Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the commitments in the SEND and alternative provision improvement plan to review her Department's (a) definitions and (b) management of specialist further education and integrate specialist colleges within the wider further education sector, what steps she plans to take to deliver this commitment.

The further education (FE) sector plays a crucial role in delivering special educational needs provision through a range of courses.

On 2 March 2023, the department published the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Improvement Plan in response to the SEND and AP Green Paper.

As set out in the Improvement Plan, we propose to work with the sector to review the way the department defines and manages specialist FE and consider what changes, if any, are needed. The department aims to involve the FE sector in this process, ensuring any changes needed are carefully considered.