On Tuesday 17 May, Will Quince, the Parliamentary under-Secretary of State for Children and Families, was live on Mumsnet to answer questions on the SEND and alternative provision green paper. The questions and answers are now available on the Mumsnet website, with the option to post further reflections over the next 2 weeks.

The Department for Education (DfE) is committed to providing everyone the opportunity to engage with the consultation. We have extended the consultation period by 3 weeks, to 22 July 2022. To respond directly to the consultation, please visit GOV.UK.

Working together with sector-led organisations the department is running some face-to-face and virtual workshops and events to give everyone the opportunity to hear more about the proposals and ask questions. For further information about these events visit the SEND Review website.

DfE has published new data on SEND, EHC Plans, today.

The full analysis is here;

In this newsflash, DfE would like to draw your attention to two items:

COVID-19 workforce fund claim form now open:

Eligible schools and colleges can now submit a claim for the cost of absences over a threshold experienced between Monday 22 November 2021 and Friday 8 April 2022.

You can submit a claim and find details on how to do so here. The deadline for submitting a claim is 11:59pm on Tuesday 24 May.

Further information on the COVID-19 workforce fund is available in our guidance for schools and colleges, with tailored criteria for special schools, alternative provision, and special post-16 institutions.

Liberty Protection Safeguards:

The Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) are currently consulting on proposed changes to the Mental Capacity Act Code of Practice, which includes the implementation of the Liberty Protection Safeguards (LPS) scheme. LPS will provide new arrangements to authorise arrangements for deprivations of liberty for the purpose of providing care or treatment, and will apply to 16 and 17 year olds, as well as adults.  As part of their work, they will be holding a number of online events, one of which will be for those who have lived experiences of deprivation of liberty arrangements, and the Mental Capacity Act. We would kindly ask you to send this email and attachment to those who you think may be interested in this event and would like to sign up. We would really value from listening to young people as well as parents/carers who have lived experience. For more information and to sign up, please open the attachment from DHSC. Timings and dates of the event are still to be confirmed.

If you have any further questions then please don’t hesitate to contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Today the Department for Education has published accessible versions of the green paper, including:

  • a full British Sign Language version to support those who are deaf or have a hearing impairment
  • an easy-read version to support those with learning disabilities
  • a guide to help children and young people with SEND or those in alternative provision to understand the green paper and respond to the consultation

The department is committed to ensuring the SEND and Alternative Provision Green Paper and consultation process is fully accessible.

On the day of publication, we provided a ‘request alternative formats service’ to provide everyone the opportunity to engage with the green paper and consultation, this includes provision of Braille, audio and other language translations. We apologise that a full range of accessible resources was not available from the first day of the consultation.  

We are extending the consultation period by 3 weeks, to 22 July 2022, to ensure everyone has the opportunity to take part in the consultation.


All resources are available on gov.uk: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/send-review-right-support-right-place-right-time

The Council for Disabled Children (CDC) has recently updated its guide, Disabled Children and the Equality Act 2010: What teachers need to know and what schools need to do. The updated guide has been funded by the DfE.

Schools have a range of duties under the Equality Act 2010: to staff, as employees; to parents and others, where the school is providing a service to other people using the school; and to pupils, staff and others who share other protected characteristics as well as disability.

This guide is designed to help teachers understand the legislation and how it applies to their work with disabled pupils in their school. It explains what the Equality Act requires of schools and of governors, trustees and others who are the ‘responsible body’ for the school.

The guide draws on examples of practices that may amount to discrimination or that may help schools to avoid discrimination. Many of these examples are drawn from the decisions of the Tribunal, so provide insights into the issues that schools have found difficult to handle. A series of blogs picks up some of these issues in a more reflective way.

CDC will also be publishing a companion guide for Early Years settings shortly.

In this newsflash, DfE would like to draw your attention to two items:

Autism Education Trust’s new ‘Let’s Learn about Autism’ packs:

To celebrate Autism Acceptance Week this year (28 March to 3 April), the Autism Education Trust (AET) have been working with their Autistic Young Expert’s Panel to produce their Let’s Learn About Autism Packs. The fully resourced packs are designed to help all education professionals to plan their Autism Acceptance Week lessons and lead conversations about autism and understanding difference. Please see the AET website for further information and how to download: https://www.autismeducationtrust.org.uk/celebrate-autism-acceptance-week-our-lets-learn-about-autism-pack

NHS Keyworker update:

Keyworking services move from the pilot phase towards full geographical cover: the NHS Long term Plan includes a commitment that ‘by 2023/24 children and young people with a learning disability and/or who are autistic with the most complex needs will have a designated keyworker’. Keyworking services have been introduced in pilot and early adopter areas to work with young people, families and services to avoid unnecessary admissions to mental health hospitals and to facilitate timely discharge with the right support in place. This next stage sees the remaining areas of the country developing plans for their Keyworking service. Visit the NHS England and NHS Improvement website for more information on how Keyworking is making a difference to young people’s lives in Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale at https://www.england.nhs.uk/learning-disabilities/care/children-young-people/keyworkers/success-and-learning-from-heywood-middleton-and-rochdale-keyworking-service/ and South Yorkshire at: https://www.england.nhs.uk/learning-disabilities/care/children-young-people/keyworkers/success-and-learning-from-pilot-sites-the-south-yorkshire-keyworking-service/.

The consultation for the green paper, published this morning, following the SEND Review is now open.
 

 

The consultation has been extended to 22 July 2022.
 

The Schools White Paper 'Opportunity for All' has been published today: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/schools-white-paper-delivers-real-action-to-level-up-education