Our tone and voice for SEND communication

First of all, be relevant.
Think about what your audience needs to know, not what you want to tell them. Identify the questions your audience may have about your message, and answer those upfront.
Communicate clearly and plainly.
It's not as easy as it sounds, especially with some of the complex processes we have to explain. But avoid jargon, explain acronyms (if you're going to use them), and choose easier words. The average reading age in the UK is 9. Simpler language also benefits people with higher literacy levels by speeding up comprehension time.
You can use free software, like the Hemingway Editor to check your writing. It suggests how to make your sentence structures and word choices less complex.
Write or speak professionally, but conversationally. Families need you to convey messages professionally so they trust your expertise, and delivering this with a friendly rapport will cement a strong working relastionship. It will help you to work in partnership and remind families that you are on the same team, especially when you might have to share difficult messages.
Get to know people over time. As you learn more about your families, you will know more about what is appropriate with them in terms of communication style. You will understand more about their communication preferences, too i.e. would they prefer a phone call or an email?
It's okay not to know the answer. Keep your messaging accurate. It's better not to guess at an answer. It's okay to say 'I'll find out and get back to you'. Just make sure you do follow up on this.
Write in first person. We are all working together towards the same goals - improved lives for children and young people. Writing as "I", "we" and "you" gives us agency and accountability. Writing as "Hertfordshire County Council" or "The XX service", creates the "invisible wall" feel that we are trying to break down between families and our professional colleagues.

Why we use this tone and voice - for our unique audience

Parent/ carers

Families we come into contact with are dealing with a unique set of challenges which we should all be aware and respectful of. They:

might be coming to terms with their child's additional needs and be processing that emotionally
are likely to be stressed or upset
are short on time - they could be very tired too
may have a learning difficulty or disability themselves.

We also have an audience with a very varied knowledge of the world of SEND, ranging from:

Parents/ carers who think their child might have an additional need, but don't know what, or where to start
Parents/ carers who are new to SEND and learning as they go
Parents/ carers who are experienced with SEND and expertly know the services in Hertfordshire and their rights.

Consider the levels of detail you need to share, and how you intend to do that, should it be requested.

Professionals

Professionals benefit from having the same accurate, compassionate and timely messaging that we use with our families.

We all know how it feels to work within an area of SEND, and the pressure that sometimes puts us under (being short on time, frustration with the complexity of things etc). Your professional colleagues are likely experiencing similar challenges to you. Communicate in the way you'd like to be spoken to - in a way which makes your day better, not harder.

You may be able to speed things up by using some acronyms or internal terminology that works for us - just make sure you can guarantee the colleague/s you are speaking to will know what you mean.

Children and young people

Children and young people require a high level of trust and security when being communicated with. They:

may prefer to be communicated with by trusted and known adults - their family, or a key worker/ carer
may not engage with some forms of communication and need a choice i.e. WhatsApp instead of a phone call.
may not also want to share their real thoughts and feelings with you. Think about how you would have responded as a child or young person to an organisation like the council or the NHS!
may have a lot of anxiety, especially as this can be more prevalent in young people with neurodivergence.
may have communication needs which require adaptations.

The frontline colleagues who work with our children and young people every day are expertly equipped to communicate with them, including having the skills to adapt to different communication needs. If you want to communicate with children and young people, tap into the expertise of these colleagues, or an expert by experience (a young person with SEND who is employed to contribute to service design through sharing their lived experience).

If you look after documentation for children and young people, for example information within an Education, Health and Care Plan, consider the way you use language by referring to The Power of Language in Children′s Services.

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Our tone and voice for SEND communication

How to put our tone and voice into practice

Why we use this tone and voice - for our unique audience

Parent/ carers

Professionals

Children and young people

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