Every child belongs

Across Devon, all children and young people should feel that they matter, are valued and are included within their school and local community. Inclusion begins with relationships, belonging and respect for every child and family.

Belonging is fundamental to engagement, attendance, wellbeing and achievement. We will therefore prioritise approaches that strengthen relationships, emotional safety, participation and connectedness for all children and young people.

Support early, support well

Children and families should receive timely, needs-led support as early as possible so that challenges do not escalate and access to learning is protected.

We will focus on prevention, early intervention and reducing the need for children and families to wait until difficulties reach crisis point before receiving support.

We share responsibility

Inclusion is everyone’s responsibility.

Schools, families, services, health, social care and communities all play a vital role in supporting children and young people. We will strengthen partnership working, shared accountability and collaborative decision-making across the system.

Equity for every child

All children should experience fair and equitable access to support, opportunities and provision regardless of their postcode, background, school or level of need.

We recognise that achieving equity does not mean providing the same support everywhere. It means ensuring that support is responsive to need and that children can access appropriate support wherever they live.

A system you can trust

Children, families and professionals need confidence in the systems that support them.

We will work towards creating a system that is transparent, easy to navigate, responsive and consistent. Decisions should be understood, communication should be clear and processes should help rather than hinder children, families and schools.