Over 1.5 million children with SEN
Government figures for the academic year 2022-23 in England show an increase of 87,000 over the previous year in pupils who have special educational needs (SEN).
The SEN data for 2022-23 combines information from the school census (state-funded schools), school level annual school census (independent schools) and general hospital school census on pupils with SEN.
How SEN pupils are classified
SEN pupils are divided into two groups:
Those with SEN support receive support that’s in addition to, or different from, the support generally made for other children of the same age in a school. This support is provided for those who are identified as having a learning difficulty or a disability that requires extra or different help to that normally provided as part of the school’s usual curriculum offer.
A local authority may issue an education, health and care (EHC) plan for a pupil who needs more support than is available through SEN support. This will follow a statutory assessment process, which may involve teachers, healthcare specialists and social workers. The EHC plan is a legal document that sets out the child’s needs up to the age of 25. It covers special educational needs and any relevant health and social care needs, as well as defining desired long term outcomes and specifying provision which will deliver additional support to meet those needs.
More pupils with SEN
The latest SEN data shows that in the 2022-23 academic year in schools in England there were 389,171 pupils with an education, health and care (EHC) plan, an increase of 9.5% on the previous year. There were also more children identified as having SEN, but who don’t have an EHC in place. The total for this cohort was 1,183,384, which represents an increase of 4.7% on 2021-22. Both these statistics continue an upward trend which began in 2016.
The most common type of need for those with an EHC plan is autistic spectrum disorder. For those with SEN support, it’s speech, language and communication needs, followed by social, emotional and mental health needs.
Increased pressure on those in social care jobs
In this previous blog we reported on the previous rise in the number of children with EHC plans and the resultant additional pressure on social workers, as well as those working in educational settings.
The government remains committed to workforce reform to improve SEN provision and is strongly encouraging local authorities to recruit for Designated Social Care Officer roles. However, the social care sector continues to face a number of challenges, including shortfalls in funding, increased caseloads for social workers and social care staff shortages.
The government has published a guide to the current SEND Code of Practice, aimed at social care commissioners and those working in frontline social care jobs. Download it here.
