A recent survey by the National Education Union (NEU) has uncovered significant deficits in resources for children with special educational needs and disabilities (Send) in schools across England and Wales. Over 8,000 NEU members participated in the survey, which highlighted a lack of access to crucial services, including counsellors, occupational health specialists, behaviour support teams, speech and language therapists, and educational psychologists. A striking 95% of respondents reported inadequate or non-existent access to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) for Send pupils, while 91% noted a shortage of learning support assistants in classrooms.

These findings have prompted concerns about the current system’s ability to support children with high-level needs, often leading to resources being redirected from other students. Daniel Kebede, NEU general secretary, emphasized the prolonged crisis in Send funding and urged the government to commit to significant funding to ensure all children can thrive in a well-resourced learning environment. The Department for Education responded, committing to improving Send provision through increased funding and training initiatives to support children with complex needs.

In a related context, Oasis Academy Hadley in London, under the leadership of Headteacher Zoe Thompson, is facing multifaceted challenges, including poverty, hunger, homelessness, and gang grooming among its students, over half of whom live in poverty. The academy is grappling with issues such as mental health struggles, food insecurity, and a recruitment crisis in the teaching profession. Despite these hardships, the school has managed to achieve high academic success rates, evidencing Thompson’s commitment to providing equal opportunities and a nurturing environment for her students. The academy’s struggles underscore the broader challenges faced by educational institutions in supporting vulnerable students amidst the cost of living crisis and staff shortages.

The NEU’s survey also revealed a concerning lack of support mechanisms for teachers dealing with Send pupils. Specifically, one in three teachers reported the absence of a behaviour support team, while one in four had no access to educational psychologists or speech and language therapists. The survey highlighted the urgent need for increased learning support assistants in classrooms to help address the challenges faced by pupils with additional needs.

These revelations from both the NEU survey and the situation at Oasis Academy Hadley paint a troubling picture of the current state of support for Send pupils and disadvantaged students in England and Wales. The findings call attention to the need for comprehensive government action and funding to elevate the standard of education and support for all students.