Shipley MP welcomes new recommendations to improve SEND provisions for local children

Anna Dixon MP for Shipley, has welcomed a new report from the Public Accounts Committee, which makes several recommendations to the government about improving support for children with special educational needs and disabilities.  

Ms Dixon, who is a member of the committee, said today’s report represents “a crucial step” in improving outcomes for disadvantaged children in Shipley and nationwide.  

The PAC report highlights that a significant number of children with SEND are not receiving sufficient support, risking a “lost generation” who could “leave school without having received the help they need”. 

Statistics from Bradford Council show that, as of September 2023, 14,323 children receive SEND Support across all settings in Bradford, totaling 13.6% of students across the district.  

The committee's report found that many families throughout the UK struggle to access critical SEN support, with the system tending to favor parents and carers who are better equipped to navigate a chaotic and adversarial process. 

It also highlighted a significant variation in wait times for education, health, and care plans across the country, creating a substantial "postcode lottery" for families. 

The Public Accounts Committee report also makes a number of recommendations on how to improve SEND provisions.  

These suggestions include that the Department of Education should work with others, including local authorities, to identify and share good practice from better-performing areas routinely and work with the Department of Health and Social Care to understand better the reasons for the increasing demand for SEN support.  

Furthermore, it advises that the Education Department set out the provisions that children with SEN support should expect, how Integrated Care Boards will consider SEN alongside wider priorities, provide specific support and guidance so all local authorities can effectively manage their SEN-related spending sustainably in the longer term, and to urgently improve their data, and then use this information to develop a new fully costed plan for improving the SEN system.  

Anna Dixon MP commented on the report, stating: “The crisis in Special Educational Needs and Disabilities support across the UK is shameful, this report from the Public Accounts Committee lays bare that despite spending billions, children are still being let down. 

“Since my election to Parliament in July, I have received countless messages from residents in the Shipley constituency, particularly from parents expressing their concerns about how their children are being let down by a system that is failing to meet increasing demands. 

“Parents are having to fight to secure access to education for their children. In the Budget last October, the new Labour government pledged an additional £1 billion for SEND provisions in our schools. This extra funding will significantly help address this crisis, but long-overdue reforms are also needed to ensure all children get the opportunities they deserve. 

“If the recommendations put forth today by the PAC are implemented, we will see improved outcomes for children, better support for families, and more efficient services, ultimately providing better value for money for all taxpayers.”