Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will take steps to improve the (a) process and (b) tools used to diagnose SEND in children.

This government’s ambition is that all children and young people with special education needs and disabilities (SEND) or in alternative provision receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life. The department wants to drive a consistent and inclusive approach to supporting children and young people with SEND through early identification, effective support, high quality teaching and effective allocation of resources. The department’s approach will support families, breaking down the barriers to opportunity for their children.

The department knows that parents have struggled to get the right support for their children, particularly through long and difficult Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan processes. The department wants to make sure that EHC plan applications are processed promptly and, where required, are issued as quickly as possible so that children and young people can access the support they need. The department has listened to a wide range of people such as children and young people, parents, schools, colleges and local authorities and their partners, and it is deciding how to proceed based on these insights.

The department is also investing heavily in the SEND system, for example:

• Investing a further £21 million to train 400 more educational psychologists across specialists.
• Announcing that funded support for the 11,100 schools registered for the Nuffield Early Language Intervention programme would continue for 2024/25.
• In partnership with NHS England, funding the Early Language and Support For Every Child (ELSEC) to trial new ways of working to earlier identify and support children with speech, language and communication needs in early years and primary schools, utilising Therapy Support Assistants.
• Funding the Partnerships for Inclusion of Neurodiversity in Schools (PINS) programme, which will deploy specialists from both health and education workforces within mainstream primary school settings. PINS will build teacher and staff capacity to identify and meet the needs of neurodiverse children, including those with speech and language needs, through whole-school interventions.
• Funding up to 7,000 early years staff to gain an accredited Level 3 early years SENCO qualification to support the development of the early years' workforce.