Report highlights key role ISA member schools play in SEND education

Independent schools play a crucial role in the provision of special needs education. A new report shows why.

Across the country, independent schools care for and educate tens of thousands of students with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). Many of these young people have multiple needs enabling them to have access to an Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP).

The ISA Specialist Provision Report highlights how important ISA member schools are to the functioning of the SEND system.

It shows:

• ISA schools support more than 11,000 students with EHCPs in specialist provision, alongside many thousands receiving support in both specialist and mainstream settings
• 73% of students in ISA specialist SEND schools are aged 12 or above, highlighting the pressure at secondary and post-16 stages
• Students in ISA specialist provision typically present with two or three overlapping needs, reinforcing that the SEND landscape is increasingly complex
• Case studies show attendance rebuilt from near zero to over 90%, alongside successful GCSEs, vocational qualifications and transitions into FE, work or university
• ISA specialist schools fund all staff, therapy, and infrastructure
• High-quality specialist provision helps prevent repeated placement breakdowns, exclusions and costly crisis interventions, reducing long-term system and societal costs, and preserving a child’s well-being and sense of belonging

The report shows that the contribution ISA schools make to SEND education has become essential as the demand for special needs places his risen dramatically in recent years. ISA schools have responded to this demand and helped to meet needs. ISA schools provide capacity at points of acute pressure on an already overstretched maintained provision.

The report highlights examples of ISA schools providing a fresh start for students who have experienced a fractured education history and whose needs have not been met in other settings. Many of these students have several complex needs for which ISA schools have the facility and expertise to meet.

ISA schools reinvest and innovate, adapting speedily to the rapidly changing and ever more demanding SEND landscape. They work with families, local authorities and other stakeholders to give the best options for the well-being of the vulnerable young people in their care.

The ISA Specialist Provision Report shows that ISA schools are a key part of special needs education and a key partner in improving it. It demonstrates that its schools are a strategic asset within the SEND system, providing capacity, expertise and innovation while delivering outcomes that enhance the life chances and prospects of their students.

The report shows that ISA schools are not a substitute for other areas of SEND education in the maintained sector, they are a necessary complement to it.

Jonathan Hetherington, Headteacher of More House School, Surrey, the largest specialist school in the UK and ISA Chair, said: “For thousands of young people, their independent special school is a lifeline, bridging the gap between missing out on education and flourishing. Such schools dismantle disadvantage and empower children with SEND.”
 

Please direct questions to Philip Reynolds, Head of Press
[email protected]