NASS was one of 60 stakeholders consulted as part of the National Audit Office’s report on support for children and young people with special educational needs.
On the publication of the report on Thursday 24th October, NASS CEO Claire Dorer OBE said:
“NAO confirms what most of us knew already – the SEN system is failing and interventions as a result of the 2023 Change Programme are unlikely to change this.
NASS understands why system-wide reform feels like the right answer but this is a sector already deep in reform fatigue. Without taking the time to explore new approaches and collaborate with a diverse range of stakeholders, we are in danger of getting trapped in a revolving door of Government reforms.
NAO asks valuable questions about how we assess needs, demand and outcomes to help us better plan the system and understand how well it is delivering. We support this and hope the new Government will bring fresh thinking to the topic and make good use of the wealth of expertise that already exists within the system.
We urge the government to work collaboratively with us to recognise the crucial role all special schools, including those that are not maintained by local authorities, play within the SEND system. These schools are a distinct resource that complement, rather than compete with, the broader SEND framework and are an effective use of public resources if placements are made for those who benefit from them the most.
In January this year, NASS published the policy paper, ‘Working Stronger Together’, informed by our member schools, which explores the current and possible future relationship between the state and Independent Special Schools. It follows our commissioned report from Sonnet Impact, ‘Reaching my potential, which used mixed methods to track the impact on learners and society when the needs of children and young people with SEND are met effectively. The report makes a persuasive case for investing in specialist support for learners who need it most, demonstrating an average net impact of £380k across an individual's lifetime.”
We encourage all interested parties to read our reports:
‘Working Stronger Together’ report: https://www.nasschools.org.uk/workingstrongertogether/
‘Reaching My Potential’ report: https://www.nasschools.org.uk/reaching-my-potential-a-study-of-the-value-of-send-provision/