6,683 SEN children in Enfield will benefit from £740m spending – announced in December by the new Government – to create more specialist places in mainstream schools as the first part of major SEND reform.
This new funding can be used to adapt classrooms to be more accessible for children with SEND, and to create specialist facilities within mainstream schools that can deliver more intensive support adapted to suit the pupils’ needs.
This investment will improve the lives of tens of thousands of families across England – 11.6% of local children have Special Educational Needs in Enfield. The investment follows a damning National Audit Office report that exposed the special educational needs system in crisis.
Enfield Labour’s Cabinet Member for Young People and Education, Cllr Abdul Abdullahi said,
“Children in Enfield with special educational needs deserve the best possible education – but for too long too many have been failed by a system in crisis.
“The new Labour government is taking action and fixing the foundations of our schools system and our country to get Britain back on track. We know there is an awful lot more to do, after we inherited a country that was broken by the Conservatives, but this is a big step in the right direction.
“Through these SEND reforms – starting with £750K in capital investment to create more places for SEN children in mainstream schools – we are going to deliver for local children. The new government are ambitious for every child in Enfield, and the work of change to breakdown the barriers to opportunity has begun. ”
Here in Enfield our vision is that every school will have a specialist provision to meet the needs of children with special needs. We already have 23 specialist provisions in primary and secondary schools as well as highly specialist provision in our 7 special schools. We are working closely with children and families as well as headteachers to ensure that what is provided meets needs. The borough also provides specific services to schools to meet speech and language needs, support for hearing and sight impaired children, specialist support for autistic children as well as a range of other support services.
Last year, only 20% of pupils with SEND nationally met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths at Key Stage 2 level. Without the right support, children are falling behind their peers, impacting their future life chances.
The funding announced in December forms part of a broader £6.7 billion capital settlement for education for the next financial year, announced at the Autumn Budget, which will be used to deliver this government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and give every child the best life chances while fixing the foundations of the school system.
Secretary of State for Education, Bridget Phillipson said:
“The current picture is stark. For too long, too many children with additional needs haven’t been getting support early enough, with dire consequences when issues escalate.
“But my commitment to reform – making tangible change to the SEND system to improve experiences for children and families – could not be clearer, and building a system where more children with SEND can attend mainstream schools is central to our plans.
“We are determined to break down barriers to opportunity for all children and will work closely with local authorities, schools and families to ensure inclusion is at the heart of learning and that all pupils are getting the support they need to achieve and thrive.”
Last year, only 20% of pupils with SEND met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths at Key Stage 2 level. Without the right support, children are falling behind their peers, impacting their future life chances.
The funding forms part of a broader £6.7 billion capital settlement for education for the next financial year, announced at the Autumn Budget, which will be used to deliver this government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and give every child the best life chances while fixing the foundations of the school system.
Local SEN data can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/special-educational-needs-in-england/2023-24?subjectId=cf208578-2aa2-43d5-7f09-08dc74d49ccd
11.6% of local children have Special Educational Needs in Enfield – pupils with SEN support in state-funded schools and pupils with SEN without an EHC plan in Independent schools.
