Student Loans

Alex McIntyre Excerpts

Wednesday 18th March 2026 Commons Chamber

[Ian Sollom (St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire) (LD)]

I am grateful to the Opposition for this debate. In the recent Westminster Hall debate on this topic, we heard powerful testimony about the reality that graduates face in making repayments every month and watching their balance grow, with their plans deferred and lives constrained. I am sure we will hear more of that today, and those stories deserve to be heard and to receive a clear response, not a political runaround.

Parts of the motion are not wrong. The plan 2 threshold should be unfrozen, and while we may disagree on the specific change proposed, the interest structure does need reform, as the Liberal Democrats have said clearly. The motion also calls for more apprenticeships for 18 to 21-year-olds, and we welcome such investment in principle. We would go further by doubling degree apprenticeships in priority sectors and introducing skills co-operatives specifically to help small businesses to pool resources to take on apprentices they could not otherwise afford.

However, the question is whether the motion as a whole represents a serious plan, and I am afraid that it does not. Specifically, it calls for

“controlling the number of places on university courses where the benefits are significantly outweighed by the cost to graduates and taxpayers.”

Let us be clear about what

“controlling the number of places”

means. It means cutting. The courses they have in mind are arts, humanities and creative subjects.

The argument rests on a definition that sounds objective but is not: which courses have benefits that are significantly outweighed by their costs? The proxy appears effectively to be graduate salaries. Graduate salaries are a poor measure of what society gains from a degree. Nursing, teaching, social work and creative arts all underperform on salary data while delivering enormous public value, so what logic are the Conservatives applying? Even on salary terms, cutting arts places would damage science, technology, engineering and maths, not protect it, as one Labour Member mentioned. Arts courses are relatively cheap to deliver and cross-subsidise expensive laboratory provision. The Institute for Fiscal Studies explicitly found that reducing arts funding may, perversely, reduce funding for STEM.

[Alex McIntyre (Gloucester) (Lab)]

The hon. Gentleman is making a very important point. The Conservatives talk about cutting public funding for courses such as creative arts, but that will not stop the wealthiest students from accessing those courses. Does he agree with me that all that will happen is that people from more deprived parts of our country will not be able to access them, and that there will be one rule for them and another rule for everyone else?

[Ian Sollom]

The history of access to university demonstrates that point well.

--- Later in debate ---

[Dr Luke Evans (Hinckley and Bosworth) (Con)]

I have said this in the House before, but I will say it again: this is a Prime Minister who promised change and then changed his promise. On this subject, we only have to look at his 10-point plan from 2020. He said:

“My promise to you is that I will maintain our radical values and work tirelessly to get Labour in to power—so that we can advance the interests of the people our party was created to serve. Based on the moral case for socialism, here is where I stand.”

In point 2, he said:

“Support the abolition of tuition fees and invest in lifelong learning.”

He was right that Labour won a landslide election, but, strangely enough, that promise has gone.

[Alex McIntyre]

It was not in the manifesto.

[Dr Evans]

Exactly. It was not in the manifesto, and the Prime Minister made a promise. He made a promise when he stood to be Labour leader, and it was not there. Worse still, what did he do in his first Budget? He increased student fees from £9,250 to £9,535. And last year, he froze the thresholds. That is important, because he promised one thing and then changed his promise.

When it comes to student loans, we have heard a lot of tittle-tattle on both sides of the House, but all parties—including the Liberal Democrats, wherever they happen to be—have a responsibility. In 1998, it was Tony Blair who brought forward tuition fees. He then increased them in 2004. Then there was an increase in the coalition years, which the Liberal Democrats stood on an election manifesto not to do. And here we are now, having just been over what the Labour Government said they were going to do and now have done.

Does it really matter? Yes, there was an issue hidden in the plan 2 student loan, but it has come to fruition because of what we have seen across the globe. I do not think anyone was raising those concerns back then, but the Government have to deal with things that come up. That is what we are looking for today. That is what students outside this place will be listening for. Two years in, what is the solution? At the end of the day, it is the middle earners who are being squeezed. It is unfair, because no matter how hard they work, their debt is going up. Principally, regardless of our political position, I think we all agree that is unfair.

The question is how we solve it. When the Chancellor was asked that question, she said:

“So, yes, we want to fix it. Yes, we want to make improvements. But is it front of the queue? No, it’s not... Politics is about priorities. I’m not denying there is a problem. I’m not blind to that, but what I do say is there has to be some patience.”

Tell that to the hon. Member for Kettering (Rosie Wrighting) or the people from Hinckley and Bosworth whose debt, no matter what they do or how hard they earn, is going up.

--- Later in debate ---

[Alex McIntyre (Gloucester) (Lab)]

I declare an interest as I am a former student with a plan 2 loan. I became a student during the first year that plan 2 loans were introduced. I remind hon. Members that I had a very tough Saturday job when I was growing up, in case anyone is shocked that I am indeed young enough to be a plan 2 student.

Frankly, I am shocked at the brass neck of Conservative Members. When I was at school, I remember having conversations with other working-class kids like me who were thinking about going to university—I was the first in my family—who were being put off because the Conservatives had put up the fees from £3,000 to £9,000. There was no consideration then for what young people were going through. There was no plan for young people, and certainly not for young people like me, who grew up in communities like the ones that I grew up in, with parents who never had the opportunities that all the Conservative Members at that time had got for free.

[Dr Luke Evans]

As a doctor, I was lucky enough to have funding to go towards my education, but I am always surprised to hear people saying that we should put more funding into students on the back of the porters and the receptionists who never went to university. It is those people’s taxes that are supporting those students—that 50% helped to get me where I am. What does the hon. Gentleman say to people like those in his community? They are the ones who are being left behind by paying their taxes for other people to have their time at university.

[Alex McIntyre]

The hon. Gentleman will be pleased that I am coming to exactly that point later in my speech.

Of course there are challenges with this system. There were challenges with it back when it was introduced in 2012. We pointed out the fact that there are huge generational inequalities: there are hon. Members present in the Chamber who did not pay tuition fees at all and had lower house prices when they graduated, so they could afford to buy a house. Those challenges continue, and part of the reason that I got into politics was to deal with those intergenerational inequalities. We all talk about broken promises, but what happened to the promise about levelling up? In my mind, levelling up was about creating more opportunities for young people in places like mine in Gloucester, but those opportunities were never delivered by the Conservatives.

I want what is best for young people and for the university sector in my constituency. I am delighted to be able to take this opportunity to welcome the brand new university campus that the University of Gloucestershire has opened in the city centre, taking over the Debenhams building and creating a new campus for students, with a public library, so that young people in Gloucester can see what that opportunity looks like going forward.

We need to ensure that we are creating opportunities for all young people, because despite the move towards more people going to university, only a third of people in Gloucestershire will go to university, and in the most deprived parts of my constituency, that number is fewer than one in five. That is why I am proud that the Government are introducing maintenance grants, and why I am backing the new target of two thirds of young people going to university or doing gold-standard apprenticeships, because university might not be the best route for everybody. Generations of young people in my community were left behind by the Conservatives, who had no plan in Government for young people in my constituency.

[Graham Stuart]

The hon. Gentleman is making an impassioned speech and we hear where he is coming from, but over the 14 years of Conservative Government, 800 jobs were created every day and unemployment was brought down to near record lows. Since his party has come to power, with the mission that he is describing, what has happened? Unemployment is up by 25% and youth unemployment has now eclipsed even that of Europe. The Government are not delivering. I hope in the next part of his speech, he is going to talk about what the Government need to do now in order to make things better for young people, because at the moment every indicator is going the wrong way, including the cost of student loans.

[Alex McIntyre]

I am always happy to be educated by privately educated Oxbridge graduates who did not pay a penny for their student fees. The right hon. Gentleman will find that employment levels have actually gone up. The number of people in employment has gone up under this Government—[Interruption.] Well, that’s the stat. If he wants to check, he is more than welcome to.

I welcome the youth guarantee that the Government have talked about this week, introducing more apprenticeships and opportunities for young people and tackling the people in my constituency who have been furthest from employment. My hon. Friend the Member for Kettering (Rosie Wrighting) made a fantastic speech about some of the other things we are doing for young people. It is not just about education; it is about renters’ rights and expanding free childcare.

[Dr Spencer]

I am not privately educated, and nor did I go to Oxbridge. I am where I am today because I went to a state grammar school. The hon. Gentleman is making an impassioned speech about breaking down barriers to social opportunity. Would he agree that grammar schools are a key part of that?

[Alex McIntyre]

Gloucester has a number of grammar schools and they are doing very well for the students there. I went to a grammar school—[Hon. Members: “Oh!] I went to a state school, and my parents worked really hard to get me there. If Members want to talk about my background, where I came from and how I got to this place, I am very happy to do that. It was quite different from the background of a lot of people on the Conservative Benches.

I am proud to stand here, as the son of a train conductor, talking about opportunities for young people in my constituency who have been left behind for generations, written off and, quite frankly, talked down to by the Conservatives, who talk about making sure that the arts are only for the wealthiest who can afford to go to university and not be spread out, as if education is not actually a benefit to everyone in society and should only be in the purview of those who can afford to pay for it. It is disgraceful, it is taking us back generations and, quite frankly, I am sick to death of hearing about it.

Politics is the language of priorities. As I have said, there are undoubtedly challenges with this system, but the Conservatives left behind so many messes after 14 failed years in government that we cannot fix them all in the first five years of a Labour Government. We are going to need at least a decade. We said that in the manifesto. We talked about a decade of national renewal, and we are committed to that because we cannot afford to fix all the messes that you left behind straight away because you left the economy in a mess as well—[Interruption.] Sorry, Madam Deputy Speaker. They left the economy in a mess—you had nothing to do with it.

I would say to the Minister, as a parent and as someone who is on plan 2 and has spoken to lots of my residents, that if there is money available and if there is an opportunity, we need to look at the expansion of free childcare. We are talking about priorities and how we can support young people at the moment, and the 30 hours of funded childcare is very welcome, but it does not cover the cost of childcare for people who are working full time throughout the year, not just in term time. That is preventing young people from starting their families and getting on, and this could be a really good opportunity if there was money available. This is about priorities and about how we can support young people. I welcome what the Government are doing, but if I were to give them a gentle nudge in any direction, I would encourage them to look again at what we can do to expand the offering of free childcare.

I am not going to take lectures from the Conservatives on young people. They had no plan for young people during their 14 years. They did not care about young people like me when they were in government. Quite frankly, they wrote me off and I had to fight my way to get here today—[Interruption.] Yes, I did go to a grammar school and I am proud of that. I did quite well for myself, but my parents sacrificed a lot for me to get here, so I am not going to take lectures from the Conservatives on that. This Government are fixing the mess that they left behind. Of course there are challenges in the system, but I welcome the measures that the Government have taken so far, and long may that continue.

Children with SEND: Assessments and Support

Alex McIntyre Excerpts

Monday 15th September 2025 Westminster Hall

[Alex McIntyre (Gloucester) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Dr Allin-Khan. I thank the 393 Gloucester constituents who signed the petition and all those who have contacted me over the past year about SEND provision in our city.

Far too many children with SEND in my city did not start school with their peers last week, and many of those who have been lucky enough to get a school place have still been left without the support that they need. Parents are having to fight against a system that was meant to support them and their families, teachers are struggling to keep up with the demand of increasingly complex needs in their classes, and council officers are operating in a system that seems designed to antagonise and frustrate at every stage. It is clear that the system is broken.

I hope that the Minister will reassure parents in my constituency that, although reform is needed to fix the Tories’ broken system, this Government will guarantee that all children’s needs will be met. I hope that, in fixing the system, the Government will pay particular attention to early years settings. I recently visited the fantastic Dingley’s Promise early years centre in Coney Hill, where I spoke with staff and parents. The team at Dingley’s are determined to give every child with SEND the best start in life. Importantly, the team are also working with schools to create more inclusive environments in mainstream settings. Sadly, not all schools are open to this collaborative working, so I hope that through their reforms, the Government will ensure that such partnerships are supported.

Finally, on fixing the broken SEND system, I make a plea on behalf of all the parents who are, frankly, exhausted and who feel like they have been lied to for years: as part of the reforms, please remove the adversarial relationship between parents and local authorities, and put the experience of families at the heart of our proposals.

SEND Education Support

Alex McIntyre Excerpts

Tuesday 25th February 2025 Westminster Hall

[Alex McIntyre (Gloucester) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Twigg. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Suffolk Coastal (Jenny Riddell-Carpenter) for securing this important debate. I have been contacted time and again by parents in Gloucester who are desperate for support for their children. They have been failed by the system and their children have been left to suffer as a result. The message from parents is clear: they want more support, a reduction in the waiting times for EHCPs, and a system where every plan is processed quickly, fairly and effectively.

It is clear that the last Government failed to invest, failed to plan and failed an entire generation of our children and their parents. They created a postcode lottery whereby parents are forced to battle the system rather than being supported by it. That is one of the biggest challenges facing parents in my area: a system that denies their child’s needs and puts the presumption on saying no, rather than asking how it can best support children.

The repercussions are staggering. In the past decade, decision times on EHCPs increased by 140%, with two in five taking more than six months to process. In Gloucester, only 35% of EHCP decisions were issued within the 20-week target. That is a disgrace, and it is yet again up to the Labour Government to fix the Tory mess.

I understand that there are no quick fixes and there is no magic wand that can undo 14 years of neglect, but I welcome the Government’s £1 billion uplift in SEND funding and the £740 million to create new specialist places in mainstream schools, as well as the commitment to train 400 new educational psychologists and retain these professionals. Will the Minister outline the steps the Government are taking to improve the EHCP process so that families feel supported through it? These measures will ensure that we do not repeat the failures of the last Government. We will be the voice of change, breaking down the barriers to give SEND children better support. These children face so many hurdles in their lives, and it is time we ensured that they have a brighter future and are supported.

--- Later in debate ---

[Gregory Stafford]

I am under a lot of time pressure, and I want the proposer of the motion to be able to get in, so I will not. I have to leave time for the Minister too, and I really want to hear her answers to my questions.

As I was saying, I would therefore be grateful for the Minister’s confirmation that she has engaged with parents and teachers in this situation. And what steps is she taking to ensure that vulnerable children do not suffer the greatest because of this Government’s policy?

Despite the—I have to say—utter nonsense we heard from the hon. Member for Gloucester (Alex McIntyre), the Conservative Government launched a review of the SEND system in 2019 to end the postcode lottery, and committed an extra £700 million in the year 2020-21, an 11% increase on the year prior. Moreover, to ensure that children and young people received the most appropriate support for their needs, the national SEND and alternative provision implementation board was established.

[Alex McIntyre]

Will the hon. Member give way?

[Gregory Stafford]

I am not going to give way, sorry. That created a national system with new, clear standards under the Green Paper, and a consultation that set out the Conservatives’ commitment to delivering the support that children with SEND truly need.

To oversee those vital changes, the SEND system leadership board brought together sector leaders across education, health and social care to drive improvements. The Local Government Association has warned, however, that without proper reform, SEND provision will deteriorate and become financially unviable. A 2024 National Audit Office report echoed those concerns, highlighting the 140% rise in EHCPs since 2015 and warning that the system will become financially unsustainable if unchanged.

Information from the Children and Young People Select Committee last year indicated that there were 2,784 children and young people waiting for autism and ADHD assessments in East Hampshire in my constituency, with waiting times averaging around two years. During that time, children and their families are unable to access the necessary provisions, and that negatively affects their quality of life and puts pressure on local schools. That situation increases the risk of adverse outcomes in educational attainment, mental health and future employment.

I am working closely with local organisations such as SEN Talk CIC, which is a charity founded by a constituent of mine. I have seen its profound impact: 92% of children participating in its programmes report a positive change in their lives, and 80% gain valuable lifelong skills. That is just one of the great initiatives that support many children in my constituency, particularly SEND pupils who are home educated. Although home education is not right for every child, it is a fundamental right that is employed by parents across the UK to give them a hands-on approach to their children’s education.

I have spoken to Kate from Nurtured Neuro Kids and others who have expressed their considerable concerns about the impact that the Government’s rushed Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill will have on SEND children who are educated from home. They are very upset by the lack of positive acknowledgment from the Education Secretary of the important work that they do to take the strain from the mainstream system, and the lack of consultation or consideration for Conservative amendments that would have protected their work. It is therefore important for constituents such as Kate to be assured that the Government will take steps to ensure that all children with speech and language needs get the help they deserve.

It is clearly a wise and welcome decision for the Government to continue the Nuffield early language intervention programme, which provides crucial support to children with speech and language needs. We must acknowledge, however, that there remains significant disparity in access to funding and support, regardless of the region or the individual specialist needs of the child. Every child who struggles with speech and language must have access to support, regardless of where they live.

Despite a relatively collegiate debate, a number of Members—I pick out the hon. Members for Derby South (Baggy Shanker) and for Gloucester—have seen fit to blame the Conservative record and point out Conservative councils’ record in this area. Of the three councils with the highest appeal rates for EHCPs, however, two are Liberal Democrat and one is Labour, so I gently say to Government Members that this is a nationwide problem. Rather than point scoring, it would be better for hon. Members to work together, so that those unfair decisions, and the impact they have on families, are quickly resolved. The comments from the hon. Member for Dartford (Jim Dickson) were particularly uncharitable. I point out to him that in the spring Budget statement, the last Government committed to 15 special schools, with which this Government are not continuing.

I urge the Minister to address the root causes of the problems in the SEND system, including funding and the decision to tax independent schools. Proper reform of the system, including reform of the EHCP process, would give children a proper educational choice. Without it, we risk what the Public Accounts Committee called a “lost generation of children”.

--- Later in debate ---

[Catherine McKinnell]

My hon. Friend raises an important point. The additional recognition of special educational needs and disabilities has highlighted not only the extent of the challenge to ensure the best offer for all children, including those with SEND, but that we should give every child the best education, regardless of their special educational needs and disabilities. Our ability to identify aids us to have the infrastructure and support in place to ensure that every child has the best start in life. I will talk in more detail about how we do that, as many hon. Members have asked.

We have reached the point of recognising the challenge, although the surprising contribution of the Conservative Front Bencher, the hon. Member for Farnham and Bordon (Gregory Stafford), was a caveat to that. In the context of this debate, where we recognise that there is a shared challenge, his contribution seemed to skip from 2014 to the present day, as though the previous 10 years had not happened. It bore no recognition of that, despite his former Secretary of State for Education, Gillian Keegan, acknowledging that the system presided over in the10 years prior to 2024 was “lose, lose, lose”. I agree that we should not be arguing about who created the challenges; we should be getting down and resolving the challenges together. I did not think that the hon. Gentleman’s contribution was respectful of the positive contributions that other Members from both sides of the House had made.

[Alex McIntyre]

I thank my hon. Friend the Minister for having the confidence and courage to accept interventions, unlike some hon. Members. Does she agree that the shadow Minister’s comments showed how out of touch the Conservative party is? Parents have been in tears in my surgeries due to the system that the Conservatives left behind.

[Catherine McKinnell]

I appreciate what my hon. Friend says. I am happy to take interventions, but I have to cover a lot of issues that hon. Members have raised. I hope that, in the time we have left, I have the opportunity to do so.

I know we all agree that every child deserves the opportunity to achieve, thrive and succeed. Where possible, as highlighted by a number of hon. Members, including my hon. Friend the Member for Carlisle (Ms Minns), that should be within a mainstream setting with their friends. However, we are aware that there are significant challenges currently in achieving that. That is why we are prioritising early intervention, which a number of hon. Members have raised, and inclusive provision within mainstream settings.

We know that providing early intervention prevents unmet needs from escalating and supports children to achieve their goals and thrive alongside their peers. We are really committed to working to deliver that for every child in every community. We are doing so by increasing high needs funding by £1 billion, which brings the total funding to £11.9 billion. Suffolk county council is allocated £124 million through the high needs funding block. That is an increase of £10.3 million and a 9% increase per head for two to 18-year-olds.

We know that the high needs funding formula needs to be looked at. It has been largely unchanged because we needed to prioritise making sure that we create a fair funding system, and direct funding to where it is needed and can make the biggest impact. That is why we are allocating funding towards capital to ensure that we have places available where they are needed. The £740 million of high needs capital can be used by local authorities—we will announce the allocations in due course—to deliver new places within mainstream settings, special schools and other specialist settings, and to improve the suitability and accessibility of current buildings. It will also help to tackle the issue of transport, which many hon. Members have raised. If we have mainstream availability of specialist support within a local community, there will be no need to travel such distances.

Apprenticeships

Alex McIntyre Excerpts

Tuesday 4th February 2025 Westminster Hall

[Alex McIntyre (Gloucester) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms Jardine. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Peterborough (Andrew Pakes) for securing this important debate.

Apprenticeships matter. They matter because they break down the barriers to opportunity, giving residents in cities like Gloucester the skills that they need to succeed in life. This Government are committed to creating a fairer, more inclusive system that equips individuals with not only the skills that they need today, but the skills that we will all need in future.

We are introducing a youth guarantee, transforming further education colleges and fostering collaboration between businesses, training providers and Government to build a highly skilled workforce ready to support Labour’s industrial strategy. I hope that in Gloucestershire we will take advantage of the devolution of adult skills funding, empowering local leaders to take charge of skills development in our area. Importantly, we will reform the apprenticeship levy, which has proven ineffective. In its place, the Government will introduce a flexible growth and skills levy, creating a fairer system that works for employers and learners in Gloucester.

[John Slinger (Rugby) (Lab)]

When I spoke to an apprenticeships organisation in Rugby called Intec Business Colleges, it pointed out a deficiency of the previous apprenticeship levy: the threshold meant that it was mostly applicable to and attractive to larger companies. Sadly, that has meant that the small and medium-sized enterprise market has been significantly disadvantaged. Does my hon. Friend agree that as this Government reform the levy to be more effective, we must do everything we can to encourage SMEs to gain from apprentices, so young people can have more opportunities?

[Alex McIntyre]

I agree entirely. SMEs are the backbone of our business community. I recently met the Federation of Small Businesses in the south-west to discuss the opportunities in small and medium-sized businesses in Gloucester and across the region. As my hon. Friend says, apprenticeships are so important to those businesses, as is ensuring that the new levy is flexible so everyone can take part and every person in our country can benefit from the opportunities.

I recently met the principal of Gloucestershire College to discuss the opportunities and the vital role of FE colleges in helping young people to develop the skills that they need for the future, but challenges remain. Our higher and further education system is under significant strain. Many young people leave school without the skills or preparation that they need for the future. I will therefore be grateful if the Minister sets out the steps that the Government are taking to support FE colleges and work placements.

Apprenticeships are not just a pathway to employment. They are a key driver of opportunity for future generations. They provide people with the chance to gain valuable skills, earn while they learn and build fulfilling careers. By supporting people to gain skills in sectors such as technology, science, engineering, health and education, we are building a skilled workforce that will benefit individuals, businesses and the economy. The steps that this Government are taking will leave a lasting legacy of opportunity, ensuring a prosperous future and a workforce ready for the challenges ahead. This will lay the foundations for a stronger Britain, one in which the future is bright and Gloucester thrives.

School Accountability and Intervention

Alex McIntyre Excerpts

Monday 3rd February 2025 Commons Chamber

[Catherine McKinnell]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for welcoming today’s statement. We are very much strengthening the tools we can use for faster and more effective school improvement with the introduction of the new RISE teams. In addition, as he points out, the greater transparency and diagnostic approach of Ofsted reports will enable us to identify both where great practice is and where there is room for improvement. I will take away his question about the impact on other parts of the UK.

[Alex McIntyre (Gloucester) (Lab)]

Parents of SEND children in Gloucester will welcome today’s statement and the words of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State on SEND and inclusion in our schools. Will the Minister confirm that the measures set out by this Labour Government will drive up standards for all children in Gloucester, and will she meet me and parents in my city, who have for years battled the broken system left behind by the previous Conservative Government?

[Catherine McKinnell]

I can absolutely give my hon. Friend that assurance. We wish to see a change in the drive towards an inclusive mainstream as part of this new Ofsted accountability system, and the changes in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bills will obviously support those endeavours. The curriculum and assessment review will also look at how barriers to inclusion can be removed in the curriculum and assessment system, and at how we can get high standards and expectations of great progress for all children, including those with special educational needs and disabilities.

Special Educational Needs and Disabilities

Alex McIntyre Excerpts

Thursday 24th October 2024 Commons Chamber

[Catherine McKinnell]

I thank the hon. Lady for the constructive way in which she put her question. I will take it away, and consider how it would fit into our broader plans to ensure that we have an education system that can meet the needs of children in terms of both their educational requirements and their mental health, special educational needs and disability requirements, within a broader health system that can meet those needs as well.

[Alex McIntyre (Gloucester) (Lab)]

Far too many families in my constituency have come to me in tears, not just at the lack of support for their children with SEND but at a system that seems set up to stop them getting that support. How many appeals are successful because they should have got through the first time around? People feel they are being let down by the system, so will the Minister please ensure that our reformed system will not make families have to fight to get the support that their children so desperately need?

[Catherine McKinnell]

My hon. Friend is right: the system is letting down families and children, and creating a situation where not only are educational outcomes impacted by the poor response but too many families’ lives are affected by trying to deal with the system. That is why we are determined to reform it. The evidence shows very clearly that inclusive mainstream schools that meet demand will reduce the need for education, health and care plans, and the need for families to go through the process in the first place.