Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will launch a public consultation on the proposed changes to EHCP eligibility criteria.

This government inherited a special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) system that has been failing to meet the needs of children and families for far too long. We know that families face real challenges with EHC plans and that even after fighting to secure the entitlement, a plan does not always guarantee the right the support will be delivered.

The department needs to focus on addressing the overall systemic issues that make SEND support so hard to access. We are thinking about how we protect support for the children that will always need specialist placements and to make accessing that support less bureaucratic and adversarial, as well as how we intervene earlier so support can be provided regardless of whether a legal plan is in place.

Ministers and officials have been engaging with parents to seek their views on the direction of future reforms and to understand their experiences of the SEND system. For example, through a webinar attended by around 100 parents in early June. We plan to deliver more such webinars over the coming weeks and months.