Chailey Heritage School

Family Liaison Worker

What is a family liaison worker?

Funded by The Jewell Bequest Charitable Trust, this post works across both Chailey Heritage School and Chailey Heritage Clinical Services.The family liaison worker provides objective support to parents of children with special educational needs who attend Chailey Heritage Pre School and Primary Department. The family liaison worker may also be able to give support to parents of older children at key points in their school life. 

What support is provided for families?

The support that each individual family needs varies and can change over time. This role provides them with access to a professional not directly involved in their child’s care to:  

Help families liaise with the many professionals at Chailey Heritage that their child is involved with, and help in resolving any difficult issues
Support  families in contacting and getting help from other external agencies such as Education and Social Services
Assist with understanding reports and forms and writing reports for reviews and statements
Help prepare for and attend meetings as well as following up any queries afterwards
Offer advice and support during the special educational needs statementing and annual review processes
Provide ongoing emotional support for parents
Inform families about other services or resources that may be of help
The family liaison worker is also involved in organising social events and training for parents of Preschool and Primary children. 

How do parents access this support?

Preschool and Primary parents have open access to the family liaison worker who can meet with them at Chailey Heritage, or in their own homes.  Parents of older children should contact their child’s Head of Department to discuss whether the family liaison worker could help. The family liaison worker attends the Pre School and Primary meetings weekly and is able to support families during health reviews, annual reviews and pre school assessments. 

Have parents found this support helpful?

Some comments from families:

“She’s always there to help whenever we need help, she has been immensely useful.” (Preschool parent)

“She has been very helpful and supportive.” (Preschool parent)

“She is a valuable asset to the team, she helps to coordinate everything well and nothing is too much trouble.” (Preschool parent)