by Cathy Wassell, CEO & Founder, Autistic Girls Network & The Haven
As we continue to analyse the Government’s proposals to slash more SEND rights than it creates, today, we look at another report that came out yesterday. It claims to have been used to “inform” the proposals, but Cathy Wassell, Founder of the Autistic Girls Network has serious doubts about that….
On February 23, 2026, the Department for Education didn’t just publish a White Paper; it released the Neurodivergence Task and Finish Group (NDTFG) Report. While the White Paper deals in the “hard currency” of the system—£4 billion in funding, new buildings, and structural targets—the Taskforce Report attempts something far more ambitious: a total recalibration of the neuro-educational mindset.
For Autistic Girls Network (AGN), this report is the document that actually matters. It is the only place in the current reform package where the internal experience of the child—the masking, the sensory overwhelm, and the need for psychological safety – is truly acknowledged. Whether it will matter in the end in what happens from the White Paper is anyone’s guess. It certainly doesn’t appear to have influenced it much in terms of recommendations.
1. From Deficit to Belonging: A New Metric for Success
The report’s most radical proposal is a move away from the “Medical Model.” Historically, the SEND system has been deficit-based—it asks what is “wrong” with the child and how to “fix” it.
The Taskforce flips this. It argues that the primary metric for an inclusive school shouldn’t be attendance data or “academic stretch” (as the White Paper actually suggests), but a child’s sense of belonging, “Inclusion is not just a seat in a classroom; it is a feeling of being wanted, valued, and understood.”
For our community, this is a vital shift, and one that we have been advocating for. A child can attend 100% of the time and still be excluded if they are masking to survive. By making “belonging” a success metric, the report forces schools to look at the culture of the classroom, not just the compliance of the student.
But it’s not that simple. Creating belonging is difficult enough, requiring a whole school culture shift and attitude change, and one we have been trying to help bring about for a couple of years now with our Whole School Neurodiversity assemblies and training.
It’s a lofty goal, but one that could have real impact in terms of bringing down the very highly disproportionate rates of bullying and school exclusion of neurodivergent children.
But how do you measure belonging? And how do you make sure it’s not measured in a purely neurotypical framework, as measures of wellbeing and quality of life frequently are.
2. The End of the “Diagnosis Gatekeeper”
For years, AGN has campaigned against the diagnosis-led model of support. The Taskforce Report finally aligns with this, recommending that support must be needs-led and provided at the first point of struggle.
- The Holistic Neuro-Profile: The report suggests every child should have a profile that maps their sensory triggers, communication style, and executive function needs.
- The Advantage: This is a lifeline for the “invisible” cohort – the girls who mask effectively and the quiet internalisers. If schools must support based on a profile rather than a medical label, these children can finally access help before they reach the point of burnout.
- The Disadvantage: Getting a medical diagnosis can be hugely valuable, both for personal validation and understanding, but also because our Education, Health & Social Care Systems require evidence. So it’s great to say everything moving forward must be needs-led, but actually DfE guidance already says this – it doesn’t translate to that actually happening in real life. DWP guidance also says you don’t need a diagnosis to claim benefits but try claiming them without any evidence and see how far you get.
3. The “Commitment to Listen”: Trusting the Parent
One of the most profound recommendations is the “Commitment to Listen”. The group explicitly calls for schools to move away from “professional curiosity”—which can often feel like professional skepticism—and toward a “commitment to listen” to parents and young people.
This addresses the “Coke-Bottle Effect”; the phenomenon where an autistic child holds it together all day at school (compliance), only to explode at home (distress). The report validates that a parent’s report of a child’s distress at home is an indicator of unmet need in school, even if that child appears “fine” to their teacher.
If there’s one thing we’ve learnt from doing so much training in schools, though, it’s that there is a huge misunderstanding still around neurodivergent experiences, communication and behaviour. Listening is not enough.
We need belief.
And to believe, you must understand, or you must at least open your mind to the possibility that the way that you have been doing things is not the only right way, and just because it’s right for you, it does not mean it’s right for someone else.
One other thing: there’s no acknowledgement anywhere in the report that a neurodivergent child is likely to be part of a neurodivergent family. If all our systems were more understanding of that in assessing siblings and in communicating with parents, support could be put in place much faster. In our Facebook group we are often told of parents having to do the same parenting course more than once to get referrals for more than one child, which is both ridiculous and insulting at the same time.
4. Environmental Architecture vs. “Velcro Support”
The SEND proposals promise £1.6 billion for “inclusive mainstreaming”, which usually requires hiring more teaching assistants—but we don’t know what it means in this consultation. The Taskforce Report warns against this “Velcro TA” model, where a child is shadowed by an adult who acts as a barrier to social inclusion and independence.
Instead, the report calls for Environmental Adaptation:
- Sensory Audits: Changing the lights, the noise levels, and the rigid timetabling that causes distress.
- Adaptive Teaching: Upskilling the actual teacher to lead the classroom neuro-affirmatively, rather than delegating the “SEND kids” to an assistant in the corridor.
5. The Challenge: Where the Vision Meets the Reality
While the NDTFG Report is a neuro-affirmative plus, it exists in the shadow of the White Paper’s structural goals. We must remain vigilant about three key friction points:
- The ISP Trap: The White Paper pushes for Individual Support Plans (ISPs) to replace many EHCPs. While the Taskforce calls for “statutory and reliable” support, an ISP currently lacks the legal “teeth” of a Section F mandate. We must ensure the “expert vision” isn’t used as an excuse to downgrade legal protection.
- The Sanctuary Cohort: The report acknowledges that “attendance is a symptom of safety,” but the system still lacks a robust, funded pathway for what we call the Sanctuary Cohort – those who have already “crashed out” and require EOTAS (Education Other Than At School), Alternative Provision or specialised recovery.
- The Masking Paradox: The White Paper’s “early identification” still relies on teachers noticing. If a young person masks perfectly, the system – no matter how well-funded – will still miss them unless we move to universal profiling.
Our Verdict
The Neurodivergence Taskforce Report provides the “Heart and Soul” that the White Paper is missing. It understands the Double Empathy Problem and the sensory reality of neurodivergent life.
However, there are still big gaps. Neither the report nor the White Paper really addresses what was one of the most distressing leaks prior to publication—a reduction of support in secondary school, when that’s frequently when more support is needed, not less.
There’s no acknowledgement that the step-up from Primary to Secondary is a huge one for neurodivergent children, which frequently leaves children traumatised.
In our Facebook group, a survey found that the crisis point where a child either stopped attending school, or their mental health collapsed, was most often the February half-term of Year 7. That’s this week for most children. We need to make transitions more comprehensive and much longer for neurodivergent children; we recommend a transition period should last 18 months.
As a community, we must remember: The report is guidance; the 2014 SEND Act is the law. We should use the Taskforce’s language to demand better support, but we must never trade our legal “Safety Net” (the EHCP) for a “Belonging Vision” that isn’t backed by statutory power.
Find the report and the easy-read version here
About Cathy Wassell
Cathy Wassell is CEO & Founder of Autistic Girls Network charity and The Haven online school. She is a neurodivergent parent in a neurodivergent family.
Cathy is also the author of Nurturing Your Autistic Young Person.
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Also read:
- Beyond EHCPs: Why Inclusion Needs More Than a Document
- The Unacceptable Truth: 20 SEND legal rights at risk from the Government’s SEND reforms
- How health and family support systems are failing children starting school
- WEBINAR RECORDING! The implications for children’s legal rights to EHCPs and EOTAS of the Government’s SEND proposals
- When things go right: Shining a light on SEND Practitioners making a positive impact [Giveaway!]
- From suspicion to support: why the Government’s child protection reforms matter for disabled children
- Have your say on the future of transport for disabled children and young people
- Unison voices major concerns over SEND reform health plans for sick and disabled children out of school in the EOTAS consultation
- Top Tips for the EOTAS & EHCP consultation: Protect your child’s rights to statutory SEND support
- Navigating constraints: Why a former PCF chair thinks the current model is missing the mark for families
- Dear Secretary of State for Education, Lucy Powell: an Open Letter from Special Needs Jungle and SEND legal charity SOS!SEN
- Research: Disabled young people define inclusive education as “learning in the place that’s right for them”
- The Unacceptable Truth: 20 SEND legal rights at risk from the Government’s SEND reforms
- WEBINAR RECORDING! The implications for children’s legal rights to EHCPs and EOTAS of the Government’s SEND proposals
- Unison voices major concerns over SEND reform health plans for sick and disabled children out of school in the EOTAS consultation
- Top Tips for the EOTAS & EHCP consultation: Protect your child’s rights to statutory SEND support
- What might the SEND reform proposals mean for specialist tutors, alternative provision and EOTAS?
- When Home-to-School Transport Doesn’t Fit: The Reality of Section 19 EOTAS
- EOTAS Consultation: A further assault on children’s SEND rights with cost saving and reintegration to schools at its heart
- Home education: Five practical tips to create a neuro-affirming Unschooling environment* GIVEAWAY!
- When “fine” at school isn’t fine at home: the hidden cost of autistic masking on families
- SEND reforms and the forgotten children at risk of exclusion
- Research: Inclusion for neurodivergent pupils needs lived-experience trainers and getting the wider school environment right
- ARFID: Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder is much more than just “fussy eating”
What kind of government is “bold” enough to scrap statutory EHCPs from vulnerable children?May 16, 2025
The SEND reforms in the Schools White Paper reveal rights given, and rights stripped awayFebruary 24, 2026
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- WEBINAR RECORDING! The implications for children’s legal rights to EHCPs and EOTAS of the Government’s SEND proposals - September 3, 2026
- From suspicion to support: why the Government’s child protection reforms matter for disabled children - August 28, 2026
- Have your say on the future of transport for disabled children and young people - August 25, 2026
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