'Don't take away our children's SEND rights'

Parents say they are concerned changes to special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) support will give them less power.

Dee McMahon, a mum of three SEND children from Hove and co-leader of Southern SEND Families support group, said families still needed "enforcement when the system gets it wrong".

The government is writing off SEND debt, including more than £200m from Sussex councils, in exchange for more inclusion in mainstream schools and limiting legally-binding support plans to those with the most complex needs.

It said the SEND system was under "immense strain" and its "once-in-a-generation reforms" would "never leave parents without a route to challenge decisions".

• At a glance - the key changes being made to SEND

Under the reforms, some children on education, health and care plans (EHCPs) will be transitioned to new individual support plans (ISPs) managed by schools.

McMahon, who has used EHCPs to appeal council decisions at tribunals for all three of her children, said she feared fewer children would have their needs met because ISPs were not legally binding.

She said that it was easy to "say they aim to put the right provision in place", but "unfortunately with the costs and the lack of funding and staff it's often not done".

"At the moment we have access to a tribunal which is a free, independent service where families like mine can go and have access to a judge who pushes back and says it's unlawful," she said.

Brighton & Hove City Council has had £1.6m paid off while East Sussex County Council has had £18m of debt cleared.

In West Sussex, £183m of school deficit had been settled.

Councillor Sam Raby, West Sussex County Council cabinet member for children, young people and learning, welcomed the debt being cleared, but warned that future financial forecasts for councils were still unsustainable.

"The fact remains that the money we receive from national government is not enough to cover the cost of delivering support for those with SEND in West Sussex," he said.

Phil Clarke, a former teacher from Lewes and now the South East representative for the National Education Union, said a move towards mainstream inclusion was "positive", but sufficient funding was essential.

"Schools haven't got the capacity or resources to do this properly unless the government increases funding and makes changes to the curriculum so it's adaptable for all students," he said.

A government spokesperson said: "We inherited a SEND system under immense strain, with families waiting months for support, and poor outcomes for children.

"Our once-in-a-generation reforms will change that.

"Legal duties on schools to identify and support children's needs are getting stronger, not weaker. And we will never leave parents without a route to challenge decisions about their child's support."

In addition to grants to pay off 90% of council SEND deficits, it said billions were being invested to make sure schools had access to speech and language therapists and other specialists.

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