Catherine McKinnell MP: speeches

Speeches

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  We recognise how challenging this situation is for families who are not getting the support they need for special education needs or disabilities. We know that the system is broken—the National Audit Office report lays it out bare. We are determined to fix this; that is the message that I want to send.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  The hon. Member is right to identify those challenges. In its analysis, published today, the National Audit Office said that the current system was not working and not serving the needs of children and their families in the way that it should. We are moving at pace to review the system in a wholesale way, and the changes that I have outlined will support that. In addition, we will legislate to ensure that local authorities can plan properly for places and admissions in their areas. We want every state school, regardless of how they were established, to co-operate in ensuring that places are there for the children who need them. I have outlined a whole range of changes that will seek to address the problem that he mentioned.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is right to highlight the need for the Department for Education, the Department of Health and Social Care, and all those working to provide the services that children and families rely on, to work together to achieve that statutory obligation. I will take his question away and feed it back to my colleagues in the Health Department.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Lady for raising the issue and bringing it to the House. She is absolutely right to draw attention to the National Audit Office report and its damning indictment of a system that has lost the confidence of families and is failing children with special educational needs and disabilities. She rightly calls for the system to be reformed. That is what this Government are absolutely focused on and determined to do. One of the first differences that we made on coming into office was moving the special educational needs and disabilities remit within the schools sector. [ Official Report , 4 November 2024; Vol. 756, c. 1WC.] (Correction) Our vision is one of mainstream inclusive education for all children who would benefit from it, while having specialist schools where we know that children with the most complex needs can have those needs met. That is not being delivered, and for far too many families it is not the reality. It is a reality that we urgently need to see, not only to address the local authority deficits to which the hon. Lady rightly refers, but to create better outcomes for children. At the moment, the system costs the Treasury a significant amount. The hon. Lady tempts me into anticipating next week’s Budget statement or making announcements ahead of it, which she knows I cannot, but she is right to identify that the system costs an increasing amount but is not delivering the outcomes that children deserve and families want. We are absolutely determined to reform the system. We are working at pace. All the changes that we have made since coming into office are to that end. We have launched the curriculum and assessment review, which will support a broad and inclusive education for all children. We have made changes to Ofsted; those changes are continuing at pace to ensure that the system takes into account the whole school life and journey. That includes creating an inclusive environment for children with special educational needs. Most of all, we are determined to restore parents’ trust that, in our education system, if their child has special educational needs they will be identified early— we know that early identification is key—and supported. We are continuing to support early language and speech intervention and to prioritise the roll-out of special educational needs training for the early years workforce to ensure that children’s needs can be identified at the earliest point. We are expanding our childcare system to ensure that more children can get into settings as early as possible, so any needs can be identified and so we can rebuild the public’s trust that every child in our state sector will get the opportunity of a fantastic education, regardless of any additional special educational needs or disabilities.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend highlights the fact that not only is the system creating stress and failing far too many children and families, but it is not creating the outcomes that we want to see for every child, including those with special educational needs and disabilities. I will raise the important point she has made with my colleague in the Department of Health who has responsibility for apprenticeships. [ Official Report , 4 November 2024; Vol. 756, c. 2WC.] (Correction)

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  I would be happy to meet my hon. Friend. He has outlined just one example of how the system is broken and needs to be fixed.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  The Government have inherited an absence epidemic in this country. Last year, one in five children were persistently absent from school, missing a day every fortnight or more. We know that strong foundations are rooted in attendance at school. Children cannot receive an outstanding education that unlocks opportunities if they are not in school. I recognise the challenge that the hon. Lady has set out. It is important that we work together to create an inclusive mainstream education system that every child wants to attend and feels they belong to, so that those opportunities are unlocked for them, as they should be for every child in this country.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  The hon. Gentleman is, as always, characteristically constructive in his contribution, and I thank him for that. I am more than happy to take away his suggestion and consider it as part of our wider reform of the system.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  We are looking at the system in the round, which includes ensuring that we have inclusive mainstream education, and making sure that schools are required to work with local authorities on admissions and off-rolling, so that there is the provision within communities that children rely on. Where special schools or alternative provision is required, it is important to ensure there is an opportunity to break down the barriers for young people. Ideally, the vast majority of children can go back into the mainstream system as part of that inclusive provision. I will take away the hon. Member’s specific query. It is an issue we are looking at as part of the wider system.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  Although the urgent question today has come about because of a damning report from the National Audit Office, which lays bare the huge challenge we face in this area, my main purpose in responding—an opportunity I am grateful for—is to restore hope for families: it is a priority for this Government and we are determined to fix it. That should give hope to the constituents whom my hon. Friend serves.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  The changes that we are looking to make to remove the exemptions for private schools will be used to fund more teachers in our state sector and create the inclusive mainstream education that we know every child deserves.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  I recognise the challenge that the hon. Gentleman raises. He tempts me into anticipating the Budget statement next week, but I will say that we recognise the challenges that many local authorities are facing and are alive to those concerns.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  The changes that we have set out and are determined to make all aim to improve the situation that we have inherited, after 14 years of neglect and decline under the previous Government. I have set out at length all the changes that we seek to make through legislation—and the changes we have already made—to our education system to ensure an inclusive mainstream, and high and rising standards and opportunities for all.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is right: the system is letting down families and children, and creating a situation where not only are educational outcomes impacted by the poor response but too many families’ lives are affected by trying to deal with the system. That is why we are determined to reform it. The evidence shows very clearly that inclusive mainstream schools that meet demand will reduce the need for education, health and care plans, and the need for families to go through the process in the first place.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for his question. I reiterate that the Government have inherited a terrible legacy, not only on special educational needs and disabilities, but on our public spending and the state of our public services overall. The example he raises is good, as it highlights the importance of working across Government to resolve issues and help the families who need support. Whether that is done through the education system, which my Department is responsible for, or through the health service, we need to work collaboratively across Government to address the huge backlogs that far too many people face in getting the support that they need. I can assure him that that is a priority for us.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend raises a number of issues and I fear we are running out of time to give them the response they deserve. I will be happy to respond in more detail in writing because she does raise some important issues that we are determined to address.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  The hon. Lady has outlined how the system is broken. We know it is broken. We want to fix it, and I am happy to work with colleagues across the House in order to do so, so I would be happy to meet her, as she suggests.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  As the hon. Member is aware, we are looking at the whole system in the round to ensure that we have the inclusive mainstream provision that the vast majority of children will not only benefit from but do better in, and that we have specialist places where they are needed. We are working at pace to ensure that we have the right places for the children who need them as fast as possible.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  I absolutely agree with my hon. Friend. Early diagnosis and early intervention are known to significantly improve the opportunities and outcomes for children with special educational needs and disabilities, but one of the biggest challenges in this space is the battle that many families face with a system that is letting them down, and we are determined to change that.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend raises an important point: it is right that we require schools to provide inclusive mainstream education, and that we put in place the work- force, the training, and all the support that is necessary for that to be delivered. That is why one of our priorities is to have 6,500 more teachers within our teaching system, to ensure we have the specialist teachers that every child should have. We are looking at training; additional training support for special educational needs and disabilities has already been rolled out for the early years, and we want to ensure all schools have access to high-quality training that supports them to meet that need.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  As I have said, one of the first acts of the Education Secretary was to reorganise the Department to make sure that the SEND team sits within our school team and is not separate from it. That speaks to the vision that we have for reform: a vision for our whole education system, to create the inclusive mainstream education that we know will provide the best opportunities for the maximum number of children and, as far as possible, keep children with special educational needs and disabilities within the mainstream system with their friends. That is why we have launched the curriculum assessment review. We need to look closely at the key challenges to attainment for young people and the barriers holding them back from accessing the current mainstream education system. We are working with Ofsted to introduce report cards to look at how inclusion can be reflected as part of how schools are monitored by Ofsted. We are also increasing training for early years providers. We have extended the Nuffield early language intervention programme to make sure that no child’s needs are missed out and that every child can find their voice. We have been very clear: full reform will take time, but nothing is off the table to make sure that every child with SEND can achieve and thrive in mainstream schools. We have also started legislative change: the children’s wellbeing Bill will be introduced in the coming months. The shadow Minister made a point about private schools. Ending tax breaks on private schools will help to raise the revenue to fund our educational priorities for next year, including recruiting 6,500 new teachers. As he knows, the Treasury is consulting on plans to enable those changes to come into force in January and on how to design those plans to make sure that no child with special educational needs on an education, health and care plan will be adversely affected. On the question of free schools, the review announced this week relates only to mainstream free schools. We are starting a process with local authorities and trusts with the mainstream schools that are in scope, with a strong focus on assessing that need to make sure that school places are in the local area, where they should be, and that they align with our vision for mainstream inclusive education for every child who needs it.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  I absolutely agree with the National Audit Office. Although it is a damning report, we recognise much of what it says and are determined to fix it and put it right in the way the hon. Lady suggests.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  The Treasury will produce its impact assessment as part of the normal course of implementing new taxation, and the hon. Gentleman can refer to that assessment once it is published.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend speaks with great passion and compassion on behalf of her constituents, and I agree with everything that she says. I reiterate that what she outlines is the epitome of what we are seeking to achieve on inclusive mainstream education, so that it can meet the needs of the vast majority of children with special educational needs and disabilities in our country.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  I appreciate the hon. Gentleman’s comments, and I will always work cross-party with colleagues to achieve the best for all children in this country, but levelling the blame for the current situation at a Government only five months old cannot be accepted; the inheritance that we have taken on cannot be underestimated. We will continue to work on putting right what has been failing for the past 14 years, and the Department for Education is moving at pace on work to that end. We will make specific suggestions for legislative changes, and for any other necessary systemic changes, in due course.