There are warnings that the first set of official SEND training materials for schools will disappoint many in the sector, as they lack “practical strategies” and include at least one “glaring omission.”
Tes magazine (formerly the Times Educational Supplement) has tested the reaction to the first wave of teaching materials, which were published on 24th September 2026 and are focused on inclusive teaching and speech, language and communication development.
The materials – SEND training for schools: what is inclusive teaching? – are designed to help meet the government’s key pledge to deliver SEND and inclusion training for all teachers in all schools.
The first set of free introductory training materials have been developed for the Department for Education (DfE) by Ambition Institute, a charity which provides evidence-informed professional development for educators.
Incorporating a slide deck and facilitator guidance, they will form part of a package of three sets of optional training materials for schools and post-16 settings in England which are set to be released throughout 2026-27.
The first of the three sessions covers the following topics:
- What is inclusive teaching?
- Universal approaches
- Adaptations and additional support
SEND training materials aim to ‘strengthen inclusive practice’
The Ambition Institute says the materials have been carefully developed with guidance from the Education Endowment Foundation and in line with their own Inclusive Teaching Framework. They have also collaborated with schools, post-16 settings, specialists and organisations from across the education sector in their design.
This first release introduces the concept of inclusive teaching and the key aspects of child development “that can help educators understand the challenges learners may face, before focusing more deeply on speech, language and communication.”
The Ambition Institute says the training materials are designed to help teaching staff develop their confidence and expertise in inclusive teaching practices and enable them to respond effectively to individual needs.
Ultimately, it is hoped the training will help to create positive, supportive and inclusive learning environments for all pupils.
Hilary Spencer, Chief Executive of Ambition Institute, said:
“We are pleased to share these new training materials for schools and post-16 settings across England. Ambition Institute has worked closely with teachers, leaders, sector specialists, schools, colleges, and the Department for Education to develop these resources. These materials mark the start of a wider package of support, and we look forward to working with the sector to refine and expand these materials over the coming year.
“Every child and young person deserves to feel included and able to achieve their potential. We know that educators across the country want to feel more confident and well-equipped to support children and young people with SEND. Our aim throughout has been to create practical, adaptable materials that help teachers and support staff to respond to a wide range of needs and strengthen their inclusive teaching practice.”
Key criticisms of the new SEND training materials
But Tes says the materials have been met with some concerns around the scope of the training, the timing and, specifically, the contents of the training for speech, language and communication development.
Key criticisms of the new SEND training materials include:
- They are not practical enough – teachers need practical strategies they can apply directly to improve children’s outcomes
- There are critical omissions – Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) is not mentioned in the published slide decks
- They provide limited capacity for collaboration – the materials rely largely on in-house delivery, without the expectation for staff and schools to learn together
- They lack sufficient depth – there are concerns that teaching staff will miss out on important guidance about promoting independence, scaffolding support and building whole-school capacity
- The implementation has been rushed – some school leaders have questioned whether the new materials have been developed too quickly
Tes highlights the concerns of the Education Director from the charity Speech and Language UK, Neil Maslen, who has said teaching staff will be “disappointed” that the training materials lack practical strategies and also pointed to a “glaring omission,” within the materials.
Mr Maslen explained:
“SEND reform is totally dependent on the quality of the implementation of the positive ideas set out by the government like Experts at Hand, inclusion bases and teacher training. These materials are far from a reassuring start on this journey.
“Many teachers will be disappointed that these training materials aren’t giving them practical strategies that they can actually use to improve children’s outcomes, which is what we all want to see.”
He said the materials also fail to include information about developmental language disorder (DLD), warning that “SEND reform cannot be successful without a major initiative to improve knowledge of DLD.”
New SEND training materials still heralded as ‘positive development’
However, some experts in the sector believe the publication of the new training materials represents “a positive development.”
Donna Waring, the head of SEND at Endeavour Learning Trust, which operates 11 schools in the North West, told Tes that the materials serve to underline the principle that every teacher is responsible for every pupil in their classroom.
She elaborated:
“While this is not a new principle, the materials represent a more explicit attempt to embed inclusive practice within everyday teaching, rather than treating it as a statutory expectation led primarily by the Sendco.”
Amjad Ali, CPD and Inclusion Lead at Chiltern Learning Trust, which runs 21 schools in the East of England, echoed this sentiment, welcoming the fact that the training materials position SEND “as part of everyday inclusive teaching, not something that simply sits with the Sendco.”
Posting on social media, he added that he was particularly pleased to see “the distinction between universal approaches, adaptations and additional support.”
He praised the materials for their focus on understanding the individual learner, “their development and the barriers they are experiencing, rather than simply reaching for a list of strategies linked to a diagnosis.”
Shifting the inclusion conversation from principle to implementation
But he also raised concerns.
He said the training materials lacked guidance about how to scaffold support without creating dependency, how staff should promote independence and how teachers and teaching assistants should work together.
Ms Waring also told Tes that the real value in the materials may lay with the facilitator guidance, rather than the main training slide deck itself.
She said it is this guidance which “shifts the conversation from agreement with the principles of inclusion to consideration of implementation.”
She explained:
“Most schools would readily endorse the idea that SEND is everyone’s responsibility. The more challenging questions are whether teachers feel confident adapting learning, whether staff understand the difference between universal provision and individual adaptation, whether barriers are identified before pupils struggle, and whether the Sendco is building whole-school capacity rather than acting as the default problem-solver.”
Government’s SEND training materials are limited and ‘rushed’
Others in the field cautioned that the training materials had inherent limitations.
Tes reports that Margaret Mulholland, the SEND and Inclusion Specialist at the Association of School and College Leaders, said it was “difficult to form an overall picture as to the impact this training will make,” based only on the first release of materials.
However, she added that “the methodology appears to be limited to a simple in-house delivery, with no opportunities or expectation for collaboration between schools to share best practice. Teachers need time for sustained, ongoing training that meets the needs of their locality.”
There are also concerns that the materials have been “rushed.”
Ambition Institute were awarded the contract to develop the optional training materials in July this year, and published the first set before the end of September.
Catherine Lock, Director of Education at Grace Schools, which operates 38 schools in the East of England, said that, while the materials include “useful parts” they require more work “to reflect what many in the sector would consider ‘best practice.’”
She added:
“The authors are seeking feedback from colleagues, which is encouraging, but we are concerned that the speed of the publication feels rushed and makes this difficult to implement well and to the benefit of all.”
Government seeks sector feedback on new SEND training
Indeed, Ambition Institute and the DfE have both said they welcome feedback on the SEND training materials.
The Executive Director of the Ambition Institute, Marie Hamer, said they took their responsibility seriously and that they were “developing them in collaboration with the sector, with input from teachers, leaders, professional development leads and experts in special educational needs, and we’re very open to feedback.”
She added:
“One message has come through consistently: settings are starting from very different places, so the materials need to be accessible, practical and adaptable to different contexts. Now the first set of materials is out, we encourage people to get in touch, share their views and help us shape the next set due later in the academic year.”
A Department for Education spokesperson said:
“We are proud to have kickstarted the most comprehensive teacher training offer in a generation, backed by £200 million and developed with the sector to help put inclusion at the heart of settings across the country.
“We have been clear that this is the first step as part of a wider offer, with more materials to launch next year ahead of training courses in the autumn, and we’ll continue to work with the sector to make sure the support is practical, useful and works for the staff using it.”
Training to support inclusive practice in education
First Response Training (FRT) is a leading, national training provider. They deliver a wide and diverse range of training to schools, early years and childcare as well as health and social care and all other industry sectors.
Their training portfolio spans health and safety, first aid, fire safety, manual handling, safeguarding, mental health and neurodiversity training.
FRT have recently co-developed a focused training session on Neurodiversity and Inclusive Practice in Education, which will be co-delivered with Experts with Lived Experience and which they have developed and tested extensively in partnership with The Tapscott Learning Trust, an award-winning trust based in London.
The Neurodiversity and Inclusive Practice in Education programme is a co-produced school improvement programme designed to help schools strengthen inclusive practice and improve outcomes for neurodivergent and SEND pupils, whether formally diagnosed or not.
Developed by education leaders and Experts with Lived Experience of autism, ADHD and PDA, the programme supports schools to improve attendance, engagement, wellbeing, belonging and attainment through adaptive teaching, reasonable adjustments and whole-school culture change.
In line with the Schools White Paper and planned National Inclusion Standards, it moves thinking away from a diagnosis-led approach to a pure needs-led approach, and making schools accessible and inclusive by default.
Inspired by the nationally recognised Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on Learning Disability and Autism, which has trained millions of healthcare professionals across England, the programme combines lived experience, practical strategies, implementation support and impact evaluation to create meaningful and lasting change within education settings.
It also supports schools to develop their Inclusion Strategies and strengthen collaboration with local education, health and care services, helping to create environments where every child feels understood, valued and able to thrive.
Learning outcomes include:
- Explain neurodiversity and common co-occurring profiles
- Recognise early indicators of dysregulation and unmet need
- Understand why autism and other neurodiverse conditions are described as
- Invisible
- Reflect on your own values, beliefs and practice
- Recognise potential differences, strengths and challenges for neurodiverse pupils
- Identify reasonable adjustments and ways to adapt your practice
- Record the impact
Addressing key concerns about SEND training for schools
FRT’s Neurodiversity and Inclusive Practice in Education training programme can address the key concerns levelled at the new optional SEND training materials from government in the following ways:
- SEND training needs to provide trainers with practical strategies they can apply in their settings to improve outcomes for children: The FRT programme focuses on practical strategies that staff can implement immediately, including sensory adjustments, communication, predictable routines, managing dysregulation and adapting classroom environments
- The training should take account of real, lived experience of neurodiversity: The FRT programme has been co-produced and co-delivered with Experts with Lived Experience (EWLE) of autism and/or ADHD. This brings an authentic perspective on how educational environments and adult responses affect children
- The programme should facilitate collaboration and learning between educators: Rather than relying on staff independently accessing resource, FRT’s facilitated sessions encourage professional dialogue, shared reflection and discussion about real classroom challenges
- SEND and inclusion training must provide teaching staff with a depth of understanding of SEND: The FRT programme explores masking, dysregulation, sensory processing, autism, ADHD, AuDHD and demand avoidance, helping staff to understand the reasons behind behaviour rather than simply responding to what they observe
- Training should bring a whole-school impact: The FRT programme’s ‘One Child in Mind’ approach encourages staff to consider individual needs and the adjustments required across the entire school environment, rather than focusing exclusively on individual interventions.
- SEND training needs to promote a significant shift away from a over-reliance on diagnostic labels: The FRT programme is explicitly needs-led. Teaching staff are encouraged to recognise barriers and make reasonable adjustments based on presenting needs, without waiting for a formal diagnosis
- The SEND training programme should be proven to be effective: FRT has ran a number of pilot sessions and has received positive feedback which provides an encouraging starting point for the Neurodiversity and Inclusive Practice in Education programme. The RISE funded programme being rolled out across 34 schools in Newham and Redbridge also creates further opportunity to evaluate changes in staff knowledge, confidence and practice more systematically. Evaluating impact is a key part of the programme, with follow up support provided following the training session to see how action plans have been implemented and what meaningful changes the school has experienced.
Targeted training for schools which addresses ‘a very real need’
Perry Leeks, Project Director at FRT, says:
“We were so excited and privileged to collaborate with members of the neurodiverse community to develop a special programme for the education sector that specifically addresses a very real need, meets key criteria outlined in the Schools whitepaper, and helps teachers reflect on and enhance their practice and the support they offer.”
Daniel Mansfield, Training Hub Director at The Tapscott Learning Trust, added:
“One of the most powerful aspects of this programme is that it moves beyond awareness and focuses on meaningful change in practice.
“Throughout the pilot phase, we saw staff develop a deeper understanding of neurodiversity, reflect honestly on the barriers pupils face and identify practical adaptations that could be implemented immediately.
“The ‘One Child in Mind’ approach helps bring the learning to life, ensuring discussions remain rooted in the experiences of real children rather than abstract theory.
“What stood out most was the impact of learning directly from Experts with Lived Experience, which consistently challenged assumptions, increased empathy and inspired action. Schools left not only with greater confidence and understanding, but with tangible plans to improve inclusion, strengthen relationships and create learning environments where all children can thrive.”
Download our flyer to find out more about Neurodiversity and Inclusive Practice in Education.
For further information on other types of neurodiversity training, visit FRT’s webpage or download the brochure.
You can contact FRT via freephone 0800 310 2300, send an e-mail to info@firstresponsetraining.com or submit an online enquiry.