The SEND Overhaul Explained: What You Need to Know
The government has shared its Schools White Paper, Every Child Achieving and Thriving, which sets out the most significant changes to England’s SEND system in a generation.
Backed by £4 billion in new funding, the reforms aim to reshape how children with SEND are supported in schools over the next decade.
There is a lot of information and many opinions. We’ve broken down what’s changing, when it will happen and what it means for your family.
Key Points
The SEND system is being redesigned, and it is the most significant change in a generation, backed by £4 billion in new funding over three years.
EHCPs are not disappearing; they’re being reserved for the most ‘complex’ needs. A new tiered system of Individual Support Plans (ISPs), specialist professionals and inclusion bases will support everyone else.
Nothing changes immediately, and everything stays in place until new legislation passes. If you’re applying for an EHCP now, the process is the same.
Specialists will be available without an EHCP thanks to the new “Experts at Hand” service.
Schools will be held to account thanks to Ofsted grading inclusion for the first time, and schools will publish an annual Inclusion Strategy.
The biggest risk is the unsupported middle. Children who have significant needs but don’t qualify as ‘complex’.
Parents have real influence. The consultation is open here.
This is a 10-year plan, not a quick fix. The next few years are an opportunity to build the system and for families to shape how it works.
Why is the system changing?
The current system is broken. You’re living it, so we don’t need to tell you this.
Just over 1.7 million children in England receive a form of SEND support. As of January 2025, just under 40% of them had EHCPs (Educational, Health and Care Plans), which is more than double the number 10 years ago. SEND spending has increased by two-thirds in the same time period, but the system isn’t working and is unsustainable, with parents reporting wait times of years for any level of support.
Around 20% of children have some level of special educational need, but only 5% have an EHCP. This leaves a large group of children sitting in the gap where support is hard to find and even harder to capture. These are the families who are most at risk of being missed and the ones that any systemic improvement needs to provide for.
“Most people working in education would agree that the current SEND system is under huge pressure. Families are waiting too long for support. Local authorities are stretched. Schools are trying to respond to increasingly complex needs within structures that simply aren’t working as well as they should.” - Joseph McGovern, Headteacher of Pencalenick School
The government’s position is that more money isn’t enough on its own to fix a fundamentally broken system. The white paper is blunt about the problem: “support for children with additional needs is late, rigid, and locked behind bureaucratic statutory processes, rather than easily available, provided early and flexibly to meet children’s needs as they evolve over time.”
The reforms aim to get support to children sooner and reduce the need for parents to fight through red tape to access it.
The white paper sets out five principles to guide the recommended changes. These are important because they act as a benchmark to judge the reforms against:
Early
Support should arrive as soon as possible, not after years of being stuck in limbo.
Local
Children should be able to learn at a school close to home alongside their peers.
Fair
Every school should be a resource to meet needs without parents having to advocate.
Effective
All provisions should be grounded in evidence of what actually works.
Shared
Education, health, and care services should work in partnership with families.
So, what is the new system?
The white paper’s vision for “one education system for all children and young people, including those with SEND” is to integrate support within mainstream provision rather than treating it as a separate consideration. In practice, this will mean establishing layers of support that children can move between as their needs evolve.
Universal offer
A new baseline for all mainstream schools, with teachers trained to identify and respond to common needs. Most children are expected to have their needs met here.
Targeted support
For children who require additional support beyond the universal offer, schools will create an Individual Support Plan (ISP). The ISP will be developed with you, the parent or carer. According to the white paper, the ISP will “capture barriers to learning, day-to-day provision, any reasonable adjustments and intended outcomes” and will be “interactive, digital, accessible, and integrated with wider services over time.”
They will be reviewed at least once a year with discussions involving parents and carers. Ofsted will assess their use and quality during school inspections. In practice, an ISP could cover small group interventions, pre-teaching key vocabulary, or adaptive teaching approaches.
Targeted plus
For children who require specialist input, schools will be able to draw on a new “Experts at Hand” service, a bank of professionals including educational psychologists, speech and language therapists, and occupational therapists available locally.
An EHCP won’t be required to access this, and it may also involve short-term placements in specialist or alternative provision settings, or access to a new “inclusion base” within the school - a specialist support space where children can receive targeted help before returning to mainstream classes. The government intends to have an inclusion base in every secondary school with equivalent provision in primary schools.
Specialist
In the future, EHCPs will sit at this level for children with the most complex needs. The new “Specialist Provision Packages” will set out specific interventions, resources and standards as required. The whitepaper explains that “EHCPs will guarantee statutory entitlements to the educational provision from the Specialist Provision Package that children and young people need, and their expected outcomes.”
Children at this level will receive both an EHCP and an ISP.
What is happening to EHCPs?
Understandably, this is the area causing the most concern for families, so it is important to understand what is going to happen.
EHCPs are not being removed entirely; they are being reserved for children with the most complex needs. By 2035, the government expects EHCP numbers to return to current levels after continuing to rise for the next 3 years.
The whitepaper states: “Any child who already has an EHCP (or has been assessed as needing one) at the point legislation commences will keep their plan and its provision until they finish their current phase of education or choose to move to the new system”
But, here is a question many parents will be asking: What counts as “complex”?
In practice, a child’s needs aren’t recognised as complex until they’re pretty far down the system’s track. Many families describe journeys where schools downplay concerns, early presentations don’t fit neat descriptions, and where it takes multiple assessments over long periods of time that are expensive before a child’s needs are fully understood.
A child who wouldn’t have met an obvious “complex” threshold at age five may clearly need specialist support by age nine. Any system that reserves help for the most complex cases needs a workable definition that catches the needs early, not after families have spent thousands of pounds proving what they already know.
Here is the suggested transition:
Children currently in Year 3 or above will keep their existing EHCP until at least age 16, regardless of reforms.
Children currently in Year 2 or below will be reassessed against the new criteria when they transition from primary to secondary school.
Children already in a special school place by September 2029 can stay in that school until the end of their education, unless they choose to move.
The first reassessments begin in the 2029/2030 academic year, with Year 6 pupils in 2029 being the first cohort reviewed ahead of starting secondary school in 2030.
The new EHCP threshold doesn’t apply to new applicants until 2029/2030 either.
According to the white paper, children who are reassessed and found not to meet the new specialist threshold won’t lose support. They will transition to an ISP under the appropriate tier, which will carry some level of legal backing. There is a noted safeguard within the documentation: “All children transitioning from an EHCP to an ISP will retain the right to request a mainstream placement, and no child will move from a special school or college unless they choose to do so.”
If a council determines a child no longer needs a Specialist Provision Package, it will be “expected to work with the school to ensure appropriate support is in place.”
The exact legal weight of ISPs compared to EHCPs is still being clarified, and this is a question parents should follow closely.
Where is the £4 billion going?
The £4 billion is for a three-year plan focused on SEND provision in main stream school, they have allocated it as follows:
£1.6 billion directly to schools, early years settings, and colleges for early intervention and inclusive teaching
£1.8 billion for the “Experts at Hand” service, funding specialist professionals in every local area
£200 million for SEND teacher training - described as the biggest SEND training programme ever in English schools
£200 million for Best Start Family Hubs to include a dedicated SEND practitioner in every hub, helping parents understand their child’s development, identify needs earlier, and connect with support services as early as possible.
£200 million for local authorities to manage the transition whilst maintaining current services
There is an additional £3.7 billion in capital investment for 60,000 new specialist school places, a record £3.5 billion increase for high needs funding in 2028/2029, and £5 billion to cover 90% of historical SEND debts accumulated by councils.
The government estimates this translates to approximately £20,000 to £40,000 extra funding per year for primary schools and £50,000 to £70,000 for secondary schools. On average, secondary schools will receive over 160 days of dedicated specialist time annually.
What does this mean for parents and carers?
What could improve
Earlier support without the fight
The most consistent complaint from parents has been that help only arrives after years of battling. The white paper states: “Through the government's national SEND conversation... the most consistent issue parents have raised is that SEND support is currently provided too late and even then, only after a fight."
The new funding structure is designed so that schools can provide targeted support and access specialist professionals from day one without the need for an EHCP.
Access to specialists for all
Under the new “Experts at Hand” model, schools can access the professionals regardless of whether your child has a plan. The white paper commits £1 billion to fund expert professionals working directly within mainstream schools without requiring an assessment or referral, and a further £800 million to build capacity through outreach from specialist settings.
A better complaints process
The white paper plans to improve complaints and mediation so disagreements are “resolved faster and more collaboratively, reducing the need for an appeal to the SEND tribunal."
A new digital complaints system will be established alongside stronger independent mediation services. The SEND tribunal will remain a last resort for parents who disagree with council decisions.
A fairer playing field
Charities, including the Sutton Trust, have noted that the system currently benefits families in a disproportionate way, with many families spending thousands on private assessments.
Lower-income families and those within the BAME community face additional barriers at every stage. The reforms aim to make support less dependent on your ability to fight or pay for it.
Accountability
Failure of councils to meet legal duties could result in losing their capacity to run SEND services. The children’s commissioner has been given new oversight to monitor the implementation of the plans with a particular focus on children in care, children in need, and those not in school.
Schools will be required to publish an annual Inclusion Strategy, outlining how they manage resources for SEND children, which will be subject to review. Ofsted will grade schools on inclusion to evaluate how leaders are setting expectations for SEND support.
What to watch out for
The legal strength of ISPs
An EHCP can be legally enforced. If your child’s support shifts to an ISP, the key question is whether it carries comparable legal weight. IPSEA, the SEND legal charity, has warned that the existing announcements "do not yet address the central issue of how unlawful decision-making by public bodies will be tackled and how accountability will be strengthened."
Reassessment at transition points
Parents of children with complex conditions are anxious about having to prove their child’s needs again at secondary school entry and post-GCSEs. The children’s commissioner has been clear that no child should lose their plan, but the reality of how reassessments are handled will be critical.
Parent and content creator, Ellen Jones (@thejonesfamilyjournal), is not convinced this will be efficient and says, "Taking away EHCPs at secondary school is not how you help SEN children! Only giving EHCPs to children with 'complex needs' is not how you help SEN children."
It’s a sentiment shared by many families. The timing of reassessments is a particular worry. SEND parent and campaigner Kirsti Hadley has also voiced her concerns: "Reassessing EHCPs at the point of transition to secondary school, there couldn't possibly be a worse time for that."
Introducing reassessment of support at such a crucial transition point could add further stress and concern for both children and parents, as well as run the risk of reduced support. The gap between policy language and lived experience is where trust will be won or lost.
School choice
Parents will no longer have a completely free choice of school for their child. They will be given a list of possible schools instead. An appeals process exists, and the SEND tribunal can ask local authorities to reconsider, but details around this are not yet available.
Workforce capacity
Funding is great, but if there aren’t enough people to deliver the support, there’s a gaping hole. The Education Policy Institute has warned that there are not enough educational psychologists being trained. Whilst the white paper commits over £40 million to grow the workforce, including training over 200 additional educational psychologists, NASUWT described the per-school funding as not enough, given years of underfunding. Whether it is enough to meet demand is the unanswered question.
Specialist provision alongside mainstream
Alex Warner Education commented on LinkedIn: "There are also fears around unintended consequences for specialist provision. Strengthening mainstream inclusion is necessary, but it must sit alongside, not instead of, investment in specialist expertise and placements."
What will this mean for children who can’t adjust to mainstream? What resources will be available for them? How can the reforms be clear so that every child will be given the right support in the new model?
The unsupported middle
Reserving EHCPs for the most complex cases creates risk because what will happen is the children whose needs are significant but not “complex” could get lost in between assessments and provision.
These children may be clearly struggling, but may not qualify for the correct level of support. Will the reforms capture these needs or shift the pressure point elsewhere?
Ben Cosh, Founder of Spicy Minds, knows this gap firsthand. His own child’s school initially dismissed concerns, and it took multiple private assessments costing over £5,000 before a diagnosis of female-presenting autism was finally reached, and he is not alone in experiencing this.
“The reality for many families is that 'complex’ doesn’t announce itself on day one. It emerges over time, often only after parents have spent years and significant money navigating a system that wasn't designed to catch what doesn’t fit a textbook definition. These reforms will only work if the new tiers of support genuinely reach children in that grey area, the ones who are clearly struggling, but don’t yet have a label that the system recognises.” - Ben Cosh, Founder of Spicy Minds
When will this happen?
The white paper sets out these overlapping implementation phases:
2026-2028: New funding begins flowing to schools. From September 2026, new SEND training will be available to all staff nationwide, and an evidence base for national inclusion standards will be developed.
By 2028: £15 million invested to build the evidence base for national inclusion standards
2029-2030: New EHCP threshold takes effect. First pupils (year 6 in 2029) reassessed at secondary transition. New ISPs begin rolling out.
2030-2031: Children with existing EHCPs begin to be reviewed at transition points.
By 2035: Full system in place. EHCP numbers expected to return to current levels.
SEN advocate Laura l’Anson reminds parents: "Reforms take time. Legislation takes time. Implementation takes time. You are not waking up to lost support tomorrow."
If you are currently in the process of applying for an EHCP, that process has not yet changed and will remain in place until new legislation begins.
What can parents do now?
1. Have your say
The whitepaper comes with a formal consultation for feedback. Share your thoughts here.
2. Understand where your child is
Map your child’s current situation against the transition rules set by the white paper by reviewing at what year changes will be implemented and how that might impact assessments. Knowing whether they will keep their EHCP or face reassessment will help you plan.
3. Stay informed
The children’s commissioner has been given a specific remit to oversee implementation, with a focus on vulnerable groups. Follow us to stay up to date with developments.
4. Remember, this isn’t an overnight shift
More early support, less fighting, specialists available without a plan is broadly what parents have been asking for. The risk will be in the implementation, but the timeline is long, and there are opportunities to shape how this lands.