You said, we did: Improving staff training on Personal Budgets

During the work surrounding the launch of the new Personal Budget Guidance for families and young people, SCC been listening carefully to your feedback about your experiences of requesting and using Personal Budgets.

Working in partnership with Family Voice Surrey, SCC used what you told us to shape a refreshed training programme for our SEND staff.

💬 You said…

  • You wanted staff to better understand what Personal Budgets are and how they can support children and young people
  • You needed clearer information about when and how to request a Personal Budget
  • You felt communication around decisions and next steps could be clearer
  • You wanted more consistent understanding of roles, responsibilities, and legal duties
  • You told us that joined-up working across education, health and care is important
  • You wanted staff to be more confident when discussing reviews, requests, and options with families

✅ SCC did…

Introduced a new programme of training for staff across Surrey SEND services, starting in June.

Through a series of interactive webinars, staff have developed their understanding of:

  • The legal framework – including the SEND Code of Practice and Local Authority duties
  • What Personal Budgets are, how they can be used, and the difference they can make
  • The difference between Alternative Provision (AP) and Education Otherwise Than At School (EOTAS)
  • When and how families can request a Personal Budget
  • How decisions are made in Surrey, and how staff support this process
  • The importance of clear communication with families, including explaining decisions and next steps
  • How families can request a review if they disagree with a decision
  • Working in partnership across education, health and care
  • Setting up support, including direct payments and financial arrangements
  • Reviewing and monitoring Personal Budgets, and updating them when needed
  • Accurate recording in EHCPs and systems

The webinars were designed to be interactive, giving staff the opportunity to ask questions, check their understanding, and explore how to apply the guidance in practice.

Staff told us the training is already making a difference:

“I will now be able to give a much more informative response when I attend reviews…”

“I now feel more confident… knowing how to complete the right forms and what information is needed.”

🔧 What’s happening next

To build on this learning, we are running small group workshops across Surrey during June and July. These sessions will help staff to:

  • Practise preparing Personal Budget requests
  • Learn from real-life examples to improve practice
  • Build confidence in explaining decisions clearly to families
  • Work through more complex cases involving multiple services

🔄 Keeping this going

SCC are making sure this training is not a one-off:

  • It will form part of induction for all new SEND staff
  • It will be refreshed regularly to keep it up to date
  • Staff understanding will be supported through supervision and ongoing feedback
  • We will continue to listen to feedback from families and settings

📣 Keep sharing your views

Your feedback has directly shaped this work, and it continues to matter.

If you would like to share your experiences or tell us what more we can do, please contact Family Voice Surrey (FVS) on contact@familyvoicesurrey.org and they will pass your feedback on to us.