Responding to the government’s announcement of £200m funding to train teachers to meet the needs of pupils with SEND, Matt Wrack, General Secretary of NASUWT – The Teachers’ Union, said:
 
“Let us be very clear: our SEND system needs major reform. While £200m to support teacher SEND training is very welcome, it is also barely a drop in the bucket of the funding necessary to make sustained and significant change.
 
“Teachers alone cannot avert the SEND crisis, no matter their levels of expertise. Our members report rising numbers of pupils with increasingly complex SEND and mental health needs, long delays in accessing assessments and specialist support, cuts to external services, and growing levels of stress. Any new training expectations placed upon teachers must recognise these realities. Many teachers tell us they work in excess of fifty hours a week; without a reduction in this excessive workload, where will they find time to train or take up increased responsibilities around pupils with SEND?  
 
“Schools are a pivotal part of the SEND system, but they are not the whole system – they exist within a wider landscape including health and social care, local authorities, and specialist services. Years of neglect have left every component of this system starved of funding, resources and expertise. Without concerted action to address these structural problems, increased teacher training cannot be a solution – it is merely a sticking plaster.
 
“The government cannot risk short-changing teachers, pupils or their families when it comes to tackling the SEND crisis. Schools need more funding, more staff and more external support if they are to offer SEND pupils the world class education that every child in this country deserves.”