17 September 2024

It is a truth universally acknowledged that the system for supporting children and young people with SEND is a problem in want of a solution. These were almost the words used by Alistair Strathern, one of the three backbench MPs who introduced separate debates in Parliament this month on SEND provision. 

Parliament looks very different since the general election in July. Not only do we have a new government with a big majority, we also have a huge number of brand new MPs: more than half the MPs elected this time haven’t been in Parliament before. And one of the most striking things about the new intake is how alarmed they are about the situation facing so many children and young people with SEND. 

Families have done a brilliant job 

Families across the country have clearly done a brilliant job – driven by despair and desperation – at contacting their elected representatives, and candidates hoping to be elected, to let them know exactly how the education system is failing their children. 

This message has been reinforced by IPSEA: we have been in touch since the election with every single MP in England with information about what the law says about how the system should work. Every MP we talk to tells us the same thing: they know about many children and young people in their constituency who aren’t receiving the provision and support they need, and they want this situation to change. 

In the first week back after the summer break, the House of Commons order paper featured “SEND provision” three days in a row, as three backbench MPs (one Labour, one Liberal Democrat, one Independent Labour) had each managed to secure parliamentary time for a debate on the subject in Westminster Hall. (Westminster Hall debates give MPs an opportunity to raise a particular issue and receive a response from a government minister.) 

“Every MP is aware” 

It's not unusual for these debates to be attended by only a small handful of MPs, plus the minister who is responding. But at the debate on 5 September, which was on SEND provision across the country and not specific to a particular local area, Westminster Hall was packed with MPs from all parties wanting to speak about SEND provision in their constituencies. It was standing room only as the Independent Labour MP Richard Burgon, MP for Leeds East, introduced the subject. He said, “Every MP in this House is aware that the special education needs and disability system has gone beyond crisis and is in emergency”. 

MP after MP stood up to say the same thing: not enough funding, not enough staff, not enough early intervention. The Labour MP for Spen Valley, Kim Leadbeater, said: 

“I have had parents in tears in my office feeling like they have failed, as they have not been able to get an EHCP for their child. They have given up work so that they can support their child, meaning their own sense of identity and self-worth has suffered, and they feel guilty that they are not contributing to society and the economy. I have had headteachers and staff in schools feeling that it is their fault that they cannot ensure that every child in their care gets the education they deserve.” 

There is no doubt that our elected representatives recognise that this is a situation that must not be allowed to continue. MPs have a vital role to play in holding the Government to account, and we hope that the Education Select Committee – now chaired by the former shadow children’s minister Helen Hayes MP, who is certainly well-briefed on SEND provision – will prioritise this. But what does the new government believe the solution is? 

Listening to families and being honest 

The Minister for School Standards, Catherine McKinnell, has government responsibility for SEND provision in schools. She found herself in Westminster Hall three days in a row responding to the same points. Promising that “this Government will be honest with families”, the minister said, “We are utterly committed to improving inclusivity and expertise in mainstream schools. We are determined to restore parents’ trust that their child will get the support they need to flourish.” 

The phrase that’s being used over and over again by education, health and Treasury ministers is that there will be “a community-wide approach to meeting the needs of children with SEND, improving inclusivity and expertise in mainstream schools and alternative provision settings, as well as ensuring special schools cater to those with the most complex needs”. 

Right now, ministers are mainly acknowledging the scale of the problem and promising that there will be action to resolve it. Speaking on a special Woman’s Hour programme that focused on the impact on mothers of failings in the SEND system (which I was also pleased to join as a panel member), Catherine McKinnell said she wanted above all to listen to families’ experiences. 

What we need to hear 

But the mothers in the Woman’s Hour audience – and parents and carers everywhere, not to mention teachers, support staff and everyone who works to support children and young people with SEND – want to know exactly what the Government will do, and how it will make a difference. 

At IPSEA, we particularly want a commitment from ministers that they won’t do anything to water down children and young people’s rights and entitlements to support that meets their needs, and that they will find a way of making sure that the law is applied in full, for every child and young person.

 

 

About the author

Catriona is responsible for IPSEA’s work in bringing about change by influencing the development of SEND policy nationally. Her background is in public policy and communications, and she has worked for a number of charities and public sector organisations, as well as in Parliament. In the past she has served as an elected councillor in a London borough, a special school governor and a charity trustee. She has personal experience of having a disabled child. In her spare time, she enjoys walking, reading, going to the theatre and being by the sea.

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