Heledd Fychan describes parents’ struggle for SEN provision in Wales.
Despite reforms to the system via the Additional Learning Needs and Education Tribunal Act of 2021, a recent survey I undertook of families in my region revealed harrowing evidence which showed that far too many children continue to be let down by a system that doesn’t support their needs.
This often leaves them traumatised, and also impacts their wider families. Parents have openly shared with me how their own mental health has suffered; how the stress has led to the break-up of marriages and relationships; and further, how they’ve had to take a financial hit as they are forced to give up work to home educate and care for their children full time because no suitable educational setting can be found. When it comes to support through the medium of Welsh, this is also ad-hoc with some families having to change the language of the home to English rather than Welsh because support isn’t available in their native language.
The Labour Welsh Government until recently didn’t seem willing to accept that there was an issue. However, the newly appointed Cabinet Secretary for Education, Lynne Neagle, seems at last to be making some of the right noises and has committed to listening to families. What we need now to go hand in hand with this is action.
Plaid Cymru’s policy position on this is clear—all children deserve the best start in life, and should have access to an education system that supports them to achieve the best for them as individuals. And every child should have the opportunity to access that education and support in their language of choice. The question of course is how do we achieve this.
First of all, schools must receive the funding required to deliver on the ALN reforms as well as the new curriculum in Wales. The current provision is undoubtedly understaffed and underfunded, with the situation only expected to get worse as schools strive to make savings. Investing more in the provision will lead to savings elsewhere, leading to less pressure on medical services, better educational outcomes and employment opportunities for these children in the future as well as supporting parents to be able to stay in employment.
Secondly, teachers and support staff need to receive training and be equipped with the skills and resources to provide for the needs of children with additional learning needs and disabilities. While this is the case in specialist provision, the same is not true consistently when it comes to mainstream education with many schools currently unable to create an environment that supports the development of all children. This means training for the current workforce, but also introducing mandatory training as part of teacher training courses. Staff need to be given time to undertake professional development, without adding to their workload. Wages, especially for support staff, also need to be increased to reflect the skills required to undertake the role.
Thirdly, there needs to be better communication and joint up working between education and medical teams who are supporting children with additional learning needs or disabilities. Where a child centred approach is taken, and therefore this happens, the outcomes speak for themselves but again, this is ad-hoc meaning that parents have to continuously fight for the child to receive the support they require. Long waiting lists for support or even diagnosis can also mean that children miss school, meaning that they fall behind their peers and also miss out on the socialisation of being with their friends.
Parents and teachers have many more suggestions about how we can make improvements too, and it’s clear that they must be included in the discussions to make sure the reforms work for every child. The following quote shared with me by the parent of a child with ALN will I’m sure resonate with many readers: “I am now burnt out trying to fight the system…..Nobody listens to you……..it is one long, draining, exhausting, soul destroying fight and battle just trying to get your child the educational provision they need and deserve”.
It shouldn’t be a fight. The Welsh Government must get this right, so that every child is given the same opportunity and support, no matter where they live in Wales.
Heledd Fychan
Heledd Fychan is Member of the Senedd for South Wales Central, and Plaid Cymru's spokesperson on Education.