Education Secretary announces sweeping SEND reforms: children with the most complex needs will keep EHCPs, while a new school-led ISP plan will replace or supplement EHCPs based on need rather than diagnosis.

Assessments under the new system are planned to begin in September 2029, with no changes to current support before at least September 2030 and a phased transition through 2030–2035.

Ofsted will monitor ISP implementation, and if standards aren’t met, actions can be taken within school management to ensure compliance.

Reaction reflects opposition concerns on funding, adequacy of support, and ongoing political debate, with commentary from multiple figures and groups.

Key figures cited include the Education Secretary, the Children’s Commissioner, and Labour MPs, with reactions spanning party lines.

Context notes rising support and spending alongside a 2024 NAO finding of a system described as broken, with costs projected to rise and deficits funded into 2028.

Additional funding commitments include vast write-offs of high-needs deficits and ongoing SEND investments to train teachers and expand school places.

Other reform elements add a redesigned disadvantage funding model, attendance targets, local improvement programs, incentives for headteachers in deprived areas, and increased maternity pay for teachers from 2027/28.

Current system problems—financial unsustainability for councils, rising demand, delays, staffing and place shortages, and high tribunal rates in 2024/25—are highlighted as context for reform.

The reforms aim to curb the rapid rise in EHCPs, addressing a projected funding gap by 2028–29, according to the Office for Budget Responsibility.

Politically, the Education Secretary defends the reforms against misinformation, with the Prime Minister framing them as delivering better education for all, while Conservative critics question funding and implementation.