It’s an old saying about bureaucracies: bad news doesn’t make it to the top until it’s too late. That applies doubly to SEND, particularly when that bad news comes from …
Last week, the National Audit Office (NAO) issued a damning report on the state of SEND in England. On the same day, the Department for Education also issued a report …
by Catriona Moore and Matt Keer Another day, another report detailing failings in the system that’s supposed to support children and young people with SEND. Today it’s the National Audit …
“Disabled people face continuous barriers to securing long-term employment. This starts from the moment a young disabled person enters nursery school and continues through their preparation for work and their …
The Law Commission has spent the last 12 months carrying out a much-needed and long-awaited review of the laws underpinning social care for disabled children in England. The aim is …
A new government-commissioned survey of teaching staff has unwittingly offered a telling explanation of why so many children get inadequate support with SEND in school. But first, in related news, …
The government’s ‘national conversation’ on the future of education has launched. Its lead, Professor Becky Francis, has issued a call for evidence, seeking views on the current curriculum and assessment …
There have been three debates about SEND in parliament already this session, one about SEND in Somerset, one on Herts and Central Bedfordshire and yesterday, one on SEND provision in …
with Jane Harris, SEND parent and CEO of Speech and Language UK SNJ Intro: Last week we were dismayed and angry at the publication of a local-government-funded report into SEND, …
The new government has plenty in its in-tray. That in-tray includes SEND (below), and one of the things at the top of the teetering SEND pile will be funding. Most …
By Tania Tirraoro and Sharon Smith Relax everyone, ISOS Partnership, the research darlings of local government, have fixed SEND for us all with a new offering, and what a behemoth …
The new ministerial team at the DfE is shaping up, and the new minister responsible for SEND is Catherine McKinnell who has been named as schools minister – this means …
Yesterday, the Department for Education (DfE) published its annual statistical summary of Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) in England. This year, these figures will be put under a lot …
Anything that calls itself the “safety valve intervention programme” is going to struggle to excite public interest. Perhaps that was the intention: create a bureaucratic-sounding programme in an obscure corner …
“It’s hard to understand why there’s so much unwillingness to accept that unlawfulness is the biggest problem in the SEND system. What needs to be reformed isn’t the law, but …
Imagine you’re a builder, called to quote on a crumbling, damp-ridden house. You do an in-depth assessment of the issues and calculate the costs of this enormous task, all the …
with Connor Johnston and Efa Jones, Law Commission Today we have a post about the Law Commission Review of Children’s legislation, by two of the people involved in it. Time …
with additional reporting from Matt Keer Over the next few months, we’ll be marking 10 years since the Children and Families Act 2014 (CFA) received Royal Assent. We’ll be looking …
With Margaret Doyle, mediation expert and research fellow If you want to appeal against a decision concerning an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP), you need to either participate in …
This is the third in our series of posts looking at the complex and toxic tyre fire that is SEND funding. Some is wasted fighting parents and SEND consultants It’s …
