I am contacted every week by parents and carers who are caught trapped in a broken system for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

The range of issues is wide, and vary from:

• Delays to Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) diagnosis
• Two-year waits for a Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) appointment
• A lack of SEN school placements in the area
• Reduced timetables, expulsions and struggles with home schooling
• A lack of independent organisation support for those without diagnosis
• Trouble agreeing and mainstream schools not able to meet the 1:1 needs in an Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP)
• A SEND appeals system which has children forced to accept plans which parents know don’t work, simply to be eligible for an appeal
• Not having a joined-up approach with all the professionals involved.

The system is in crisis and children are losing out.

Frustratingly as a Member of Parliament I don’t have any powers to sway or change the decisions the Lancashire Country Council SEND team make, or ensure individual children secure one of the limited places in a specialist school, but I absolutely recognise the massive impact that these decisions have on parents and children.

In her conference speech delivered this month the Secretary of State for Education announced a consultation on minimum service levels in universities, and guidance on mobile phones in the classroom, but sadly there was not a single mention of the crisis in SEND education.

Enough is enough, and I’m calling for this crisis to end. You can read my letter to her below: