Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to screen pupils for special educational needs and disabilities in primary schools.

Early identification of needs is critical to improving outcomes for children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and the department understands that early intervention can reduce the impact that a Special Educational Need (SEN) or disability may have in the long term.

The SEND Code of Practice is clear that meeting the needs of a child with SEN does not require a diagnostic label or test. Instead, the department expects teachers to monitor the progress of all children and young people and provide support where it is needed, including arranging diagnostic tests where appropriate.

To support all teachers in meeting these expectations, the department is implementing teacher training reforms. These reforms are designed to ensure that teachers have the skills to support all pupils to succeed, including those with SEND. Since 2020, the Initial Teacher Training Core Content Framework (CCF) has included content on adapting teaching to the strengths and needs of all pupils. The department is conducting a review of the CCF and Early Career Framework, which will consider further opportunities to improve how the frameworks support new teachers to meet the needs of pupils with SEND.

The department’s Universal Services (US) contract brings together SEND-specific continuous professional development and support for the teaching workforce to improve outcomes for children and young people. This includes autism awareness training and resources. Over 100,000 professionals have undertaken autism awareness training since the US programme launched.

The department has also committed to funding training for up to 7,000 early years staff to gain an accredited Level 3 early years SENCO qualification.