Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether the Government's levelling up agenda includes improvements in provision for children with special educational needs.

The government is determined to level up opportunities for all children and young people without exception. The department is just as ambitious for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) as it is for every other child.

This week, the department published the SEND and alternative provision (AP) green paper, setting out proposals for a system that offers children and young people the opportunity to thrive, with access to the right support, in the right place and at the right time, so they can fulfil their potential and lead happy, healthy and productive adult lives.

The green paper includes proposals to establish a new national SEND and AP system that will set new standards for how needs are identified and met across education, health and care, including proposals to introduce a standardised and digitised education, health and care plan process, and a template to minimise bureaucracy and deliver consistency.

The new standards will mean that, in future, parents and carers can be confident that their child’s needs will be met effectively in the most appropriate local education provider, without having to fight to secure the appropriate support for their child’s needs. Parents will be clear about what support their child is receiving and they will be engaged in decision-making at every stage.