The consultation, opened on 19th June and closed on 14th August, attracted 1,351 responses with 59% of respondents being residents of Kent and 4% from outside Kent including Medway. Questionnaire submissions were received from 162 education professionals, 140 on behalf of special schools and 55 from local mainstream primary and secondary schools.
KCC asked for views on proposed changes to the designations and admissions guidance for certain special schools in Kent and a new model of school-to-school support in the county.
Kent now has the highest percentage of pupils aged between two and 18 years old in special schools in all the shire counties, with number of placements and the associated cost increasing significantly in the last five years. Spending on these provisions has nearly doubled since 2018/19. Special school provision has not been reviewed for 20 years.
KCC believes that mainstream schools and specialist resource provisions can meet the special educational needs of more pupils than they do at the moment. KCC will support special schools and local mainstream schools to be organised differently to enable that to be achieved.
If proposals are agreed, KCC will proceed to publish a statutory notice of proposed changes to the type of special educational needs for which some local authority special schools are organised, which will trigger further statutory procedures and public engagement. No final decision will be made until those procedures are completed and any representations submitted in response have been considered. Bourne Alliance Multi Academy Trust and Leigh Academies Trust will be asked to apply to the Secretary of State to respectively make changes to the type of needs provision at Aspire and Snowfields Academy.
Further work will now take place to reflect on the feedback received from the public consultation so KCC can address the concerns raised by those who responded, in particular those raised about the provision of children and young people who are neurodivergent working with NHS partners.
The consultation highlighted a lack of confidence among parents and carers of children and young people with autism regarding the SEND system. KCC will aim to work with children, young people and families in the future in relation to existing pathways.
A Special School Parent Advisory Group will be set up with parents and carers from each special school. The group will meet quarterly with KCC officers to give a direct, open and transparent feedback with the first meeting planned for early 2025.
More information about the planned changes is available by clicking here.
“Our proposed changes will aim to ensure schools provide improved and more consistent support for the county’s most vulnerable pupils...”
KCC’s Cabinet Member for Education and Skills, Rory Love, said: “Enabling children and young people to have access to a good education is one of the most important things we do.
“Our proposed changes will aim to ensure schools provide improved and more consistent support for the county’s most vulnerable pupils, helping each child to achieve their full potential.
“Our proposals will help ensure that, over time, there are sufficient special school places for local children and young people with severe and complex needs that are as close to where they live as possible. This means they will spend less time travelling to and from school, which is better for the children and better for families.
“The Special School Review goes hand-in-hand with other changes we are making so that all children and young people with SEND have access to appropriate education.”
If agreed, the proposals to change the types of SEN provision of some special schools in Kent will come into effect for admissions from September 2026 and only apply to children and young people seeking a special school placement from then.
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