Our children deserve more than recognition of failure; they deserve action, support, and a genuine commitment to their wellbeing.
- thefarmingmother
- Jan 23
- 2 min read
Today, I came across an article by former schools minister Sir Nick Gibb that struck a chord with me as an experienced SEND support worker and advocate for SEND education and wellbeing. In it, he candidly states, “We have let down thousands of children with special educational needs.”
While it’s important that he acknowledges these shortcomings, the question remains: does this recognition change the reality for our children? Absolutely not.
How much trauma and unnecessary suffering has been imposed on countless children as a result of systemic failures? Sir Nick also emphasizes that mainstream education isn't the right fit for many students, noting, “Still too many children for whom either mainstream education isn’t appropriate for their needs or the school simply doesn’t have the expertise and experience to provide for those children.”
He further asserts, “I believe that there are some children who need a very specialist approach to how they’re taught because of their special needs, and I think we have let down thousands of those children in the way that we teach them in our schools.”
Yet still Local Authorities refuse EHCP or even needs assessments which then at great cost of the tax payer taken to tribunal and in 98% of cases awarded in favour of the parents!!!
Baroness Mary Bousted, former general secretary of the National Education Union, echoes this sentiment, stating, “Teachers too often feel they have children in their class where they can’t meet the needs, and the support is therefore not available.” She recounted the experience of a teacher who was informed by her local authority that two children in her class one non-verbal and the other unable to manage personal care “had not tried for long enough” in a mainstream setting.
This highlights a critical issue: the government's approach to supporting SEND students, with inadequate resources, funding, and training, is not only a failure but also raises serious safeguarding concerns.
As a safeguarding lead, I understand that part of our responsibility is to ensure that a child's needs are met adequately and that they are safe from harm and danger. Yet, the current system is imposing trauma on vulnerable children by failing to provide the necessary support in educational settings for which they are responsible.
Who will ultimately take responsibility for this ongoing neglect? It is time for us to demand better, better training for educators, better resources, and a truly inclusive approach that ensures no child is left behind. Our children deserve more than recognition of failure; they deserve action, support, and a genuine commitment to their wellbeing.
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