5th Report - Solving the SEND Crisis

Key findings

• EHC plan numbers have more than doubled since 2015 (240,183 to 638,745), with only 46.4% issued within statutory 20-week timeframes in 2024, compared to ~60% in 2018–2021; tribunals overturn local authority decisions in 99% of cases.
• Mainstream education system is not designed for inclusion; lacks standardised definitions of 'ordinarily available provision' and SEN support, creating variable quality and driving families toward specialist placements or EHC plans.
• Parental trust eroded by inconsistent provision, delays, non-transparent decision-making, and failure to deliver legal duties; current Ofsted and Area SEND inspection frameworks may inadvertently encourage exclusionary practices.
• Significant workforce gaps: educational psychologists and allied health professionals (speech and language therapists) are overwhelmed; Initial Teacher Training and Early Career Framework lack sufficient fit-for-purpose SEND content; mandatory continuing professional development absent.
• Local authorities face unsustainable deficits exacerbated by statutory override extension; school funding has not kept pace with rising need; independent specialist school placements have increased 53% (477 schools in 2018 to 728 in 2024), with 80% state-funded.
• Young people experience 'cliff edge' support drop after age 16; only 30% of young people with EHC plans achieve Level 2 qualifications by 19 (down from 37% in 2014/15); 50.2% in sustained education/employment vs. 94.6% without SEND.
• Health sector plays passive role; no clear statutory duties for health and social care in relation to SEND; multi-agency collaboration weak at all levels, with schools and local authorities shouldering most responsibility.

Recommendations

• Department for Education must establish national standards and expectations for ordinarily available provision and SEN support, with statutory resourcing requirements, specialist staff access, equipment and inclusive physical environments.
• Reform Ofsted and Area SEND inspection frameworks to hold mainstream schools accountable for delivering inclusive practice; strengthen oversight of exclusionary practices; ensure health sector accountability through dedicated national SEND lead appointed by Department of Health and Social Care.
• Introduce clear statutory duties for health and social care services in relation to SEND; appoint dedicated national SEND lead to drive accountability and coordination across departments.
• Embed sufficient SEND content into Initial Teacher Training and Early Career Framework; make continuing professional development mandatory; require all staff (not solely SENCOs) to take responsibility for SEND support through whole-school approach.
• Work with Department of Health and Social Care to develop dedicated SEND workforce plan addressing capacity shortages of educational psychologists and allied health professionals; reduce time spent on assessments to free up therapeutic interventions.
• Provide targeted training for local authority staff on child development, SEND law, and mediation skills to rebuild trust; ensure parents and carers are treated as genuine partners and present in all discussions and decisions about their child.
• Work urgently with HM Treasury and Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to secure long-term funding stability; develop clear strategy to address growing SEND-related local authority deficits; extend funding cycles and implement comprehensive data collection.
• Facilitate coordinated capacity expansion through Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill powers; ensure specialist placements are evidence-driven and equitably distributed; reduce reliance on out-of-area and independent sector placements.
• Ensure universal rollout of Early Language Support for Every Child (ELSEC) and Nuffield Early Language Intervention (NELI) programmes across England; fully integrate SEND inclusivity into Best Start for Life strategy.
• Broaden post-16 offer beyond academic qualifications and apprenticeships; rework Maths and English GCSE resit policy to be more flexible and better calibrated to diverse SEND needs; increase work experience access.

Key actors

Helen Hayes (Chair, Labour MP), Department for Education, Department of Health and Social Care, HM Treasury, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Local authorities, Ofsted, Catherine McKinnell MP (then Minister of State for School Standards)