SEND reforms in England – what Sense thinks

Since the launch of the Government’s Schools White Paper on reforms to the SEND system in February, we have been looking in detail at the proposals. Here we give you a summary of the things we welcome, areas we are concerned about, including where we think there are gaps in the reforms.  

Until the end of the consultation period, we will keep listening to the views of families of disabled children with complex needs and ensure we amplify their voice to help shape the reforms. 

What we welcome

Government focus on reforming the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) system 

We welcome that the Government is focused on trying to fix the system that is currently failing 1.7 million disabled children and their families. Disabled children just want the ordinary – to go to nursery, school or college, to make friends, learn and have an equal shot at their dreams and goals.  

This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to fix the system, so we welcome the scale of reform proposed and the new £4 billion investment. 

Support for all children with SEND

The Government are proposing a new duty on nurseries, schools and colleges to produce an Individual Support Plan (ISP) for every child with SEND. The ISPs will be an annually reviewed digital plan  coproduced with parents. Children accessing any of the new tiers of support will have an ISP. 

Sense welcomes these additional tiers of support, but we want the reforms to go  further by ensuring parents have a clear and independent route to challenge if the plan is not being delivered or is not meeting their child’s needs. 

The Government has also committed that some children who already have support can keep this – such as those who are in special school in 2029 can remain there, if they wish, until the end of their education. 

Investment and focus on specialist support

The proposals pledge to invest in the specialist workforce through a new Experts at Hand scheme, and far better collaboration between mainstream and special schools. 

In addition, under-5s with complex needs will have access to a fast-track assessment process, speeding up access to specialist provision plans and Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs). 

We welcome the drive to have more specialist and early support, as well as the move to support being needs-based, not diagnosis-led, which currently leads to severe delays for children. In addition, we welcome the closer collaboration between mainstream and special schools. 

What we are concerned about

Changes to EHCP rights and assessments

The government’s proposals introduce new Specialist Provision Packages (SPPs), evidence-based packages of support for children with the most complex needs. Only those children who have an SPP will be given an EHCP. 

Sense welcomes that the Government have proposed to keep EHCPs for disabled children with complex needs, as we know that these legal protections are critical and we have campaigned, alongside the Disabled Children’s Partnership, for these to remain. 

However, we are extremely concerned by the lack of definition of ‘complex needs’ in the government’s proposals.  Without a definition, it is not clear which children will be eligible for SSPs and EHCPs. We, along with others in the sector, are concerned that the threshold to access an EHCP could increase as a result of this. We are also unclear as to whether families will be able to request an EHCP assessment at any time. 

Disabled children with complex needs face barriers to education as a result of the complex system. It is essential that all children who face barriers to education must have their support protected.  

A lack of detail of how social care and health providers will support children in their education

Disabled children with complex needs often rely on health and social care to support them in education. Currently, there is a significant lack of join up between these bodies in supporting disabled children with complex needs in school.  

This often results in unlawful practice, with local authorities not delivering the care disabled children with complex needs are legally entitled to through their EHCP.  

Whilst the current SEND reforms say there should be greater join up between these bodies, we are concerned of the lack of detail of how this will happen in practice, and how health and social care bodies will be held to account to deliver it. 

Capacity and funding to deliver the government’s vision

Whilst we welcome the emphasis on increased specialist support, we know that schools are struggling to retain and recruit the teaching and specialist workforce, and government have not outlined a clear workforce strategy to recruit all the new specialist roles needed to make this plan achievable. 

In addition, we welcome the focus on ensuring specialist knowledge in special schools can benefit mainstream provision, but we feel the reforms are silent on addressing the current challenges around these settings, such as significant waiting lists for special school places, and access to specialist teachers and professionals. 

How to get involved

You can help shape the proposals by getting involved in the Government’s 12 week consultation process which ends on Monday 18 May. At Sense we have put together a consultation form which picks out the key questions for families with disabled children with complex needs. The form explains the proposals and guides you through how to respond. 

At Sense we will be listening to families to help shape our consultation response, we will be running a webinar in a few weeks to let everyone know what we are hearing.