Plymouth Advisory Team for Sensory Support (PATSS)

We work with children and young people from birth to 19 years who are 

• deaf or hearing impaired
• visually impaired
• deaf blind or dual sensory impaired 
• in order to access the curriculum and environment at the same level as their peers.

What we do

• Provide advice and support for children and young people, their families and educational settings
• Carry out direct teaching with children and young people
• Provide training
• Carry out assessments
• Liaise with other relevant professionals
• Carry out registration visits (visual impairment)

Specialist Equipment Pathway

We work with families, local health services  and education settings to assess the individual needs of children and young people. This enables us to identify specific needs and explore appropriate provision of specialist education equipment.

PATSS Equipment Pathway flowchart (PDF) [54KB]

Graduated Approach 

These documents set out what is expected of schools at universal, targeted and specialist level and how the Plymouth Advisory Sensory Support Team (PATSS) can support schools to deliver provision for children and young people with Hearing and Visual Impairments. 

Graduated approach - visual impairments (Word doc) [47KB]

Graduated approach - hearing impairments (Word doc) [49KB]

How to request support

To request support please email gateway@plymouth.gov.uk, call 01752 668000 or complete the Request for Involvement form.

Medical information is required which we use with a visual assessment (where relevant) and criteria from the National Sensory Impairment Partnership to decide on the level of support given.