Dr Roz Savage

I beg to move, That this House has considered e-petition 711021 relating to assessments and support for children with SEND. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship in this extremely popular debate, Dr Huq, and it is a privilege to open it on behalf of the Petitions Committee. Over 122,000 people have signed this petition, led by Save Our Children’s Rights, parents and organisations including the Independent Provider of Special Education Advice, Special Needs Jungle and SOS!SEN. Their message is clear: the primary goal of education policy must be to ensure that every child fulfils their potential to the maximum degree possible. They are deeply concerned that weakening statutory duties would reduce not just rights but opportunities. What do we mean by SEND? It is a legal term: a child has special educational needs if they have a learning difficulty or disability that means they cannot use standard educational facilities without extra help, and if they require special educational provision—extra or different support from what is normally provided. This can include one-to-one support, smaller classes, adapted curricula or therapies such as speech and language support. A diagnosis is not required. What matters is whether the child’s needs make learning harder and whether extra help is essential to their participation and progress. We all know that the system is under immense pressure.