Bury SEND Local Offer site launched at inclusion conference 2026

Key Points

• Bury Council has established the new SEND Local Offer Website for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
• This resource was unveiled at the annual SEND and Inclusion Conference 2026 held by Bury Council.
• The website is a collection of information, advice and support in terms of education, healthcare, activity and transition to adulthood.
• It was created to assist children and young people between ages of 0 to 25, families, carers and professionals.
• The unveiling is part of Bury Council’s SEND strategy and its three-year reform and improvement programme.
• Wendy Young, the head of SEND and inclusion at Bury Council, referred to the launching as a significant step.
• According to Councillor Sandra Walmsley, who is the cabinet member for children and young people, finding the right information must be easy for families.
• The conference involved heads of school, SENCOs, education professionals and partners within the entire borough.
• Workshops concentrated on inclusive practice, partnership working, cultural change and cooperation of services.
• According to Bury Council, Beebot AI contributed to the creation of the new Local Offer.
• The website is available at localoffer.bury.gov.uk.

Bury (Manchester Mirror) October 23, 2026 — Bury Council has launched a new online SEND Local Offer resource designed to make it easier for children, young people, families, carers and professionals to find information, advice and support.

As reported by the Bury Times, the website was launched at the council’s annual SEND and Inclusion Conference, which brought together education professionals, headteachers and special educational needs coordinators (SENCOs) from across the borough to discuss the next steps in Bury’s SEND improvement and reform plan.

The new site forms part of the council’s wider SEND strategy and three-year improvement programme. It brings information, advice and services into a single accessible location, with the aim of helping families and professionals identify the support available to them more easily.

Bury Council’s own SEND Local Offer page says the resource covers education, health, care, activities, services and preparing for adulthood for children and young people aged 0 to 25.

Why has Bury Council created a new SEND Local Offer website?

The council says the new website is intended to provide clear and accessible information about the support available to children and young people with SEND, and to explain how that support fits together.

As reported by David Murphy of Roch Valley Radio, Wendy Young, head of SEND and inclusion at Bury Council, said: “We want children, young people, families, schools and partners to be able to find clear and accessible information about the support available to them and to understand how that support fits together.”

In comments reported by the Bury Times, Ms Young said the conference had given the council a valuable opportunity to bring together headteachers, SENCOs and practitioners for “open and thought-provoking conversations about inclusion and what it means in practice”.

She added: “Launching our new SEND Local Offer is an important milestone in that journey.”

The Local Offer is a statutory requirement for local authorities. According to Bury Council, it sets out the provision available across education, health and social care for children and young people with special educational needs or disabilities, and is intended to help families access information about available services.

What information does the new Bury SEND website include?

The new SEND Local Offer website brings together information, advice and services in one place. Bury Council says it covers support relating to education, health, care, activities, services and preparing for adulthood.

The resource is aimed at children and young people with SEND, their families and carers, and professionals working with them. It is designed to help users find relevant information and understand the support available across different services.

Bury Council said the launch was a key highlight of this year’s annual SEND and Inclusion Conference. In a post published through its news distribution channel, the council said the online resource brings information, advice and support services into one accessible place, making it easier for children, young people, families and professionals to find help when they need it.

The council also thanked schools, families, partners and colleagues across education, health and social care for their continued support of Bury’s SEND improvement journey. It said Beebot AI had supported the development of the new Local Offer.

What happened at Bury’s SEND and Inclusion Conference?

The annual SEND and Inclusion Conference 2026 brought together headteachers, SENCOs, education professionals and partners from across Bury. Attendees discussed inclusive practice and the next phase of the borough’s three-year SEND improvement and reform programme.

According to Roch Valley Radio, keynote and interactive sessions covered partnership working, culture change and how services can support children, young people and families.

The Bury Times reported that delegates took part in sessions focused on inclusive practice, partnership working and culture change, exploring how services can work together more effectively to support children, young people and their families.

Bury Council said the conference was intended to reflect on progress made through the borough’s SEND improvement journey and help shape the next phase of its SEND Improvement and Reform Plan. It said delegates explored how education, health and social care services can continue working together so that children and young people with SEND feel valued, supported and able to thrive in their local communities.

What did Bury Council leaders say about the launch?

Councillor Sandra Walmsley, Bury Council’s cabinet member for children and young people, welcomed the new resource. As reported by Roch Valley Radio, she said: “For families, finding the right information and understanding what help is available should be as straightforward as possible, and this new resource is another step towards achieving that.”

The Bury Times also reported Councillor Walmsley’s comments, describing the new SEND Local Offer as an important part of the council’s commitment to making information easier for families to access.

Ms Young said the improvement programme involved joint working across education, health and social care.

The council’s published material describes the conference as an opportunity to bring partners together to shape the next phase of the SEND improvement and Reform Plan. It also highlights collaboration between schools, families, partners and colleagues across education, health and social care.

How does the new website fit into Bury’s wider SEND plans?

The launch sits within Bury Council’s wider SEND improvement and reform work. The council describes the conference as part of efforts to shape the next phase of its SEND Improvement and Reform Plan.

Bury Council documents show that the authority has been developing its Local Offer over several years. A scrutiny report published by the council refers to a refresh of the Local Offer, co-production events with parents, a Local Offer newsletter and work to restructure information so parents could more easily identify and access support.

More recently, council papers from September 2026 listed the Beebot SEND Local Offer launch among upcoming milestones. The papers said the Beebot AI platform was being developed initially across three key areas: the SEND Local Offer, the Care Leavers Local Offer and Family Hubs.

Bury Council’s latest SEND Local Offer page also notes that the authority was inspected by Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission in March 2026, with the resulting area SEND inspection report published on June 29, 2026.

Where can families access the new Bury SEND resource?

The new SEND Local Offer is available at localoffer.bury.gov.uk. The Bury Times reported that the site provides more information about support available to children, young people and families in Bury.

Bury Council says the Local Offer is intended to help families access information about services available to them, and that feedback from children, young people and families should inform its design and content.

Background of the development

Bury Council is required to publish a Local Offer, which sets out provision across education, health and social care for children and young people with SEND. The council says all local authorities must publish such an offer and that its purpose is to help families understand the services available to them.

The council has previously said it wants its Local Offer to reflect the advice, support and guidance requested by families. It has also described an annual cycle of co-production events intended to give children, young people and families the opportunity to influence the design and content of the resource.

The latest launch follows work to move Bury’s SEND Local Offer to a dedicated website. According to the council, the dedicated site is intended to make it easier for children and young people with SEND, families, carers and professionals to find information, advice and support.

The development also forms part of a broader programme involving education, health and social care partners. Council papers published in September 2026 identified the Beebot SEND Local Offer launch as an upcoming milestone and said the AI platform was initially being developed for the SEND Local Offer, Care Leavers Local Offer and Family Hubs.

Prediction: How could this affect Bury families and schools?

For families in Bury, the new website could reduce the time spent searching across separate education, health and social care sources for information about SEND support. If the site is kept accurate and easy to navigate, parents and carers may find it simpler to identify services, activities and advice relevant to children and young people aged 0 to 25.

For schools, SENCOs and other professionals, the resource could provide a common point of reference when directing families to support. The conference’s emphasis on partnership working and culture change suggests the council intends the website to support closer collaboration between education, health and social care services.

The practical impact will depend on whether families can quickly find relevant, up-to-date information and whether services respond to feedback. Bury Council says feedback from stakeholders should be promptly actioned by service providers so that the information and services available continue to meet local need.