Virtual Consultations
Dumfries and Galloway Educational Visitor Service offers a virtual consultation service for education staff, allied professionals, and parents to speak with an Educational Visitor (EV) about a child, or a general education concern.
What are Virtual Consultations?
Virtual Consultations are led by Educational Visitors who are teachers specialised in the development, learning and social and emotional wellbeing of children from birth to 6 years.
Consultation can be requested when there is a question or concern about learning or behaviour as well as worries about barriers to learning, wellbeing and emotions. They can also focus on problem solving, identifying barriers to learning, offering advice and strategies to support differentiation, and promoting inclusive practice.
Consultations can also be accessed to discuss more general issues and give advice about applications for Deferred Entry, Resourced Provision, Primary 1 and transition.
This is a consultation only service and the Educational Visitor will not be able to read any information about the child prior to or after the consultation, other than the pre-consultation form. You are welcome to bring relevant information to share during the consultation. In order to maximise the number of appointments available, the service does not include follow up work, such as assessments or referrals.
Additional Information
Booking site: https://outlook.office365.com/owa/calendar/EVConsultation@dgcouncil.onmicrosoft.com/bookings
Who can access Virtual Consultations?
The consultation sessions are open to:
- Parents
- ELC staff
- Primary 1 staff
- Learning Centre staff
- Any other professionals
Usually, this is open to one person but an additional person can attend, when required e.g. Parent and Keyworker, a Nursery Manager and Keyworker, or a Health Visitor and Social Worker. A maximum of two people is recommended.
Why use Virtual Consultations?
Virtual consultations aim to provide accessible advice about individual children or broader concerns.
Evaluation shows that virtual consultation is successful in:
- improving understanding of a child’s needs
- informing planning
- empowering staff to know what to do next
- identifying strategies and interventions
- supporting education staff to bring about positive change for children
Virtual consultations are not intended to replace specific casework where there are complex factors and an Educational Visitor has an identified role. A virtual consultation might be a helpful first step in identifying strategies and offering advice before a setting decides whether or not a Request for Assistance to the EV service, and/or signposting to another service, is appropriate.
How can you access Virtual Consultations?
Booking for consultation slots can be made on the following link:
https://outlook.office365.com/owa/calendar/EVConsultation@dgcouncil.onmicrosoft.com/bookings
Bookings can also be made using the below QR code:
Please note that you need to book one consultation per child or query.
You will be sent an email confirming the booking with a Teams meeting link.
You must provide a full email address including a full ending such as @ea.dumgal.sch.uk, @glow.sch.uk, @hotmail.com, @gmail.com, @aol.com. Please note @glow alone does not work.
You will also be asked to complete an online brief pre-consultation form in advance of the meeting. It is essential for this form to be completed at least 24 hours in advance of the consultation due to time constraints. The link to this form will be towards the end of your email confirmation.
What do I need to do before the consultation?
Consent – To discuss named children, consent must be sought from someone with parental responsibilities. The parent/carer has the right to say what information you are allowed to share. There is supplementary guidance on recording consent on the booking page and below:
Consultations will not be digitally recorded. A brief written record of the discussion will be held for a maximum of 3 years, by the Educational Visitor Service. Parents/carers can withhold consent for the Educational Visitor Service to store this information.
Be prepared – Take time to think about what you would like to gain from the consultation and make sure you have the information you might need.
What can I expect in the consultation?
Each bookable appointment will last for up to 30 minutes. All parties will respect confidentiality.
The normal structure of a consultation will consist of:
Beginning – Introductions, confirmation of consent (if relevant) and establishing aims of the consultation.
Information-gathering – The EV will facilitate a solution focussed discussion.
Ending – The consultation will be summarised and any actions resulting from the consultation will be discussed. ELC staff should note any actions or next steps.
Afterwards – A brief summary will be shared by the EV via email and is usually provided within a week. Please feel free to contact the relevant EV by email should you experience a delay.
A link to a short evaluation of the virtual consultation can be found at the bottom of the summary document and also within a follow-up email. At a later date, there may be an additional evaluation requested to record positive changes. Evaluations help identify whether virtual consultations have a positive impact and will be used to improve and refine the EV service.
A follow up consultation can be booked, if required.
Further Queries
If you require any additional information or would like to provide further feedback to help improve our service, please contact:
