The latest figures reveal that the number of children receiving support for special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in England has reached a new record high.
Records show that, between January 2025 and January 2026, the number of children with an education, health and care plan (EHCP) rose sharply – by 12.5%. This is the highest annual increase since EHCPs were first introduced over a decade ago.
More than 700,000 children in England now have an EHCP in place. They are legal documents setting out the support that children are entitled to.
Building a new SEND system
The government has pledged to invest £4 billion to bring specialist support into mainstream schools and a spokesperson for the Department for Education (DfE) said the record number of EHCPs reflected “the scale of the challenge we inherited.”
They added:
“We’re building a system where every school can support every child to thrive, while ensuring those with the greatest needs get the specialist help they need.”
EHCPs are designed to ensure that children who require more support than mainstream schools ordinarily provide can receive the extra help they need.
The 2025 calendar year saw more than 110,000 new plans issued, covering children and young people up to the age of 25. However, less than half of plans were issued within the statutory timeframe of 20 weeks, a dip on previous figures.
In line with the increase in SEND support plans, the number of children and young people with EHCPs attending mainstream schools increased by 15% over the last year. In fact, nearly half of children with EHCPs in place now attend a mainstream school.
Focus on inclusion in mainstream education
The data follows plans by the government to reform SEND support in England. They want to focus on making mainstream schools more inclusive for children with SEND.
The changes will mean that, from 2030, fewer children will qualify for an EHCP and, instead, all children with SEND will receive individual support plans (ISPs). EHCPs will be reserved for those children with the most complex needs.
This has been met with concern and criticism by families and campaign groups who worry that vulnerable children will lose their legal rights to support.
But the government insists that this will not be the case and that they are focused on ensuring that mainstream schools are more inclusive and better able to support children with SEND. They have released guidance on creating inclusion bases in schools.
Inclusion bases will be dedicated spaces within mainstream schools that provide targeted teaching and specialist support for children that need it. It is hoped that this will end inconsistent and patchy provision where children feel excluded from the wider school.
SEND support in schools a ‘postcode lottery’
Speaking to the BBC’s Today programme, Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said that every young person should be able to attend their local school and receive a “brilliant education,” but that, currently, the quality of SEND support was a “postcode lottery.”
Responding to the reforms, the Chief Executive of the Ambitious About Autism charity, Jolanta Lasota, said the school environment can “make or break” a child’s ability to attend school, learn and achieve in line with their full potential.
But she raised questions about whether ‘inclusion bases’ would address this, saying that the young people they had spoken to were “uncertain” about whether these would help them feel supported and included at school. Instead, there were fears that they could become another space in which children requiring SEND support are “separated, excluded and disengaged.”
The general secretary of the NASUWT teaching union, Matt Wrack, also criticised the government for issuing guidance to schools on inclusion before publishing the response to the SEND consultation.
He accused the government of “passing the buck to overstretched schools and overburdened teachers,” and said mainstream schools were being asked to adapt without a clear definition of what an inclusive school must provide.
The DfE acknowledged that the SEND system had been “stretched to breaking point” and said that its investment would help “train every teacher to better support children with SEND, and give schools the expertise and resources to meet needs earlier.”
Better teacher training to support pupils with SEND
One thing that could help ensure better understanding, support and appropriate provision for many children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities is tailored training on neurodiversity.
First Response 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 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.
Inspired by the nationally recognised Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on Learning Disability and Autism, which has trained millions of professionals across England, the programme combines lived experience, practical strategies, implementation support and impact evaluation to create meaningful and lasting change.
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
Moving beyond awareness to ‘meaningful change in practice’
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.