The Oxfordshire Local Area Partnership (LAP)

What the partnership is

The Oxfordshire Local Area Partnership (LAP) brings together education, health, social care, and parent carer representatives to improve services for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

Our shared aim is to ensure that children, young people and their families can access the right support, at the right time, in the right way.

Our commitment

We are committed to:

• identifying needs as early as possible
• providing timely and appropriate support
• focusing on prevention and inclusion
• improving outcomes for all children and young people with SEND.

Who is in the partnership

The Local Area Partnership includes:

• Oxfordshire County Council (OCC)
• Thames Valley Integrated Care Board (ICB)
• Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust (OHFT)
• Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (OUH)
• Oxfordshire Parent Carers Forum (OxPCF)

We also work closely with schools, early years settings, voluntary organisations, and community groups across Oxfordshire.

Parent carers are central to the partnership.

Oxfordshire Parent Carers Forum (OxPCF) represents the voices and lived experiences of families and works with partners to shape services and challenge where improvements are needed.

What it does

The Local Area Partnership works together to lead and improve the SEND system across Oxfordshire.

We do this by:

• setting shared priorities through the SEND improvement plan
• working together to design and improve services
• making best use of available resources
• monitoring progress and impact across the system.

Our focus is on achieving the best possible outcomes for children, young people and their families.

Our shared values

Working with families

We are committed to co-production, which means working in partnership with:

• children and young people
• parent carers
• professionals and services.

Co-production ensures that services are designed and improved with families, not just for them.

This includes:

• early involvement in planning and decision-making
• listening to lived experiences
• sharing responsibility for solutions
• providing feedback on how views have shaped decisions.

Communication and transparency

The partnership is committed to clear, consistent and accessible communication.

We will:

• share information in a timely and accessible way
• work together on public communications to ensure consistency
• make sure families and professionals are kept informed
• ensure communication reflects the views of parent carers.

We follow agreed information-sharing processes to ensure that information is handled safely and appropriately.

How decisions are made

We have a shared governance structure to support decision-making and accountability.

This includes:

• theme groups – focusing on specific areas of SEND
• Partnership Delivery Group (PDG) – coordinating delivery and decisions
• SEND Improvement and Assurance Board (SIAB) – overseeing progress and accountability

We aim to make decisions together wherever possible, with clear processes for resolving disagreements if needed.

Measuring progress and impact

We are committed to being open about our progress and learning.

Each year, we will publish a Partnership Outcomes and Learning Report, which will include:

• what we have achieved
• what we have learned
• what we will focus on next.

This helps ensure transparency, accountability and continuous improvement.

Our commitment

Our partnership is based on a shared agreement (Memorandum of Understanding) that sets out how we will work together.

This agreement:

• reflects our shared values and responsibilities
• is reviewed regularly to ensure it remains effective
• supports long-term improvement in SEND services across Oxfordshire.

Find out more

• Learn more about the SEND Strategy
• Visit the Local Offer for services and support
• Connect with Oxfordshire Parent Carers Forum (OxPCF)