The Education Secretary has told ITV News the government is listening and wants to improve support – not remove it – for children with special educational needs and disabilities, ITV News Political Reporter Jasmine Cameron Chileshe explains
“We now have over 70 children on the SEN register, which is about 25%,” Katie Higgs, Special Educational Needs Coordinator at Theale Church of England Primary School in Reading, said.
This mainstream state school has seen an uptick in demand for special educational needs and disabilities (Send) support in recent years.
But despite the pressures, staff said inclusivity is at the heart of their curriculum – an approach the government hopes to replicate across the country.
“It’s about individuals, but it’s about them all being together despite the challenges that they face every single day,” Katie explained.
“We run weekly gifted and talented groups from dance to art to history to computing. And all of our EHCP children, our SEN children support, all are involved in something that they enjoy.”
Katie Higgs, Send Coordinator at Theale Church of England Primary School in Reading, said inclusivity is at the heart of their curriculum
Visiting the school this week, Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson argued that increased investment was key to reproducing the success of Theale nationwide and tackling the Send crisis.
Her department on Friday announced a £200 million investment in teaching training, aimed at equipping staff across nurseries, schools and colleges with the tools to support pupils with Send.
Staff will be given skills to adapt their teaching style to the needs of pupils and encouraged to strengthen their understanding of assistive technology, such as speech-to-text dictation tools.
The announcement follows the government’s pledge to invest £3 billion across three years in order to create more than 50,000 new specialist places.
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The move was partially funded by cancelling the planned building of dozens of free schools.
The government’s widely anticipated Send reforms are due to be published later this year as part of the Schools White Paper.
ITV News has extensively reported on the challenges facing the sector, from parents taking legal action against councils to local authorities forced to spend billions of pounds on private school places.
In recent months, MPs, parents and campaigners have warned the government against pursuing a cost-cutting agenda or watering down the legal rights of parents to challenge Send support.
Speaking exclusively to ITV News, the education secretary rejected suggestions that the government was looking to reduce legal support, arguing that the government was taking its time to get reforms right.
“Our intention behind all of these reforms is to improve support, not remove support. This is about better outcomes earlier, more timely support and parents getting the help that they need,” she said.
Phillipson said she acknowledged that for many parents, trust in the system had deteriorated.
“I’ve been clear right from the start with parents and campaigners that this is a complex area where we’ve ended up with a system that isn’t working,” she said.
“I know that for parents who’ve had to really, really fight, I know that often trust is low and confidence is low, and we’ve got to build up that system right now, ahead of any longer-term reform.
“But this will be a process of change over many, many years. This is not going to be quick, but what we can do more quickly is start to improve the system we’ve got.”
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson was asked whether she can guarantee there won’t be watering down of legal rights
Teachers on the frontline of the Send crisis say reform can not come soon enough.
“It really is a crisis. Even those children who have a diagnosis and a statement to support them, the facilities aren’t there to meet those statements on quite a lot of occasions,” Paul Whiteman, General Secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, said.
He welcomed the government’s latest £200m announcement, but warned that tackling staff shortages and adopting a more joined-up approach to Send provision will be key.
“This can only be one part of the jigsaw,” he added.
“For too long, schools have been expected to solve this alone. They need access to good speech and language therapy, good health services and great social care as well to fully support children with these needs.”
Mum-of-two Carly Philpott told ITV News that a more joined-up approach could have prevented her children from falling through the cracks.
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Her 18-year-old son, Carson, has autism, while her 16-year-old daughter, Bryony, is severely dyslexic; both struggled within mainstream schools.
“There was no support, I don’t believe there was any support, and if there was support that they were offering, it wasn’t being put in place,” she explained. “I think they (teachers) need to have more training on it 100 per cent because there’s so many children with additional needs.”
Her daughter’s poor experience in particular had ripple effects across the family.
“She actually probably had two years of actually no learning at all,” Carly said.
“When she was in the class, if she needed help, she wasn’t getting it. And then she’d get up and walk around, then they’d say she was disruptive and take her out of the class… So in the end, she was crying every day. She was coming home and taking it out on me, taking it out on Carson.”
Mother-of-two Carly Philpott says a more joined-up approach could have helped her children
Meanwhile, Carson, who has been in and out of mainstream education since year eight, says his schooling experience also had a profound impact on him.
“Obviously, I grew up with no support. It was very traumatic,” he explained.
“There’s a gap in my childhood where you’re supposed to go to school, have fun learning, have fun with your friends, and socialise. And I didn’t get any of that.”
He hopes Send reforms will put the needs of teenagers like him front and centre.
“I’m really glad there’s going to be support for all these kids and teenagers that aren’t getting the support, but might get it now because of this extra money being put in,” he said.
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