A new Ofsted report has revealed that the COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to pre-existing issues within care services for children and young people with special educational needs and/or disabilities.
Citing findings from visits completed by Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission over the past academic year, the report argued that the resulting disruption from the pandemic had compounded concerns about the health, learning and development of children with SEND.
Ofsted found that many families were exhausted by the burden, while children had struggled in the absence of services such as physiotherapy and speech and language support.
"Many local area leaders and practitioners have gone above and beyond to support children and young people with SEND and their families during this challenging time," said chief Ofsted inspector Amanda Spielman.
"However, our report shows that children and young people were not always getting the education and care they needed, even before the pandemic.
"As the damaging effects of the pandemic on children and young people with SEND become clear, so too does the need to ensure that we are all playing our role in supporting them. We will work closely with CQC to develop a new framework to support improvement in the way education, health and care services work together to get the best possible outcomes for children."
West Kirby Residential School and College is a non-maintained school for children with SEND in Merseyside, rated "outstanding" during its most recent Ofsted inspection.
With around 85 students currently on-roll, headteacher Sian Thomas has worked to balance the web of support services that had been in place prior to her arrival in 2019.
Through this process, Thomas feels she has been able to allow students to maximise both their personal development and academic success, despite the challenges thrown up by the pandemic.
"We continue to be ambitious for our pupils," she wrote in her contribution to The Parliamentary Review.
"We have employed a food technology teacher who is introducing a bakery as an enterprise initiative. We have a working party which is creating a three-year STEM action plan. This team are making an application for a grant to buy equipment and remodel areas of school. We are building links with industries.
"Now, seven months along, we are slightly stalled due to the pandemic, but our staff continue to plan and create opportunities for growth. Our children are learning online and we are ready to expand our curriculum delivery."
