Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the (a) number and (b) proportion of students with special educational needs that are attending the most appropriate early years setting for their needs.

The department recognises that high-quality childcare supports children’s development and prepares younger children for school. It also gives parents the ability to balance work and family life.

As announced in the 2023 Spring Budget, the department is removing one of the biggest barriers to parents working by vastly increasing the amount of free childcare that working families can access.

From April 2024, working parents of two-year-olds can access 15 hours of free childcare per week (38 weeks a year), from September 2024 this will be extended to parents of nine month to three-year-olds, and from September 2025 working parents of nine month to three-year-olds will be able to access 30 free hours per week (38 weeks a year). Information on the current childcare offer can be found at: www.childcarechoices.gov.uk.

Local authorities have a statutory duty under section 7 of the Childcare Act 2006 to secure early education places free of charge for all eligible children. It is for parents and carers to choose a childcare provider that best meets their child’s needs.

The ‘Education provision: children under 5 years of age’ publication identifies that in 2022, there were 84,539 three and four-year-olds with special education needs and disabilities (SEND) registered for the 15-hour entitlement, which equates to 7% of the registered 15-hour entitlement population for this age group. There were 11,590 three and four-year-olds with SEND registered for the entitlement 30-hour entitlement (3.3% of the registered 30-hour entitlement population for this age group), and 5,496 two-year-olds with SEND were registered for the 15-hour entitlement in 2022 (4.1% of the registered 15-hour entitlement population for this age group). This information can found at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/education-provision-children-under-5.

The SEND and Alternative Provision (AP) Improvement Plan, published on 2 March 2023, sets out how an effective single national SEND and AP system will be delivered. The plan can found here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1139561/SEND_and_alternative_provision_improvement_plan.pdf. Many of the proposals in the Improvement Plan will include early years education, including the funding the department is providing to train up to 5,000 early years Special Educational Needs Co-Ordinators (SENCOs) to gain an accredited Level 3 Early Years SENCO qualification.