The recent National Audit Office (NAO) report on support for children and young people with special educational needs (SEN) has highlighted systemic challenges in the UK’s SEN provision, including funding shortages, lengthy wait times, and inconsistent support across local authorities.
The availability of SEN resources varies significantly throughout the UK, leading to disparities in support levels depending on location. This inequality compels some families to seek out independent SEN schools, which, while offering specialized support, come with substantial annual costs averaging around £60,000.
Education, Health, and Care (EHC) plans are granted to students with support needs, but despite a growth in the number of plans in recent years, this growth has not kept pace with the escalating demand. In 2023, approximately half of all EHC plans were not finalized within the legally mandated 20-week timeframe, delays which impeded children’s academic progress, social development, and overall well-being, further compounding existing challenges.
Financial strains for the families of students with SEN needs are exacerbated by Labour’s proposed policy to levy VAT on private school fees as many families with SEN students attend independent schools where possible, in the search for greater individual support. With limited avenues for exemption from this VAT, these placements could become unaffordable for many, subsequently increasing the pressure on public resources as more students seek to transfer to state-funded alternatives. A further issue highlighted was that, only around 70% of school leaders reported feeling adequately prepared to support SEN students, stemming from insufficient training, inadequate resources, and the complexities of managing diverse learning needs within classrooms. Therefore, a greater influx of SEN students into mainstream schools may further the negative impacts on the education of SEN students, as schools lack the necessary capacity, resources, and specialized expertise to effectively accommodate them, thus diluting the quality of support for all SEN students and straining existing resources further unless there are corresponding increases in funding and staff training.
The NAO put forward several recommendations aimed at creating a more effective and sustainable SEN support system:
The NAO emphasized the critical need for an integrated framework that aligns education, health, and social services to streamline the processes of identifying, assessing, and supporting children with SEN. This collaborative approach is vital for establishing a more cohesive and comprehensive support system.
At Ocean & Tree, we recognize the profound challenges and complexities that families navigating SEN support, and we strive to go above and beyond in this area. Please reach out to us via email for more: support@oceanandtree.com
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