Contact’s response to the SEND White Paper: families’ voices must shape what happens next
4 mins read
Friday 22 May 2026
This advice applies in England only.
Thank you again to everyone who helped shape Contact’s response to the government’s consultation on proposed changes to the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) system in England.
What you shared with us through our focus groups in March, our helpline and family support services, as well as our research and campaigning work, has been central to shaping our submission.
Read the summary of Contact’s consultation response [.docx].
What Contact is calling for
Contact recognises the urgent need to reform SEND support. We welcome the government’s ambition to improve inclusion, strengthen earlier intervention and improve support in mainstream schools. We also recognise the constructive engagement ministers and officials have had with parent carers and the sector during the consultation.
However, our response makes clear that reforms will only work if they strengthen rather than weaken support, accountability and families’ confidence in the system.
As a priority, the government must make sure support set out in Individual Support Plans (ISPs) is legally enforceable and clearly accountable. It must also be backed by independent ways for families to challenge decision when support is not delivered.
Based on what parent carers shared with us, Contact believes successful reform must be built around five key principles:
- Support must remain based on children and young people’s needs, not what services can afford.
- Families must retain strong legal rights and meaningful routes of challenge.
- Assessment and support must remain joined-up across education, health and care.
- Mainstream inclusion must be strengthened alongside continued investment in specialist provision.
- Co-production and fair access to support must be embedded throughout the system.
What you told us
Across our discussions with parent carers, families consistently said they want earlier support before needs escalate into crisis. They also told us they want to see:
- More inclusive schools and settings.
- Better joined-up working across education, health and care.
- Fewer delays and less conflict.
- A system that is easier to navigate and more accountable when support is not delivered.
Many parent carers welcomed proposals for new Individual Support Plans (ISPs) and stronger inclusion in mainstream schools. However, they also raised significant concerns about accountability and enforceability. Parent carers worry that without clear legal duties and independent routes to challenge decisions, ISPs could repeat some of the same problems families already experience under SEN support. This includes inconsistent support and difficulties securing provision when it is not delivered.
Families made clear that SEND tribunals are usually a last resort, used only when the wider system has already failed their child. Parent carers told us they do not want lengthy disputes or conflict with schools and local authorities. But they do want reassurance that there are proper safeguards in place when support breaks down.
A particularly strong message from parent carers was that poor coordination between education, health and care services remains one of the biggest weaknesses in the current system. Fragmented systems, staff shortages and unclear accountability were repeatedly described as major barriers to accessing therapies, Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) support, continuing care and specialist support.
Contact is concerned that health and social care are still not sufficiently embedded in the White Paper proposals. Without stronger joint accountability, sufficient workforce capacity and clearer responsibilities across agencies, there is a real risk the reforms will not deliver the meaningful change children and families urgently need.
What happens next?
The Department for Education will now review the responses submitted to the consultation. It will publish its formal response later this year.
The response will set out the feedback received and which proposals the government intends to change, take forward or develop further. Further policy development and engagement will continue over this period.
Last week the King’s Speech announced an Education for All Bill, which will include any legislative changes needed. The parliamentary process will be another opportunity for parent carers and charities to influence what the Bill says before it becomes law.