Partnership for Inclusion of Neurodiversity in Schools (PINS) is a joint National Health Service (NHS) and Department for Education (DFE) programme that aims to support the education and health needs of neurodiverse children in schools through partnership approach working with local authorities and parent carer forums.
PINS will bring health and education specialists and expert parent carers into mainstream primary settings to:
- Help shape whole school SEND provision.
- Provide early interventions at a whole school level.
- Upskill school staff.
- Support strengthening of partnerships between schools and parent carers.
You can find out more in the Partnerships for Inclusion of Neurodiversity in Schools (PINS) Programme Explanatory note for schools (PDF).
How PINS works in Surrey?
PINS has been developed by NHS England and the Department for Education. Surrey County Council and Surrey Heartlands have responsibility for leading PINS locally with partners including Family Voice Surrey and Eikon. PINS was piloted in South East and North West Surrey from 2024 to 2025 with success.
The OT review of the school was incredibly helpful. They were realistic and full of great, practical ideas for our setting. The follow up email was so positive that we are sharing it with our staff as a whole. We recommend that all schools be a part of the PINS project!
Comment from a School in North West Surrey
Primary schools in North East and South West Surrey are invited to be part of the next round of PINS.
We understand that some schools may not have the capacity to engage and being a part of this project is entirely voluntary for schools.
Menu of support
The Menu of support document (PDF) has been created by the Department for Education and NHS England, with input from parent carers, health professionals, school and multi-academy trust (MAT) leaders, educational psychologists, SENCOs, and specialist advisors.
Examples of the type of support schools accessed in the pilot year of PINS
- Environmental audits with the Occupational Therapy Team
- Communication friendly classrooms with the Speech and Language Therapy Team
- Parental Engagement and Coproduction with Educational Psychology and Family Voice Surrey
The Menu of Support will continue to be developed for the next round of the project.
Working with Parents and Carers
Collaboration with parents and carers is critical to the success of the PINS programme. Parent carers are key partners in the delivery of PINS and there will be parent carer representation at all levels. As the Parent Carer forum for Surrey, Family Voice will be facilitating the contributions of parents and carers as joint workers within PINS.
Parent Carer Forums information pack for setting up a Participation Group in a primary school (PDF)
Webinar from 2024 introducing PINS pilot to Schools
Frequently asked questions
We will be delivering training flexibly and it is a bespoke training offer that aims to meet the needs of your school and its community.
The second round of PINS will run from March 2025 to March 2026.
These will be parents from your school. Family Voice Surrey will send out a letter to all parent carers in your school explaining what the participation group is and inviting them to take part. It's an opportunity for those parents to learn more about what schools are doing to become more inclusive and to support children.
No, this is fully funded by Department for Education and NHS England. Schools will just need to commit time to work on this project.
If your school expresses an interest in PINS you will be asked to complete the self-assessment, where you will score yourself on a scale of 1 to 5 in the various questions. There is also a form to collate pupil thoughts. This information will then be used to help identify the appropriate support for your school.
Please email us at PINS@surreycc.gov.uk and we will try to respond as quickly as possible.