NASUWT – The Teachers’ Union has called for the government to rethink its plans for the SEND system, despite confirmation from new Education Secretary Lucy Powell that she intends to push ahead with plans to accommodate larger numbers of SEND children in mainstream schools and to alter the legal rights of SEND pupils.
At TUC Congress in Brighton, NASUWT proposed a motion – passed by Congress – calling for SEND funding proportionate to the demands the system places on teachers, schools and colleges, for educators to play a role in system change, and for the protection of pupils’ legal entitlements to support.
A recent survey by NASUWT found that:
- 79% of teachers surveyed are expecting to teach more SEND pupils this year
- 92% say complexity of SEND is increasing in their schools (most respondents worked in mainstream schools)
- 21% of teachers spend their own money on SEND equipment and resources
- When asked on what extra funding should be spent on first, most teachers said SEND support.
“The crisis gripping our SEND system was not created by children, it was not created by families, and it was not created by the teachers. This crisis is the direct result of years of calculated underinvestment in our education, health, care, and local services.
“Inclusion without investment is not reform. It is nothing more than the government transferring responsibility and risk away from Whitehall and onto the shoulders of schools and individual education professionals.
“A child is not included simply because a placement has changed, or because they have been placed in a mainstream classroom. Real inclusion means belonging. It means participating, making progress, and receiving the right support in the right setting.”
Matt Wrack, General Secretary of NASUWT – The Teachers’ Union, said:
“A teacher who ignores direction from the government may quickly find themselves in trouble. So why is it that the government feels it can repeatedly ignore teachers?
“Our teachers have raised urgent concerns about the impact of proposed changes to the SEND system on the safeguarding of all pupils in their care. They have also raised valid concerns about their continuously increasing workloads and working conditions. If the government continues to press ahead with their plans after teachers have raised such concerns, they will not just be reckless – they will be negligent.
“Our children, teachers, and all those working in schools and colleges deserve better than a desperate rehash of a SEND system that is designed to save money before it saves education. The government must significantly increase SEND funding before it makes any other plans.”
