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Suffolk County Council report shows parents and carers physically and mentally exhausted despite special needs improvements




Parents and carers are physically and mentally exhausted despite improvements in special needs services, a report has shown.

Suffolk County Council has released its needs assessment for special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) provision.

The report showed some improvement in certain aspects but warned some services were under pressure with long waiting times which, in some cases, were getting worse.

Suffolk County Council are due to discuss the report on Thursday. Picture: Suzanne Day.
Suffolk County Council are due to discuss the report on Thursday. Picture: Suzanne Day.

Sarah-Jane Smedmor, the executive director of Children and Young People's (CYP) services at the county council, said the report would help the authority make big decisions about the future of SEND provision in Suffolk.

She said: “It allows us to see the bigger picture by pulling together all the details around the children and young people who use our services, what support they need and where there may be gaps.

"It means we can identify priorities and plan our resources better to fulfil those needs.”

The report showed an improvement in the number of education, health and care plans (EHCP) delivered within the 20-week statutory period, with 32 per cent. Picture: iStock
The report showed an improvement in the number of education, health and care plans (EHCP) delivered within the 20-week statutory period, with 32 per cent. Picture: iStock

The report showed an improvement in the number of education, health and care plans (EHCP) delivered within the 20-week statutory period, with 32 per cent — this is still under the national average but marks a big improvement from the 3.9 per cent in 2023.

Paediatric occupational therapy and physiotherapy were considered 'relatively good' but the report warned other services were facing pressures with wait times and the number of children waiting rising.

It read: "While the needs assessment has found some evidence of improved waiting times, many children and young people are still waiting too long for assessment, diagnosis and treatment for a wide range of SEND needs."

For instance, the report showed nearly 60 per cent of young people under 11-years-old who were identified as having socio-communication difficulties were waiting over 18 weeks for an autism assessment as of September last year.

Autism is the most common disability for Suffolk pupils with EHCPs, with nearly 30 per cent, or 1,352 pupils.

For ADHD, under 25s in Suffolk waited an average of 50.6 weeks for an assessment as of September 2024 — for children between the ages of zero and four, the average waiting times go up to 65.6 weeks.

The report says the long waiting times are leading to mental and physical exhaustion for parents and carers and compares being a SEND family in Suffolk to an 'unplanned journey without a map or compass'.

The reasons outlined as being behind these long waiting times are mainly a large increase in demand and cost pressures when compared with funding which has not kept pace.

In January last year, there were 7,860 EHCPs in Suffolk, compared to 4,735 in 2019.

According to the report, services are also facing a 'critical shortage' of special school placements and strained staff to meet children and young people’s needs, leading to parents choosing home education due to systemic failures rather than preference.

The report made several recommendations on what the council should be doing to address the challenges SEND services currently face, including engaging with children, their families, and professionals on its findings, creating more inclusive education settings, constantly collecting and reviewing data, and lobbying the Government.

These recommendations, alongside the full report, will be discussed on Thursday morning by the county council's health and wellbeing board.