Services near the Somerset border
It can be hard to know which service to use if you live near the edge of Somerset.
When we say “ordinarily resident”, we mean where you usually live. This is your main home, where you sleep, shop and travel from for school or work. You can still be “ordinarily resident” if you are away sometimes, for example during school holidays.
If you are not sure which service to contact, speak to the service directly. They can explain who they support and help you find the right team, even if that is in a different council area.
Getting urgent help
The service you need depends on the situation.
If life is at risk, call 999. This connects you to ambulance, police, fire and rescue. Services will work together across areas if needed.
If it is not an emergency:
Education
Some education services are based on your home address.
EHCplan assessments and reviews are based on where you live. The school must provide the support in the plan, even if it is in another area.
Other services are based on the school or setting address. Schools in Somerset follow Somerset’s Graduated Response approach to universal and SEND support. If your child goes to a school outside Somerset, that school will follow its own local approach. Parent and Family Support Advisers are also linked to the school your child attends. They may have different job titles, such as Parenting Support Adviser or Family Support Adviser when the school is in a different local authority. The school can guide you.
Social care
Most social care support is based on where you live.
Early Help Assessments (EHA) and support from the Children with Disabilities team are based on your home address. If services involved in the EHA, such as schools or GPs, are in different areas, teams will work together to plan the right support.
If your child lives outside Somerset but goes to a school or setting in Somerset, social care support will still come from the council where you live, not Somerset. This means the support offer (such as holiday activities and short breaks) will follow your home local authority’s approach.
If a child is in care, the council responsible for them will support their accommodation, care and education, even if they live in a different area.
Health
Some services are offered based on your home address, such as:
- GP services
- Health visitors
- CAMHS (mental health support)
- Online services like Kooth
Some services are offered based on the school address, such as school nurses and Mental Health Support Team.
Therapies like speech and language, occupational or physiotherapy are offered based on your GP address. For children and young people with SEND living in Somerset but registered with GP practices over the border they will be referring to the GPs own health area’s approach.
NHS Somerset will arrange health assessments and any support services for children and young people looked after by Somerset Council, no matter where they live.
Dentists are different. You can choose any NHS dentist. They do not have catchment areas. Also GP practices tend to refer to local hospitals and services. But you can usually choose which hospital or service to be referred to, except where speed of access to diagnosis and treatment is particularly important.
If you are already waiting for or getting support in another area
If you move or get support from another council, the process will depend on the service.
For help, visit the relevant pages for:
- Early Help Assessments
- Education Health and Care Plans
- Autism and/or ADHD Assessments
- Housing support
If your family is in the armed forces, you can also find support through the Somerset Armed Forces Covenant Partnership.
Other local areas
If you need services outside Somerset, you can find local offer information for nearby areas: