Labour is due to reveal its plans to overhaul the special educational needs and disability (Send) system on Monday. But why are changes needed? And what changes are ministers likely to propose?
When did the current system come in?
There were high hopes – and broad parental support – for the current Send system when it was introduced in 2014 by the then education secretary, Michael Gove, and the coalition government. The changes were intended to overhaul a costly, “disjointed, complex and adversarial” system and put children and parents at the heart of provision.
Tory ministers heralded a “landmark moment” that would usher in a new era of rights and choice.
What happened?
Those hopes proved wildly over optimistic. Cracks were already appearing five years later, as need and cost overshot official projections. Since 2018, the number of children with education, health and care plans (EHCPs) – a legal document that theoretically guarantees specialist support for a child – has increased by 80%.
Send spending rose by more than 50% over the same period to £11bn a year (absorbing more than half of school spending increases) but still failed to keep pace with demand. Relationships between parents and local councils (who are anxious to manage access to expensive EHCPs) have become increasingly adversarial. Far from ushering in choice, thousands of parents have been forced to go to tribunal – a costly, exhausting and stressful process – to obtain Send support.
Why the urgency?
Affordability. The Send system is not only dysfunctional but is financially unsustainable, threatening to bankrupt local government. By the end of 2027-2028, English councils’ Send overspending debts, mostly accrued since 2019 and accelerating every year, are expected to have reached a staggering £14bn.
By then, the gap between the amount the government provides for Send and what councils are actually spending is forecast to be £6bn a year. Labour said it will write-off 90% of councils’ historic Send debts (which if not addressed would put scores of councils at risk of effective insolvency). It has insisted the reforms are not about saving money – but it is clear a future system must be financially viable.
Why do so many children have ECHPs?
The growth in demand for EHCPs reflects rapid increases in diagnoses of autistic spectrum disorder, speech language and communication needs, and social emotional and mental health issues (including ADHD) in recent years.
This is not just a UK trend but common to many wealthier countries, reflecting greater medical understanding of the conditions and lower thresholds for diagnosis. But demand has also been driven by frustrated parents: getting an EHCP is often seen as the only way they can secure appropriate support in schools for their children’s special needs.
Are the changes politically contentious?
Yes. The stakes are high for a government reeling from repeated policy U-turns. The plans will be closely scrutinised by a powerful, sceptical and articulate parents lobby anxious to protect their children’s hard-won legal rights.
Ministers must also win over backbench Labour MPs who showed they were not averse to blocking unpopular proposals when they torpedoed the planned disability benefit cuts last year. Send has also had a part in the culture wars, with rightwingers claiming spiralling costs are a result of a woke tendency to “overdiagnose” autism and ADHD, or “pushy parents” seeking a “golden ticket” EHCP to gain educational advantages for their children.
Is the current system working?
The focus of much Send coverage has been on the very real and painful struggles many parents have had in obtaining suitable Send for support for their children, and the system’s spiralling costs. There is less evidence that all the huge investment in EHCPs in recent years has led to improved quality of teaching or better educational outcomes for children.
Each individual experience will be different. But according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies: “We have almost no way of judging whether the billions in extra funding represent value for money.”
The changes will, at the very least, be expected to improve the educational experience for children with Send needs.
What do we know about the proposals?
The broad thrust of the long-awaited white paper proposals is to improve access to comprehensive Send provision in mainstream schools, enabling children to get better help earlier. Children will be eligible for individual support plans and secondary schools must provide specially designed areas for neurodivergent pupils.
This will in theory reduce the need for EHCPs, which will be reserved for children with the most severe and complex needs. Children who hold EHCPs in future will have eligibility reviewed when they move up to secondary school. Ministers are also expected to crack down on expensive private specialist schools that typically charge more than twice the cost of a state special school.
Ministers have said children currently in special schools will not lose their places.
Will the changes bring costs under control?
A big chunk of the increased spending on Send in recent years has been on expanding independent specialist school provision, so reducing reliance on this may bring savings. More in-house Send provision may also reduce the burgeoning £2bn bill for home to school transport.
However, the changes, if passed into law, will take years to bed down and any major structural savings will not be immediate. The changes will also entail huge and long term investment in teacher training, new buildings, and more support staff – which will not come cheap.
