Education Minister has today announced his
programme for reforming the provision of support for children
with special educational needs.
The Minister's Special Educational Needs Reform Agenda and
associated five-year delivery plan have been developed following
completion of a comprehensive review of policy and delivery.
Speaking in the Assembly, said: “Children
with special educational needs, their families and schools
have, for too long, felt frustrated by a system that doesn't
fully meet their needs.
“The proposals that I am setting out today include
systemic reforms that will support: greater inclusion,
identification of need, early intervention, in-school and
specialist support, and workforce development, to ensure every
child gets the help they need.
“We know that early intervention works and it is vital that
health and education are working together from the earliest
stages in a child's life to identify and respond to emerging
needs. That is why I am establishing a bespoke regional programme
for two to three year olds that will also include support for
parents and families.”
Emphasising the need for a change to the model of support for
children with special educational needs, with a move away from
one-to-one adult support for every child, and towards a more
flexible model giving schools greater autonomy to meet the needs
of the children in their schools, the Minister continued: “Within
the existing model, parents and indeed many schools see a
statement of special educational needs as being the best way of
securing support for a child. Aligned to this, we also know that
many view one-to-one classroom assistant support as the ‘gold
standard' intervention.
“However, evidence from emerging practice both here and elsewhere
points to the effectiveness of a more nuanced approach where
schools have greater flexibility to deploy a range of
professional support models in the classroom. Some of our schools
are already seeing the benefits of these approaches to children
and we must make these opportunities more widely available as we
continue to be guided by best practice and evidence on what
works.”
Acknowledging the need for additional investment in provision for
children with special educational needs, the Minister continued:
“The need for change is clear and the scale of the challenge is
significant. This programme of reform will require significant
and sustained investment. I will continue to make the case to the
Executive for appropriate investment in our Education system to
deliver on these important reforms.
“I am committed to delivering this much needed change during my
mandate and to ensuring that our children and young people with
special educational needs receive the support they deserve.”
The Special Educational Needs Reform Agenda and delivery plan
will be published in the coming weeks.
Notes to editors:
- 20% of pupils currently have a special educational need.
- 8% of pupils have a statement of special educational needs –
an increase of 113% since 2004/05.
- More than 11,000 children are in special education provision
– an increase of 70% in the last 10 years.
- Expenditure on SEN has increased 145% in the last eight years
to an estimated £622m in 2024/25.
