SEND Overhaul Sparks Anxiety as Families Press for Clarity
SEND Overhaul Sparks Anxiety as Families Press for Clarity
Leaked reforms plan sweeping changes to EHCPs, including mid-career reviews; families warn of capacity and safeguarding risks and urge firmer rights and clearer support.
Leaked government plans for reforms to England's SEND system signal a radical overhaul of how children receive support. The proposals, anticipated in a Schools White Paper, reportedly include mid-path reviews of education, health and care plans (EHCPs) after primary school and again after GCSEs. Ministers argue the changes could simplify processes and speed up decisions, but families, teachers and councils warn of serious capacity and safeguarding risks if resources don't keep pace.
The National Audit Office has called the current SEND system 'broken', with local authorities projected to spend £14.8bn on SEND this year, up from about £5bn a decade ago. In this climate, many families rely on EHCPs to secure legally enforceable rights to the support their children need.
One parent, Ailith, whose daughter Thalia has Down's syndrome, described EHCPs as essential but warned that more rounds of reassessment could erode safeguards and disrupt ongoing support. She noted that her child attends a mainstream school with an inclusion hub and stressed flexibility is crucial to meet Thalia's lifelong needs.
Sunshine and Smiles, a charity supporting families of children with Down's syndrome, says the system must avoid a one-size-fits-all approach and ensure that plans are implemented consistently across schools, health and social care.
Education groups warn that without clear accountability and adequate capacity, those changes could mean delays or gaps in services just as children move from primary to secondary education. Critics say the White Paper must spell out duties and funding pathways to keep protections intact, while reducing bureaucratic delays.
With the policy document expected soon, families and councils say they want robust safeguards, timely assessments, clearer responsibilities for health, education and social care, and a system that supports lifelong needs rather than re-running assessments at every milestone.
