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SEND and Alternative Provision
06 March 2023
Lead MP
Claire Coutinho
Debate Type
Ministerial Statement
Tags
NHSSocial CareEducationTaxationEmploymentForeign AffairsMental HealthChildren & Families
Other Contributors: 40
At a Glance
Claire Coutinho raised concerns about send and alternative provision in the House of Commons. A government minister responded. Other MPs also contributed.
How the Debate Unfolded
MPs spoke in turn to share their views and ask questions. Here's what each person said:
Government Statement
NHSSocial CareEducationTaxationEmploymentForeign AffairsMental HealthChildren & Families
Government Statement
Claire Coutinho, Minister of State for Children and Families at the Department for Education, announced improvements to support children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or in alternative provision (AP). She acknowledged the struggles parents face within the current system but highlighted that significant progress has been made over the past four years. This includes an increase in high-needs budgets by over 50% and a new single national system aimed at delivering better experiences for children aged from birth to 25. The plan outlines three main objectives: ensuring every child enjoys their childhood, regaining parental trust, and making sure funding is effectively used. New standards will cover early years, school, and post-16 provision, alongside practice guides based on best practices such as autism, mental health, and early language support. Local SEND and AP partnerships will develop inclusion plans aligned with national standards to improve local delivery of services. Additionally, the plan includes training more special educational needs co-ordinators and educational psychologists, investing £2.6 billion by 2025 for new provision places, and increasing capacity in supported internships and school mental health support teams. The minister also committed to a stronger evidence base through workforce planning partnerships with Health and Social Care and piloting new ways of working. Accountability measures include oversight from Ofsted and CQC, performance dashboards, and regional expert partnerships funded by £70 million. A national implementation board will monitor progress.
Mary Chapman
Con
Croydon North
Question
Will my hon. Friend outline how she plans to address specific challenges such as autism and mental health support, considering that many children with these needs are currently not receiving the necessary assistance?
Minister reply
To address these issues, we will develop new practice guides based on best practices such as those for early language support, autism, and mental health. Additionally, our plan includes expanding school and college mental health support teams to cover around 500 operational teams by 2024, ensuring that more children receive the necessary support.
Chris Ruane
Lab
Vale of Clwyd
Question
What assurance can be given to parents who currently struggle with the system and are concerned about their child’s access to alternative provision? How will this plan ensure that all children have adequate support?
Minister reply
We are committed to making sure every child receives appropriate support. This includes establishing local SEND and AP partnerships to develop inclusion plans, ensuring good-quality alternative provision is available and focusing on early intervention through training more educational psychologists. We also aim to increase capacity in supported internships and improve the transition into employment, thereby addressing immediate concerns of parents.
Tonia Antoniazzi
Con
Great Yarmouth
Question
In her statement, the Minister mentioned the importance of digital technology for EHCPs. Could she elaborate on how this will improve the experience for families?
Minister reply
We plan to support local authorities in increasing their use of digital technology for EHCPs so that the process is easier and quicker for families. By providing a tailored list of settings able to meet the needs outlined in an EHCP, we aim to enable informed preferences for placements, ensuring children receive appropriate support.
Jon Ashworth
Lab
Leicester South
Question
The Minister mentioned accountability measures but did not address local government's role. Can she clarify how the Government plans to hold local authorities accountable for delivering on these commitments?
Minister reply
Ofsted, the Care Quality Commission and the Department for Education will provide oversight and ongoing monitoring of reforms through local inclusion plans. From this autumn, parents will be able to monitor performance through local and national inclusion dashboards, ensuring accountability across the board.
Houghton and Sunderland South
Question
Does the Minister truly believe that her plan will improve lives of children with special educational needs? Can she address current issues faced by families in the system today?
Minister reply
The reforms are systemic, addressing challenges such as communication with councils and timeliness of EHCPs. Funding has increased for high-needs block funding and mainstream schools, alongside a £2.6 billion capital programme to increase specialist places. Teacher training and accountability within the system are also being reviewed.
Robin Walker
Con
Evesham
Question
How can we maximise opportunities for children with special educational needs through inclusion in mainstream schools, early identification of need, and specialist provision where necessary?
Minister reply
Early identification is key to preventing escalation of needs. The Minister supports new specialist provision like the autism school in south Worcestershire. She also welcomes working with local campaigners such as her hon. Friend on this issue.
Battersea
Question
Will the Government include the curriculum framework for children living with sight loss in their new standards?
Minister reply
The Minister will work to ensure that best possible evidence is included from all providers. She also highlights a new apprenticeship for teachers of children with sensory impairment as an area for potential collaboration.
Matthew Hancock
Con
West Suffolk
Question
I congratulate the Minister, her predecessor, my hon. Friend the Member for Colchester (Will Quince), and the Secretary of State for Education on an excellent paper. I would press her further on the initial teacher training review. When will that conclude? That is obviously crucial. Early identification is at the centre of this review. Early identification of neurodiverse conditions—including, for example, dyslexia —is critical, so what tangible action will we see for better screening and better early identification so that every neurodiverse child can reach their potential, and we can support all children to succeed?
Minister reply
I thank my right hon. Friend for that question. Obviously, he has been a doughty campaigner on the issue of dyslexia, and he has had many constructive conversations with me about the issue. On initial teacher training, we will be working at pace to get that right. On early identification, one thing that will really help is that we are setting out a best practice guide on early speech and language support. Coupled with the phonics test, I think that will be effective in working out which children are struggling with their reading, so that we can get the best support in place as quickly as possible.
Alex Cunningham
Lab
Stockton North
Question
This is quite a confession from the Minister after 13 years of Tory Government. In my constituency, children have waited months, if not years, for an education, health and care plan. Children are waiting three years for an autism diagnosis. There is parental anxiety over schools that do not have the right provision for their children, and anger that special needs children are excluded for misbehaving and left at home with no support. In one case, a teenager with a maturity age many years younger was left to cope in mainstream—they don’t! Does the Minister really think that parents trust her and her failing Government to get it right this time?
Minister reply
I am not sure I would like to thank the hon. Gentleman for that particular question, but I understand the frustration parents feel. It is something I have talked to lots of parents about since I became an MP, as I am in an area that has seen a huge rise in need. That is something the system is facing. The Conservative Government enhanced parents’ rights through the Children and Families Act 2014. We are seeing a huge rise in needs and we are setting out plans to deal with that. One thing that I think will help in particular—he mentions cases of children who are struggling in the system to find a place—are the local inclusion plans and partnership working. We will look at every single part of the system to ensure that we can assess needs and that there is suitable provision for all children and young people.
Edward Timpson
Con
Eddisbury
Question
I refer Members to my registered interests. I thank my hon. Friend for what is both a detailed and serious piece of work that identifies the issues that remain in the special educational needs and disabilities and alternative provision system. She will know that I took the original reforms through in 2014 in the Children and Families Act. The legislative framework still holds together well, but as the Chairman of the Select Committee said, this is a lot to do with the implementation and the experience on the ground, not least when it comes to the role of health in bringing EHCPs together, especially in mainstream schools. To that end, can she say a little more about how she will make health bodies comply with their statutory duties, and about any greater powers that the Health Secretary may have to take robust action where children’s needs are not being met, both within the current legislative framework and in any future national standards? It is so important that this is done with parents and children, not to them.
Minister reply
I thank my hon. and learned Friend for everything he has done on children’s policy in his time in government. He is absolutely right that we must make sure the health sector is also held accountable. One thing we have done is to change the area inspection framework, as I mentioned, which means that for the first time we will have a social care inspector looking at the health element. The Health and Care Act 2022 requires every integrated care board to have a named person accountable for SEND, which will take on the statutory responsibilities from clinical commissioning groups.
Rachael Maskell
Lab/Co-op
York Central
Question
The implementation plan will not work if the workforce is not in place. As we know, to be able to achieve an EHCP, the workforce needs to be in place and it takes many years to train. Those professionals are not there currently, so how will the Minister ensure that the workforce is in place not just in the health pathway but in the school? The experience I am seeing in a particular multi-academy trust in York is that it is laying off the staff who would take responsibility for those children, as opposed to providing the therapeutic environment that children so need.
Minister reply
The hon. Lady is absolutely right that specialist support is really important. We are working with the Department of Health and Social Care on specialist health support, whether that is occupational therapists or speech and language therapists, but we are also training educational psychologists and changing the special educational needs co-ordinator training. More importantly, we want all teachers to be trained in SEN. That is why we are looking at initial teacher training and the early careers framework. A huge proportion of the school population now has an SEN and we need everybody to be trained in it.
Theo Clarke
Con
Stafford
Question
I welcome the Government’s new improvement plan on special educational needs and disabilities. I recently held an autism roundtable in Stafford to discuss the pressures parents are facing with gaps in support locally. What new support will now be available for parents of children with special educational needs?
Minister reply
I thank my hon. Friend for that question and for meeting me when she pressed me on this issue. We will be putting lots of things in place for parents, but in particular we will be ensuring that a specialist workforce is in place, that increased funding is going into schools and that there is better communication from councils, which is one of the new standards we will be bringing in. Hopefully, all that will help give parents confidence in the system. On the particular challenge with EHCPs, we will be streamlining and digitising them, which will hopefully help parents with the bureaucracy of trying to get their children the support they need.
Barnsley South
Question
Alongside my hon. Friend the Member for Barnsley Central (Dan Jarvis), I recently held a meeting with parents of children with special educational needs. They raised a number of issues, including having to wait years for support, a lack of psychologists available and a lack of specialist school places. Barnsley has one of the highest numbers of EHCP plans in the country. I therefore welcome a number of the proposals in the statement, but how many young people with SEND will have left formal education before the plans come into effect? May I press the Minister again on what resources are available to help people now?
Minister reply
As I mentioned, we have been increasing the budget, the high needs block, for the last four years. We have also set up further funding for schools, which will be going into the system. On specialist provision, as I said we have 92 new free special schools, with 49 in the pipeline and seven opening in September. We have also announced a further 33.
John Redwood
Con
Wokingham
Question
I warmly welcome more resource and better service in this crucial area. Where new schools are being considered, will the Minister ensure that local MPs are properly consulted, because there will be a lot of local public interest in the location, the style of development and the impact on existing provision?
Minister reply
I thank my right hon. Friend for that question. Yes, I am happy to discuss with him the school—I think there might be two—coming forward in his area.
Munira Wilson
Lib Dem
Twickenham
Question
This plan comes three years after the SEND review was launched. Given that most of the national standards will not be published until late 2025, the new EHCP template will not be rolled out until 2025, the cross-departmental steering group will not complete its work until 2025 and no new primary legislation will be proposed until at least 2025, what message would the Minister like to give to the parents and children in my constituency and right across the country who have already been waiting too long and fighting far too hard to access the support they need and are entitled to?
Minister reply
We have not waited for the improvement plan to take action. Not only have we increased the overall budget for the high needs block by 50% in the last four years; we have increased school funding to record highs, we are bringing online more educational psychologists and we are building more specialist school places. All that work is under way. We are improving speech and language in primary school, and we are now looking at what we can do in the early years. All that stuff is under way. We are trying to make sure we can take forward standards in a way that works. We will consult heavily with parents and carers. It is really important to get that right, but there is much action we have been taking already.
Nigel Adams
Con
Selby and Ainsty
Question
Like many right hon. and hon. Members, I have met and got to know families who have children with special educational needs and disabilities. The difficulties those families face in finding the right educational support in the right location can be frustrating and tortuous, as the Minister will know. For too long, the most vulnerable children in Selby have had to travel long distances to find the education they need. As she will know, there has been discussion for some time about a new SEND facility in Selby. I welcome her plan and I know she is passionate about this area. Can she inform me, and the families and children in the Selby district and North Yorkshire, when such a facility will be delivered?
Minister reply
My right hon. Friend has long campaigned for this kind of facility in Selby. I would be happy to meet him to talk further about the details. We are setting out a lot more special free schools in different areas. For those who have not got one in the recent tranche, we will, I am sure, set out more in due course, but we will also be setting out local inclusion plans, which will mean that every area has to assess and meet the needs of its children.
Olivia Blake
Lab
Sheffield Hallam
Question
Declaring an interest as the chair of the all-party parliamentary group on special educational needs and disabilities, Olivia raises concerns about the national standards potentially leading to a levelling down of good practices. She is also concerned that mental health support for children with SEND needs to be more accessible.
Minister reply
Claire Coutinho reassures that while national standards will not be levelled down but set as minimums, she emphasises rolling out measures to improve school support and collaboration between the Department of Health and Social Care on child and adolescent mental health services.
James Wild
Con
North West Norfolk
Question
Welcoming measures to help children with SEND, James enquires about considering Norfolk and Waveney as one of the early language support pathfinder areas and suggests accelerating reforms.
Minister reply
Claire Coutinho agrees to discuss options for Norfolk further and expresses delight at rolling out pathfinders.
Mary Foy
Lab
City of Durham
Question
Citing research from the Disabled Children’s Partnership, Mary highlights that only one in five parents report receiving adequate support for their disabled children. She questions what measures are being taken to expedite case tribunals and ensure timely access to crucial support.
Minister reply
Claire Coutinho acknowledges the issue of delayed assessments but notes efforts such as workforce strategies, local inclusion plans, and an inspection framework to address needs more effectively.
Question
Concerned about families being misled by private providers, Robert supports the Minister’s plan for more localized education provision that is closer to home and cost-effective.
Minister reply
Claire Coutinho agrees that too many children travel far from home for specialist care but emphasises her strategy to ensure local areas assess and meet their needs.
Richard Foord
Lib Dem
Honiton and Sidmouth
Question
Welcoming the Minister’s commitment to efficient spending, Richard expresses concerns about a constituent whose child's placement funding is in limbo. He seeks commitments on timely SEND assessments and following children with the necessary funding.
Minister reply
Claire Coutinho addresses timeliness in the new area SEND inspection framework and mentions plans for educational psychologists to speed up assessments.
Question
Recognising the daily grind of poor communication, Siobhan highlights family exhaustion due to systemic challenges and seeks commitments on better guidance, training, and communication standards.
Minister reply
Claire Coutinho commits to setting out more guidance for SEN caseworkers in councils to improve communication.
Tan Dhesi
Lab
Slough
Question
Questioning the effectiveness of legislative safeguards under the Children and Families Act 2014, Tan argues that new standards without legislative backing might not deliver better outcomes.
Minister reply
Claire Coutinho emphasises a combination of plans within her strategy to address increased needs and improve awareness of different conditions.
Jeremy Wright
Con
Kenilworth and Southam
Question
Acknowledging the strain in the assessment process, Jeremy welcomes measures such as funding for additional educational psychologists but seeks immediate steps to accelerate assessments.
Minister reply
Claire Coutinho highlights plans to increase educational psychologists and ensure early identification to provide timely support.
Question
Seeking a meeting to discuss the case of Oliver, who has an EHCP plan but lacks specialist provision due to resource constraints.
Minister reply
Claire Coutinho expresses willingness to meet and discusses ensuring proper support for individuals with autism.
Question
Welcoming the focus on new neurodiverse conditions, Tom advocates for faster diagnosis and a national campaign encouraging employers to hire neurodiverse individuals.
Minister reply
Claire Coutinho acknowledges the value of neurodiverse people's contributions and expresses interest in exploring further initiatives.
Jim Shannon
DUP
Strangford
Question
Expressing support for previous statements, Jim highlights challenges with integrating children into multi-ability groups due to funding pressures. He advocates for a pupil-focused overhaul of the system and asks about consultation with Northern Ireland.
Minister reply
Claire Coutinho agrees on the need for a focus on pupils and highlights early identification, flexibility, and ensuring each child gets necessary support.
Robert Courts
Con
Oxford West and Abingdon
Question
SEND provision is one of the most critical issues in education in Oxfordshire. Parents frequently express frustration with the county council's processes. The MP welcomes the extra 50% funding since 2019 but asks what measures are being taken to streamline bureaucracy and improve access to diagnosis.
Minister reply
The minister acknowledges parents' frustrations and commits to streamlining the EHCP process, increasing educational psychologists, and improving early identification in mainstream settings.
James Sunderland
Lab
Workington
Question
The MP is thrilled about funding for a new SEND school in Bracknell but highlights the importance of diagnosis and improvement in CAMHS.
Minister reply
The minister confirms increased support for educational psychologists and acknowledges the need to work with the Department of Health and Social Care on CAMHS improvements.
Dean Russell
Con
Daventry
Question
Parents and carers often face significant struggles navigating the system, leading to heartbreaking situations. The MP asks for a commitment to streamline bureaucracy without creating more red tape.
Minister reply
The minister pledges to streamline the EHCP process and reduce paperwork burdens on parents, ensuring better access to specialist support.
Julian Lewis
Con
New Forest East
Question
The MP inquires about the collaboration between DfE and DHSC regarding ADHD diagnosis bottlenecks caused by a lack of psychiatrists.
Minister reply
The minister confirms close collaboration with DHSC, including joint publication of reports and work on autism diagnostic pathways.
Lia Nici
Lab
Great Grimsby
Question
The MP commends the statement for its focus on intervention rather than destination and asks if it aligns with levelling up efforts.
Minister reply
The minister agrees that improving skills and life chances is part of levelling up and offers to meet further to discuss career promotion in SEND.
Richard Drax
Con
South Dorset
Question
Dorset Council faces issues with pre-SEND diagnosis, especially for autism. The MP asks about the status of a special school set to open on Portland.
Minister reply
The minister reiterates plans to increase educational psychologists and work on new autism diagnostic pathways, agreeing to meet regarding the delayed school opening.
Bassetlaw
Question
The MP highlights the variability of SEND support across regions and asks about efforts to equalise this provision.
Minister reply
The minister agrees that reducing regional variation is vital, aiming for more consistency through evidence-based practices.
Andy Carter
Lab
Glenrothes
Question
The MP welcomes the focus on early intervention but asks about funding stability and commissioning contracts for alternative provision.
Minister reply
The minister commits to bringing out new standards, including in Ofsted's area framework, to improve quality and ensure proper support.
Peter Gibson
Con
Darlington
Question
The MP congratulates the announcement of a new school in Darlington but asks about meeting unmet needs and improving CAMHS assessment times.
Minister reply
The minister confirms close collaboration with DHSC on mental health support, including through local inclusion plans.
Mary Robinson
Con
Cheadle
Question
The MP welcomes the announcement but expresses concern over delays in a new SEND school's development.
Minister reply
The minister agrees to meet and discuss further, aiming to address any issues causing delays.
Gary Sambrook
Con
Birmingham Stechford
Question
Parents often struggle with bureaucratic processes in SEND provision. The MP highlights a new free school announcement but calls for wider sponsorship bids.
Minister reply
The minister supports the bid for improving specialist education provision in south Birmingham, aiming to reduce postcode lottery effects.
Mark Jenkinson
Con
Workington
Question
I welcome the statement. I should probably declare an interest, as the husband of a senior learning support teaching assistant. Sinkholes are making playgrounds unusable in one pupil referral unit, windows are being locked owing to fumes from a petrol station built next door to another, and there is widespread use of unregistered alternative provision. My Labour council has long ignored the needs of children who are unable to attend mainstream schools and who, like all children, need to be given opportunities. Its recent alternative provision building programme ignored west Cumbria entirely. I have supported a bid as part of the recent programme—the results will be announced later in the year—for an AP free school to be built in my constituency. May I ask the Minister to help me to give these kids a chance by enabling AP schools to be built outside the control of the council, which sees them only as a problem to be managed rather than as youngsters who need to be nurtured?
Minister reply
I thank my hon. Friend for everything he has done in his area for alternative provision, which he clearly cares about. AP schools are important because they are where some of our most vulnerable young people go, and we need to ensure that they are of the highest possible standard. I look forward to seeing my hon. Friend’s bid.
Shadow Comment
Bridget Phillipson
Shadow Comment
Bridget Phillipson, Labour's shadow minister for children and families, questioned whether the Government’s plan was adequate to address the urgent needs of parents and children with special educational needs. She highlighted that many reforms would not take effect until after 2025, leaving current children in a difficult situation without immediate support improvements. The response welcomed the focus on early intervention but criticised cuts to childcare providers under Conservative rule. Phillipson also questioned how some proposals aimed at reducing EHCPs could be achieved and whether this would make obtaining an EHCP harder for those who need it most. She emphasised the importance of training for school staff supporting children with additional needs, noting that less than half of teachers feel adequately trained in this area. Finally, Phillipson called for a national response to systemic failures and expressed concern over Labour's position on the direction of travel set out by the Government.
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