Protecting children and young people’s rights and entitlements 

SEND Improvement Plan: The latest stage of the Government’s SEND Review is the SEND and Alternative Provision Improvement Plan, which was published in March 2023 and sets out how the Government intends to proceed with plans to reform the SEND system in England. 

We are pleased that it contains no plans to change the law on support for children and young people with SEND. In the absence of any legislative change, the current SEND legal framework (the Children and Families Act 2014 and the SEND Regulations 2014) continues to apply in its entirety. 

Submission to Labour Party Policy Forum commission on public services: We made a submission to the Labour Party Policy Forum national commission on public services setting out how the SEND system is failing children and young people, and how children and young people’s rights need to be upheld. 

Implementing the existing SEND legal framework 

SEND Change Programme: Although the SEND and Alternative Provision Improvement Plan does not change children and young people’s rights, a number of reforms will be tested in various local areas under the Government’s SEND Change Programme. Our priority is to make sure that families, schools and local authorities are aware that children and young people’s rights remain unchanged. 

Response to consultation on proposed new timescales for reviews of EHC plans: We responded to a proposal by the Department for Education to extend the timescale for issuing an amended draft EHC plan following a child or young person’s annual review. This would make the process longer than the deadline set out in a significant High Court ruling in March 2022. 

We disagree with the Government’s plan to change the law in the wake of this ruling, and have told the Department for Education that the delays many children and young people experience in receiving an amended EHC plan are highly damaging to their wellbeing and outcomes. 

Submission to House of Commons Education Select Committee inquiry on early years provision: We submitted written evidence to an Education Select Committee inquiry on early years provision, setting out what the law says on supporting young children with SEND. 

Evidence to House of Lords committee on the effectiveness of the Children and Families Act 2014: We submitted evidence to a House of Lords committee set up to scrutinise the effectiveness of the Children and Families Act 2014. We told the committee that the Act has not delivered what it promised, and that there is a significant disconnect between what is set out in law and what children, young people and families actually experience. 

Improving accountability and helping parents secure access to redress 

Response to consultation on new framework for local area SEND inspections: We responded to a consultation by Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission on how area SEND inspections will be carried out in future. We emphasised that, while asking children, young people and families about their experiences is important, it is also essential that inspectors monitor compliance with the law. 

Response to Ministry of Justice consultation on legal aid for young people: We highlighted the unfairness of means testing young people under the age of 18 for access to civil legal aid, so they can appeal SEND decisions in their own name once they are over the age of 16, as per the Children and Families Act 2014. 

Evidence to parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights: We submitted evidence to the Joint Committee on Human Rights on the potential creation of a new Human Rights Ombudsperson. We were quoted in the committee’s report, which concluded that a new Ombudperson was unnecessary and would not improve accountability on children and young people’s rights. 

Improving SEN Support in schools 

Response to call for evidence on behaviour management and exclusion in schools: In our response to a call for evidence by the Department for Education on behaviour management and exclusion, we stated that schools’ behaviour policies should not simply be about disciplinary measures to make children ‘behave’, but should be about understanding and addressing the underlying causes of children and young people’s behaviour. We emphasised that every school is bound by the Equality Act 2010 and should prioritise inclusion. 

Submission to House of Commons Education Select Committee inquiry on persistent absence from school: We submitted written evidence to an Education Select Committee inquiry on persistent absence from school. The emphasis of this was on what causes persistent and severe absence among pupils with SEND, how support for pupils with SEND and their families could be improved, and the impact of the Government’s policies on school attendance. 

Meeting the needs of children and young people with additional vulnerabilities 

Publication of guide on special educational provision for children in custody: We published a joint briefing with the Howard League for Penal Reform to raise awareness of the rights that children in penal detention have under the SEND legal framework, and to highlight the ways in which these rights need to be strengthened.