1. Home
  2. Children and families
  3. SEND Local Offer
  4. Preparing for adulthood
  5. Birth to Settled Adulthood (B2SA)

Birth to Settled Adulthood (B2SA)

The Birth to Settled Adulthood (B2SA) service is Dorset Council’s joined-up approach to supporting children and young people with complex additional needs. By bringing together health, social care, and education, B2SA supports every child and young person to receive consistent, coordinated support from birth through to adulthood.

Why B2SA?

Families told us they wanted:
•    a single point of contact
•    earlier planning for adulthood
•    practitioners who listen and work together
•    less repetition of their story

B2SA was designed in response to this feedback, aiming to improve experiences for children, young people, and their families.

Who is the Service for?

The B2SA service is made up of a number of different teams who have different functions:
 
Best Start in Life - Our Best Start in Life Advisors work closely with families to create a positive quality of life for parents and their pre-school children. We help families learn and play together, participate in their community, and feel included. The team also works to reduce barriers that can make life harder for young children and their families.

Locality Social Care Teams - Every child has an allocated social worker or family worker who carries out assessments, reviews, and planning. Their role is to make sure children and young people with disabilities - and their families - receive the right support to improve outcomes.

Short Breaks Team - We understand that caring for a child or young person with complex needs can be demanding. Our Short Breaks Team assesses parent/carer needs and provides opportunities for families to take a break from caring duties. These breaks help children remain at home with their families and promote independence as they grow into adulthood. The team also offers advice and guidance on accessing the Local Offer and parenting support for families of children with complex needs.

Paediatric Occupational Therapy (OT) - Our Paediatric OT service helps children and young people fully participate in daily activities at home and thrive.

Preparation for Adulthood Team (PfA) – Our PfA team supports young people aged 14–25 as they approach adulthood, ensuring they have the right information and advice to become as independent as possible. Where needed, they carry out Care Act assessments and create Preparation for Adulthood (PfA) Plans to make the transition smooth.

Young Carers Team - Our Young Carers Team identifies and supports children and young people who care for family members. We provide individual support and organise group activities to help them balance caring responsibilities with education and social life. They also work with schools, health services, and other partners to improve support for Young Carers across the community.

Keyworker Team – Our Keyworker team supports children and young people who have a learning disability and/or autism with the most complex needs and are registered on the Dorset Dynamic Support Register. They also provide support to those who are inpatients in a mental health hospital or at risk of admission.

The team’s aims are to provide dedicated, joined-up support that is tailored to individual needs, to ensure that care and treatment take place in the community whenever possible, and to reduce unnecessary hospital admissions while shortening any inpatient stays.

B2SA works with

•    those with disabilities and/or complex health needs.
•    young people with Learning Disability and/or Autism at risk of hospital admission for their mental health
•    young carers and those with Continuing Care funding
•    children and young people with a disability that are at risk of abuse or exploitation.

What does B2SA offer?

•    different teams working together
•    support from childhood through to adulthood, with the right support at every stage
•    planning for adulthood starting from Year 9 (age 14+)
•    support for young people to learn and develop skills
•    keyworker service working with young people with a Learning Disability and/or Autism who are in crisis and at risk of mental health hospital admission
•    clear advice and information when you need it 

Outcomes framework

We have worked in partnership with young people and families developed the B2SA Outcomes Framework.  

This framework guides our work with children and young people by focusing on what matters most to each child and supporting them to build independence for the future.

B2SA provides support to help develop skills for adulthood and ensures that the right support is in place at the right time.

Outcomes:

I feel safe

We will do all that we can to make you feel safe in every aspect of your life. This means we will support you to make life choices, for example, where you live, your relationships and sense of community and belonging wherever possible.

We will use legal frameworks to ensure you are safe if you are unable to make a decision for yourself.

We will ensure our practitioners have the knowledge and skills to know what safe means to you.

I feel listened to

We will make sure your views, wishes and feelings are heard and respected and that practitioners always include you in decision-making. Where necessary we will ensure you have access to advocacy services. 

We will make sure information is given to you in a way you understand, and we will include those who are important to you with your consent.

We will make sure that we document and develop support plans with your wishes and views at the centre. 

We will respect your right to freedom of expression, as per Article 10 of your Human Rights. 
 

I know how to stay healthy

We will work with health colleagues to ensure you are as well as you can be. This could include, supporting you with health appointments, ensuring you have medical information presented to you in a way you understand and ensuring you know how to get help if you need it. It could also mean supporting you or those who care for you to access equipment to assist you in your daily life.

We will work with practitioners to ensure you have a team of professionals who understand and respect your views when medical decisions are made about you.

We will make sure the practitioners who are supporting you take time to understand your physical and mental health needs and that plans reflect what that means for you in your daily life.

I am learning

We will work closely with our colleagues in education to ensure you are in the best place to learn and you feel safe in school or college (or other educational setting). Where appropriate we will ensure you have an Education, Health and Social Care plan that reflects your aspirations and strengths as well as creating opportunities for you to try new things.

We will be aspirational for you and help you to recognise the things you are good at; the things you still need to develop and help you develop hopes and dreams for the future to live your best life. 

We recognise that learning is lifelong and that your learning needs may change.

I am learning to be independent

We will ensure any planning specifies how we are supporting you in your independence. Once you reach 14, this will be the focus of our support in readiness for adulthood.

We will make sure our practitioners take time to understand what you would like for the future. This could be how we support you to access activities, or to specify how any short break package is supporting your independence.

We will ensure those supporting you in your day-to-day living have the right skills to always promote your abilities.

I am living in the best place for me

We will work closely with you and practitioners to ensure your home meets your needs. This could include making adaptations and making every effort for you to be supported in the best way for you. 

We will look at what options there are for you when you become an adult and will include all those who are important to you in that decision-making. Should you not live with your family, we will make sure you are given information in a way you understand to know why.

I am liked and feel included 

We will help you think about the types of friendships you might want to have and what being included means for you. This could be having friends online and in-person. Being included means different things to different people and practitioners will help you communicate what is important to you and what challenges you might experience with being included.

We will provide information about activities and groups you could go to on the Dorset council website.

We will make sure there are trusted adults you can talk to as well as services who can offer help if you report any difficulties such as bullying or hate crime.

I can manage my money or have support if I need it

We will provide you and those important to you with information and support so that you understand and have the skills to be aware and able to manage money and have support if you need it.

We will make sure that you and those important to you know what options are available to you once you are an adult. This may mean that your money is managed for you but you and those important to you will always be part of that decision-making.

I feel well supported

We will make sure those who care for you feel supported in their own right. This could be providing breaks in care and accessing groups with other carers.

We will ensure those who care for you are part of your planning and are given opportunities to develop their skills and knowledge about your needs as you grow and develop. 

We will always consider your siblings in assessments and planning to ensure they can also receive support if needed. This may be through our Young Carers service, via our Local Offer activities or by providing short breaks.

Planning for Adulthood

We will always consider how children and young people can be supported to develop their independence. However, from age 14, we’ll start talking about the future and the B2SA service will support young people to plan for adulthood from 14 years old by focusing on these areas:
•    managing health and wellbeing
•    building friendships and social networks
•    exploring housing options
•    preparing for employment or training

We have developed a Preparation for Adulthood Plan to support those conversations. 

The information held within the plan will give lots of useful information about the young person and will help to show if they are likely to have eligible needs under the Care Act 2014 and whether an adult Care Act assessment would be needed for care and support to be provided when they are an adult.

We have produced a Preparing for adulthood guide to help young people and their families to plan ahead and think about who they may need to contact.

Care Act Assessment

If the young person is likely to have needs that come within the Care Act 2014, the Care Act assessment will be completed at the right time for them.  

If you are already known to B2SA and have an allocated practitioner, you can ask them about a Care Act assessment.

If you are not known to B2SA but would like more information and advice about Adult Social Care, refer to the Guide to Adult Social Care or contact Dorset Council Adult Access Team.