Oral Answers to Questions

James Wild Excerpts

Monday 4th November 2024 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I call the shadow Minister.

[James Wild (North West Norfolk) (Con)]

I think we will have to agree to disagree with the Minister about the record of the last Government on driving up apprenticeships, and in particular the work done by our colleague Robert Halfon. Looking ahead, by how much does the Minister expect the number of full apprenticeships to grow over the course of this Parliament? Will she publish the Department’s assessment of the move to the growth and skills levy and what that does to the number of people starting apprenticeships?

[Catherine McKinnell]

Our reformed growth and skills levy will deliver greater flexibility for learners and employers and will align with our industrial strategy, creating routes into good skilled jobs in growing industries, such as construction, digital and green skills. We want a shorter duration of foundation apprenticeships in those targeted sectors to help more people learn new high skills at work, fuelling innovation in businesses across the country, and to provide high-quality entry pathways for young people. We are in the process of designing the growth and skills levy, and we will set out more details in due course.

SEND Provision: Hampshire

James Wild Excerpts

Thursday 31st October 2024 Westminster Hall

[James Wild (North West Norfolk) (Con)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship again, Sir Mark. I congratulate the hon. Member for Basingstoke (Luke Murphy) on securing his first Westminster Hall debate on such an important topic for children and parents in Hampshire—it is good to see a number of them in the Gallery listening to the debate. This is the third debate on SEND that I have taken part in since the election, which reflects the importance of the issue to hon. Members in Hampshire and across the whole county, including in Northern Ireland, who all see the challenges and demands facing the sector.

Those problems are familiar to us all. As has been mentioned, last week’s National Audit Office report into support for children and young people with special education needs highlighted the 140% increase in the number of children with education, health and care plans since 2015, and there has been a 93% increase in Hampshire since 2019 alone. Overall, half of those EHC plans are not delivered within the 20-week timeframe, although, in Hampshire, around three quarters are issued on time, a timeframe that my own county of Norfolk aspires to. The NAO also recognised the significant increase in high-needs funding to £10.7 billion put in place by the last Government, but demand continues to grow and there are still big deficits in local authorities that need to be addressed.

That report highlighted the need for whole-system reform; an integrated approach to improve outcomes, which has rightly been mentioned; and the financial sustainability of funding. It also recommended research to understand the root causes driving the increase in SEND and in the demand for EHC plans. I know that the Department is funding some work—I think through the University of Newcastle, and others—to look into those issues, and that there is action to put the budgets of local authorities on a sustainable footing.

I was a member of the Public Accounts Committee a few years ago when another NAO report looked at the SEND system and identified similar problems. The report that we as a Committee put forward helped to inform the SEND and alternative provision improvement plan that the last Government came forward with. We all recognise and accept that the system needs to be reformed; it is not working at the moment.

First, we need a national framework and standards to address the inconsistent support across the country. The previous Government’s plan set out a blueprint for a unified system for SEND and AP that would be driven by new national standards. The first area that we were going to bring forward was around speech and language therapy, and, in a recent written answer to me, the Minister confirmed that the Government are still considering doing that, which we welcome. The hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) referred to the powerful impact that early diagnosis and access to speech and language therapy can have. It is great to hear such stories, and they should be told far more often.

We also need to improve the EHCP process because, as the constituent of the hon. Member for Basingstoke said, it shouldn’t be this hard. As constituency MPs, we see the families who have had to battle. We help them to get through the system, but they should not have to come to us. Our plan also committed to improving the timeliness of those plans through a standardised and digitised approach. I would like to hear from the Minister whether the Government will proceed with those proposals as well.

The second area where we need reform—again, there is a lot of consensus—is around building capacity and expertise in mainstream schools, with a focus on early help. As I said in the Chamber last week during an urgent question, we wholeheartedly support the focus on inclusivity. That means improving skills and training in the SEND workforce, with a particular emphasis on early intervention, and sharing the real expertise in specialist schools with those working in mainstream settings. I have mentioned in previous debates that I have been to specialist schools where the teachers are desperate to get into mainstream schools and talk about the activities and expertise they have to support children with those needs in mainstream settings.

Some people clearly do need specialist school support, however, and I understand that Hampshire has been expanding such provision with three new schools, including one that I think was approved shortly before the election. I hope that the Minister will confirm that that school is not part of the review of free schools, but will be proceeding and will be funded.

Hampshire, like my own county of Norfolk, is one of the counties that spends a huge amount of money on transporting children to schools with specialist provision. The hon. Member for Basingstoke referred to the impact on children of being stuck in taxis or buses, and travelling long distances for learning. The hon. Member for North East Hampshire (Alex Brewer) also talked about the impact on parents and their ability to work—and, importantly, on the safety of children, who have to get to bus stops far from their homes.

The third area on which we need to focus is partnerships between education and health groups; we need to ensure that they are working together to lead the change. The NAO said the current system has

“misaligned incentives, accountabilities and priorities across the system”.

That creates challenges in a whole-system approach. Collaboration between key partners is important, and the last Government proposed measures for SEND and AP partnerships. We look forward to proposals in the children’s wellbeing Bill that look to achieve the same outcome.

We all want to see a bit more leg from the Government about their plan for reform and inclusivity. We know that the SEND team in the Department has been moved into the schools unit to help bring greater focus. That sounds perfectly sensible. In yesterday’s Budget, as has been referred to, there was also an additional £1 billion for SEND and AP funding.

Additional funding for SEND is needed and welcome, but I suspect that hon. Members and families listening to the Budget would expect that to be used to provide additional support to their children and the inclusive practices to which the hon. Member for Southampton Itchen (Darren Paffey) referred. Can the Minister confirm, however, that the Government actually expect £865 million of the £1 billion to be used by local authorities to reduce their deficits in SEND? Clearly, financial sustainability and addressing deficits—including the statutory override, which a number of Members mentioned and which I have referred to in every other debate we have had on the subject—is important, but we should be clear about where the extra £1 billion of funding is going and what we are going to see on the ground as a result.

Beyond funding, the Minister has regularly said that we need significant change, but despite last week’s urgent question, we are still lacking clarity on what that change looks like, although one thing that the Minister did say in response was that the Government would be looking at

“any legislation that needs to be amended or brought in to achieve our vision for an inclusive mainstream education”.—[Official Report, 24 October 2024; Vol. 755, c. 419.]

Can the Minister confirm that she was referring to the Children and Families Act 2014, which established EHCPs, and what is her timeframe for potentially reviewing that legislation? Is her intention that the number of EHCPs required will be reduced, and will she consult widely before implementing any such changes?

In yesterday’s Budget, the Government put up taxes by £42 billion, but one area where they were actually honest with the electorate that they would put up taxes was the 20% education tax. We now have the Office for Budget Responsibility assessment, which says that up to 37,000 pupils will leave or not enter the independent schools sector as a result of the new tax; and many of them may be in independent schools that offer specialist support for children.

More than 100,000 children in specialist schools do not have an EHCP. Those are children whose parents have decided that that is the best place for their child to be educated. However, in response to the technical consultation, the Government have refused to exempt them from the new tax, as they believe that there must be a formal independent assessment that a child’s needs cannot be met in the state sector. I repeat a question that I have asked before, because I do not think I have had an answer: how many extra EHCP applications do the Government expect local authorities will have to assess?

Since the election, the Minister has said that the Labour Government are absolutely committed to fixing the SEND system. I know that she means that, and the Opposition want to work with her to achieve that. Every hon. Member wants to ensure that families get the support that their child deserves to realise their potential, so our offer is: let us work together to improve outcomes and give children the best start.

Special Educational Needs and Disabilities

James Wild Excerpts

Thursday 24th October 2024 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I call the shadow Minister.

[James Wild (North West Norfolk) (Con)]

I am grateful to the hon. Member for Twickenham (Munira Wilson) for securing this urgent question.

The Opposition welcome the NAO report. Every hon. Member will regularly be dealing with constituents’ SEND cases. The growing demand is why we put major increases in funding in place to ensure that children get the support they need. The last Government worked with the sector on comprehensive reforms, but since the election we have heard very little from this Government about their plans for reform. We look for more clarity, and we certainly support greater inclusivity. With too much variation in the system and parents often having to battle for support, do the Government plan to continue with the Conservatives’ national standards and bring forward a standardised approach to EHCPs?

More than 100,000 pupils with special educational needs are educated at independent schools without EHCPs. How does the Minister think hitting those pupils with a 20% education tax, with more pupils moving into the state sector as a result, will help pressures on schools? What assessment has she made of the increase in EHCP applications that that will generate, putting further burdens on local authorities? Can she confirm that the axe that the Education Secretary is holding above free schools does not apply to free special schools? Finally, council budgets are under huge pressure, so is the Minister making the argument to the Treasury to extend the statutory override beyond March 2026 or not?

[Catherine McKinnell]

As I have said, one of the first acts of the Education Secretary was to reorganise the Department to make sure that the SEND team sits within our school team and is not separate from it. That speaks to the vision that we have for reform: a vision for our whole education system, to create the inclusive mainstream education that we know will provide the best opportunities for the maximum number of children and, as far as possible, keep children with special educational needs and disabilities within the mainstream system with their friends. That is why we have launched the curriculum assessment review.

We need to look closely at the key challenges to attainment for young people and the barriers holding them back from accessing the current mainstream education system. We are working with Ofsted to introduce report cards to look at how inclusion can be reflected as part of how schools are monitored by Ofsted. We are also increasing training for early years providers. We have extended the Nuffield early language intervention programme to make sure that no child’s needs are missed out and that every child can find their voice. We have been very clear: full reform will take time, but nothing is off the table to make sure that every child with SEND can achieve and thrive in mainstream schools. We have also started legislative change: the children’s wellbeing Bill will be introduced in the coming months.

The shadow Minister made a point about private schools. Ending tax breaks on private schools will help to raise the revenue to fund our educational priorities for next year, including recruiting 6,500 new teachers. As he knows, the Treasury is consulting on plans to enable those changes to come into force in January and on how to design those plans to make sure that no child with special educational needs on an education, health and care plan will be adversely affected.

On the question of free schools, the review announced this week relates only to mainstream free schools. We are starting a process with local authorities and trusts with the mainstream schools that are in scope, with a strong focus on assessing that need to make sure that school places are in the local area, where they should be, and that they align with our vision for mainstream inclusive education for every child who needs it.

SEND Provision: East of England

James Wild Excerpts

Tuesday 8th October 2024 Westminster Hall

[James Wild (North West Norfolk) (Con)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Efford. I congratulate the hon. Member for Lowestoft (Jess Asato) on securing such an important debate for children and parents across the east of England.

As shown by the attendance at this debate, SEND provision is a priority for all of us throughout the House. Since my election in 2019, I have visited over 40 of the schools in my constituency and I have great admiration for all those working to deliver SEND support to children. This is the 10th debate on this topic in Parliament this year, reflecting its interest for constituents—the Minister is smiling; I am sure she will respond to many more, and I look forward to attending them—and the challenges that we face from increasing demand, increasing costs and inconsistent support and outcomes.

The need for change, on which we all agree, is why I welcomed the previous, Conservative Government’s SEND and AP improvement plan. I encourage the current Government to pursue those reforms, which took far too long to come forward but were developed with the sector. Parents, children, local authorities and others are looking forward to some much-needed clarity from the Government on their plans and how they will bring forward reform.

As we have heard, demand for SEND services has increased significantly, with over 1.6 million pupils having educational special needs. As the hon. Member for Chelmsford (Marie Goldman) said, nearly 5% of pupils in England have an EHCP, and a further 1.2 million are identified as having support that is below that level. The prevalence of SEND varies across the east of England, from the lowest rates in Peterborough at 11.1% to the highest in my county of Norfolk—and the county of other Members present—of 14.3%.

All local authorities have seen increases in the rates of pupils with EHCPs over the last five years, but the size of those increases has varied, with prevalence highest in Norfolk, Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire. Behind all the figures are individual children and families. We heard a powerful speech from the hon. Member for Thurrock (Jen Craft), and my hon. Friend the Member for Broxbourne (Lewis Cocking) referred to his own personal experience. That underlines the need for change.

We know what the challenges are. I want to reflect on three areas in which change is needed so that we can provide the right support, at the right time, in the right place, for every child. First, we need a national framework and standards that will address the inconsistency of support. The previous Government’s plan set out a blueprint for a unified SEND and AP system, driven by new national standards. The first one we were due to bring forward was on speech and language therapy, given the high demand for that support.

We also need to improve the EHCP process because, as we all know from constituents, many parents are battling against the very system that is there to support them. We had proposals to bring forward a standardised and digitised approach, which is much needed when less than half of EHCPs were issued within the statutory deadline of 20 weeks. As the hon. Member for Lowestoft said, the variation is striking, from 90% in Bedford to only 43% in Norfolk, and far worse in Essex, as mentioned. Will the Government confirm whether the plan is to continue with the national standards and to bring forward a standardised approach to EHCP plans and the process?

The second area in which we need reform is building capacity and expertise in mainstream schools and a focus on early help. That means improving training and skills in the SEND workforce, with a particular emphasis on early years and early intervention. I declare an interest as a number of my family members are teachers. It is important that teaching is seen as a valued profession—it is spoken of as a valued profession by everyone in the House—and ongoing training in SEND and other areas is very important to that, as well as to tackling the retention and recruitment problems that we have seen in recent years.

There is much knowledge and expertise in the system and we need to share it more effectively. Just a week ago, I was at Fen Rivers academy in King’s Lynn in my constituency. It is a specialist social, emotional and mental health therapeutic school where the headteacher is passionate about sharing her skills and those of her staff—who have turned the school around—with mainstream settings. That view was echoed in the recent report by the County Councils Network and the Local Government Association, which spoke about sharing expertise better and moving children between settings.

Primary SENCOs can be helped to identify support for children, but to do so they need access to speech therapists and psychologists. What are the Government’s plans to better share expertise and have more provision in the mainstream system? Mainstream will obviously not be appropriate for everyone, so it is important that we continue the expansion of places. The hon. Member for Norwich North (Alice Macdonald) referred to the new places in her constituency, and there are other projects. The hon. Member for South West Norfolk (Terry Jermy), who has a special school coming in his constituency, is nodding, and I think there is one in Great Yarmouth too. There is a lot more provision coming and we need to continue that.

[Lewis Cocking]

I should have declared earlier that I am a Hertfordshire county councillor; I apologise for not doing so.

My hon. Friend is making valid points. Does he agree that it should not matter where a person is born or lives in the United Kingdom, as councils should receive the same extra funding to provide for children with additional SEND needs? That will make all the difference to residents across the eastern region.

[James Wild]

I agree. I will come to funding shortly, so I will address that point then.

The third issue is partnerships: we must get education and health groups working together. Currently, the system holds some bodies accountable for things they do not have responsibility for and does not hold other bodies accountable for things they do have control over, so collaboration between key partners is required. The previous Government proposed to create local SEND and alternative provision partnerships to lead change and commission provision, and to improve accountability with refocused Ofsted and CQC inspections. Speech and Language UK, the County Councils Network and the LGA endorsed those recommendations, so will the Minister tell us how the Government plan to pursue the partnership approach and embed it in the system?

My hon. Friend the Member for Broxbourne and others discussed funding. In the previous debate on this subject, I spoke about the increase in the high-needs budget to £10.5 billion this year—a 60% increase from 2020. Some £2.6 billion was invested in new places and in improving the existing provision.

[Helen Grant (Maidstone and Malling) (Con)]

We have heard today about the fantastic work that SEND schools are doing in our constituencies. Does my hon. Friend believe that some form of ringfenced funding with tracked impact measures could help very good SEND schools, such as Five Acre Wood in my constituency, to flourish further?

[James Wild]

My hon. Friend makes an interesting point. We need to track the outcomes and the support that children get, so that is a thoughtful comment.

When I spoke on a panel at the Conservative party conference in Birmingham last week, a representative of the Association of School and College Leaders said that there is enough money in the system, but the problem is that there is too much bureaucracy. Clearly, demand continues to rise and funding is a challenge. Council expenditure has tripled over the past decade. Councils are looking for more clarity on the statutory override, which the previous Government put in place to help local authorities to deal with deficits—I think they are now above £3 billion. Only last week, the NASUWT urged the Chancellor in a letter to extend the period that local authorities have to address their SEND deficits. Perhaps the Minister will be able to give a bit more clarity on that very pressing issue for local authorities.

The hon. Member for Waveney Valley (Adrian Ramsay) referred to the pressures in respect of school transport. In Norfolk alone, that budget is £60 million, of which 80% is used to move pupils with SEN around and outside the county. That is money spent on journeys, not education.

I will touch briefly on VAT on independent schools, although a debate about that is going on in the main Chamber. It is clear that this tax on learning will disrupt children’s education. Reference was made to pupils with EHCPs, but 10,000 pupils with special educational needs at independent schools in the east of England will be hit by those fees, and their education will be disrupted. The Government have not even published an impact assessment, even though the Minister in the earlier debate referred to analysis that had been done. It is extraordinary that that has not been shared with the House. I hope the Minister, even at this point, will listen to parents, pupils, local authorities and others, and will delay those plans. I look forward to having an opportunity shortly to vote to do exactly that.

[Sam Carling]

Is the shadow Minister suggesting that it is fair that parents who have children with special educational needs or a disability should have to send their children to a private school and pay all the associated fees? Is that really the best solution we can come up with?

[James Wild]

No; the point I am making is that there are children in schools who will be hit with a very unfair tax of 20%—a charge that their parents will have to pay. That seems to be completely disregarded by the Labour party, which is disappointing, to say the least.

To conclude, the last Government set out a comprehensive package of reform, after a lot of work with the sector. During a debate here in September, the Minister said that the Labour Government were determined to fix the SEND system—alleluia to that. I hope that we will hear much more today about the Minister’s plans for practical action to be taken, rather than her talking about the last 14 years.

The Minister also referred on that occasion to the importance of working together. I will abuse my position to remind her of an invitation that has gone to her and the Education Secretary to join Norfolk MPs and members of Norfolk County Council who are coming to Westminster tomorrow, specifically to talk about SEND. I helped to push for that meeting and I hope that the Minister might be able to come along, even briefly, to hear about some of the challenges that we face. Ultimately, every Member here wants to ensure that children and families in their constituency get the support to realise their potential. I look forward to hearing her comments.

[Clive Efford (in the Chair)]

I would like to call the mover of the motion at two minutes to 4. If you can remember that, Minister, you will do me a big favour.

SEND Provision

James Wild Excerpts

Thursday 5th September 2024 Westminster Hall

[James Wild (North West Norfolk) (Con)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Betts. I congratulate the hon. Member for Leeds East (Richard Burgon) on securing this popular debate. I am pleased to have the opportunity to respond on behalf of the Opposition. The fact that this is the third debate on the same subject in this Chamber this week—the Minister must have a season ticket—underlines the amount of casework that we all have to deal with, as I did in the last Parliament, to help parents and children get the support that they need. That is exactly what this debate is about.

We all want an education system that helps children and young people with SEND to fulfil their potential and live fulfilling lives. I pay tribute to all those working in schools, including my sister who is a SENCO in a Norfolk school, to support those children. Everyone has spoken about demand and the challenges that that is causing, and the pressure on funding. The number of EHCPs and statements of SEN have more than doubled since 2015. In my county of Norfolk there has been a 33% increase in the last five years alone, and my hon. Friend the Member for Farnham and Bordon (Gregory Stafford) referred to the real pressures in Surrey.

In recognition of the growing demand, the last Conservative Government increased the high needs budget to £10.5 billion this year, which is 60% higher than in 2020. To help increase much-needed capacity, £2.6 billion was invested to fund new places and to improve existing provision. Nonetheless, as everyone has heard today, the level of demand continues to grow. It was the need for more consistent support and outcomes that led to the SEND and alternative provision improvement plan published last year. The review came after a long period of discussion with the sector—with parents and schools—to understand what was needed, and it aimed to ensure that every child gets the right support in the right place at the right time. At its core was an attempt to deal with the feeling that parents have to battle a system, which too many of them have, as every MP present knows. The hon. Member for Portsmouth North (Amanda Martin) talked about the challenge of getting EHCPs done in time and had a suggestion about how to address that.

[Mike Amesbury (Runcorn and Helsby) (Lab)]

Under the previous Government, in 2023, 98% of appeals to tribunal were upheld. Does that not demonstrate the utter failure that, under the watch of the previous Government, has created this broken SEND system?

[James Wild]

The hon. Gentleman makes his point. It underlines the need for reform of the system, which is precisely why mediation was part of the proposals that we brought forward.

The reforms were based around national standards so that there was a consistent approach. The first area we were going to bring forward was developing standards for speech and language, which is so important, and improving the timeliness of the EHCP process by introducing a standardised approach. As part of our focus on SEND, the last Government opened 15 new free schools, approved a further 40 and invested in training—which again is so important—for over 5,000 early years SEND practitioners. I know that the Minister is committed to delivering better outcomes, so can she confirm whether the Government have committed to implementing the national standards and the approach that we put forward in those reforms?

Funding in the SEND sector remains a significant challenge, increasing pressure on councils; the recent County Councils Network and Local Government Association report set that out clearly. As other hon. Members have referred to, in government we set out the safety value and delivering better value programmes, which 90 local authorities are involved in. Additionally, the statutory override was introduced to prevent SEND-related deficits from overwhelming council budgets. However, that override is set to expire in March 2026, and without clear direction, local authorities face the prospect of making significant cuts. Can the Minister clarify the Government’s intentions, and whether the statutory override will be extended to give councils the flexibility to work with schools and families to make the necessary changes? Local authorities are also seeing huge pressures from home-to-school transport costs. In Norfolk alone that is £60 million, with more than 80% allocated to SEND pupils. That is money spent on journeys rather than delivering better education, so improving mainstream education and specialist provision closer to where children live is vital.

One of the first of over 40 visits that I undertook in my first term as an MP in my constituency was to Greenpark academy, where the head raised the issue of speech and language therapy and access to therapists, which has been referred to. The Conservative Government made progress in improving access, recognising the long-term benefits of early intervention, but there is still much more to do, which I concede readily. I welcome the Government announcement in July that they will continue the Nuffield early language intervention programme this school year, and I hope that it will continue beyond that. However, there is still considerable disparity of access, so what steps will the Government take to address that, so that every child with speech and language needs gets the support that they deserve?

[Charlie Dewhirst (Bridlington and The Wolds) (Con)]

Does my hon. Friend agree that it is a travesty that a child with SEND in the London borough of Camden receives more than three times the funding of a child with SEND in my constituency? Every child should have access to the same support, funding and opportunity.

[James Wild]

Absolutely. My hon. Friend makes the point that our right hon. Friend the Member for Goole and Pocklington (Sir David Davis) made earlier, as well as in a debate in the previous Parliament. I am sure the Minister will touch on that in her response.

[Shaun Davies]

The LGA and the CCN have assessed that the safety valve is worth about £3 billion. Had the Conservative party stayed in power, what would their solution have been to fill that black hole?

[James Wild]

The hon. Gentleman will be aware from his presence in the Chamber that we did not win the election, so it is for the Government to come forward with what they will do. They are now in power and must take decisions and take responsibility—that is the difference between Opposition and Government.

Finally, I must highlight the impact of the Labour Government’s plans to impose VAT on independent schools from January and what that will mean for SEND provision. More than 100,000 children and young people without an EHCP are educated and receive specialist support in independent schools. My right hon. Friend the Member for Tatton (Esther McVey) made the point well. She highlighted the fact that putting VAT on their fees will disrupt education for thousands of those pupils and place further strain on SEND provision in the state sector. By bringing the changes in partway through the academic year, Labour’s plans seem designed to cause maximum disruption to those children’s learning and to the state school system. Are the Minister and the Government listening to schools and parents, and will they act to ensure that those vulnerable children do not bear the brunt of that policy?

[David Baines (St Helens North) (Lab)]

The hon. Gentleman is talking about disruption to children and their development. Under the previous Government, in the past 10 years, investment in early intervention such as children’s centres fell by about 44%. What effect did he think that had on young children?

[James Wild]

We need to look at such things in the round. We put record amounts into childcare and we have just seen the latest roll-out of our childcare plans, which I think the Government now support, albeit a little sotto voce.

To conclude and to leave the Minister time to respond, there is unity across this Chamber—I hope—about the desire to ensure that the SEND system provides the support and outcomes that children and young people deserve. To help to achieve that, the last Government set out a path of comprehensive reform. It now falls to the new Government to continue to drive improvements, to tackle the challenges set out in this debate by Members from all parties and to deliver the very best for children and their families.