Phillipson vows “effective” SEND support will not be removed as White Paper looms

“We are not going to be taking away effective support from children,” Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson told Laura Kuenssberg as ministers prepared to publish a Schools White Paper due tomorrow that sets out an overhaul of England’s special educational needs and disabilities system.

Phillipson said the package will be accompanied by a decade-long, carefully managed transition during which every child with identified SEND will have a school-led Individual Support Plan with a legal underpinning. She told viewers that the government would be “spending more money” on SEND and that Education, Health and Care Plans will “have an important role to play in the new system.” The White Paper is also expected to set a long-term target to halve the disadvantage gap between students in England within two decades.

The reforms aim to put ISPs at the centre of mainstream provision and to extend statutory protections beyond those currently covered by EHCPs. Under the proposals, every child with identified SEND, including those without an EHCP today, will have an ISP drawn up by their school and the plans will be backed by “clear routes and clear principles set out in statute,” Phillipson said. She added parents should expect support “more quickly” and “when they need it and where they need it,” and that families “won’t have to fight so hard to get support through an EHCP.”

But leaks and details released ahead of the White Paper have crystallised parent and campaigner fears. Officials have suggested some pupils may be reassessed at key transition points, such as the move from primary to secondary; children currently in year 2 who hold EHCPs were cited as an example of cohorts that may be reviewed to determine whether their needs should remain documented in an EHCP or met through a more flexible ISP and mainstream support. Ministers acknowledge annual EHCP reviews “should be happening,” but concede “that doesn’t always happen.”

Charities and families welcomed the promise of more funding while warning that statutory rhetoric without clear remedies will not restore trust. James Watson-O’Neill, chief executive of Sense, said: “A shocking number of children are being failed by a baffling and underfunded SEND system. Too many are falling through the cracks – at the cost of their happiness, wellbeing and future life chances. If their children’s legal rights are weakened any further or there’s an attempt to cut spending, the consequences could be devastating.” A case study from a parent, Mrs Hind, underlined the stakes: describing the EHCP process for her son Harvey as “horrific for him and our whole family,” she said she supports reform but is “extremely concerned” about any change to the funding he receives.

Concrete fiscal measures announced alongside the reforms include £200 million for teacher training in SEND and £3 billion to create roughly 50,000 new school places, figures that ministers say form part of their commitment to “spend more.” Independent analysis points to acute backlogs: one in 14 young people waited longer than a year to receive an EHCP in 2024.

Journalistic scrutiny and questions from Kuenssberg highlighted a key semantic fault line: the assurance that “effective support” will not be taken away is not the same as an absolute guarantee that no child will lose an element of present provision. The opposition insisted it would “absolutely oppose any support being withdrawn.” With parents, schools and some MPs wary, ministers face the twin tasks of publishing statutory detail that explains how ISPs will be enforced and persuading a sceptical public that reassessments will expand, not erode, entitlements.