Education Welfare Service

The Education Welfare Service is a team of Education Welfare Officers whose aim is to improve school attendance.

We have knowledge and experience of:

Problems (in or out of school) that may reduce attendance
The special support, usually involving school, parents/carers and ourselves, that is likely to improve attendance.

We all have, or are working to gain, specialist qualifications.

What do we do?

We work with children and parents/carers, together with schools and the Local Education Authority, to promote school attendance so that children can take advantage of the opportunities available to them.

How do we do it?

When we become involved we usually:

Talk with your child's teachers
Talk with other school staff involved
Meet with you
Talk with other people involved with your child (e.g. Social Worker).

This will help enable us to work together with your child, yourself and school to improve your child's attendance. As part of this work, we will advise you of any other services that may help to promote your child's attendance. Where necessary we will produce a termly attendance plan. You will be invited to contribute to the plan and you will receive a copy of the plan.

If your child's school attendance remains very low, and you have not fully co-operated with the school and others to improve your child's attendance, then the local authority may have no alternative but to prosecute you under the Education Act (1996). When this happens the Education Welfare Officer will be asked to write a report for the Court describing the special arrangements made to improve your child's attendance. We also monitor child employment, performance licence and licensed chaperones in the city to ensure that children are not exploited and that their work does not interfere with school attendance.

What other specialist help is available?

The Education Service operates eleven other SEN and Inclusion Support Services. These services all work with schools and parents/carers to promote the educational, personal, social and emotional development of children and young people.

The other services are:

Autism Support Service (for children/young people with a diagnosis of Autistic Spectrum Disorder)
Access and Technology Service (for children/young people with special educational needs who require technological support)
Education Access Service (for looked after children)
Educational Psychology Service
Hospital Education Service
Learning and Behaviour Support Service (Primary)
Learning and Behaviour Support Service (Secondary)
Parent Partnership Service (for parents and carers of children with special educational needs).
Pre-School Education Support Service
Sensory Support Service (for Hearing and Vision)
Speech and Language Support Service

How to contact us

Each school has a named education welfare officer. You can contact the education welfare officer for your child's school through your child's teachers. If you wish to get in touch with the education welfare officer directly you can use the contact details below.

Contact details

Julie Cashmore
Education Welfare Service
9 North Avenue
Stoke Park
Coventry
CV2 4DH
Telephone: 024 7678 8360
Fax: 024 7663 5046

e-mail: julie.cashmore@coventry.gov.uk