Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether specialist professionals, including habilitation specialists and Qualified Teachers of Children and Young People with Vision Impairment, will have a formal role in the development of Individual Support Plans.

The Individual Support Plan will provide every child and young person with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) a clear and consistent record of their needs and the help they receive. Professionals will be able to use the Individual Support Plan to share information on their needs and provision with parents and others. This will ensure that support, including from specialists, is joined up and timely, helping children and young people with SEND to thrive.

The department is investing £1.8 billion in the Experts at Hand model over the next three years and will develop National Inclusion Standards that set out evidence-based tools, strategies and approaches to draw on to identify and support children and young people with additional needs. We are focused on providing schools and settings with expert advice and guidance to help them identify and meet a range of special educational needs, including those of children and young people with visual impairments.