Improving Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) services for children, young people and families across Derbyshire
News update – November 2025
Derbyshire Parent Carer Voice – Working Together for Change
Derbyshire Parent Carer Voice (DPCV) is the official parent carer forum for Derbyshire. Our role is to represent the voices of families of children and young people with SEND, ensuring they are heard in decision-making and service development.
We work in partnership with the local authority, health services, and other organisations to influence positive change.
This autumn, DPCV has continued to represent parent carers across Derbyshire by attending key strategic meetings following the Ofsted inspection.
Many of the improvements being made are still “behind the scenes,” so families may not yet see the impact.
However, we do see progress and remain committed to making sure parent carers feel informed and involved.
One way we do this is through our Joint Working Group.
This brings together partners from Education, Health, and Social Care to share updates with us, so we can keep parents informed and provide lived experiences from parent carers across Derbyshire.
These meetings give us the opportunity to raise real-life experiences, share feedback from our bi-monthly surveys, and help shape improvements in the local SEND system. They also allow us to focus on specific concerns that broader meetings don’t always have time for. This has become a valuable space for honest discussion and collaborative problem-solving.
We’ve also been busy preparing to launch our brand-new website, designed to make it easier for parent carers to access information, share feedback, and stay up to date with training opportunities, events, and surveys.
Our annual survey is now live, and we encourage all families to take part, it’s a vital tool for shaping improvements.
To complete the survey, please visit: Derbyshire Parent Carer Voice - Derbyshire County Area SEND Survey 2025
A key priority for us is strengthening the “You Said, We Did” approach. We want parent carers to see how their feedback leads to real change and to close the communication loop so families feel heard and valued.
We are also leading work to co-create new values for the SEND partnership. We have held two workshops already and there is one more on Friday 5 December in Tideswell. Do join us if you can.
We’re proud of the progress so far and grateful to all the parent carers who continue to share their voices with us. Together, we’re making a difference.
To find out the latest and get in touch, please visit:
Facebook - Derbyshire Parent Carer Voice (DPCV)
Claire Walsh and Sam Gaunt
Chair and deputy chair, Derbyshire Parent Carer Voice (DPCV)
Extra places will support SEND pupils back into school
Specialist places for up to 100 students aged from 11 to 16 who have been out of school will be created by Esteem Multi-Academy Trust in Chesterfield.
Members of Derbyshire County Council's Cabinet have agreed to allocate £1.8 million to Esteem to refurbish and change the use of a disused council building in Birdholme.
Funding of £400,000 had already been approved by the authority to carry out a feasibility study, with a further £400,000 contribution from the academy which will run the new unit.
It is hoped the new teaching facility will be open from September 2026, offering high-quality education and providing specialist support for pupils to resume their learning after a period of exclusion.
This project is part of Derbyshire County Council's commitment to increase provision in areas that need it most for young people with special educational needs and disabilities, particularly those with complex needs, using £28 million of capital SEND budget.
This funding is being used to provide Enhanced Resource Units, out of school provision, create additional places at the county’s 10 special schools as well as increasing the number of SEND places available in mainstream schools.
To learn more, please visit:
Derbyshire County Council - Extra places will support SEND pupils back into school