Case Study: Bedford Borough Council improves SEND engagement with Idox Local Offer website

How Idox worked with the Council to deliver an engaging, co-produced Local Offer website

Bedford Borough Council worked with Idox to improve its Local Offer website for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). Following Ofsted and CQC feedback, the Council needed a more professional, accessible, and easy-to-use system that could be co-produced with families, carers, and professionals, while also helping the community find relevant support more easily.

Idox delivered a new Local Offer website in just six weeks, replacing the Council’s in-house system with a simple backend and user-friendly frontend featuring clear categories, age bands, and search functionality. The result was a major uplift in engagement, with users up 30% year on year, page views rising by 230%, and average time on site quadrupling; Ofsted later praised the site as “new, more interactive and relevant,” reflecting the aspirations of children and young people with SEND.

Bedford Borough Council

Chris Morris

SEND Manager