Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, What progress her Department has made on implementing the Government's Autism Strategy 2021-2026; and what steps she plans to take to implement the objectives in 2024.

The department worked closely with the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) to develop a refreshed cross-government autism strategy, which was published in July 2021 and includes children and young people. The national strategy sets out the department’s vision to make life fundamentally better for autistic people, their families and carers by 2026.

The department has made significant progress on implementation of the strategy.

Examples of key actions taken have included:

• The department published the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision Improvement Plan in March 2023. The plan sets out how the department aims to improve mainstream education, including for autistic children and young people, by setting standards for the early and accurate identification of need and timely access to support to meet those needs. For those children and young people with SEND, including those who are autistic, who do require an Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan and specialist provision, the department will ensure that they get access to the support they need and that parents do not face an adversarial system to secure this.
• The department provided comprehensive professional development and support for the education workforce to improve outcomes for children and young people, including those who are autistic, through the Universal Services contract. This offers autism awareness training and resources which align with the all-age autism strategy. Over 135,000 professionals have undertaken this autism awareness training since the Universal Services programme began in May 2022.
• The department is developing practitioner standards, as part of the new national standards, to support frontline professionals. This will include a practitioner standard on autism, to be published by the end of 2025.
• The department is investing approximately £18 million until 2025 to build capacity in the supported internships programme and support more young people with EHC plans into employment. This includes up to £10.8 million in grant funding available to local authorities.
• The department is offering all state schools and colleges a grant to train a senior mental health lead by 2025, enabling them to introduce effective whole school approaches to mental health and wellbeing. Over 14,400 settings have claimed a grant so far, including more than seven in ten state-funded secondary schools.
• The department is continuing to roll out mental health support teams (MHSTs) to schools and colleges to expand access to early mental health support. The department is extending coverage of MHSTs to at least 50% of pupils in schools and further education in England by the end of March 2025.
• The department is funding training for up to 7,000 early years (EY) staff to gain an accredited Level 3 EY Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCO) qualification. Training is available to SENCOs working in group-based and childminder settings, with places targeted to specific areas based on levels of disadvantage.
• The department is providing over £3 million of funding, between 10 August 2021 and 31 March 2024, to five anti-bullying organisations to support schools to tackle bullying. This includes projects targeting bullying of particular groups, such as those who have SEND.
• The department is investing in the Free Schools programme, which is committed to improving SEND provision across the country. There are currently 108 open special free schools and a further 76 approved to open.
• The department funds the Participation Contract, a three-year contract running from April 2022, ending March 2025. The total cost of the contract is £18.39 million which includes consortium, Parent Carer Forum grants and the strategic reform partnership contract. The Contract aims to strengthen the participation of parents and young people, including those who are autistic in the design of SEND policies and services and ensure that they are able to access high-quality information, advice and support.

In 2024, DHSC is prioritising updating the Autism Act statutory guidance by working across government, including with the department, to support the NHS and local authorities to deliver improved outcomes for autistic people in line with the national autism strategy. This updated guidance will be subject to public consultation in 2024. Delivery of the cross-government actions set out in the national autism strategy remains a priority for 2024 and progress will continue to be monitored.