Our 2026 SEND Workshops focused on key areas affecting children, young people and families across Northamptonshire, including SEND transport and the ongoing SEND reforms.

The SEND Transport workshop, led by iMPOWER, provided families and professionals with the opportunity to share their experiences, challenges and suggestions around transport services. Discussions focused on communication, consistency, accessibility and ensuring transport arrangements meet the needs of children and young people with SEND.

Our SEND Reforms workshop explored the national and local changes taking place across the SEND system. Families, practitioners and partners came together to discuss what these reforms could mean for local services, identify priorities for improvement and highlight the importance of meaningful co-production throughout the process.

The feedback gathered through these workshops has been brought together into reports that capture the key themes, lived experiences and recommendations shared by attendees. These reports will help inform future discussions, strengthen partnership working and support positive change across Northamptonshire’s SEND services.

Thank you to everyone who contributed and shared their voice.

Our November SEND Workshop focused on co-production and the importance of working together with families, young people, practitioners and partners to shape better SEND services across Northamptonshire.

The workshop created open and honest discussions around what meaningful co-production should look like in practice, what is working well, and where improvements are still needed. Families and professionals shared valuable experiences, ideas and recommendations to help strengthen communication, trust and partnership working.

This report brings together the key themes, feedback and priorities identified during the workshop. It highlights the collective commitment to ensuring that children, young people and families remain at the heart of decision-making and service development.

Thank you to everyone who contributed and shared their voice. Your experiences and insights are helping to build a more inclusive, transparent and collaborative SEND system.