Ed Duff shares his take on the latest SEND white paper leaks, and why a tiered system won’t work without real investment.
Proposed Changes to SEN Support
The latest government ‘leaks’ suggest that the current system of SEN Support may be replaced with a new system with multiple tiers of support within mainstream education. Under these proposals, only those with the most complex needs would qualify for statutory Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs).
It appears that the suggestion is that children with needs currently met by EHCPs — including many diagnosed with autism or ADHD — would instead be supported through school-managed individual support plans based on tiered need categories. Eligibility would be reviewed at transition points such as moving into secondary education.
A Shift Away From the Current Legal Entitlement
This reflects a shift away from the current legal entitlement to an EHCP whenever a child’s needs cannot be met from within school resources, towards a system in which statutory planning is reserved for those assessed as having “exceptional” needs, as determined by nationally developed criteria and expert panels.
Under this approach, mainstream schools would take on greater responsibility for provision and funding.
EHCP Numbers Continue to Grow
According to the most recent official data for England:
- There were approximately 638,700 EHCPs as of January 2025
- Around 97,700 new plans were started during 2024
- EHCPs have more than tripled since their introduction in 2014
This steep increase has been cited by ministers and analysts as one of the drivers of reform.
How the Current System Works
Under the current system, a local authority must issue an EHCP when it determines that a child’s educational, health or social care needs cannot be met from within the resources ordinarily available to a mainstream school.
This statutory test means that the plan is “necessary” to secure provision that the school cannot reasonably deliver alone.
What the Proposed Changes Could Mean
The proposal to replace a significant number of EHCPs with school-based support implies that some children who would previously have entered the statutory system could instead remain on tiered support plans managed by the school itself.
At its most ambitious, this would reduce the overall number of EHCPs because some needs currently judged to require statutory planning could, under the proposed criteria, be met within mainstream settings.
Tiered SEN Support Is Not New
Having a tiered system of SEN Support is not new. The previous Statement of SEN framework (pre-2014) also had different levels of entitlement, and proponents argue it could offer more flexibility and clearer expectations.
However, given the sheer scale of EHCP numbers and the pressures on schools and local authorities, a tiered regime will not functionally replace the current statutory regime without significant additional resources.
What Would Be Needed for the System to Work
For these proposals to stand any chance of working, mainstream schools would require:
- Substantial investment in staff
- Increased training and specialist expertise
- Access to professionals such as educational psychologists and therapists
- Additional expert capacity to assess and tailor support
- Far more local provision for pupils with complex needs than currently exists
Without this, diverting children away from EHCPs risks leaving them without the legally enforceable support they need.
The Reality Behind EHCP Growth
The whole reason for the growth of EHCPs is simply because they have been “necessary” — mainstream schools cannot deliver the support many pupils need within existing resources.
That is not a legal issue, but a factual one.
Simply changing the law is not going to change what these young people need.