Source · Select Committees · Education Committee
Recommendation 72
72
Accepted
Prioritise strategic funding deployment for early intervention in SEND to improve outcomes.
Conclusion
Funding must be strategically deployed to deliver the best outcomes for children and young people with SEND. This should include prioritised investment in early intervention. Timely and targeted support is essential 170 and can prevent some needs such as speech and language and SEMH needs from escalating, reducing long-term costs to the system, and improving educational and life outcomes. Prioritising early support in such areas not only represents better value for money but also aligns with a preventative, rather than reactive, approach to SEND provision. Ensuring that schools, multi-academy trusts and services are resourced to identify and meet speech and language and SEMH needs at the earliest stage should be a central principle of any funding reform. However, the Department must recognise that while early intervention plays a crucial role in supporting children with disabilities, it is not a solution for all needs. Some children will require consistent, long-term support throughout their lives. Where this is the case, it is essential that adequate and sustained funding and resources are in place to ensure these children receive the ongoing support they need to thrive. (Conclusion, Paragraph 255)
Government Response Summary
The government is prioritising early intervention through its Best Start in Life strategy, increasing funding for early years providers, extending funding for the Nuffield Early Language Intervention until 2028/29, and funding specialist early language leads.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
Supporting children with SEND is central to the early years agenda. The government recognises the important role the early years sector plays in early intervention to ensure the right support is put in place for children as soon as possible, and that every child, including those with SEND, should have access to a high-quality early years place that meets their individual needs and nurtures their development. We are making changes to improve the system for children with SEND already. The Best Start in Life strategy means a stronger focus on early identification, inclusive access to early years education, and tailored family support. We are doing this by: • making inclusive practice standard practice, working with early years educators, including Special Educational Needs Coordinators (SENCOs), to embed inclusive practice across all early years teaching and qualifications. • increasing the funding available to providers to support children with SEND and make improvements to the way funding is allocated as part of wider reforms to the SEND system. Improved funding will provide additional resources for providers to better support inclusion and early intervention to prevent the escalation of needs. • funding Best Start Family hubs in every local authority, with children and family services professionals specifically trained in working to support parents of children with additional needs. This will help identify children with special educational needs and disabilities who may need extra help early on, making links with local early years settings and health services. • funding evidenced-based early language interventions to enable early language development and identify SEND at the earliest opportunity. We will continue to ensure every reception class benefits from fully funded access to proven programmes such as the Nuffield Early Language Intervention (NELI) – funding for the NELI programme will continue for a further 4 academic years until the end of AY 2028/29. We will also fund specialist early language leads in local areas to give hands-on support and training to early years educators and settings. Reception staff will also be able to access specialist early language lead support. As set out in the 10 Year Health Plan, building on the successes of programmes such as Early Language Support for Every Child (ELSEC), we will ensure that education and healthcare providers work together with other local services to plan and deliver evidence-based early interventions for children. An independent evaluation of the ELSEC programme is taking place. This will explore the overall impact of the ‘test and learn’ programme and provide a robust evidence base to inform future decisions and next steps in shaping inclusive education and early support systems across all local areas.