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Educational psychology

 

Southwark's Educational Psychology Service (EPS) is part of Southwark Council's SEND team. The service works closely with schools, post-16 provision and early years settings to promote the educational opportunities of vulnerable pupils including those with special educational needs and disabilities, children who are looked after by the council and those at risk of significant harm.

 

The EPS is committed to improving teaching and learning for all children and young people, especially those with additional needs. The service also promotes high quality care and education in the range of provision accessed by babies, children and young people aged 0-25 years in Southwark and works to ensure that every setting is good or outstanding.

 

All Southwark’s educational psychologists (EPs):

  • Have undertaken postgraduate professional training in educational psychology to either masters or doctoral level and are employed by Southwark Council.
  • Are registered with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) and bound by their standards of conduct, performance, ethics and proficiency, as published by the HCPC.
  • Are required to undertake continuing professional development activities and maintain a log of evidence.
  • Are appointed by interview and have been subject to safeguarding (enhanced DBS) and medical checks.

Southwark EPS has strong links with several London universities and a history of supporting the professional development of trainees undertaking professional doctoral training in educational psychology. Trainees working in schools receive a high level of supervision and guidance, with all their work quality assured by a qualified EP.

EPs are recognised by the British Psychological Society (BPS) and are expected to follow the BPS guidelines. They work closely with the Association of Educational Psychologists.

You can find out more about our service on our Local Offer website.

 

What can the Educational Psychology Service help with?

Educational Psychologists apply their psychological skills and knowledge to carry out statutory and non-statutory work relating to the SEND Code of Practice and provide advice about the psychological aspects of learning and child development, social, emotional and mental health and behaviour.

They also advise on psychological interventions that focus on narrowing gaps in attainment and improving academic progress, developing particular skills or addressing social, emotional and mental health needs. This may be done:

 

  • at the individual level – e.g. providing support with or attendance at Team Around the Child/Family (TAC/TAF) meetings, consultation about planning and writing delivery plans/individual education plans, consultation with parents and school staff about issues arising from individual interventions, consultation on strategies for working with individual learners, and individual assessment linked to statutory work

  •  at the group and class level – e.g. joint problem-solving and support for groups of staff, parent workshops, and work with groups of pupils

  • at the strategic, systems and organisational level – e.g. policy development, research, in-service training and other developmental work and whole school teaching and learning.

 

How to access our service

The Educational Psychology Service consists of two teams of EPs and SEND inclusion practitioners (SENDIPs) led by a principal educational psychologist who reports to the head of SEND. Each team is managed and supervised by a senior educational psychologist. The teams are co-located with the Family Early Help Service and SEND teams in locality bases across Southwark.

The teams provide a direct service to all maintained schools and settings in Southwark, and to non-maintained schools and settings who purchase educational psychology services from Southwark EPS. 

All schools maintained by Southwark are allocated a named ‘link EP’, whose input to an individual academy, school or setting is determined by the setting’s level of need. The link EP provides consultation, assessment and support to establish evidence-informed interventions at system, group and individual levels.

Non-maintained schools and settings can purchase educational psychology services from Southwark.

The educational psychologists and SENDIPs also support early years providers, children’s centres and other settings as required, particularly when pupils transition from one setting to another.

Interpreting and translation services can be arranged where needed.

 

How to contact us

Principal Educational Psychologist: Emma Pearl/Hanna Hancock