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This page will explain any jargon, abbreviations or terms used on the Children's Services website.
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A & E - Accident and Emergency
ABSG - Anti-Bullying Steering Group
ACPC – Area Child Protection Committee. The APCP is an inter-agency forum bringing together representatives of the agencies responsible for helping to protect children from abuse and neglect.
ADHD – Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder – a medical diagnosis related to the child’s behaviour and attention span which can affect their ability to concentrate and learn.
Admissions (To Schools) – Parents have the right to express a preference for a school. They do not have a right to send their child to the school of their choice. Whether the child is offered a place will depend on the number of places available, the number of applications and any selection of religious criteria the school has.
Admission Appeal Panel – An admissions appeal panel is a group of people who decide whether a child that has already been turned down for a school by the admission authority should be given a place. The appeal panel is set by the admission authority. There are strict rules about who should be on the panel – no member of the panel can be a governor of the school or a local councillor.
Admission Authority – The admission authority is the official body which decides the rules on how children will get a place at a school and also who is offered a place. For community and voluntary controlled schools the admissions authority is generally the Local Authority; for all others it is the governors.
Aimhigher – Aimhigher is a programme designed to increase the numbers of young people who are from under represented groups apply for and enter higher education. For more details please visit the DCSF website for more information
Area Locality Managers (ALM)
There are 3 Area Locality Managers (ALM), one for each of the three areas. The area locality role facilitates the change process, providing a resource to support managers and front line staff in moving towards more integrated planning and delivery of services for children and young people.
Annual Review (SEN) – A meeting between parents, school staff and other professionals involved to consider the progress of a child with a statement and to make sure the statement continues to meet his or her needs. The review must take place within 12 months of making the statement or within 12 months of the previous review.
APA – Annual Performance Assessment. A local authority Annual Performance Assessment (APA) takes place each year and the results are sent by letter to the local authority and published on the Ofsted website on 1 November. It makes judgements about:
- the council's children's services and the specific contributions they make to improving outcomes for children and young people
- the council's capacity to further improve these services.
The letter notes strengths, areas for improvement and any progress evident in the previous 12 months. It indicates where the work of the council has made a measurable difference, where such work has had little impact or where further development is required.
Appropriate Adult – When the police are questioning a young (under 17 years of age) or vulnerable person an appropriate adult must be present. In the vast majority of cases this will be a parent, carer, relative, friend or other person who is able to provide support.
ARC - Additionally-Resources Centre (for SEN)
ARCH – Is the multi-agency forum in Newcastle to collaboratively combat racism with members drawn from the statutory and community sectors. ARCH has devised a multi-agency web based reporting system for racist incidents that is currently being rolled out through all of its constituent members.
Aspergers Syndrome – Aspergers syndrome is a type of autism. People who suffer from Aspergers Syndrome may have difficulty in communicating, difficulty in social relationships and a lack of understanding of how other people feel. Most people who have Aspergers Syndrome don’t have the severe learning difficulties which are often associated with autism.
Assessment and Action Records – A national framework designed to assist in assessing the child’s developmental needs in an age appropriate manner – a planning and review framework to be used with looked-after-children.
AST - Advanced Skills Teacher
Attendance (at school) – Parents are guilty of an offence if their child does not attend their school regularly, unless the child has a legally recognised reason such as illness, which prevents them from attending school.
Autism – Autism is a lifelong developmental disorder. It affects how a person communicates with and relates to the people around them. People with autism are unable to relate to others in a meaningful way. Their ability to develop friendships is impaired as is their capacity to understand other people’s feelings. Unlike Aspergers Syndrome many people with autism have accompanying learning difficulties.
Behavioural Difficulty (Special Educational Needs) – A consistent pattern of behaviour usually specific to a particular situation which is unacceptable or inappropriate and which is incompatible with the efficient education of the child or his or her peers.
BME - Black and Minority Ethnic
BSF – Building Schools for the Future.
BSS – Behaviour Support Service.
BSP – Behaviour Support Plan.
BVPIs – Best Value Performance Indicators. These are statutory performance indicators which all Best Value Authorities must collect annually, and which are useful for comparing Newcastle City Council’s performance with other councils.
BVR - Best Value Review
CAF – Common Assessment Framework. A new standardised approach to assessing children’s needs for services, designed for practitioners from all agencies. Please view the CAF pages of the
CAFCASS – Children & Families Court Advisory Support Service – successor body to guardians ad litem panels and court welfare services – provides the Courts with independent assessments and recommendations concerning the welfare and best interests of children in public and private law cases respectively.
CAMHS – Child Adolescent and Mental Health Service
Care First – A software programme specifically made for Social Services.
Care Leaver – Term used to refer to those young people 16+ who are due to leave the care of the Authority e.g. residential care or care order being terminated as they reach 18.
Care Order – Given by the court to protect a child if it is satisfied the child is suffering or is likely to suffer significant harm if he or she were not in the care of the Local Authority.
Care Plan – For all looked-after-children – is used to decide how a child should be looked after, for how long and what type of placement is required to best meet his/her needs.
CC - Children's Centres
Child – Person under the age of eighteen; the term “young person” is interchangeable but “child” is the term defined in law.
Child Protection Plan – A ‘care plan’ developed for each child placed on the child protection register focusing on what needs to be done to ensure that the child is protected and the risk factors are reduced.
Child Protection Register – A central record of all children being given support by inter-agency planning who are considered to be at risk of abuse or neglect. The register is maintained by Social Services under the responsibilities of a custodian.
Children & Families Court Advisory Support Service – successor body to guardians ad litem panels and court welfare services – provides the Courts with independent assessments and recommendations concerning the welfare and best interests of children in public and private law cases respectively.
CIN - Children in Need
City Technology Colleges (CTCs) – are funded by the government and private business. They provide secondary education with a strong scientific and technological element or in some cases an emphasis on the arts.
City Academies – are publicly funded independent secondary schools with a specialism in a particular area of the curriculum and have sponsorship from the private or voluntary sector or from a religious or faith group. They can select up to 10% of pupils on the basis of an aptitude for their specialism.
CL - Care Leavers
Climbie Report – Report on the death of Victoria Climbie which has sparked wholesale reorganisation of provision of protection services for children. Also known as the Laming Report.
Code of Practice (Special Educational Needs) – A Guide to schools and Local Authorities about their responsibilities to children with special educational needs. The Code offers practical recommendations about ways, according to the 1996 Education Act and Special Educational Needs and Disability Act 2001, that special needs should be identified, assessed and how support should be offered.
Compulsory or Statutory School Age – The period of time when a child by law must have access to education. This is the start of the term after a child’s fifth birthday. Any education before that time is not “compulsory” in law.
Common Assessment Framework - A new standardised approach to assessing children’s needs for services, designed for practitioners from all agencies.
ContactPoint – The name for the national tool that has been known previously as the Information Sharing Index.
Core Assessment – An in-depth assessment involving other agencies or independent professionals who will either provide information they hold about the child or parent, or contribute specialist knowledge or advice to Social Services or undertake specialist assessments. Time scale for completion is 35 working days.
Core Group – A small inter-agency sub-group of the child protection conference members who meet more frequently with the family to develop, implement and monitor the child protection plan and reports back to the child protection reviews.
Core Subjects – English, Maths and Science: all pupils must study these subjects up to key stage.
CP - Child Protection
CPA – Comprehensive Performance Assessment measures how well councils are delivering services for local people and communities. It is a complex set of judgements reflecting performance from various perspectives, which taken together place authorities in one of four categories, excellent, good, fair or poor.
CPR - Child Protection Register
Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership (CDRP) – The Crime and Disorder Act 1998 set out the framework for CDRPs in which responsible authorities are required to work together in partnership to tackle crime, disorder and the misuse of drugs. The responsible authorities consist of the local authority, police, police authority, probation, fire authority and primary care trust. In Newcastle the CDRP comes within the Community Safety Partnership.
CRB - Criminal Records Bureau
Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) – The Crown Prosecution Service is responsible for prosecuting criminal cases investigated by the police in England and Wales.
CSA - Child ren's Services Authority
CSSU - Children's Safeguarding Standards Unit
CSTP - Children
's Services Tranformation Programme
CWD - Children With Disabilities
CX - Chie f Executive
CYP - Children and Young People
CYPP - Children's and Young People's Plan
CYPPE - Children and Young People's Partnership Executive
CYPSP - Children and Young People's Strategic Partnership DAT – Drug Action Team
DDA – Disability Discrimination Act.
DfES – Department for Education and Skills.
DCD (Dyspraxia) – DCD stands for Developmental Co-ordination Disorder, which is a type of Dyspraxia. It affects the way a person’s ability to plan and carry out physical tasks. It is sometimes called ‘Clumsy Child’ Syndrome.
Disabled – A child is disabled if ‘he/she is blind, deaf or dumb or suffers from a mental disorder of any kind or is substantially and permanently handicapped by illness, injury or congenital deformity or such other disability as may be prescribed” (from National Assistance Act 1948)
Domestic Violence – Defined by Newcastle DVP as “the use of violence to gain power over, dominate or control a partner or ex-partner.”
DVD (Dyspraxia) – DVD stands for Developmental Verbal Disorder and is another form of Dysprax ia (see entry for DCD) but where DCD mainl y affects a person’s movement and physical co-ordination, DVD sufferers find it difficult to pronounce word sounds.
Dyscalculia – A condition associated with specific learning difficulties in maths. In its simplest terms this means that sufferers have problems with even simple arithmetic.
Dyslexia &am p;am p;am p;nd ash; A disorder affecting a person's ability to process written language. Dyslexia is sometime s referred to as a Specific Learning Difficulty or SpLD.
E2E - Entry To Employment
EAL – English as an Additional Language.
Early Years Forums – To identify and meet needs of special needs children.
EAZ – Education Action Zone. Defining a primary or secondary school as an area designated as requiring intensive support to raise educational standards, achievement and opportunities EAZ offers opportunities EAZ offers opportunities such as School-Home Support Workers, Drama Dance, sports etc.
EBSD – Emotional, Behavioural and Social Difficulties.
ECM – Every Child Matters.
Educational Psychologist (Special Educational Needs) – EPs work with children and young people who require support and guidance in an educational setting. They provide assessment, counselling and advice on meeting individual needs. For children with statements of special educational needs, educational psychologists will provide statutory advice and reviews of ongoing support. They also give advice and help to parents and teachers on the social, emotional, behavioural and learning difficulties of children.
EMS – Extended Management System. A Software package used by Newcastle City Council and other Local Authorities to manage education related information.
EMTRAS – Ethnic Minority Traveller and Refugee Pupil Achievement Service
Engagement – Engagement means bringing young people into decision-making processes to give them as much influence over decisions that may affect them. In Newcastle we believe that engaging children and young people in meaningful participation contributes to the agendas of democracy, citizenship and social inclusion and gives them a greater awareness of local and global issues and a real stake in their communities.
EWO – Education Welfare Officers are responsible for carrying out the Local Authority’s statutory responsibilities in relation to school attendance. Essentially they are concerned with ensuring that children who are registered at a school attend that school regularly. EWOs also have responsibilities in relation to child employment, children in entertainment, children who are home educated, missing children and child protection.
EWS - Education Welfare Service
Exclusion – means to exclude a pupil from school on disciplinary grounds. A fixed period exclusion is for a set length of time and the total must not add up to more than 45 school days in a school year. It should be for the shortest time necessary. A discipline committee must be set up to consider exclusions. It can overturn exclusions.
FFT - Fischer Family Trust
Foster Care – A method of caring for a child or young person being “looked after” by the authority by placing him/her with a family.
Foster Carer – An approved carer for placement of a child or young person being “looked after” by the authority. Foster carers are rewarded (financially) for the skills they use with the young people they care for.
Foundation Stage Profile (FSP) – An Assessment of educational abilities made at the end of a child’s first year in school.
Families Information Service – A Service to keep parents and carers informed about the range of facilities in Newcastle upon Tyne
FSD – Family Services Directory
GCSE - General Certificate of Education
GONE - Government Office North East
G & T – Gifted and Talented.
No Entries under H
ICT - Information and Communication Technology
IEP – Individual Education Plan. A document which explains the extra help a child with special educational needs is getting and sets targets for the child’s improvement.
IiC - Investing in Children
IMD - Index of Multiple Deprivation
Ind/NMSS - Independent or Non-Maintained Special Schools
Independent Advocate – Independent Advocacy refers to the professional provision of advice, information and support to victims of domestic violence aimed at increasing safety. The advice must be based on a thorough risk assessment.
Independent Parent Supporter – A person who supports the parents of children with SEN. This support might be as someone to talk to who can explain what should be happening to help the pupil or they might offer more direct support by going with parents to meetings (see also Parent Partnership Service).
Independent, Public and Private Schools – provide education on a fee paying basis. Most education law applies only to state schools. Infant Class Sizes – must all be limited to 30 pupils per qualified teacher.
Information Sharing – the practice of employees and volunteers working within Children's Services, legally and professionally sharing the information they have collated about children between different agencies and departments.
Integrated Working – Organisations providing services to children and young people will be working in new ways e.g. through localities, in Children's Centres or Extended Services through Schools, sharing information and working together to safeguard children and young people and help them achieve what they want in life. In addition, through the partnership, we will be giving children and young people far more say about issues that affect them as individuals and collectively. Parents and Carers are also helping to shape services in ways that will help them and their families.
IPF - Institute of Public Finance
IS - Information Sharing
JAR – Joint Area Reviews: formal inspections of the children’s Services in an authority, replacing previous Ofsted and CSCI inspections.
Key Stage – The National Curriculum divides a child’s school career into four Key Stages. Key Stage 1 (Years 1 & 2, from age 5+ to 6+) , Key Stage 2 (years 3 to 6 from age 7+ to 10+), Key Stage 3 (Years 7 to 9, from age 11+ to 13+), and Key Stage 4 (years 10 & 11, from age 14+ to 15+). The end of each Key Stage is marked by standardised tests or examinations to assess progress.
LA - Local Authority
LDD - Learning Difficulties and Disabilities
LDP - Local Delivery Plan
Lead Professional – A lead professional co-ordinates the delivery of services for a child or young person that
has been identified as having a number of additional needs. They act as a single point of contact for the
parents and child or young person.
LSCB – Local Safeguarding Children’s Board. Now known as NSCB.
Local Area Agreement (LAA) – A government initiative through which local agencies will have greater
flexibility to use their combined resources to achieve shared outcomes
“Looked After” – A phrase used in law to describe a child being cared for by the local authority. A child is “looked after” if either they have been provided with “accommodation” at the request of their parents or they
are in the care of the authority. The responsibility of the local authority is the same for a child whether they have been voluntarily accommodated or the subject of an order.
Looked After Children (LAC) – Looked After Children (LAC) procedures and material were introduced by the Department of Health to ensure that the planning and decision making for each child Looked After meets a
high standard. The aim is to improve the quality of care provided for each child and the outcomes for them.
LSC - Learning Skills Council
LSP - Local Strategic Partnership
LSU - Learning Support Unit
Maintained Nursery Class – a class for 3 – 5 year olds within the Newcastle Local Authority area.
Maintained School – A school that is funded by a Local Authority or Central Government.
MALAP - Mulit-Agency Looked After Partnership
MAPPA – Multi Agency Public Protection Arrangements.
MESMAC - Services Supporting Gay and Bi-Sexual Men
MIS - Management Information Systems
MLD – Moderate Learning Difficulties
MMR - Measles Mumps and Rubella
MSLC - Maternity Services Liason Committee
NASS - National Asylum Support Service
NAT - National Average (Statistic)
National Curriculum – Sets out a clear, full and statutory entitlement for all pupils in maintained schools between the ages of 5 and 16. It determines the content of what will be taught and sets attainment targets for learning. It also determines how performance will be assessed and reported. Please view www.nc.uk.net for further details.
National Curriculum Levels – There are eight levels to the national curriculum. It i s expected that a child will reach Level 2 by the end of Key Stage 1, Level 4 by the end of Key Stage 2 and Level 5/6 by the end of Key Stage 3.
NCVCCO - National Council of Voluntary Child Care Organisations
NEET – Not in Education, Employment or Training
NPC&YP – Newcastle Plan for Children and Young People.
NGFL – National Grid For Learning. A web portal which provides a gateway to educational resources on the internet.
NHLP - Newcastle Homeless Liason Project
NHS - National Health Service
NLI - Newcastle Learning Initiative
NOR – Number on Roll.
Non Maintained Special School – A special school, which charges fees, usually run by a charitable body.
NQT – Newly Qualified Teacher. A person in his or her first year of teaching after successful completing a training course.
NSCB - Newcastle Safeguarding Children Board. Previously known as LSCB.
NSF - National Service Framework
NUTHT - Newcastle upon Tyne Health Trust
NYAS - National Youth Advocacy Service
Occupational Therapy – Using play and other activities to help a child gain confidence and independence.
ODPM - Office of the Deputy Prime Minister
OIP - Outcome Improvement Plan
OfSTED – Office for Standards in Education
PANDA – Performance and Assessment: Data Analysis – generated by OfSTED to enable individual schools to make comparisons with other school nationally. This helps schools set realistic targets for their pupils.
Participation – Participation is the process by which children and young people assert their right to be involved in decisions that affect them.
Pathway Plan – Incorporates all of the planning for ensuring that the needs of those leaving care are addressed.
PAYP - Positive Activities for Young People
PBC - Practice Bas ed Comm issioning
PCT - Primary Care Trust
PEP – Principal Educational Psychologist.
PEP – Also used to describe the Personal Education Plan for looked after children. This is an agreement between education, the carers and the area team as to how the child’s educational needs will be met and how the carers and social workers can support the plan.
Performance Assessment Framework (PAF) – This is the mechanism which we (and other authorities) use to record and report on our performance in meeting national service standards and related targets. The standards and targets are set by central government and used by them to compare the performance of authorities and to assess which level of “star rating” they should be awarded.
Performance Tables – The published results of national examinations and tests by schools and Local Authorities.
PFI - Private finance Initiative
PI - Performance Indi
c ator
PIVATS - Performance Indicators for Value Added Target Setting
Placement Plan &ndas h; A written plan for a child’s daily life in a residential home, respite unit or with foster carers. The plan specifies how the child’s need s will be met.
Placement Unit – Residential places for looked after children.
PLASC – Pupil Level Annual Schools Census. A Statutory a nnual school census which requires schools to provide the government with detailed information on their pupils.
PNS - Primary National Strategy
< br /& gt;POPO - Persi stent and Other Priority Offenders
Positive Action – A term adopted by the police to make clear their commitment to improving victims’ safety.
PRU – Pupil Referral Units. Local Authority Schools that are designed to take on a short term basis, young people who have generally been excluded from school. Their purpose is to get pupils back into mainstream school as quickly as possible.
Primary Care Trust (PCT) &nd ash; The local health organisation responsible for managing local health services.
PSA - Public Service Agreement
Public Protection Unit (PPU) – A police area command based unit formed to improve the service and support Northumbria Police gives to people suffering domestic violence and abuse. The unit also monitors the activities of registered sex and other dangerous offenders.
Q
QCA - Qualifications and Curriculum Authority
R
Referral – Contacts which result in further assessment of need or commissioning of service. Contacts whose needs were met at or near the point of contact. Source of referral for all contacts. An enquiry which is drawing attention to a person who has apparent social care needs or to offer a service to the council. A referral must be completed and recorded before an assessment of need is undertaken. People can also refer themselves.
RVI - Royal Victoria Infirmary
Safeguarding Board (Formerly Known as ACPC) – Required under the children bill to co-ordinate child protection work by all agencies. Replaces the Area Child Protection Committee.
Safe Newcastle – Within Newcastle the Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership is known as Safe Newcastle.
Sanctuary Scheme – “Sanctuary Schemes” are victim centred initiatives, which aim via home security and personal safety advice and support to enable victims of domestic violence to remain safely in their own homes.
SAT – Statutory Assessment Task. National tests that pupils sit at the end of Key Stages One, Two and Three. This name is being phased out in favour of National Curriculum Tests.
School Performance Tables – Available at the end of the year to help parents whose children are moving to secondary school choose where they want them to go.
SSP - School Sports Partnership
SEAL - Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning
SEF - Self-Evaluation Form
SEN – Special Educational Needs
SENCO – Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator
SENTASS - Special Educational Needs Teaching And Support
Service Level Agreement (SLA) - A Document which sets out the agreement reached between buyer and provider as to the services to be provide d, amounts costs, quality standards and performance/review measures.
SIP - School Improvement Partner
SLA - Service Level Agreement
SLD – Severe Learning Difficulties
SMT - Senior Management Team
SN - Statistical Neighbour Average (Statistic)
Special School – A school that caters for pupils who, due to the se verity / complexity of their special educational needs, would best benefit fr om a specialist school setting. Thus these are schools that cater for pupils with special educational needs , such as physical disabilities, severe or moderate learning difficulties, emotional or behavioural difficulties and autism. They can be day or boarding schools. Some special schools are outside the state maintained sector (known as non maintained special schools) which are often run by charities and are non-profit making. There are also independent special schools, some of which have whole school approval from the Department of Education and Skills.
SRE - Sex and Relationship Education
SSU - Safeguarding Standards Unit
Statement of Special Educational Needs – A legal document setting out an individual child’s special educational needs and the provision to meet those needs following statutory assessment.
Statutory Assessment (Special Educational Needs) – A comprehensive and extensive assessment of a child’s special educational needs that may or may not lead to a Statement of Special Educational Needs.
Supporting People – The supporting people programme offers vulnerable people the opportunity to improve their quality of life by providing a stable environment wh ich enables greater independence.
Sure Start – A strategy to improve services for children under 4 and their families in disadvantaged areas.
SW - Social Work
There are no entries in the glossary under T
UN - United Nations
UPN – Unique Pupil Number
Voluntary Aided Schools – were mostly set up by churches or other religions and a few charities. They own the school buildings and have some responsibility for repair and maintenance, for which they receive help from a government grant. These schools get most of their money from the Local Authority but have greater independence than community schools. They are responsible for admissions and employment of staff. The majority are denominational church schools – the majority are Church of England and the remainder are Catholic or of a small number of other faiths (in Newcastle this is the other way around with the majority of voluntary aided schools being Catholic). Voluntary Aided schools can refuse admission to pupils who do not meet their published religious admission criteria and may give religious education and worship in line with their particular faith. The composition of governing bodies of voluntary aided schools allow for fewer Local Authority and parent governors while the voluntary body has a majority.
VCS - Voluntary and Community Sector
VFM - Value For Money
W
WHO - World Health Organisation
There are no entries in the glossary under X
YJB - Youth Justice Board
Your Homes Newcastle (YHN) – Newcastle City Council’s Arms Length Management Organisation (ALMO) which manages and maintains its 32, 000 homes and associated value added services.
Youth Offending Team (YOT) – Multi-Disciplinary team to tackle offending by young people.
YOTPB - Youth Offending Team Partnership Board
There are no entries in the glossary under Z