Solving the SEND Crisis

Education Committee Open Inquiry
Opened: 20 Dec 2024 Parliament page
A number of recent reports have set out in detail the extent of the crisis in the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) system, which is letting down children and their families, creating intense pressure on local authority funding and on schools. This inquiry will focus on how to achieve … Read more
27 Recommendations
68 Conclusions
4 Reports
7 Oral sessions
17 Letters
7 Events
Activity timeline 36 events
30 Apr
2026
Correspondence
30 Apr
2026
Correspondence
3 Mar
2026
Correspondence
6 Jan
2026
Correspondence
6 Jan
2026
Correspondence
11 Dec
2025
Report published
9 Dec
2025
Correspondence
12 Nov
2025
Correspondence
12 Nov
2025
Correspondence
11 Nov
2025
Correspondence
11 Nov
2025
Correspondence
28 Oct
2025
Correspondence
Oral evidence sessions 7 sessions
1 Jul 2025
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Solving the SEND Crisis
Alison Ismail · Department for Education Catherine McKinnell MP · Department for Education
10 Jun 2025
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Solving the SEND Crisis
Conrad Bourne · The Mercian Trust Daniel Constable-Phelps · St Mary’s Primary and Nursery School Dr Peter Gray · SSCYP (Strategic Services for Children & Young People) Dr Susana Castro-Kemp · UCL Faculty of Education and Society (IOE) Jo Hutchinson · Education Policy Institute Nicole Dempsey · Dixons Academies Trust
13 May 2025
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Solving the SEND Crisis
Adam Sproston · Ofsted Georgina Downard · Independent Provider of Special Education Advice (IPSEA) Lucy Harte · Care Quality Commission (CQC) Sharon Chappell · Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO)
29 Apr 2025
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Solving the SEND Crisis
Alison Stewart · South West London Integrated Care Board Janet Harrison · The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists Lisa O’Connor · Association of Educational Psychologists Ms Marie Gascoigne · Better Communications CIC Professor Ian Kessler · Kings College London Sarah Walter · NHS Confederation
11 Mar 2025
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Solving the SEND Crisis
Catherine McLeod MBE · Dingley's Promise Clare Howard · Natspec Joanna Hall Katie Nellist Madeline Thomas Margaret Mulholland · Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) Miss Lucy Bowerman Ms Annamarie Hassall MBE · The National Association for Special Educational Needs (nasen) Sarah Cobb
25 Feb 2025
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Solving the SEND Crisis
Claire Dorer OBE · National Association of Independent Schools and Non-Maintained Special Schools Councillor Kate Foale · County Councils Network Dr Luke Sibieta · Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) Phil Haslett · F40 Rob Williams · National Association of Head Teachers
28 Jan 2025
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Solving the SEND Crisis
Agnes Agyepong · Global Black Maternal Health Amanda Allard · Council for Disabled Children Jo Harrison · National Network of Parent Carer Forums (NNPCF) Miss Imogen Steele · Contact Mrs Hayley Harding · Let Us learn Too Ms Katie Ghose · Kids Tania Tirraoro · Special Needs Jungle Ltd
Recommendations & Conclusions
2 results
Clear
42 Conclusion Rejected
5th Report - Solving the SEND Cris…
Reform post-16 funding condition for mandatory GCSE English and maths resits.
The post-16 condition of funding, whereby students who have not achieved a grade 4 or above in GCSE English and maths are effectively repeatedly required to take GCSE resits in those subjects as part of their programme of study, must … Read more
Government Response
The government rejects the need to reform the post-16 English and maths resit policy, stating that students must continue to be supported under the condition of funding, and will strengthen this requirement for 2025/26 by setting minimum teaching hours and reducing the provider opt-out tolerance.
Department for Education
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45 Conclusion Rejected
5th Report - Solving the SEND Cris…
Introduce dedicated ring-fenced funding stream for post-16 SEN support in further education.
The Department for Education should introduce a dedicated and ring- fenced funding stream for SEN support beyond the age of 16. This would enable further education providers to recruit and retain specialist staff, provide tailored learning resources, and make the … Read more
Government Response
The government rejects the recommendation for a dedicated and ring-fenced funding stream for post-16 SEN support, instead highlighting existing overall increases in unringfenced schools and high needs funding, and the unringfenced nature of high needs capital funding for local authorities.
Department for Education
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Government Response AI assessment · 95 of 27 classified
Accepted 26
Accepted in Part 12
Acknowledged 26
Deferred 14
Not Addressed 15
Rejected 2
Total 27 recs + 68 conclusions
Correspondence 17 letters
30 Apr 2026 From committee Letter to Secretary of State on response to SEND consultation dated 30.04.26
Parliament page
30 Apr 2026 From committee Letter to Minister of State for School Standards on response to SEND consultation dated 28.04.26
Parliament page
3 Mar 2026 To committee Letter from Secretary of State for Education on Schools White Paper and SEND Consultation, dated 23 February 2026
Parliament page
6 Jan 2026 Correspondence with the Royal British Legion on Solving the SEND Crisis, dated 8.12.25 and 18.12.25
Parliament page
6 Jan 2026 Correspondence with Minister for School Standards on supporting pupils with medical conditions dated 18.12.25
Parliament page
9 Dec 2025 To committee Letter from Secretary of State for Education on Solving the SEND crisis, dated 28.11.25
Parliament page
12 Nov 2025 From committee Letter to Secretary of State for Education on Schools White Paper, dated 11.11.25
Parliament page
12 Nov 2025 From committee Letter to Secretary of State for Education on Schools White Paper, dated 11.11.25
Parliament page
11 Nov 2025 From committee Letter to Joanna Parry National Officer Education and Children’s Services, UNISON on Solving the SEND Crisis Report dated 11.11.25
Parliament page
11 Nov 2025 To committee Letter from Joanna Parry National Officer Education and Children’s Services, UNISON on Solving the SEND Crisis Report dated 10.10.25
Parliament page
28 Oct 2025 To committee Letter from Chris Coghlan MP Member of Parliament for Dorking and Horley on Solving the SEND Crisis, dated 16.10.2025 and response dated 28.10.2025
Parliament page
2 Sep 2025 To committee Letter from Joint Unions on Solving the SEND Crisis, dated 28.05.25
Parliament page
22 Jul 2025 To committee Letter from Association of Educational Psychologists on Funding for training of educational psychologists, dated 07.07.25
Parliament page
24 Jun 2025 To committee Letter from Adam Sproston HMI, Ofsted and Lucy Harte, Deputy Director, Multi-agency Operations, Care Quality Commission on Joint local area SEND inspections, dated 12.06.25
Parliament page
24 Jun 2025 To committee Letter from Adam Sproston HMI, Ofsted on Multi-academy trust inspections and Complaints about Schools, dated 16.06.25
Parliament page
20 May 2025 To committee Letter from Minister for School Standards on SEND White Paper 27.03.25
Parliament page
11 Mar 2025 To committee Letter from Chair to Catherine McKinnell MP, Minister of State for School Standards, on Government SEND Policy, dated 11 March 202
Parliament page