-19 isolation
- Carers UK Coronavirus Guidance
- Anxiety during self-isolation
Things around Education
Pupils of all ages – primary and secondary levels of education
- Department for Education (DfE) resources on supporting and promoting mental wellbeing to help children to learn at home
- DfE and the BBC Bitesize online educational package and social media channels
Educational Helpline for staff, parents/carers and young people
Opening hours: 8am-6pm (Monday to Friday)
- Department of Education Dedicated Coronavirus (COVID-19) Tel: 0800 046 8687
- Email: [email protected]
Parents/Carers
- Educational Advice for parents/carers Becoming a Full-Time Educator (Planning Ahead)
- Emergency Powers Bill (Education) Schedule 16-Corona Bill & Section 42/43 Children and Families Act 2014 Steve Broach’s vlog Special Needs Jungle
Educational Settings
- Public Health England Advice on Coronavirus for places of education
- Minister Ford’s Open letter to the SEND sector
- GOV.uk Disabled Charities Consortium Letter Supporting disabled people through the Coronavirus outbreak
Residential Educational Settings, Boarding Schools, Residential Special Schools/Colleges and Children’s Homes
GOV.uk Isolation Guidance and COVID-19 to support management of children and young people
Advice/Information to help you talk to your child
- Amaze FAQs information pack for parents
- British Psychological Society Importance of talking to children about Coronavirus
- Young Minds Talking to your child about Coronavirus
- Psychology Today Coronavirus (COVID-19): What to talk about with your child
- Place2Be Coronavirus: Helpful information to answer questions from children
- NPR Goats and Soda Just for Kids: A comic exploring the new Coronavirus
- Wellbeing Enterprises COVID-19 Online Course & Support Service for children and young people
WHO Info-Graphic Tips for Parents
- One to One Time
- Keeping it Positive
- Structure Up
- Bad Behaviour
- Keep Calm and Manage Stress
- Talking about COVID-19
Children with Complex Health Needs
Mental Health and Wellbeing
- See, Hear, Respond – rapid support for children and young people affected by the coronavirus crisis
- The Youth Mental Health Project COVID-19 and the Mental Health of your Children
- Mind Coronavirus and your wellbeing
- The Mental Health Foundation Looking after your mental health during the Coronavirus outbreak
- Anna Freud NCCF Supporting parents/carers to help children and young people’s mental health/wellbeing through disruption caused by Coronavirus
- Every Mind Matters Mental wellbeing while staying at home
- Supporting yourself and colleagues at work Coronavirus and Isolation
- Halton Health Improvement Team Mental Health Information Point and Halton Covid-19 PR Toolkit v1
- Wellbeing Enterprises COVID-19 Online Course & Support Service for children and young people
Social Media Information aimed at Teenagers and Young People
Halton Borough Council’s 14-19 Team Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/hpsyourfuture
Riverside College Foundation Studies
https://twitter.com/riversidecoll?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor
https://www.riversidecollege.ac.uk/social-media/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCenZh31JE5XOsdrpyL_kZ-w
https://www.flickr.com/photos/rchfs/albums
Apprenticeship Hub
COVID-19 Update – Panel Composition in the First-tier and Upper Tribunals
Updated practice direction which was issued by the Senior President of Tribunals relating to panel composition in the First-tier and Upper Tribunals during the current COVID-19 pandemic, published on the 19th March 2020.