The current UK Labour Government’s focus on improving education for students with SEND is welcome. Over my two decades of teaching and leading schools, there has never been more attention given to this area. Whilst the concrete plans remain unclear, parents and teachers know that the current system is failing too many students — and that change is long overdue.
Why must we get SEND support right?
Beyond the moral imperative, the data points are stark. Over 13 years, the percentage of KS2 students with SEND achieving expected standards in phonics* increased by 19 percentage points — compared to 22 for non-SEND peers. More alarming still is the 22.2 point gap in KS4 Attainment 8 scores. This matters enormously: KS4 determines future choices, and poor attainment here limits options for further study, reduces earnings, worsens health outcomes, and risks locking students into cycles of GCSE resits with little prospect of success.
But rather than lament the current state of things, let’s focus on solutions.
1. Quality First Teaching
The phrase may be overused, but the axiom holds — strong teachers improve outcomes for the most disadvantaged students. Leaders must ensure teaching quality consistently improves over time.
2. Embed SEND Training in CPD
A recurring complaint from teachers is that they lack the expertise to support students with additional learning needs. A well-designed CPD programme focused on key themes can give teachers the skills to ensure students with SEND are genuinely included and don’t fall behind.
3. Monitor EHCPs Carefully
In the busyness of school life, these vital plans can be overlooked. Schedule regular audits — through lesson observations and one-to-one conversations with vulnerable learners — to ensure agreed supports are in place. Note where support is no longer needed or where new needs have emerged. EHCPs should be living documents, not static ones, with support gradually reducing as students progress.
4. Distribute Leadership
Every teacher is a teacher of SEND — but less understood is that every leader is a leader of SEND. I didn’t fully appreciate this until I held responsibility for Inclusion as an Assistant Principal. Even the most spirited individual efforts will fall flat without the whole leadership team driving inclusive education. An effective SEND leader knows how to bring everyone along. I’ve written more about how this can done (link below).
5. Protect Time for Inclusion Leaders
If those in key SEND roles lack the time to carry out their responsibilities, things will slip through the net. With parent confidence in SEND provision already low, this compounds the problem further. Headteachers and Principals must fight to protect dedicated time for these critical tasks.
6. Prioritise Belonging
Over eight years, feelings of belonging among students have fallen by 28% — a trend reflected in rising absenteeism and growing numbers of young people classified as NEET. Belonging is built through everything from how students are greeted at the gate to tutor relationships to House competitions. Of all the things on this list, this may be the most straightforward to address — it simply requires intention. We cannot chase grades at the expense of making students feel they matter.
The new SEND reforms will not arrive overnight — changes to EHCPs** are not expected until 2030. The ambition is welcome, but the practical implementation will be everything. I hope this proves to be real, lasting action rather than empty rhetoric — because the students who need it most cannot afford to wait.
*KS2 Phonics: Students take the phonics screening check aged 5–6, with a resit at 6–7. By Key Stage 2, the expectation is that all students have passed, ensuring they can decode age-related words. Synthetic phonics remains the most evidence-based approach to teaching reading.
**EHCPs: Education, Health and Care Plans are legal documents entitling a student to specific support for their identified needs.
Useful links
Every child achieving and thriving (DFE SEND white paper)
Here’s an article I wrote about systems of inclusion. https://www.keystolearn.org/from-spirit-to-structure-embedding-inclusion-in-schools/