Yesterday, the DfE released a document called the ‘Education Estates Strategy, A decade of national renewal.’ This sets out the government’s 10-year plan to improve the education estate in England. Whilst initially this doesn’t seem like an essential read for SENDCos, there are a few things of note.
In the foreword, it states that ‘the availability of space and resources has not kept up with the need for specialist provision to support children with special educational needs’ (page 2). I think that we can all agree that it is true.
The paper goes on to say that they ‘want more children and young people with SEND to achieve and thrive in their local mainstream school – including through inclusion bases – and for parents to have access to high-quality local early education provision that is right for their child’ (page 5). This reaffirms what we have heard recently from the government about supporting children with SEND in mainstream settings wherever possible.
In the footnote on page 5 it states that ‘Inclusion bases is a new term that will replace the current terms SEN unit, resourced provision and pupils support unit to make it easier for parents to understand the support available for their child’. I am unclear whether this refers only to those provisions that are set up and funded by Local Authorities or whether this includes those set up by schools to meet the increasingly complex needs of the pupils in their schools. This is further reiterated when it states ‘we will support more children and young people with SEND to thrive in their local mainstream school […] This will support the expansion of inclusion bases, which offer specialist provision in mainstream schools, colleges and nurseries’ (page 29).
In addition to inclusive provision, the government pledges to increase pupils’ access to outdoor areas, create safer buildings, and equip the education estate so that they can deal with climate change – in particular, temperature increases and flooding risks.
Moreover, the accompanying press release says that every secondary school will, in time, be expected to have an Inclusion Base. This will be ‘a dedicated safe space away from busy classrooms where pupils can access targeted support that bridges the gap between mainstream and specialist provision.’ However, it is not clear what ‘in time’ refers to.
Ultimately, this strategy represents another step in the government’s drive to ensure children with SEND can have their needs met in mainstream school. As the sector awaits the publication of the Schools White Paper, we continue to hope that these ambitions will be underpinned by sufficient funding, time, training and resources. Without these in place, schools may struggle to deliver meaningful inclusion; with them, they will be far better equipped to provide high-quality support for the children entrusted to their care.
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