Alliance responds to manifesto calling for urgent action to support early years education for children with SEND
Please find below a comment from the Early Years Alliance following the publication of a manifesto by Dingley's Promise, a charity which supports children with special educational needs or disabilities in the early years.
The manifesto includes a call for urgent action to support early years education for children with SEND. It also found that:
- 79% of settings have seen a significant rise in the number of children with SEND. Overall, 95% have seen a rise in the number of children with SEND.
- One year ago, 27% of providers said they had no more spaces for children with SEND. Once the new entitlements come in this will rise to 57%.
The manifesto can be read
Commenting, Neil Leitch, chief executive of the Early Years Alliance, said:
"Every child, including those with additional needs or disabilities, should be able to easily access high-quality early education and support – but, sadly, as today's research shows, it is becoming increasingly difficult for families to be able to do so.
"At the Alliance, we know that early educators are extremely committed to supporting children with SEND but they are dealing with a system that is underfunded, overly complex and, frankly, entirely unfit for purpose. This has made it close to impossible for many to be able to do so sustainably, leaving many with no option but to limit the provision they are able to offer.
"What's worse, as Dingley's Promise research shows, the current situation is only likely to become even more challenging when the expanded 30-hour offer is introduced if meaningful action isn't taken to remedy this soon, meaning the uphill battles facing providers and families will get unbearably steeper.
"As such, it is absolutely critical that the recommendations included in Dingley’s Promise’s manifesto – including its calls for better workforce training, simplified and sufficient funding for SEND support and a long-term focus on building early years SEND sufficiency – are acted upon as a matter of urgency. As it stands, the situation that children, families and providers are faced with is entirely unacceptable."