RNC and the Local Offer

RNC is a Section 41 Provider under the Children and Families Act 2014 and should be listed in the Local Offer of each authority in England. If you would like to receive a copy of our Local Offer leaflet, which summarises our provision for these purposes, please contact us on info@rnc.ac.uk or call 01432 376 621.

RNC is a proven model of the holistic approach to SEN required from an Education, Health and Care Plan. We incorporate medical, wellbeing and pastoral care alongside education and independence skills.

Visual impairment is a low incidence disability and the breadth of expertise and experience at RNC cannot be duplicated in every local area. However, we recognise that some young people would prefer to complete their education close to home, and want to play our part in ensuring that they can still access the best possible provision.

We can provide direct support to a range of professionals in different local authority areas. We already offer regular Professional Development Days and targeted CPD in response to requests from QTVIs and others working in mainstream education. We have also developed a university-accredited Certificate in Higher Education for those working with people with a visual impairment.

Many providers struggle to understand why such an apparently simple request as providing materials in the right font size can become so complicated. We can help to explain the issues and to provide solutions which stop situations from becoming adversarial and relationships from breaking down.

While these options will not enable local provision to match what we can offer as a national centre of expertise, they can make enough of a difference to ensure that a student whose needs are borderline can be adequately supported locally.

We are keen to ensure that all students with a visual impairment achieve their full potential and are open to all opportunities to discuss how RNC can offer solutions both as part of each Local Offer and as a resource for local providers to ensure that meaningful choices are available for all young people.