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Educational Psychology Service

 

Southwark's Educational Psychology Service 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.
 

Educational psychologists (EPs) are teachers with varied experience in different educational settings committed to improving teaching and learning for all children and young people, especially those with additional needs, working to ensure that every setting is good or outstanding.

They work with families, children, young people and teaching staff to apply psychological skills and knowledge to address issues that interfere with learning and wellbeing, working with individuals, groups and across systems.

EPs work closely with other support services, like:

  • the early intervention team
  • the educational advisory services for children with a visual or hearing impairment 
  • autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) support
  • special educational needs staff
  • education welfare and attendance service
  • behaviour and attendance support service
  • speech and language therapists
  • physiotherapists
  • occupational therapists
  • social care 
  • voluntary agencies.

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.

 

What can the Educational Psychology Service help with?

EPs apply their psychological skills and knowledge to carry out statutory and non-statutory work relating to the SEND Code of Practice. They advise on psychological interventions that focus on narrowing gaps in attainment and improving academic progress, developing 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.

EPs also provide support to settings in the event of a potentially traumatic event.

 

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 us.

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 the Council, either via a one-year service level agreement agreed in advance or at a higher daily rate, purchased as required where service capacity allows.

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