Educational Psychology Service

The Educational Psychology Service sit within the Southend City SEND Team.

We work to promote the development of children and young people (CYP) within the City. Educational Psychologists (EPs) are committed to making an inclusive education system and society.

Educational Psychologists (EPs) offer consultation, advice and training on how our settings and parents and carers might help children and young people to reach their goals.

We work with

  • groups of staff in educational settings to develop ways of working with children as individuals and in groups
  • children and young people aged 0 to 25
  • head teachers, inspectors, advisory teachers and education officers to develop approaches to teaching and learning
  • educational settings to provide guidance on managing whole school issues, such as reducing bullying, improving playground culture and teaching children to read
  • individual children and/or their parents/carers
  • other professionals from health authorities, social services and voluntary organisations
  • pre-school providers, parents and carers for children under school age.
  • tertiary education staff - colleges and young people over the age of 16

We work to support and challenge our educational settings and agencies to get good outcomes for children and young people. We know the importance of working with staff to offer:

  • training
  • raise awareness
  • support the development of knowledge and resources in educational settings

We are ethically and legally bound by professional practice guidelines and have to abide by the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) standards of proficiency for practitioner psychologists.

Our standards of conduct, performance and ethics include:

  • to get informed consent
  • to act in the best interest of service users
  • to respect the confidentiality of service users
  • to keep high standards of professional conduct.

Aims and Objectives

We aim to

  • match the capacity of the service with the priorities of educational settings and the Local Authority
  • promote children and young people's social, emotional, and academic development by working collaboratively with the individual; groups; family; staff within the educational setting and other teams and agencies in preventative ways
  • offer intervention that makes a difference for children and young people, settings and families based on evidence and experience of what works

Four main objectives guide service delivery:

  1. To support inclusive practice and challenge discrimination.
  2. To promote individual development and learning.
  3. To promote and support organisational learning and change.
  4. To promote and support emotional health and well-being.

The service works within a 'consultation framework'. This approach emphasises collaboration among psychologists, school staff, parents/carers, children and others to:

  • help think through issues
  • clarify the current situation
  • use solution - focused approaches to agree ways forward

Range of Educational Psychology Services available

  • consultation with staff in educational settings; with Children and Young People, parents/carers and other professionals
  • research and development work to promote inclusion and support school improvement
  • awareness raising and training for professional staff and voluntary groups about using psychology in education.
  • direct work with individuals and groups of Children and Young People
  • advice and support in response to critical incidents / sad events in the community
  • advice and support for strategic planning and policy development within the Locality and city wide.

Contact the team

Queries can be addressed through 01702 215909 during office hours.

Email EPAdmin@southend.gov.uk

The admin team will contact the appropriate psychologist to answer any questions.