Jargon Buster
Confused by all the jargon? Here you can find explanations for the terminology and abbreviations commonly used by professionals who work with children with special educational needs and disabilities.
You can either type your query into the box below right or scroll through the alphabetical list until you find what you are looking for.
| NAME | DESCRIPTION |
|---|---|
| ABI | Acquired brain injury |
| Acute | The short term, crisis phase of an illness |
| Acute mental health setting/ward | Hospital wards or units for people experiencing serious mental distress |
| ADD/ADHD | Attention deficit /hyperactivity disorder |
| Advices | The reports provided by professionals and parents as part of an Education, Health and Care (EHC) needs assessment |
| AR | Annual review. A yearly review of a statement of an Education, Health and Care Plan or Statement of Special Educational Needs. |
| ASC/ASD | Autistic spectrum condition/disorder |
| APO | Assessment and Planning Officer. Responsible for EHC assessments and plans in East Sussex. |
| ATU | Assessment and Treatment Unit. For short term admissions for those with severe mental health problems |
| BHISS | Brighton & Hove Inclusion Support Service - schools-based support for children and young people with SEND |
| CA | Classroom Assistant or Carers Allowance |
| CAMHS | Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service |
| CCG | Clinical Commissioning Group. Plans and funds health services. |
| CETR | Care, Education and Treatment Review. See CTR. Education was added to CTRs for children and young people as it is a vital element in planning for their support. It should be a CETR if it is about a child or young person under 18 or age 18-25 and still in education. |
| Chronic | Persisting for a long time |
| CITES | Childrens Integrated Therapy Service (East Sussex) |
| CLASS | Communication Autism and Learning Support Service (East Sussex) |
| CoP | Code of practice. A guide that outlines how official bodies such as LAs should provide help or services, according to the law |
| Complex | More than one significant problem |
| Congenital | Present at birth |
| CTR | Care and Treatment Review. A meeting to check support and treatment for someone with learning disabilities, autism or both with behaviour that challenges. Aims to help keep them in the community and out of hospital. |
| CVI | Cerebral Visual Impairment, a visual impairment caused by the brain being unable to process visual information |
| CWO | Casework Officer. Responsible for EHC assessments and plans in Brighton & Hove. |
| DCD | Developmental Coordination Disorder or Dyspraxia |
| DDA | Disability Discrimination Act, replaced by the Equality Act 2010 |
| DfE | Department for Education |
| Diagnosis | Identification of a disease or condition |
| DLA | Disability living allowance |
| DSR | Dynamic Support Register. a local list of children, young people and adults with LD and/or autism at high risk of being admitted to in-patient services. |
| DWP | Department for Work and Pensions |
| EA | Equality Act |
| EAL | English as an additional language |
| EBD/EBSD | Emotional and behavioural (and social) difficulties |
| EBSA | Emotionally based school avoidance |
| EDI | Equalities, Diversity and Inclusion |
| EDS | Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome - group of rare inherited conditions that affect connective tissue |
| EHC needs assessment | A detailed examination of a child's needs in terms of education, health and social care by the LA, which may lead to an EHC Plan/EHCP |
| EHCP | Education, Health and Care Plan. A legally binding document that sets out a child's needs and all the extra help he or she should get. Replaced Statements of SEN. |
| EMAS | Ethnic Minority Achievement Service (Brighton & Hove) |
| ENT | Ear, nose and throat |
| EOTAS | Education Other Than at School |
| EP | Educational Psychologist |
| EPS | Educational Psychology Service |
| ESBAS | Education Support Behaviour and Attendance Service (East Sussex) |
| ESPCF | East Sussex Parent Carer Forum |
| EWO | Educational Welfare Officer. Work with schools, children and parents on attendance problems |
| EYSS | Early Years Support Service (East Sussex) |
| FASC/FASD | Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Condition/Disorder |
| GDD | Global developmental delay. Implies that the child has delays in all areas of development |
| Genetic | Inherited |
| HI | Hearing impairment |
| ICB | Integrated Care Board. Responsible for local NHS services. |
| ICS | Integrated Care System. Partnerships of organisations that come together to plan and deliver joined up health and care services. |
| IEP | Individual education plan. A program of learning objectives and teaching strategies for children with special educational needs |
| INCO | Inclusion Coordinator - sometimes called a SENCO |
| INT/INA | Individual Needs Teacher and Individual Needs Assistant |
| ISEND | Inclusion and Special Educational Needs and Disability Services (East Sussex) |
| LA | Local authority |
| KLOE | Key Lines of Enquiry. A list of questions and prompts to make sure a CTR/CETR covers everything it should. |
| LAC | Looked after child or children. Term for children who are adopted or fostered |
| LD/LDD | Learning difficulty or disability |
| LGO | Local government organisation or ombudsman |
| LSA | Learning Support Assistant |
| Mainstream | Ordinary state school |
| MHEW | Mental health and emotional wellbeing |
| MLD | Moderate learning difficulties |
| MSI | Multi sensory impairment |
| Multi-disciplinary /multi-agency | Where all the professionals or organisations providing treatment or support come together to assess or discuss your child or your family situation |
| ND | neurodiverse or neurodiversity |
| NDP | Neurodevelopmental pathway. The different steps that a child or young person goes through from referral to the diagnosis of a neurodevelopmental condition such as autism or ADHD. |
| Needs assessment | Social care assessment to decide on the extra help and support your child needs |
| NEET | Not in education, employment or training |
| neurodivergent | a term to describe people whose brains function differently in one or more ways from what is considered standard or typical, sometimes referred to as neurotypical |
| neurodiversity | the idea that it's normal and acceptable for people to have brains that function differently from one another |
| OCD | Obsessive Compulsive Disorder |
| OT | Occupational Therapist |
| Outreach | Where a worker comes out to you and/or your child, rather than you having to go to them |
| PaCC | Parent Carers' Council, the parent carer forum for Brighton & Hove |
| PD | Physical difficulty |
| PDA | Pathological demand avoidance. A persistent and noticeable resistance to demands that is experienced by and seen in some autistic people. |
| Percentile | A score attained in a test that compares a child with its age group |
| PIP | Personal independence payment |
| PMLD | Profound and multiple learning difficulties |
| Progressive | A condition which will go through a series of stages as it develops. Often suggests a condition will not improve |
| Provision map | A document that provides an 'at a glance' way of showing the provision a school makes for children with special and other additional needs |
| PRU | Pupil Referral Unit. A centre maintained by the local authority for children who can't attend a mainstream or special school |
| PSP | Pastoral Support Plan |
| Respite | Short-term breaks for parents or carers |
| Sectioned | Being held compulsorily in a mental health setting/hospital under the Mental Health Act 1983. |
| SEMH | Social, emotional and mental health |
| SEN Support | Where the school or early years setting has identified that a child has SEN and needs additional support |
| SENCO | Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator. The member of staff in a mainstream school who is responsible for special educational needs within the school |
| SEND | Special educational needs and disabilities |
| SENDIASS | Special Educational Needs and Disability Information, Advice and Support Service. Every local authority has a duty to provide impartial advice and information to parents of children with SEND. Amaze is funded to provide the SENDIASS for Brighton & Hove and East Sussex |
| SENDIST | Special Educational Needs Disability Tribunal. An independent body that hears parents' appeals against LA decisions on EHC assessments and parents' claims of unlawful disability discrimination |
| Short breaks | Breaks for carers, sometimes called respite |
| SLD | Severe learning difficulties. Can sometimes refer to speech and language difficulties too |
| SLCN | Speech, language and communication needs |
| SLT/SALT | Speech and Language Therapy or Therapist |
| SNS | Sensory Needs Service |
| Special school | A school that makes specialist provision for pupils with special needs. |
| SpLD | Specific learning difficulty, for example dyslexia or dyspraxia |
| SPOA | Single Point of Advice (for social care assessment) |
| SSV | Seaside View Child Development Centre (Brighton & Hove) |
| TA | Teaching Assistant |
| TLP | Teaching and Learning Provision (East Sussex). Educational support for children not able to attend school for example inc. home education, children too sick to attend school and gypsy roma traveller children |
| TP | Transition Plan. A plan drawn up after the Year 9 annual review of an EHC Plan/EHCP, setting out the steps needed for the young person to move from school to adult life |
| VI | Visual impairment |
