Council strategy to be updated after significant rise in children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities

Tomorrow (October 8) cabinet will decide whether to approve updates to its Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) strategy.

It comes after a significant rise in the number of young people being identified with SEND since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.

An analysis of the council’s SEND programme during called ‘Delivering Better Value’ found that the council had room to improve its support for young people and create a more cohesive system.

New goals have been identified to improve place-based inclusion, improve capability within the system and make assessment and transition more effective.

Funding will continue for children transitioning from early years to mainstream education, whereas this currently stops.

Rather than implementing Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) as soon as a child’s needs increase, the council will seek more funding to allow for minimal disruption.

The council will also aim to reduce the number of children placed in specialist schools if their school is struggling to meet needs, by seeking specialist funding to support the child within their school.

Those placed in specialist schools will be less likely to be placed outside of Doncaster, instead being offered part-time local support.

Among young people in Doncaster, around 12.8 per cent require support for SEND, in line with the national average.

A national SEND review was undertaken by the government from 2019-2022, which found that provision was generally poor across the country.

In March 2022, a government green paper concluded that navigating the SEND system for support was a negative experience for families.