Knowsley Educational Psychology Service is an evidence-based consultation service. This means that conversations are crucial in effecting positive change for children, teachers/school staff and families.
The Local Authority will provide statutory services to schools, settings and partner agencies. There will be no charge for these statutory services, which include:
If you require more information about the Knowsley EHCP process, see here for further details.
The Local Authority also commissions EP services for schools, settings and partner agencies; there will be no charge for these services. Some of these include:
YOS has commissioned an EP to work alongside their team.
The EP facilitates Trauma Informed Specialist Consultations with the YOS team and regularly attends and contributes to MARMMs, providing a psychological perspective in supporting some of our most vulnerable young people.
Training has been provided for the YOS and STEP teams around trauma-informed practice and the application of the trauma recovery model to help embed the approach further within the services.
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The Early Years Service have commissioned the Educational Psychology Service to offer group consultation as part of a graduated approach.
The group consultations are available online and in all Early Years settings (private and maintained) across Knowsley.
During the consultation, practitioners from each setting can present a child to the group while the rest of the group offers hypotheses and suggested strategies.
In addition to our statutory work, Knowsley’s schools, academies and educational settings can commission time from the EPS to meet their specific needs and priorities.
For schools that commission EPS services or are considering commissioning them, please read our EPS Traded Service Guide 2024-2025 for information about our services and the key responsibilities of the parties agreeing.
The demand for our support and services increases each year. Schools are strongly advised to use the SLA arrangements to purchase the level of service needed at the beginning of the financial year to guarantee delivery within the required time.
Psychological Service time is purchased in sessions. One session equates to 3 hours. Time for preparation, writing, and follow-up must be included in the purchase time.
All SLA work is tailored to the setting's specific needs and priorities, and time is negotiated with your Link EP at your planning meeting. Below are some examples of the average time taken to complete different pieces of SLA work.
Internal journals or invoices will be sent out in April once the service receives signed agreements.
Any additional charges will be discussed and agreed with the school before the service is undertaken.
Fees for ad hoc services will be charged immediately following delivery of the service.
Knowsley Educational Psychology Service has recruited Assistant Educational Psychologists to enhance our offer to schools. These professionals have the prerequisites to apply for doctoral training in Educational Psychology and are supervised by a qualified Educational Psychologist.
They assist the service by conducting and supporting many of the functions of an Educational Psychologist, including basic assessment work, information gathering, group work, individual intervention, and training.
As an outcome of EP involvement, follow-up work or intervention from an Assistant EP may be suggested. This may involve a bespoke package of support, for which costings will be agreed upon depending upon the length and nature of support required.
We also have the following training packages that are available to all schools in the Local Authority to purchase separately to SLAs:
ELSA training is an initiative designed to build the capacity of schools to support the emotional needs of their children from their own resources. It recognises that children and young people learn better and are happier in school if their emotional needs are being addressed. It aims to equip school support staff with the skills to identify needs and create effective interventions for the children and young people with whom they work. The ELSA programme consists of 6 full days of training with time in between each session for reflection. It is designed for Higher Level Teaching Assistants (HTLAs) and Teaching Assistants (TAs) in primary and secondary schools. The training is suitable for TAs who would like to develop the skills that will help the children and young people with whom they work. Following the training, ongoing support is provided by the Knowsley EPS via group supervision sessions. This is designed to develop skills and competence, safeguard students and ELSAs alike, and share practices and resources between different educational settings.
Price - £820 per delegate
“Presenting and joining in has been a really useful experience. I feel like you come in with one child in mind and leave with strategies for 12 other children in your setting.”
“The EPs who deliver the course are superb and very knowledgeable. The training helped clarify why children act and feel the way they do”
“The process gives opportunities to reflect - bring to mind strategies in your toolkit which you know but might have forgotten.”
“There have been a lot of unknowns but now there feels like there is a clearer plan with what needs to happen.”
“I learned a lot in the session it was very informative I really enjoyed it, [the EPs] did a fantastic job explaining everything, and I will try and use this information in school in the upcoming weeks It was really engaging.”
“I work really well with Link Ed Psych – They are brilliant. They really listen and are very helpful and supportive. Provides great advice and is always available if I need their support.”