Schools raise SEND concerns directly with minister in Jenny Riddell-Carpenter roundtable

Schools have raised SEND concerns directly with a Government minister during a roundtable discussion held by a Suffolk MP.

Jenny Riddell-Carpenter, MP for Suffolk Coastal, held a roundtable discussion earlier today focusing on challenges around special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

Held at Alde Valley Academy, in Seward Avenue, Leiston, the discussion gave school and trust leaders the opportunity to raise concerns directly with Catherine McKinnell MP, Minister for School Standards.

Gavin Hetherington, the academy’s headteacher, said: “Rural and coastal communities like ours face unique pressures, and we welcome the chance to share our experiences and explore positive ways forward to ensure every child receives the support they need to aspire and achieve.”

The discussion follows a report released by Ms Riddell-Carpenter earlier in the summer focusing on her constituency’s challenges around SEND.

The report, which attracted 97 responses from SEND families, showed just over half were struggling with navigating the system and were not receiving the support they needed.

Similarly, close to 60 per cent of the families said their children missed school due to their needs not being met, while 22.8 per cent were off school for more than a year.

Ms Riddell-Carpenter said she had lost count of the number of ‘desperate’ families and parents who had battled for years to get their children the care they needed.

She added: “Improving our SEND system and ensuring that every child has the right to access education is rightly a priority for the Government.

“I’ll keep working with the Government to make sure that we improve SEND support, and that we make sure that no family ever needs to fight to the bone for the help their child is entitled to.”

A follow-up report is expected later this year.