Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department are taking to support parents and guardians whose children have not been in a formal education environment for over six months due to special educational needs requirements.

In the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Improvement Plan, published in March 2023, the department outlined its commitment to build a consistent national SEND and AP system that parents and carers can trust, easily navigate, and have confidence in.

The department understands that barriers to attendance are wide and complex, particularly for pupils with SEND. The attendance guidance for schools and local authorities expects schools, trusts and local authorities to provide joined up support for children and their families facing special educational needs, health or disability related barriers to attendance.

Through the AP Specialist Taskforce Pilots, the department is also working directly with young people and their families who are at risk of disengaging with education to offer intensive support. The pilot has supported more than 2,500 children so far, 77% of whom have SEND.

Where parents have elected to home educate their child, some local authorities will provide support at their discretion. The department is committed to introducing statutory local authority registers for children not in school, and a duty for local authorities to provide support to home-educating families. We continue to work with local authorities to ensure all children are receiving a suitable education.