Parent Carers Together

Parent Carers Together is a group of parents and carers of disabled children who are working together to make sure the services in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole local area meet the needs of children with SEND and their families.

Who We Are in BCP

Parent Carers Together is the official Parent Carer Forum for Bournemouth, Christchurch & Poole, recognised by the Department for Education (DfE). Our role is to bring the collective voice of parent carers into strategic decision‑making across BCP Council, NHS Dorset, the South West regional network, and the National Network of Parent Carer Forums (NNPCF).

What That Means for Families

As the DfE‑recognised forum, we work directly with local and national partners to make sure parent carers’ lived experiences shape SEND services, policies, and improvement plans. This includes attending strategic meetings, contributing to consultations, and representing families at regional and national levels.

Working Alongside Other Parent Groups

BCP is home to several supportive parent‑led organisations, each offering something valuable to families. We respect and welcome the contribution of all groups.

Our role is simply different: Parent Carers Together is the strategic partner for BCP — the forum recognised nationally to represent parent carers in SEND planning and decision‑making.

We collaborate positively with other organisations wherever it benefits families, and we encourage parents to connect with any group that supports their needs.

We will do this by gathering the views of local families and then working in partnership with local authorities, education settings, health providers and other providers to highlight where local services, processes and commissioners are working well or challenge when changes or improvements need to be made.

The forum needs lots more parents to get involved.

We have dedicated steering group members who work together to develop the forum.

April 2023, we became an independent Community Interest Company (CIC).

“I’d like to wish PCT a happy 6^th birthday! Thank you for all the work you do to support the parent/carers of BCP and to help us at the local authority as we strive to improve the outcomes and lived experience of our children and young people” 😊

Mallory Adamson, SEND Pathways & Process Lead

SEND Service, Education & Skills, Children’s Services

If you would like to volunteer some time or if you would just like to hear more about the work we do to improve outcomes for local families, we’d love to hear from you.

What is a parent carer forum– click the hyperlink to find out more about what a parent carer forum does and our PCT highlights between April 2022-April 2023.

Parent Carers Together are proud to be a member of the NNCPF-National Network of Parent Carer Forums.