Southend SEND Independent Forum (SSIF)
The below directory showcases services that provide fundamental Early Help support to children and families in Southend. These services support needs from escalating and ensure children and families are supported at the earliest stage by the most appropriate service. Professionals supporting families can use this directory to signpost to other services who may be able to assist a family in need.
If you would like to submit your own service to be a part of this directory, you can do so here.
Listings are maintained by the respective services, however, if you notice any inaccuracies then please contact [email protected]
You can also access local service information on the Local Offer and the Livewell Southend page.
Southend SEND Independent Forum (SSIF) are the Parent Carer Forum (PCF) for Southend-on-Sea. Funded by the Department of Education, PCFs work alongside local authorities and health services, making sure that the voices of parents and carers of children with SEND are heard.
The work of SSIF is led by a steering group, all of whom are parents or carers of children with SEND and live in Southend. SSIF are a part of the Southend SEND Area Partnership and steering group members work alongside Health, Education and Social services to ensure that families are at the heart of all decisions taken.
Any parent or carer who lives in Southend and has a child or young person who is under 25 and who has SEND can be a member of the forum. We gather the views of parents and carers in a number of different ways. We visit local support groups, listening to parents and carers and to help understand what is important to them. We conduct surveys and questionnaires to find out what is working well and what needs to be improved. Parents and carers can also share their views through the SSIF website. We also organise events throughout the year to help empower parents and carers with knowledge, information and wellbeing techniques.
The best way to keep up to date with our work is to sign up via the SSIF website: https://www.southendsendindependentforum.co.uk and follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheSSIF/
