Tag Archives: SEND

Tiny Humans, Big Lessons: Early years under Labour a year on

GK’s Thea Southwell Reeves examines how Labour has placed early years at the heart of its social mobility agenda by focusing on high-quality, education-led provision.

 

Early years is a priority for government and has been since it first entered office last year. High quality early years education is a cornerstone of the equal opportunities ‘mission’ to break the link between a child’s background and their future success. Bridget Phillipson had championed early years long before the election and the appointment of the first ever early years minister was an indication of the priority it would have in the new Department for Education (DfE).

Although several of Labour’s early years policies have continued the work of previous governments, this government’s key ideological shift is away from seeing childcare as simply an economic issue to a focus on the provision of high-quality early education as a driver of social mobility. Addressing regional gaps in childcare provision known as ‘childcare deserts’ is fundamental to this, as is increasing the focus on quality to close the growing disadvantage gap in school readiness.

During its first year, the government’s priority has been implementing the final stages of the funding entitlements roll outs, which were completed this month. Now, eligible working parents of children aged 9 months to 5 years are entitled to 30 hours of funding per week. Overall, the expansion of funding has driven demand for spaces. The government had set a target of creating 85,000 new early years childcare places by September 2025 to support the roll out of funding expansions. It is not yet clear whether this target has been met, butInitial analysis suggests that most of this additional capacity has been concentrated in areas where provision already exists rather than creating new capacity in childcare deserts.

The government’s schools-based nurseries programme is designed to focus new provision in disadvantaged areas with 189 of the 300 government-funded new or expanded in-school settings opening this month. About 10% of school-based nursery provision is delivered by a PVI partnership. The second phase of funding is now open for applications and is prioritising high quality bids from schools in the most disadvantaged communities.

What’s next for early years?

The funding rates to deliver the government-funded childcare have always been contentious, with the industry maintaining that the funding simply does not reflect the true cost of provision. This has led many providers to use additional charges to ‘top up’ their income but the government has pushed back on this, revising the guidance around chargeable extras earlier this year. In its new strategy for the sector, published in July, the DfE announced a full review of early years funding, including the merits of national funding formulae. It will consult on proposals by summer 2026 and businesses should be monitoring and contributing to this process. The strategy also includes plans to increase the funding available to providers to support children with SEND and improve the way funding is allocated as part of the government’s wider reforms to the SEND system. More detail will be set out on this in the schools white paper this autumn.

The early years strategy, for the first time, raises DfE concerns about a rise in large providers backed by private equity. These providers, according to DfE, ‘are less likely to operate in deprived areas…and over time this can result in price rises and disruption to services.’ At the heart of this is a concern about market exits that could destabilise regional childcare provision. Policymakers will continue to monitor the financial sustainability of the early years market and may take further steps to increase market transparency if appropriate. This could include measures like those being taken in adult or children’s social care, such as a financial oversight mechanism. For businesses and investors, monitoring the development of this policy thinking and engaging with the policymaking process is vital to minimising any risk associated with such policy change, as well as realising commercial opportunities.

If you’d like to discuss early years policy in more detail please reach out to Thea on thea@gkstrategy.com

Does the latest financial settlement for local authorities shift the dial on council finances?

The government has now confirmed the local authority financial settlement for 2025-26. This is a crucial time of year for councils who rely on these funds to deliver statutory services including adult and children’s social care, and support for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities. Independent providers of these services should pay close attention to the financial settlement as it provides a good indication of future cost pressures for councils at a time when demand for statutory services continues to rise.

The final settlement will provide £69.4 billion of core spending power to local authorities in England. This represents a rise of £4.4 billion compared to 2024-25, constituting a 6.8% cash terms increase (or 4.3% when adjusted for inflation). Of this £69 billion figure, 24% is non-ring-fenced settlement funding, 14% is grants for social care, 6% is other grants, and the remaining 55% is council tax. While the overall increase in spending power is broadly aligned with increases in recent years, in real terms it is approximately 9% below where it was in 2010-11. Since this date, councils have become increasingly reliant on council tax revenue to meet their statutory obligations.

The funding settlement does not appear to provide much relief to local authorities who continue to struggle under the pressure of growing demand for services. Chair of the Local Government Association, Cllr Louise Gittins, said the extra funds ‘will help meet some of the cost and demand pressures they face but still falls short of what is desperately needed’. She went on to say that that the funding landscape remains extremely challenging for councils of all types and many could be forced to make further cuts to non-statutory services.

However, the government hopes change is on the horizon with its proposed reforms to local authority funding. Ministers believe these reforms will provide more financial certainty to councils, which will in turn allow them to better manage their spending and reduce cost pressures. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has recently concluded a consultation on local authority funding reform and is in the process of analysing the responses it received. One of the primary proposals under consideration is to move to a multi-year settlement from 2026-27, which the government believes ‘will enable [councils] to better plan ahead and achieve better outcomes for local residents, as well as better value for money for taxpayers.’

Overall, the recent confirmation of the local authority funding settlement points to more of the same for councils up and down the country – mounting cost pressures will leave council leaders scrambling to meet rising demand for services. For providers of local authority funded services, this demonstrates the ongoing importance of communicating to commissioners their high-quality, value for money offering which will reduce the burden on council resources. It will also be vital for businesses to monitor the government’s response to the consultation on local authority funding as this will allow them to best anticipate and respond to possible future changes to commissioning practices following the policy’s implementation.

To discuss the local authority funding landscape in more detail, please contact Hugo Tuckett (hugo@gkstrategy.com).

London Underground

GK Launches New Podcast on Trending Policy Issues

Education with Edward Timpson MP

In the inaugural episode of the GK Strategy Podcast, David Laws, GK Strategic Adviser, spoke with the former Children & Families Minister, Edward Timpson MP, about the future of special educational needs and disability policy.

The lively discussion covered everything from SEND policy to social services, with Mr Timpson offering insight into the reform to SEND services and the current policy environment across social care.

Mr Timpson spoke specifically on the 2014 Children and Families Act which he helped push through Parliament. He noted that the legislation “still stands up to scrutiny” 10 years after it was passed and serves as a blueprint for joining up and improving services across education, health and social care. However, he also described some of the challenges associated with the legislation’s implementation, which has led to many parents having vastly different experiences with the SEND system.

During the episode, Mr Laws and Mr Timpson brought to light the “tough” spending environment across the education sector, highlighting the need for increased funding from central government. However, they also touched on other issues that have impacted SEND provision, including the capacity within the workforce, the importance of educational psychologists, SEND ‘deserts’ and out of area provision, and the extent to which mainstream settings should take on more responsibility for SEND provision.

You can listen to the full episode on Spotify here.

SEND and AP Improvement Plan

The SEND and AP Improvement Plan – A Year Without Progress

GK Advisers Noureen Ahmed and Felix Griffin evaluate the implementation of the SEND and AP Improvement Plan.

The Government and the Opposition face questions on their SEND policy plans

Nearly a year has elapsed since the Government unveiled its SEND and AP Improvement Plan, which reiterated its commitment to ensuring every child and young person with SEND receives the high-quality support they need. What exactly has changed since publication? The answer – not much…yet.

The plan outlined several key policies, including the long-overdue standardisation and digitalisation of Education, Health, and Care Plans (EHCPs), the implementation of new national SEND standards, and the introduction of a revised funding approach for alternative provision.

Although these policies were warmly welcomed by the sector, they’re not expected to come into effect on a national scale until 2025 at the earliest. This delay has raised concerns about the precariousness of the SEND landscape, prompting calls for a quicker implementation timeline.

A recent report from the Guardian, citing Freedom of Information (FOI) requests, revealed instances where children and young people in certain local authorities waited over two years to receive an EHCP. Moreover, insufficient funding for SEND services has put local authorities in a difficult position, exacerbating the existing strain on resources.

Questions have also been raised about what a Labour government might look like for the sector. At present, the Party has said very little on SEND but noted that “interlinking services and improving data use” would help identify a child’s needs much earlier.

The Government has stressed its ambition to reform the SEND landscape. However, given the escalating crisis, doubts continue to grow as to whether the plan will suffice in addressing and alleviating the issues facing the sector.

From National Standards to Digital EHCPs: the future of SEND in England

GK associate, Monica Thompson, provides an insightful analysis of the UK government’s recently published SEND and Alternative Provision Improvement Plan for the future of Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) in England. The plan proposes a range of policies aimed at fixing a broken system, including several key policies that promise to improve inclusivity among mainstream schools and introduce digital solutions for Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs). Despite criticism from experts and campaigners over delays and setbacks in the government’s review, Monica discusses how the proposed policies are a step in the right direction to address the urgent need for reform.

On March 2, 2023, the UK government finally published its Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Improvement Plan, aimed at fixing the SEND system in England. However, the UK government’s review of the SEND system has been beset by delays and setbacks, prompting criticism from experts and campaigners. This plan proposes a range of policies, including the creation of new national SEND standards and the introduction of digital EHCPs. However, the government’s timeline for rolling out these policies is expected to take several years.

The government will be piloting the new national SEND standards and funding tariffs, along with digital EHCPs and tailored school lists for parents, for two to three years under a £70 million “change programme,” with nine regional expert partnerships taking part in the trial. By the end of 2025, the Department for Education will decide whether to go ahead with the changes nationally, which means that a national rollout might not happen until 2026.

The government’s plan includes a range of proposals to improve inclusivity among mainstream schools, but concerns have been raised over the timeline of the changes. Last year’s SEND Green Paper plans to consult on giving councils powers to direct academy trusts to admit pupils as part of a drive toward a more inclusive system, does not appear in the government’s plan. Instead, the plan focuses on making the process of applying to the secretary of state for a direction to admit a pupil “as effective as possible”.

The upcoming Academies Regulation and Commissioning Review will set out plans to incentivise improvement for all children in all parts of the country, including support for children and young people with SEND who attend mainstream settings.

It is widely acknowledged that the SEND system in England is in need of reform, and while the government’s new national standards promise to improve inclusivity among mainstream schools, many believe that the proposed changes are not happening soon enough.

The following key policies are highlighted in the review:

  1. National Standards: The government will pilot new SEND standards before legislating for them. The standards will be tested in 2022 and will focus on the most deliverable elements of the current system. Legislation will be introduced at the earliest opportunity to facilitate intervention in education settings if standards are not met.
  2. Accountability: Ministers will design accountability mechanisms to ensure government expectations are met. The standards could set out how schools must adapt physical and sensory environments to enable pupils with SEND to learn alongside their peers.
  3. Digital EHCPs: The government plans to standardize Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) templates and introduce digital solutions to improve experiences for councils, suppliers, and families. The digital EHCPs will be piloted in 2023 before being rolled out in 2025.
  4. Local Inclusion Plans: Local inclusion plans created by local SEND and AP partnerships will be introduced. Tailored lists of settings for children will be tested before legislation is introduced at the next available opportunity to make partnerships statutory.
  5. Mandatory Mediation: Mediation between councils and families will be reviewed. Professional standards for mediators and advice will be reviewed in 2022.
  6. New SENCO National Professional Qualification: The government will procure providers for a new leadership level SENCO National Professional Qualification.
  7. New Special Schools: The government has promised 33 new free schools and is currently assessing applications for new AP schools.
  8. National SEND Tariffs: The government will introduce a national system of funding bands and tariffs to ensure consistent funding.
  9. Alternative Provision Funding: The government will introduce a new funding approach for alternative provision aligned to its focus on preventive work with, and reintegration of pupils into, mainstream schools.
  10. Inclusion Dashboard: The government plans to introduce new inclusion dashboards for 0-25 provision to offer a timely, transparent picture of how the system is performing at local and national levels.
  11. Ladder of Intervention: The government will introduce a new ladder of intervention this year to strengthen accountabilities across all parts of the system.
  12. Alternative Provision Performance Framework: An expert group will support the development of a bespoke national alternative provision performance framework.
  13. Fair Access Panels Review: The government will review processes and develop options for ensuring transparent and effective movement of pupils without EHCPs.
  14. Independent Schools: The government will re-examine the state’s relationship with independent special schools to ensure comparable expectations for all state-funded specialist providers.
  15. Joined-Up Work with NHS England: Integrated care boards will be required to have a named executive board member lead accountable for SEND.
  16. National SEND and Alternative Provision Implementation Board: The government will introduce a new implementation board to hold partners accountable for the timely development and improvement of the system.

In conclusion, the UK government’s new SEND and Alternative Provision Improvement Plan proposes several policies that aim to reform a challenged system. While the timeline for rolling out these policies may be slow, it is hoped that the trialling of the changes will avoid repeating mistakes made in the past. The upcoming Academies Regulation and Commissioning Review also provides an opportunity to improve support for children and young people with SEND across the country.