On 24th October, the National Audit Office released its report into special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) provision across the country. Its findings were tragically familiar to me and other families and campaigners who have repeatedly warned about the desperate state of Suffolk’s SEND services for years.
People have utterly lost faith in a system that was broken long ago. It now falls to our new Labour Government to repair the damage of the last 14 years, but we can’t make false promises, families are rightfully tired of that – this will require huge, complex reform and there is no magic wand or overnight fix.
The new Government has started making long overdue changes, putting SEND at the heart of the Department for Education’s policymaking. It is right to prioritise early identification and intervention and I am pleased the Government is taking a far more holistic view of SEND.
We have to be honest and say that after years of damage, it will take time for the lived experiences of children and young people to improve, but I am unflinchingly committed to delivering the support, and the justice, that families need and deserve.
I spoke to ITV Anglia after the publication of the report - you can watch my interview here.
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