Insights from Birmingham Virtual School: Supporting Looked after Children with PEPs and Target Setting
An interview with Birmingham Virtual School highlighting good practice when thinking about Personal Education Plans (PEPs), setting targets and supporting all children, particularly those who have a Looked After story.
In this blog, Stephnie Kettle, Workforce Development Officer from Birmingham City Council Early Years & Childcare Service interviews Lisa Southall, an Early Years Advisor from Birmingham’s Virtual School.
Lisa shares some good advice about PEPs, setting targets and the support available for both practitioners and managers.
Stephnie: Can you tell us a little bit about the Birmingham Virtual School (BVS)?
Lisa: Yes, of course. Birmingham Virtual School is a dedicated team that supports the education of all children in care.
We collaborate with settings, social workers, foster carers, professional services, families and the children themselves – depending on their age and circumstances.
Our team also includes staff who track children who have a Child in Need Plan or a Child Protection Plan and support children who are post-Looked After, such as those who have been adopted or have been made subject to a Special Guardianship Order.
Stephnie: I’ve noticed that your job title is Early Years Advisor. Where do you fit into the Birmingham Virtual School?
Lisa: I sit within the BVS Early Years Team. Our team is specifically focused on supporting and tracking children aged two years old and up until their first term in Reception.
We support transitions into school and between settings, recognising that many of our children experience numerous transitions in their lives. We also work closely with children’s social workers when tracking but also to identify any additional needs.
Stephnie: Wow Lisa! The BVS Early Years Team is involved in such important work for the children. Can you share more details about what this work looks like in practice?
Lisa: Yes, certainly. As soon as a child turns two, first, we reach out to their social worker to determine if the child is attending a setting and establish whether the child has any additional needs.
If additional needs are identified, we start termly Personal Education Plan (PEP) meetings aimed to track and support the child's educational journey. However, if no additional needs are identified, PEP meetings will begin from the term after the child's third birthday.
Our role is to provide support, working with all agencies to secure the best possible outcomes for our children.
To do this, we track progress and additional needs while helping settings, social workers and parents/carers to access the support they need for our children.
Stephnie: Who attends PEP meetings and what happens at a PEP meeting?
Lisa: At a PEP meeting would be the child’s social worker, the designated person for Looked After Children from the setting, the foster carer, and sometimes a representative from Birmingham Virtual School.
Because we work with such young children, it is not always appropriate for the child to attend the PEP meeting, however, sometimes children will join us for a short time so that we can all say hello and this is always warmly welcomed.
Ideally, PEP meetings are held face-to-face, but virtual meetings are also an option when schedules are busy.
Areas for discussion at PEP meetings are the child's care plan, developmental progress, attendance, additional needs and emotional wellbeing.
A key focus would be on any transition arrangements where needed. We also set SMART targets that are reviewed termly.
Everyone's voice is heard during the meeting, including the carers and the children themselves.
Stephnie: You mentioned ‘the designated person for Looked After Children from the setting’. What is a designated person for Looked After Children?
Lisa: Each setting should have a person who takes responsibility for being the designated person for Looked After Children.
This would be the person who liaises with the social worker and the Virtual School.
They may also be the person who works with children on a Child in Need Plan or a Child Protection Plan.
As well as liaising with key professionals, the designated person will also be involved in setting SMART targets for the child, which are reflected in the child’s overall PEP and reviewed termly.
Stephnie: Setting SMART targets seems to be very important with respect to facilitating children’s progress. Can you remind us about what makes a target SMART?
Lisa: You’re right, SMART targets are very important. The acronym SMART stands for:
Specific: Clearly defined and unambiguous
Measurable: Criteria to track progress and measure outcomes
Achievable: Realistic and attainable
Relevant: Aligned with broader goals and relevant to the child's needs
Time-bound: Set within a specific timeframe
SMART targets are useful for setting and achieving goals, which in early years can help us to support the progress and development of children.
For example, if you had a goal of wanting to encourage a child to use single words to request items, a possible SMART target could be "Within the next three weeks, the child will use single words to request items at least 3 times during a 30-minute session."
This example target is SMART because:
It focuses on using single words to request items (Specific)
Success is measured by the number of times single words are used (Measurable)
It is realistic for the child to achieve with consistent practice and support (Achievable)
It supports the child’s language development (Relatable)
The target has been set to be achieved within three weeks (Time-bound)
In practice, the practitioner might support the child to achieve this target through the implementation of WellComm interventions.
This example focuses on progressing the child’s communication and language development, however, you can and are encouraged to use the SMART target framework to establish appropriate targets across the spectrum of child development.
Note: WellComm is a fully-funded speech, language and communication toolkit available for every Early Education Entitlements (EEE) registered provider in Birmingham to improve speech, language and communication outcomes for children. Birmingham’s Early Years and Childcare Service leads the WellComm workshops (Part 1 & Part 2) and issues a fully funded toolkit to eligible providers who have attended the WellComm Part 1.
Stephnie: What if a setting provides early education for a child in care but has not been contacted by the Birmingham Virtual School Early Years Team?
Lisa: If a child in care is attending your setting and we haven't approached you, please contact the Birmingham Virtual School.
We can then arrange a 1:1 training session on how to access our ePEP system—a web-based portal which provides the Virtual School, teachers, social workers and other named professionals access to the child's current and past PEPs.
Remember, we are here to help you to support our children and really want to start with building good relationships with you.
Stephnie: Do you have any takeaway tips for practitioners and/or the designated person for Looked After Children?
Lisa: Yes – remember to think SMART when setting targets for your children!
We love to see SMART targets within PEPs because they really do create a firm foundation to build from while helping to keep the focus on the realistic and appropriate progress and development of the child.
We revisit these targets at each meeting to see how much progress the child has made and what targets or steps need to be taken next.
Stephnie: How can people contact you?
Lisa: You can reach me, the BVS Early Years Advisor at Lisa.southall@birmingham.gov.uk or you can email us via the BVS inbox – birminghamvirtualschool@birmingham.gov.uk
Stephnie: Lisa, thank you for collaborating with the Early Years and Childcare Service to share valuable insights into Birmingham Virtual School & PEPs.
I particularly like your takeaway tip about setting SMART targets because having a SMART target or a SMART next step applies to every child, whether they are Looked After, Previously Looked After, or not.
The advice you’ve shared within this interview has the full support of the Birmingham Early Years and Childcare Service, and we are confident that it will be appreciated by everybody in our sector.
