Highlights
- Ofsted report criticises rigid behaviour policies that don't accommodate SEND pupils' needs.
- Schools lack resources and trained staff to identify and support students effectively.
- Children missing education increased 19 per cent in 2024-25, with SEND pupils disproportionately affected.
Schools are using behaviour policies that are too inflexible for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities, leaving many children forced out of mainstream education, according to a damning Ofsted report.
The schools watchdog, in a joint report published with the Care Quality Commission on Wednesday, warns that too many children with SEND are leaving the education system because opportunities to identify their needs early were missed.
The report, Beyond the Classroom: experiences of pupils with SEND who are not in school, is based on six thematic visits conducted as part of Ofsted's area SEND inspection regime.
It calls on the Department for Education to establish clear expectations that all schools support children with SEND to remain in full-time education when in their best interests.
The findings reveal that secondary schools particularly fail to take flexible approaches to behaviour policies and curriculum expectations or implement reasonable adjustments adequately.
Behaviour models can be too punitive, with inconsistency in behaviour management and understanding of children's needs, according to survey responses from parents, carers and practitioners.
The report follows a Local Child Safeguarding Practice Review into Mossbourne Victoria Park Academy in East London, published on Tuesday, which strongly criticised behaviour approaches including shouting at students and rigid "zero-tolerance" rules applied to SEND children. That review stated its findings have "national implications".
SEND support gaps
Parents told inspectors they had no choice but to home educate because their children's needs weren't being met, while struggling to navigate "an overly complex SEND system".
However, school leaders reported lacking necessary resources, particularly staff with appropriate expertise to identify or meet children's needs effectively.
The report highlights particular gaps in understanding neurodevelopmental needs and the impact of trauma and poor mental health on learning and wellbeing, resulting in escalating needs, reduced attendance and pupils leaving school.
Ofsted also warned that delays accessing health services mean opportunities to understand children's needs earlier are missed.
The watchdog and CQC have called on NHS England and the DfE to ensure necessary resources and training are available to support schools in taking a "needs-led approach" to supporting children with SEND.
Children missing education entirely increased 19 per cent in 2024-25 compared with the previous year. Ofsted noted that CME data does not include a breakdown of children with SEND, but research from the children's commissioner found students with SEND were disproportionately likely to become CME. Ofsted chief inspector Sir Martyn Oliver described the sharp increase as "a scandal".
