Craighalbert Showcase: Sharing Our Impact, Raising Ambition and Shaping the Future
Updated: 4 hours ago
On Thursday 5th November, Craighalbert welcomed representatives from the Scottish Government, local authorities, funders, third sector organisations and supporters to our Showcase event.
The event provided an opportunity to share our work, demonstrate the impact of specialist education, therapy and care, and highlight the importance of raising ambition for children and young people with complex health, care, communication and learning needs.
Understanding the changing needs of children and families
Throughout the Showcase, we explored Craighalbert's history, how the needs of the children and young people we support have evolved, and how our approach continues to develop to meet these increasingly complex needs.
By bringing together specialist education, therapy and care, we work to ensure that each child has opportunities to develop, communicate, participate and achieve their potential.
Hearing directly from families
A particularly powerful part of the Showcase was hearing directly from families who shared their personal experiences of seeking and accessing specialist support for their children.
Families spoke about the difference that appropriate specialist provision has made to their children and the opportunities it has created for their development, wellbeing and participation.
They also highlighted the significant challenges they have faced in trying to secure the support their children need.
For some families, this has meant navigating complex processes and having to go through tribunal proceedings in their efforts to access appropriate education and support.
Their experiences highlighted the emotional and practical challenges families can face when seeking provision that meets their child's assessed needs.
These personal stories reinforced an important message: families should not have to fight to access the specialist support their children need and have a right to receive.
We are incredibly grateful to the families who shared their experiences so openly. Their voices are essential in helping others understand the challenges they face, the difference specialist provision can make and why change is needed.
Our national key asks
A central focus of our Showcase was highlighting three priorities that we believe are essential to improving outcomes for children with complex needs across Scotland.
National Commissioning
Develop a national commissioning model for centres of excellence delivering highly specialist education, therapy and care.
Better National Data
Understand need, plan early and invest wisely for children's futures.
Rights Based Decision Making
Ensure children's assessed needs and rights are at the heart of every decision.
The experiences shared by families demonstrated why these priorities matter.
Better understanding of the needs of children across Scotland, improved planning and access to specialist provision, and decisions that place children's rights and assessed needs at their centre are essential to creating a system that works for children and families.
No family should face unnecessary barriers or prolonged uncertainty when seeking the right support for their child.
Innovation, collaboration and opportunity
The Showcase also highlighted how Craighalbert continues to develop innovative approaches to supporting children and young people, including the use of assistive technology to enable greater choice, creativity and independence.
Our Art Without Limits exhibition provided an example of what becomes possible when technology is adapted to meet children's individual abilities and barriers to participation are removed.
As a Grant Aided Special School, we recognise the importance of sharing our learning and expertise beyond the Centre.
By building relationships with policymakers, funders, local authorities and third sector partners, we aim to encourage collaboration, strengthen understanding and explore opportunities to improve support for children and families.
The Showcase Event offered a unique opportunity to bring people together and to share the impact of our work with children and young people with complex health, education and communication needs. Perhaps most powerful of all was the testimony from Rhiannon Louden and Ian Wilson who shared their experiences as parents. Their experiences have helped shape our national policy asks. I am immensely proud of what the Craighalbert Team has achieved but we were reminded that there is so much more to do and that we need to focus on what children and young people can achieve too. The Art without Limits work reminded everyone of the skills, talents and potential of the children we work with every day who never cease but to inspire us and drive to do more. Heather Gray, Craighalbert CEO.
Looking to the future
Our Showcase was an opportunity not only to celebrate the achievements of our children and young people, but also to highlight the challenges that remain and the importance of working together to address them.
We would like to thank everyone who attended, contributed to the discussions and took the time to learn more about Craighalbert.
A particularly heartfelt thank you goes to the families who shared their experiences. Their stories remind us why advocating for children's rights, improving access to specialist provision and raising ambition for every child must remain central to our work.
We look forward to continuing these conversations, strengthening partnerships and working towards a future where children and young people with complex needs have access to the specialist support and opportunities they deserve.
Every child deserves the opportunity to achieve their potential. Access to the right support should not depend on a family's ability to fight for it.
You can learn more about our National Asks here: https://www.craighalbert.org.uk/_files/ugd/03dcdd_6cb5356d212442fca3f69f47a3fa974c.pdf
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