The school special needs crisis that will impact every one of us

Metro

5 days ago

When her son was five, Kirsty McNulty knew he wasn't 'the same as the other little boys in his class.'
'He had very obsessive behaviours where he'd become fixated on certain things,' Kirsty, 35, tells Metro.
'At one point, it was Disney villains – he asked me if he could have his hand cut off and replaced with a hook so he would be the same as Captain Hook.'
Diagnosed with autism at a young age, Eli, who is now 14, spent many months out of school in Colne as his mum has battled for him to get appropriate special educational needs and disability (SEND) support.
'Because Eli was judged to be conforming at primary school and meeting his academic targets, we didn't get any help. We coped at home – although barely,' she says.
Kirsty's son, who also has ADHD and mild learning disabilities, managed to mask enough at school to make it through the day, but would have huge meltdowns at home.
'He was so dysregulated that he often became violent,' she remembers. 'I'd have to send my mum a text message simply saying 'SOS' when I couldn't manage him, and she would come around to try and help.'
Kirsty warned teachers and professionals about what was happening at home, even videoing Eli so 'they could see how serious the situation had become,' but to no avail.
'I begged various services for support but was repeatedly told that I wasn't a safeguarding risk so there was no support available. 'I felt awful, like I was failing him, and had to start taking anti-depressants to manage my own mental health,' she admits.
When Eli went to high school, things got worse. 'His friends from primary school began to make new friends, and he started getting involved in more and more risky behaviour to try and fit in with different groups,' Kirsty explains. 'We had visits at home from the police and the fire service, and Eli's mental health got worse and worse.
'School rapidly went from saying he didn't need help to saying they couldn't meet his needs.'
Kirsty believes that if her son had one-to-one support or adaptions while in lessons, Eli would have coped better. Instead, at 11, he was admitted to hospital because of his mental health.
While the family's story may sound shocking, it's a scenario all too familiar for many with SEND children up and down the UK, who say they are being failed by the education system.
'It's really common for parents not to get the right support,' Anna Bird, Chief Executive of the charity Contact and Disabled Children's Partnership's CEO, tells Metro.
One gamechanger is an Education, Health, and Care Plan (EHCP) – a legally binding document which brought into play in 2014, outlining the special education needs of a child. If schools fail to deliver the agreed plans, there are serious consequences.
However, not only are these hard to come by, but there are also fears they may be scrapped in the Government's upcoming Schools White Paper – leading to widespread panic among SEND families.
The alarm comes after the Educating Secretary Bridget Phillipson claimed that the current SEND system, which the government inherited from the Tories, needed a huge overhaul, and she refused to rule out putting an end to EHCPs.
Although Phillipson stated that they would work with parents on a new system, the reality is, the families impacted would rather have something in place, than nothing at all.
'They [families] are worried they are going to lose the small amount of help they get at the moment,' Jane Harris, CEO of Speech and Language UK, tells Metro, adding that even though EHCPs aren't perfect, they're currently the 'only actual way to guarantee support.'
'The reasons they aren't [always] implemented isn't usually because of the legal framework, but because schools don't have enough funding, time, or training and expertise. You can't fix [those problems] by taking away the legal rights they do have.'
In response to the Education Secretary's words, the Disabled Children's Partnership has recently launched an action plan as part of their Fight for Ordinary campaign setting out a blueprint for reforming the SEND system in England.
'The system has to be reformed, and we're pleased to hear the government has committed to do that,' says Anna. 'But they have got to get it right.'
The DCP is calling for the government to address five key areas so that SEND children enjoy the same 'ordinary' things their peers take for granted. Training for school staff, additional specialist support, adequate funding, and systems in place to measure progress are among the recommendations, as is legally guaranteed support for all children who need it, not only those with EHCPs.
The organisation warns that if these needs aren't met, the economical impact will be felt across the UK – and not just within SEND families, as inadequate early years support already costs England alone over £16 billion annually, according to research from LSE.
'Children who aren't supported during school are less likely to succeed at school. They'll then find it harder to get work. That'll create problems for the economy later down the line,' explains Anna.
As it stands 170,000 children in England are missing at least half of their classes in 2024, while three out of four parents of children with SEND have already been forced to give up work or cut their hours – causing another potential blow to the economy.
'On average, they [families] are losing about £21,000 a year in lost income,' Bird says. 'That's a huge impact and makes a huge difference in how they can look after their children.'
Although Kirsty was eventually successful in getting her ECHP, the financial knock-on the family felt can't be ignored.
With Eli missing several months of school and being four years behind, Kirsty says her son has been 'stripped of his right to an education.'
'The impact has been felt by everyone,' Kirsty says. 'My mental health has taken a huge downturn, and I've lost my career as duty worker with a domestic abuse service.'
Even though Kirsty is desperate to return to work once her son's reduced timetable starts next year, she is fully aware that no employer will allow her the flexibility she needs.
'If the Government is serious about sorting out the SEND system, then they must fund schools to provide our children with the support they need,' she adds. 'Every child has the legal right to an education, and there should be no exceptions to that.'
Tobias Lambe spent most of primary and early high school years masking his struggles at school.
'It was the small things in school that felt overwhelming,' the 21-year-old tells Metro. 'The set up of the room, the bright lights. I never went into the canteen to eat my lunch in high school – it was too loud and smelly. Teachers didn't understand that I took things very literally. I never really had friends because I couldn't understand people – they were often not the nicest.'
It was only when Tobias had a breakdown on a school trip when he was 14, that he eventually got some support and he was eventually diagnosed with autism.
'I was completely overwhelmed and was having auditory hallucinations telling me negative things about myself,' he says. 'It was enough to tip me over the edge. I felt like I didn't belong in this world, no one struggled or thought like me.'
Although his mother's first request for an ECHP assessment was rejected, her second was accepted and the school adjusted Tobias' routines, made teachers aware of his needs and the simple things he struggled with, and was given an autism mentor.
With smaller class sizes, specialist intervention, and a routine that suited him, Tobias thrived. He's now in his third year of medical school and on his way to becoming a doctor within the NHS.
It's no wonder he feels 'scrapping EHCPs is a terrible idea.'
Tobias explains: 'While the government might want to reduce the number because of their cost, they should be working at the underlying problem – children aren't treated as people. They are just numbers in a system.'
To reform the SEND system is clearly going to cost money. In the 2024 autumn budget, Labour announced an increased education spending of £11.2b from 2023/24 by 2025/26, with £1b earmarked for SEND. It's suspected more will be needed to follow recommendations set out by the DCP. More Trending
'We know if you give children help up front, they are far more likely to go into employment. If you try and make short term savings in this area, all you do is massively increase the long-term cost,' Jane Harris points out.
However, if the Government truly listens to families and those working with SEND children, reform could be transformative, believes Anna Bird.
'There are currently around 2 million with special educational needs. If done right, the positive impact of change would mean those children would feel happier at school, achieve their full potential, and contribute to the economy. That's a huge prize,' she says.
'There is every opportunity to get these reforms right, but it does involve us working together.'
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