Terry Jermy

Absolutely. The hon. Member makes a really important point about the impact on the wider family. For SEND parents with more than one child, it is incredibly difficult to navigate the logistics of getting to different schools in different locations. We have certainly experienced that in South West Norfolk. Rurality also creates additional layers of bureaucracy because parents are often required to navigate multiple agencies spread across large geographical areas and to repeatedly explain their child’s needs to different professionals. They have to travel long distances to appointments and spend months, and sometimes years, pursuing assessments, reviews and support. The pressures are being felt not only by families but by schools. Three quarters of schools that responded to my survey said they did not feel able to provide adequate support for pupils with SEND using their current resources. Many reported receiving insufficient support from the local authority with SEND and EHCP casework. Worst of all, 46% of parents who responded reported that their child had spent significant time out of school because their needs were not being met. Some families describe children being out of education for months, and sometimes years, and the story is always one of years of disruption with no suitable placement available. Education is not a privilege in this country; it is a right, yet too many children with SEND are being denied that right, not because their potential is lacking but because the system around them is struggling to provide the support they need. For children in rural communities, the challenges are often even greater. That is why I hope the Government will fully consider the added impact of rurality, which I have highlighted through my South West Norfolk SEND report. They must consider the added pressures as part of their wider reforms to the SEND system, so that families across constituencies like mine and those of other hon. Members who have spoken can finally feel heard, supported and confident that their children will receive the education they deserve.