TTR0130
Written evidence submitted by the National Network of Parent Carer Forums (NNPCF)
The National Network of Parent Carer Forums (NNPCF) is the independent, national voice of parent carer forums. We are run by parent carers with lived experience. The NNPCF is a representative organisation, consisting of up to 151 local parent carer forums at any time across England. Parent Carer Forums are pan disability. This means each parent carer forum includes parent carers from a range of backgrounds with a wide range of experiences in Health, Education and Social Care as their children have a wide range of conditions. We currently have approaching 118,000 members.
Our vision is for the best possible opportunities and futures for all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and their families.
Our mission is to deliver better outcomes for families living with SEND. We aim to create a culture of participation and co-production across the education, health, social care, and the voluntary sectors. This means that we are involved in all aspects of designing, commissioning, delivering, and reviewing services as an equal partner. We empower our members to ensure that their voices are heard at a local, regional, and national level inspire our partners by sharing good practice and knowledge.
This submission focuses on how well the current teacher training framework prepares new teachers for teaching children with SEND in mainstream schools and how it could be improved.
As a membership organisation, the NNPCF has based this evidence on reaching out to our networks of Parent Carer Forums. In particular we reached out to our membership at our national conference in February 2023 on the issues of teacher training and Ordinarily Available Provision which have informed this submission. We have also used evidence from our case studies into attendance and needs not being met in mainstream schools.
The NNPCF is concerned that current teacher training does not equip teachers adequately for teaching and including children with SEND in mainstream schools. The NNPCF would like to see an increase in the amount of time in initial teacher training devoted to developing an understanding of children with SEND and how to best support them both academically and otherwise. The NNPCF would also like to see increased availability of quality evidence-based and lived experience training for teachers.
A common theme the NNPCF hears from its parent carer members is a lack of training for teachers on SEND is reducing the potential for mainstream schools to deliver inclusive teaching and creating barriers to their education.
In a recent series of case studies, the NNPCF investigated why the needs of children with SEN but without an EHCP were not being met in mainstream schools. The lack of teacher training was a significant theme throughout the studies.
“Teachers need a better understanding of SEND full stop!! It needs to be prioritised as part of teacher training.”
Last year’s data shows children with SEN accounted for 16.5% of the school population[1], yet the amount of time spent training in SEN in initial teacher training is often disproportionately lower than this.
The NNPCF was pleased to see “improving mainstream provision through high-quality teaching and SEND training” though supporting and upskilling the teaching workforce is a priority for the Department of Education in their recent SEND and AP improvement plan[2].
The NNPCF is also pleased to note that the Department of Education engaged with NNPCF members on the issue of what staff skills and training should be available as standard to all children through the “ordinarily available provision” approach.
However, the NNPCF is concerned that a lack of teacher training has led to a barrier to education for children with SEN as they are not able to receive the right support:
“Better staff training to understand how to calm a child down effectively. My son has spent whole days just sat colouring outside of his class, been told if he doesn't calm down the police will come and take him to jail, and during year 3 and part of year 4 at lot of time being sent home as soon as a meltdown started. It was nearly everyday, and affected being able to work.”
All too often parents report to the NNPCF staff aren’t able to recognise the needs of the child due to a lack of training in SEN, which in turn leads to a lack of support for the child or the teacher blaming the child for the lack of academic progress:
“The teacher decided she’s qualified to call my child lazy rather than in need of help”
The delays in identifying needs has meant for many children with SEND that they have not had the same ability to access education as their peers:
“Delay in diagnosis, thought he was just naughty and disruptive. Symptoms not recognised in primary school. Sanctions given constantly. Complete loss of 4 years education”
When asked what would make the biggest difference to their child in school a significant proportion of parents responded with ideas such as:
“A teacher who really understood dyslexia. The things that help my son the most do not cost a lot of money but teachers do not know how to help”
“Schools having better understanding of how autism presents and the support and adjustments needed for a child for whom mainstream is the appropriate setting… School need increased funding and training to support SEN children in mainstream schools”
Increased training for all staff in schools, not just on the learning needs of children with SEN, but on understanding them and how to support them emotionally is a consistent theme in feedback from our members.
“Sensory processing requires a variety of options – teachers should all be trained in SEND, understand all areas of sensory processing and how children can help to regulate themselves, rather than expecting my child to sit quietly and then tell her off for not being able to comply”
Training for teaching not only needs to increase knowledge from a research or evidence based, but also needs to take account of lived experience:
“Real evidence based training and knowledge for all staff”
“Speaking to people who actually understand autism”
“If they worked in facts rather then fiction and opinions”
Teachers need training on how to work with parents to ensure they can understand the lived experience of each individual child:
“Listening to, believing me, and working with me. Treating my child as an individual, understanding the impact of domestic abuse / trauma. Not trying to force her in when frightened but understanding the value of meeting her where she's at”
“School staff and 'professionals' to stop peddling ableist rhetoric and behaviourism. They must stop trying to 'fix' my daughter by telling her to adopt coping strategies that are an attempt to make her 'less' autistic”
The NNPCF agrees with the Education Select Committee’s (2019) comments that “this generation [of learners with SEND] is being let down”[3]. Whilst the NNPCF is pleased to see the development of the SEND workforce in the SEND and AP improvement plan, there is significant concern over the rate of change. The NNPCF is concerned unless change happens quickly, including the ability of teachers to access high quality training, that yet another generation of learners with SEND will not have the same access to education as their peers and will be failed.
Teacher training needs to meet the needs of learners with SEND as quickly as possible so our country’s education system can move from a system that is unable to meet the needs of children with SEND to a highly skilled work force able to advise and deliver on the support a child needs for long-term success.
“The system doesn’t help you sometimes you aren’t sure as a parent what extra support your child needs you just know your child is not functioning well within the system and that they need support”
[1] Special educational needs publication June 2022 (publishing.service.gov.uk)
[2] Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Improvement Plan (publishing.service.gov.uk)
[3]April 2023