SEND Provision: East of England — [Sir Mark Hendrick in the Chair]

Constituents face issues such as delayed ADHD assessments, lack of specialist school placements, and difficulties navigating the system for EHCPs. The current process is hard to navigate, with long wait times and insufficient support resources.

Welcomed additional SEND places in Norfolk schools but highlighted issues such as the need for more specialist schools, SENCO recruitment challenges, high tribunal costs, and lengthy travel times for rural children.

Reported a 40% increase in EHCP requests and nearly 30% increase in suspensions, highlighting the need to actively include charities in planning to improve provision.

The MP paid tribute to Raw Learning for providing a fantastic service that transforms the lives of young people with SEND. He noted that families often wait more than six months for EHCP decisions, leading many children to be left out of school during this period.

He highlighted the growing number of pupils with SEND requirements in the UK, which has more than doubled to 1.2 million in a decade. In his constituency, Somersham Primary School and Kimbolton School face significant challenges due to an increasing demand for specialised support. He also mentioned that 80% of students in independent schools without EHCPs are not protected from VAT fees and that further education providers like Cambridge Regional College struggle with the additional strain on staff.

David Burton-Sampson stated that 1,000 children in his constituency have education, health and care plans, representing over 5% of all children. He discussed the shortage of educational psychologists and social workers, as well as the challenge faced by schools to support SEN children adequately.

Reported a significant rise in demand for SEND services in his constituency over the past decade, citing factors like the pandemic, cost of living crisis, diet issues, and mental health challenges. Emphasised rural areas' unique struggles and urged the formula to better account for these costs.

Asked if ringfenced funding with tracked impact measures could help very good SEND schools to flourish further, using Five Acre Wood school in her constituency as an example. My hon. Friend the Member for North West Norfolk, the shadow Minister, did not answer my question on the need and work of special schools. I asked if the ringfencing of funding for SEND schools with tracked impact measures could help these amazing schools that go above and beyond in supporting highly vulnerable children and their families.

The MP highlighted the ongoing SEND crisis in Suffolk, noting that families have been let down by a system that fails to meet their needs. He cited multiple Ofsted/CQC reports over nearly a decade and pointed out high rates of school exclusions for children with special educational needs in primary schools, with fixed-term exclusions being 30 times more likely for these children compared to those without SEND.

Mr Wild welcomed the previous Government's SEND and AP improvement plan, urging the current government to pursue reforms. He highlighted the need for national frameworks, standardised EHCP processes, building capacity in mainstream schools, and partnerships between education and health groups. He also mentioned the £10.5 billion high-needs budget increase, rising council expenditure, school transport pressures, and VAT on independent schools affecting pupils with SEND.

The SEND system is broken due to chronic underfunding, understaffing, and a lack of political will. Parents are forced to be therapists, advocates, and psychologists for their children. The hon. Member highlighted the issue of school exclusions for SEND pupils, noting that parents often feel pressured into off-rolling their children to avoid permanent exclusion records, despite such records not existing in reality.

The Member for Strangford commended Jess Asato for introducing the debate and discussed his experience with three grandchildren needing speech therapy. He highlighted that two of them required private diagnosis to get necessary assessments, stressing the importance of early diagnosis and efficient timescales in children's health services.

He emphasized the importance of elevating voices of those affected by SEND provision issues, sharing an account from a distraught mother whose son was excluded from school while waiting for an EHCP. He stressed that the diagnosis and placement processes are often challenging and unpredictable, with local authorities facing soaring demand and budgetary constraints. Intervened to clarify that VAT exemption for EHCPs is not an issue.

Lewis Cocking highlighted the growing number of children with special educational needs plans in Hertfordshire, which has increased by 223% since 2015. He pointed out that high-needs funding has not kept up and called for a reset of the funding formula to ensure better access to SEND services. Apologised for not declaring earlier that he is a Hertfordshire county councillor. Suggested that councils should receive the same extra funding to provide for children with additional SEND needs, regardless of where they live in the United Kingdom.

Ms. Goldman highlighted the difficulties parents face when seeking EHCPs and taking local authorities to tribunals, noting an average wait time of a year for tribunal appointments and costs reaching tens of thousands of pounds. She pointed out that despite these challenges, local authorities lose 98% of cases but often fail to implement tribunal orders. Ms. Goldman also stressed the importance of addressing the needs of children with SEND who do not have EHCPs and raised concerns about funding cuts since 2010, citing specific examples in her constituency.

Chairman Mark Hendrick briefly thanked the lead MP and called for the next speaker.

The provision for children with special educational needs in Bedford and Kempston has improved since an Ofsted and CQC inspection in 2018, but families still struggle to access health services. The number of children diagnosed with SEND is rising, leading to longer waits for EHCPs.

The hon. Member noted examples of effective special educational needs provision in his constituency but also highlighted difficulties faced by constituents with screening and assessing their children's needs. He welcomed the £4.4 million commitment for SEND services from Suffolk county council and called for improved national responses to issues like EHCPs.

Councils are losing 98% of tribunal cases due to a failure to act, leaving families to navigate an overwhelmed system. There is a need for stronger enforcement mechanisms and accountability measures to ensure local authorities meet their legal duties.

Expressed concern about over-diagnosis of mental disorders among children and advocated for more investment in physical activity to tackle mental health issues. Questioned Labour Members on the impact of removing VAT exemption on private schools.

Pupils with special educational needs and disabilities make up over one in ten of all pupils, with nearly 34,000 children having complex disabilities in the east. There is a particular problem with education, health and care plans not being issued within statutory guidelines; demand for support outstrips supply, forcing many children to leave school. Family Voice Peterborough faces significant challenges due to increased energy costs, impacting its ability to provide necessary services. Questioned whether the shadow Minister was suggesting that parents should send their children with special educational needs or a disability to private schools and pay all associated fees, challenging if this was the best solution.

SEND casework has increased significantly in South West Norfolk, impacting family finances and jobs. Many parents have had to give up work or take pay cuts to care for children with SEND needs.