Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities

Monday 29 April 2024 · 11 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 7 Not answered 0

Key points

  • The Government has expanded funding for special educational needs and disabilities to 10.5 billion, a 60% increase over five years.
  • The Department is training 400 additional educational psychologists and investing 80 million in a supported internship programme.
  • Local authorities have a statutory duty to provide childcare places for all children, including those with special educational needs and disabilities.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Margaret Greenwood Lab
Children & Families
Context

The MP is concerned about the increasing demand for support services in her constituency.

Question

What steps she is taking to improve support for children with special educational needs and disabilities, noting recent increases and the need for reform due to rising demand?

Answer from Gillian Keegan

We have expanded funding to a record level of £10.5 billion, up by 60% in the last five years, and are reforming the system to deal with increased demand. We are making the biggest investment in building special educational needs school places in our country's history.

Answered
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Q2 Janet Daby Lab Lewisham East
NHS Education
Context

Children in Lewisham are facing long wait times for autism diagnoses, exacerbated by a shortage of clinical staff.

Question

Why has the Government failed to recognise the seriousness of the shortage of educational psychologists and what is being done to recruit more as well as tackle education, health and care plan waiting times?

Answer from Gillian Keegan

Around half of new EHCPs were issued within the statutory time limit. We are training 400 more educational psychologists, a big increase.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Details on measures to reduce EHCP waiting times and direct recognition of the seriousness of shortage not provided.

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Q3 Lloyd Russell-Moyle Lab
Children & Families
Context

A constituent with a child having severe learning difficulties faced long wait times for an EHCP and is concerned about the suitability of listed schools.

Question

What is being done to ensure councils and other entities involved in EHCP creation are not ignoring what schools say and are listing suitable schools that can cope with the needs?

Answer from Gillian Keegan

We have programmes in place to support local authorities, but the biggest thing we are doing is increasing the number of special educational needs school places. This will be a 60,000 increase—a generation's largest—in stark contrast to Labour's reduction.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific measures to improve EHCP processes and ensure suitable placements not provided.

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Q4 Alistair Strathern Lab Hitchin
Children & Families
Context

Forces families face challenges in securing EHCP assessments due to frequent relocations.

Question

How can we address the issue of forced restarts of EHCP processes when families move locations frequently?

Answer from Gillian Keegan

We are always looking to improve the system and have an improvement plan in place. We will take away the hon. Gentleman's specific point about people who move around from place to place, but the most important thing is that we have increased the budget.

Not addressed: Specific measures for forces families not addressed; focus shifted to general improvements and funding increase.

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Q5 Stephen Morgan Lab Portsmouth South
Children & Families Local Government
Context

Parents are concerned about low standards attainment and rising SEND waiting lists under the current council leadership.

Question

Does the Secretary of State agree that families in Portsmouth deserve better than a council that is failing children?

Answer from Gillian Keegan

Yes, and that is the Conservative Government.

Not addressed: No substantive details or measures provided; only a broad affirmation.

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Q6 Margaret Greenwood Lab
Education Mental Health Children & Families
Context

The MP is concerned about the risk of suicide among autistic children and high persistent absence rates in schools.

Question

What assessment have the Government made on the percentage of children missing from school with special educational needs, and what specific measures will be taken to address their needs?

Answer from Gillian Keegan

We have a special educational needs and alternative provision improvement plan. We are training more SEN co-ordinators, changing teacher training, investing in national professional qualifications, training 400 more educational psychologists, and adding speech and language therapists.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific assessment details not provided; focus on workforce improvements.

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Q7 Robin Walker Con
Education Employment Benefits & Welfare
Context

The question follows the publication of the Buckland review and a previous Education Committee call for bolstering careers support for children with SEN. There is an ongoing need to provide wider opportunities for young people with autism.

Question

I welcome what Secretary State has just said about the workforce, but a week on from the publication of the Buckland review and two years after the Education Committee's call, can she update us on what Ministers and the Department are doing to work with the DWP to provide wider opportunities for young people with autism?

Answer from Gillian Keegan

We are investing £80 million in a supported internship programme, which will be doubled by March 2025. The DWP is setting up a task group following the Buckland review to consider all recommendations.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The specific ask about wider opportunities for young people with autism was not fully addressed; only mentions of funding and general initiatives are provided without direct reference to employment support for autistic youth.

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Q8 Neil Hudson Con Epping Forest
Children & Families
Context

There has been a significant increase in complex needs funding, with specific figures and commitments from the spring Budget, including £105 million of funding for special free schools. The Conservative Government is promoting this as evidence of support for children with SEND.

Question

With a 60% rise in complex needs funding over five years, reaching £10.5 billion in 2024-25, and the spring Budget's provision of £105 million for special free schools, does my right hon. Friend agree that it is this Conservative Government working hard for the life chances of every child?

Answer from Gillian Keegan

Absolutely right; we are investing record funding and building more places than ever before in our country's history, unlike previous Oppositions which failed to support children with SEND adequately.

Not addressed: No specific new information or commitments were provided regarding the life chances of every child.

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Q9 Caroline Ansell Con
Education Employment
Context

The MP experienced only one violent incident during her teaching career, but is now hearing from staff that such incidents are becoming more common. She references a conversation on Saturday where a teaching assistant was forced to retire due to stress.

Question

Teaching staff increasingly report violence and stress, with some retiring due to unmet needs and special educational requirements. Given the Secretary of State's outlined provisions, will she meet me to discuss specific local concerns?

Answer from Gillian Keegan

Yes; we are investing more in behaviour hubs and alternative provision schools, with 77 new ones being built, of which 51 are already open and the rest will be opening soon.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The specific ask for a meeting was not addressed directly. The response focused on general support measures rather than committing to a local discussion.

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Q10 Vicky Ford Con
Education Children & Families
Context

Essex has seen a delay in providing education health and care plans for children, but the county council is now recruiting additional staff. There are new special schools being built and large numbers of schools needing to be rebuilt due to RAAC issues.

Question

With long delays in obtaining EHC plans and building new special schools, can the Secretary of State agree that rebuilding programmes could provide an opportunity for specialist hubs within mainstream schools?

Answer from Gillian Keegan

We urge local authorities to consider what will best meet the needs of young people in their area as we rebuild schools affected by RAAC, with flexibility on free school places to address local need.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The specific ask regarding specialist hubs was not directly addressed; the answer focused more broadly on addressing local needs through rebuilding programmes.

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Q11 Helen Hayes Lab Dulwich and West Norwood
Children & Families
Context

Coram's 2024 childcare survey found that only 6% of local authorities are confident in having enough childcare places for disabled children. The April expansion should ensure that every eligible family with a disabled child has access to a place.

Question

Given Coram's findings and the lack of reference to disabled children in recent statements, is the Secretary of State really confident that every eligible family with a disabled child can access childcare places?

Answer from Gillian Keegan

Local authorities have a statutory duty to provide places for all children, including those with SEND. We are working with organisations like Dingley's Promise to review inclusion and encourage providers to consider offering more places.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The specific ask was not directly answered; the response provided general assurances without confirming if every family has access to a place.

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