The Educator Magazine U.K. May-August 2026 issue. - Magazine - Page 38
Mind the gap:
New Government SEND
White Paper is a welcome
first step - but schools need
to know how we get there.
23rd Feb 2026: Today, as the Government unveils its long-awaited SEND
White Paper, education experts at Momenta Connect are calling for the
Government to listen to responses to the white paper consultation and
provide clear guidance on how we will build this brave new vision for SEND.
The SEND system in England is considered "broken" by many,
with rising Education, Health, and Care Plan (EHCP) numbers,
high costs, and significant pressures on local authority budgets.
Last July, the Children’s Commissioner for England Dame Rachel
de Souza sounded the alarm on the proliferation of unregistered
alternative provision that she claimed was forming a “shadow
SEND system” in areas where mainstream and specialist services
are unable to meet spiralling demand. Fast forward to today, and
vulnerable children are still being educated in some of the least
regulated environments, as pressure on the SEND system shows
no signs of abating.
Momenta Connect provides tailored support at every stage,
from early diagnostic and therapeutic intervention, to school
attendance support and multi-disciplinary programmes that
help children re-engage with learning. Momenta Connect has
welcomed proposals designed to keep more children with
additional needs in mainstream education. The Government’s
focus on earlier identification and improved access to support,
reducing reliance on EHCPs, is welcome.
The White Paper pledges to move away from a universal
statutory approach to supporting children with SEND. Instead,
a four-tier approach will be adopted. Most children will receive
SEND support at Tier 1 (whole-class teaching), Tier 2 (school-led
targeted support) or Tier 3 (specialist-led targeted support),
with EHCPs becoming Tier 4 plans, which will only be issued to
children with the most complex and special needs.
Every child assessed to have SEND will be allocated an
Individual Support Plan, even where an EHCP is not granted.
This is to ensure greater transparency of accountability and
consistency of provision across mainstream schools.
To complement these changes, the Government has promised
an additional estimated £3.8–£4bn in funding for SEND
provision over the next few years. This funding will be used
to bolster mainstream SEND provision, as well as early
intervention and specialist services. Ensuring this money reaches
frontline schools as quickly and transparently as possible will be
vital if these reforms are to have any meaningful impact. With
£200m funding promised for SEND Teacher Training programme
and more expected, these proposals are still ambitious for
schools and will take time to deliver.
Momenta Connect’s SEND specialist and clinical lead,
Dr Kieran Lord, said:
“The vision set out by the Government today is exactly what the
sector has been waiting for. Inclusion has got to be the ambition,
but we must also be realistic about what it takes to get there.
Schools are under unprecedented pressure as they try to manage
rising levels of neurodiversity, mental health needs, attendance
issues and workforce stress. Throw into the mix ambiguous
policy proposals and trying to re-engage the high numbers of
pupils and parents who have been let down and lost trust in the
existing education system, it’s a tall order. The rollout will need
to be carefully managed, and how do we work to deliver SEND
to the current cohort of children who are waiting for things to
change?”
“The intention to reserve EHCPs for the most complex needs and
to reassess plans at key transition points, such as the move from
primary to secondary school, where needs can be effectively met
without a statutory plan, represents a significant cultural
shift. That will require clarity, workforce capacity and careful
transition planning so families have confidence that support
remains robust.”
“We need structured collaboration between mainstream and
specialist settings, investment in early-intervention programmes,
and better-defined routes for children to access specialist
support without leaving their local school. As the SEND White
Paper processes continue to roll out, we need to ask ourselves:
where does the expertise exist to make this new approach a
reality?”
