Author | Lightnews

Reposted by Rachel

Special Needs Jungle @spcialndsjungle.bsky.social · May 20

On SNJ Today: The parliamentary petition to #ProtectSENDRights is gaining lots of signatures - @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk about why we need 100,000 people to sign—If you haven’t already, please SIGN and SHARE this post and petition! www.specialneedsjungle.com/a... Please Share!

6 4

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · May 18

We cannot allow the government to take away the vital legal rights of disabled children - sign our parliamentary petition here: petition.parliament.uk/petitions/71...

@spcialndsjungle.bsky.social

5 3

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Apr 22

We need support from parents, carers, teachers, professionals and everyone involved and would love your help with the campaign if you want to get involved.

Now is the time for us to make a stand before it’s too late.

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Apr 22

You can also come and join our campaign as an individual, SEND group, charity, school, professional, union or anyone else who cares about this issue - sign up at SENDRA.co.uk and stay up to date with plans for a protest and other action.

SENDRA.co.uk

1

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Apr 22

You can share this post / information in the SEND, education and parenting groups you’re part of and encourage them to sign (it’s also on Facebook on the SEND Rights Alliance page here: www.facebook.com/share/1996Vk...

Redirecting...

www.facebook.com

1

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Apr 22

So what can you do?
You can sign our parliamentary petition here asking the government to commit to maintaining the legal rights of children with SEND petition.parliament.uk/petitions/71...

Petition: Retain legal right to assessment and support in education for children with SEND

Support in education is a vital legal right of children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). We ask the government to commit to maintaining the existing law, so that vulnerable chil...

petition.parliament.uk

1

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Apr 22

The tribunal process, and the fact parents are almost always successful at appeal, is a vital safeguard against councils refusing to support those who need it. We cannot stand by and watch this happen.

1

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Apr 22

We need to be extremely clear that we will strongly oppose any proposed changes to the Children and Families Act and other legal rights of disabled children. The failure in the system now can be directly linked to the failure to implement the law in full and correctly.

1

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Apr 22

You’d hope that the government would see through the biased requests of local government and see the inherent social and financial issues with reducing statutory support to those who qualify. It seems they are listening however, and they’ll certainly be listening to the IFS.

1

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Apr 22

The LGA, rather than fighting for the funding they need to support children, have repeatedly asked the government to reduce their legal obligations. This would not only be catastrophic for children and families, but would have a huge negative impact on costs.

1

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Apr 22

There is also talk of EHCP entitlement ending at 18 rather than 25, which flies in the face of the government’s apparent concern with the number of young people who are out of education, employment or training inews.co.uk/news/labour-...

Labour’s plan to fix the SEND crisis – and how it could see some support cut

The Education Secretary has previously said parents would need to ‘think differently’ on SEND support for children ahead of the planned reforms

inews.co.uk

1

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Apr 22

A member of the government’s inclusion task force “refused to rule out scrapping the current system of education, health and care plans (EHCPs), saying reform could mean “changing the existing system” or “using other systems”

1

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Apr 22

An interview with the Ed secretary last week stated that there would be SEND changes coming in June. At this point, nobody knows what those changes are but allegedly a white paper is expected “in spring” inews.co.uk/news/politic...

'Private schools cried wolf' over VAT fees, education secretary says

The education secretary hints that university tuition fees may have to rise

inews.co.uk

1

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Apr 22

At a recent speech, education Secretary Bridget Phillipson was asked whether they would be making it more difficult to get an EHCP, a question which she did not answer

www.theguardian.com/education/20...

Bridget Phillipson: parents must ‘think differently’ on Send support for children

Education secretary says England’s special needs system has not delivered, as school leaders say it is on brink of collapse

www.theguardian.com

1

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Apr 22

In light of recent media reports suggesting the imminent publication of a White Paper on SEND, we ask you to write to us setting out your plans and the anticipated timescales for any policy announcements on SEND over the next six months.”

committees.parliament.uk/publications/4…

https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/4…

1

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Apr 22

Numerous articles suggest the government is quietly working on a SEND white paper even before the current inquiry into SEND has completed. The chair of the education committee noted their evidence “made no reference to an upcoming White Paper or other major policy announcements.”

1

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Apr 22

They even asked: “What would need to change for parents to trust the system to meet their children’s needs without statutory obligations?”

ifs.org.uk/publications...

Spending on special educational needs in England: something has to change | Institute for Fiscal Studies

Spending on special educational needs (SEND) is becoming unsustainable due to the rise in high needs. Reform to SEND funding and provision is needed.

ifs.org.uk

1

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Apr 22

The Institute for Fiscal Studies report on SEND spending: one recommendation was to change EHCPs so they are no longer statutory. Their main concern with this was how parents would react, rather than the vast costs of changing the law and picking up the pieces of broken children and families.

1

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Apr 22

In practice, that would mean that councils could refuse to assess any children and there’d be no recourse beyond the overwhelmed (and inaccessible) judicial review process www.local.gov.uk/parliament/b...

LGA response to Tribunal Procedure Committee consultation on possible amendments to the Tribunal Procedure

LGA response to Tribunal Procedure Committee consultation on possible amendments to the Tribunal Procedure (first-tier tribunal) (Health Education and Social Care Chamber) rules 2008 regarding propose...

www.local.gov.uk

1

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Apr 22

The Local Government Association suggested preventing parents appealing if a council refuses to assess their child. “A more effective way to tackle the backlog in the short to medium term while long term reform gets underway would be to remove requests to assess from the appealable decisions list.”

1

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Apr 22

Last year’s Isos Partnership report into SEND, funded by local authorities, called for scrapping the SEND tribunal, redefining SEND completely and called disabled children an “existential threat” to local authority finances.
specialneedsjungle.com/send-is-an-exi…

https://specialneedsjungle.com/send-is-an-exi…

1

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Apr 22

Why do we think that the legal rights of children with #SEND are at risk? Please read on and support our campaign to protect the rights of vulnerable children. 🧵https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/711021

1 2

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Mar 20

Parents, carers, teachers, clinicians, councillors and everyone else who cares about #SEND rights - I’ve started a national campaign, we’ll be planning a protest in the summer. Please sign up, as an organisation or as an individual #UniteForSENDRights www.SENDRA.co.uk

Illustration in a blue-green top, on a yellow background. She is holding a sign that says Unite for SEND Rights and SENDRA SEND Rights Alliance

1 1

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Mar 14

And *even then* there are thousands of children with EHCPs with no school place. There are countless EHCPs of insufficient quality that mean children don’t get the education they need. This golden ticket nonsense needs to stop.

Rachel @rachel.stopsafetyvalve.uk · Mar 14

We need to challenge this narrative. EHCPs are NOT a pass to a state-funded private education. They are a pass to a suitable education, and for most that’s already in a mainstream or maintained specialist school inews.co.uk/news/politic...

More SEND pupils could go to mainstream schools as support shake-up is considered

Tighter rules on which children with special educational needs should get EHCPs - guaranteeing support - are being considered, amid SEND cash crisis

inews.co.uk

1