Urgent action needed to support SEN pupils - MP

An MP has called for the government to review funding for children with special education needs (SEN), after statistics found nearly one in five pupils were receiving support in the classroom.

Warinder Juss, MP for Wolverhampton West, told the Commons there had been a 140% increase in the number of children identified as requiring an education, health or care plan (ECHP) in England over the last decade.

He said there were nearly 9,000 pupils receiving support within his constituency, about 18% of the total pupil population.

Juss called on the government to "urgently re-examine the structure and long-term sustainability" of special educational needs and disability (SEND) provision.

The MP welcomed the government's commitment to spending £740m on creating new 10,000 SEND spaces but said the current system was "financially unsustainable" without change.

"Since 2019, we have seen no consistent improvement in outcomes for children with SEND," he said.

"We must, therefore, take bold, decisive steps to reform our SEND system to ensure that every child, irrespective of their needs or background, receives the proper support they rightly deserve."

The government said in the spending review it would be setting out plans in a white paper in the autumn to reform the system in England.

According to annual statistics from the Department of Education, the number of school pupils in England receiving support for SEN had risen to more than 1.7 million.

Speaking in Parliament on Thursday, Juss said children in the "most deprived areas" of Wolverhampton were significantly more likely to require additional support than those in more affluent neighbourhoods.

He said state special schools in his area were "under strain" and "operating beyond capacity," despite the tireless efforts of staff.

"This is not just a matter of education but a matter of social justice," the MP added. "We must invest in early years intervention and deliver a holistic programme of support."

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