Campaigners are calling on Andy Burnham to abandon the core elements of the government’s overhaul of special educational needs provision in England, arguing they unfairly remove children’s legal protections.
A group of children, parents and experts, led by the broadcaster Chris Packham, have written a letter calling for the prime minister to gut the plans laid out under his predecessor Keir Starmer.
Starmer and Bridget Phillipson, the former education secretary, announced the sweeping changes this year, aiming to curb the increase in legally mandated education, health and care plans (EHCPs) and save money in the long term.
Now campaigners are hoping the change of prime minister and education secretary may bring a change of heart from the government – even though officials say it is unlikely.
In the letter, published in the Guardian, the campaigners say: “The legal rights of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (Send) are still under threat.
“The government’s proposed … reforms would significantly reduce existing legal rights to enforceable EHCPs, parental choice of educational settings and independent routes of appeal.”
They add: “We … urge ministers to work with Send families and organisations to retain existing Send legal rights, preserve individual provision, improve accountability in the system, and retain meaningful independent routes of appeal.”
The letter is signed by 36 people, including Packham, the actor Sally Phillips, the clinical psychologist Simon Baron-Cohen and the Guardian columnist John Harris.
The changes were announced in February after lengthy consultation by ministers with experts and Labour MPs.
Under the plans, instead of legally enforceable EHCPs, millions of pupils will be given individual support plans, which will be agreed between parents and schools but will not be subject to independent legal appeal.
These support plans will be administered by schools rather than local authorities, and parents who are unhappy with them will be asked to appeal to the school rather than being given recourse to an independent tribunal.
Schools will be given more resources to help support Send children, but the overall package is designed to curb the rapid escalation in costs under the current system, which has left councils in England facing a projected £6bn financial black hole in two years’ time.
However, the Guardian revealed on Thursday that the projected savings risk being undermined by a flood of new applications for EHCPs, as parents look to secure legal protections before the new system takes force.
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The campaigners say they want significant changes to the proposals, including keeping the current threshold for EHCPs, allowing parents to appeal against decisions at a tribunal and scrapping the assessment system proposed for individual support plans.
Ministers are consulting on the measures and are expected to recommend some changes to Phillipson’s proposals.
However, those close to the process say Burnham and Lucy Powell, the new education secretary, are likely to adopt more minor modifications to reinforce legal protections rather than the wholesale changes called for by the campaign group.
A spokesperson for the Department for Education said: “We inherited a Send system under immense strain. Our once-in-a-generation reforms will change that.
“Legal duties on schools to identify and support children’s needs are getting stronger, not weaker. And we will never leave parents without a route to challenge decisions about their child’s support.
“We have consulted on our proposals to make sure we get these reforms right, and in the meantime we’re investing in schools to improve inclusion.”
