Government urged to take action to end the 'vicious downward spiral' of Send provision

Children with special educational needs and disabilities (Send) have been victims of a "vicious downward spiral" of declining support over the past decade, pushing more families into crisis, the former children's commissioner for England has said as she urged the government to take action.

- Jessica Murray

Anne Longfield, the founder of the Centre for Young Lives, said the government could not simply spend more money on the status quo of Send provision if it was going to tackle the soaring rate of tribunals brought by parents in battles with local authorities over support.

"I don't think local authorities can just invest more and more and more on high-level, complicated support plans," said Longfield, who served as the children's commissioner from 2015 to 2021. "We need a system that is much more inclusive, that can respond to children's needs as and when.

"It's clear to me that children's needs have increased at the same time as the support that's been available to them over the last decade has drastically decreased." She added: "We're now spending huge amounts of money from authorities that are on the edge of bankruptcy on a very small number of children who fall into crisis, and on any level that's not sustainable."