Let’s make this the start of a new era for children with SEND
The number of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) continues to rise – more than 575,000 children now have education health and care (EHC) plans in place, and a further 1.2 million require SEND support. This growing demand coupled with inadequate funding and fragmented support systems has resulted in significant delays and unmet needs. It’s imperative that the government addresses these challenges head-on.
Too often our education and care systems are not meeting the needs of children with SEND, leaving them without the support to thrive. By joining up services and improving data use, Labour will work to identify children’s needs earlier so that intervention supports child development earlier.
Labour Manifesto 2024
- Since 2016, the number of children and young people with an education health and care (EHC) plan has more than doubled.
- A further 1.2 million children in England require SEND support.
- While dedicated funding for SEND has increased by c. £3.5bn in real terms since 2015, it has not matched the increase in needs. According to the Institute for Fiscal Studies the amount spent per pupil is roughly the same now in real terms as it was in 2010.
Everyone is feeling the strain, and it shows in the data:
A quarter of local authorities with responsibility for SEND are now in the Safety Valve programme for places with the highest SEND budget deficits
Only half of EHC plans are issued within the required 20 weeks
Only 3% of children receive an appointment for an autism assessment within 13 weeks of referral
Last year the number of tribunal appeals of local authority decisions reached yet another all-time high
There is an urgent need for a different approach
The Children’s Wellbeing Bill outlined in the King’s Speech is intended to “remove barriers to opportunity. … and to ensure that the school system is fair for every child” but the only reference to SEND came in a section about increasing local authority powers on admissions more generally.
The previous administration failed to deliver on SEND, with many of the prosed practical tools and guidance to help improve consistency and efficiency being slow to appear. The Department for Education’s SEND and alternative provision improvement plan did not acknowledge fundamental issues with SEND funding and policy.
To“transform the life chances” of children with SEND we see four key areas the government must prioritise:
SEND funding and current legislation do not actively incentivise collaboration between local partners. In fact, in times of budget pressure, it is tempting for partners to retrench so they can justify their own position and funding.
The most resilient places have been able to foster strong relationships where settings, local authority, and families work towards shared long-term goals, but this is the exception rather than the rule.
The government need to shape policy so that responsibility for inclusion and long-term sustainability are shared and local partners decide together how to meet needs.
Long-term sustainability can only be achieved through identifying and meeting needs earlier in schools. But this is the part of the system that is most hollowed-out — mainstream school budgets are at the same levels as 2010 despite significantly greater needs, and local authorities struggle to prioritise preventative services and funding while also supporting those with more complex needs.
Labour’s Young Futures programme, including mental health hubs in every school, is therefore very welcome. However, the system requires a root-and-branch shift alongside individual services and programmes
Rising need and limited provision has led to more children being educated in out-of-borough special schools. There are several problems with this:
- places are often very expensive relative to the outcomes achieved for children and young people
- providers have limited oversight
- local authorities can find themselves competing for places
The solution is for government to support regional groups of local authorities to commission and manage specialist provision together (both in and out of borough), following the example of the Regional Care Cooperatives programme, to get better value for public money and ensure children receive high quality support.
The likelihood that a young person with SEND moves from education into paid employment is still much lower than their peers without additional needs. Greater ambition and a more joined up preventative approach between education and adult services is needed to prepare young people for adulthood and bridge the disability employment gap.
We think that implementing the following steps could provide some of the answers :
- embedding personalised employment services such as Supported Employment and Individual Placement Support (IPS) services in schools and colleges
- devolution of skills and training to combined authorities
- co-locating VCSE, training, and employment services for SEND young people alongside other local businesses and services could provide some of the answers.
The new government’s Skills England Bill is intended, amongst other things, to bring “a greater coherence to the assessment of skills needs and training landscape” and also talks about “breaking down barriers to opportunity”. But young people are not specifically referred to and there is no acknowledgement of the cliff edge faced by those with SEND once they reach 25 years. This is something that must be tackled head on.
Social Finance’s Role and Expertise
…for many children and young people with EHC plans, academic attainment provides only a glimpse of their achievements, progress in education and the value their settings provide. Preparing for adulthood defines broader goals including health, independent living, and community engagement, and received positive feedback in interviews with settings and local authorities.
SEND Futures Value for Money Feasibility Study, DfE, Report by Social Finance
Social Finance has worked with local authorities to find ways to prioritise early intervention and inclusion within SEND systems to meet the challenges of rising demand and to design innovative models to help young people leaving education achieve independence. We have collaborated with the Department for Education (DfE) to develop a new approach to assessing the value for money of the high-needs budget and are partnered with two local authorities delivering complex Safety Valve programmes.
Next Steps
To address the challenges faced by children and young people with SEND, the new government must prioritise effective local partnerships, designing for early intervention and inclusion, and stronger pathways to independence. This can ensure that all children with SEND receive the support they need to thrive. This mission aligns with Labour’s commitment to breaking down barriers to education and supporting every child to reach their full potential.
The new government must deliver on its promise to support SEND children and young people, ensuring no child is left behind.
What to find out more?
To learn more about our work with SEND systems, contact Tom Davies, Associate Director of Social Finance at tom.davies@socialfinance.org.uk
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