Q&A with our Associate – Claire Darwin

Q and A with Claire Darwin – PEP Schools Choice, Suffolk

We asked Claire three questions about the impact of person centred planning training from Inclusive Solutions in Suffolk and we really liked her responses…

•       What impact has person-centred planning training and Inclusion Facilitation had on the ability of your staff to enable disabled young people to be involved in decision making in their lives and to have more choice & control ?

PCP Training has been well received and the new role of Inclusion Facilitator is developing across our county. Feedback indicates that this was of working supports young people to be engaged in review and planning processes and helps them to be more involved in decision making around their lives. Young people have asked to take the PATH picture home to show their families and several young people have put their PATH up on a wall at home – I think this shows how engaged they have been with the process.    

•   What support/additional support might your staff need to ensure they have the skills and confidence to take a person-centred planning approach with all the Disabled young people and their families with whom they work?

Staff do need support to develop their skills and confidence to take the PCP approach into their work. They have benefitted from having access to Practice Development groups and by working alongside experienced colleagues. Ongoing supervision is required in order to embed this approach.

•   What person centred planning are you offering families in your LA and what impact is this approach having on families?

Most often we use PATH as a planning process. There is a lot of positive feedback when we run a PATH. Here is an example of feedback from a PATH that one educational psychologist took part in as part of the Woodbridge Community Circle.

This feedback was given to use in a workshop at the International Festival of Learning “It’s heartening to feel supported by a group of constructive people, all with the aim of carrying the person at the centre of the PATH towards their ‘Hopes & Dreams’. It really does challenge your assumptions as a parent of what is achievable and possible for your adult child. Lots of laughter and the buzz of conversations just carries the whole thing along in a stream of possibilities, arriving at the end with a practical list of next steps to take!!”

Claire Darwin

Service Lead: Psychology and Therapy Services

Principal Educational Psychologist

BSc(Hons), PGCE, MSc, CPsychol, AFBPsS

HCPC – Registered Educational Psychologist

Registered Strengthscope Practitioner

Schools’ Choice Psychology and Therapy Services

To read more about Claire on our associates page, click here