| SPOTLIGHT |
The Government has done little to help schools and local authorities in meeting the challenge of increased SEND need, the National Education Union (NEU) has claimed.
According to its survey of more than 8,000 members, the NEU found that seven in eight teachers and support staff said the resources they have for pupils with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) are “insufficient”.
The report revealed that one in three respondents (33%) said they have “no behaviour support team whatsoever”. Two in five (41%) reported no counsellor or occupational health specialist.
A quarter reported no educational psychologist (25%), Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services support (26%) or speech and language therapist (28%).
The NEU said: “With waiting lists growing, a majority (56%) tell us they are not confident that a referral for SEND assessment, diagnosis or specialist support, will lead to that pupil/student getting the help they need.”
A year on from the Government’s SEND and AP Improvement Plan, the union asked members what provision they have at school or local authority level to support pupils with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) or who may need to be referred for one.
The survey found the demand for more resources is very high, with between 86%–95% of respondents identifying “a need or greater need” for each provision.
Only 9% of respondents said they have “sufficient” access to learning support assistants in class. Although 76% said that while provision was available, this was “not enough”.
Since 2015 the number of children and young people with an EHCP has increased by 115%.
The report noted: “The Department for Education has only increased funding by 90% and that is before eight years of inflation is taken into account. There exists a £4.6 billion gap between funding which the DfE provides through the High Needs Block and the cost of restoring the value of an EHCP to its real-terms value in 2015-16”.
During 2022, there were 114,482 initial requests for a plan, up from 93,300 in 2021. As of January 2023, the number of children with EHC plans increased nationally to 517,000, up by 9% from the previous year.
In 2022, 30,932 children waited beyond the legal limit for an EHCP.
Daniel Kebede, Joint General Secretary of the National Education Union, said: “It is shameful that the Government has done so little to help schools and local authorities in meeting the challenge of increased SEND need.
“The crisis in SEND funding has gone on for too long. It weighs heavily on schools that want to help but are stretched to the limit. We are seeing children spending too much of their journey through the school system without the support they need.
“Teachers and leaders are losing faith in a system that should meet need, but either can’t or won’t. Local authorities are forced to ration support to parents after a long wait and this rationing is driving up the number of tribunals."
Kebede added: “Undiagnosed SEND or unmet SEND need is frequently related to exclusions, and this will often come down to a lack of proper support. It is in the interests of everyone in the school community and Government to resource SEND well and ensure that children’s engagement is not jeopardised simply because of cuts.
“We need to see timely access to support and a much more flexible curriculum, in order that students flourish in a well-resourced learning environment. All of that starts with a major funding commitment from Government.”
The Department for Education (DfE) has been approached for comment.
Lottie Winson
