The government’s schools white paper presents one of the most significant reforms to England’s education and special educational needs and disabilities systems in a generation.
It signals a shift from a system heavily reliant on statutory plans, towards one centred on school-led support.
The proposed introduction of individual support plans (ISPs) for all pupils with SEND places a legal duty on schools to assess need, plan provision and monitor progress.
This change reflects a longstanding policy ambition: supporting pupils earlier and more consistently without requiring a formal diagnosis or an education, health and care plan (EHCP).
Evidence suggests that early, classroom-based support can improve outcomes when teachers feel confident in adapting teaching and responding to diverse needs. However, the success of this approach depends heavily on workforce capacity.
1. SEND as a universal teaching responsibility
The white paper reinforces the expectation that SEND expertise should sit within mainstream classrooms rather than primarily with specialists.
Expanded training in initial teacher education and ongoing professional development could strengthen inclusive practice and reduce reliance on statutory processes. If delivered at scale and with quality, this shift has real potential. But there are risks.
Additional planning, coordination and monitoring responsibilities could increase workload at school-level even as system-level bureaucracy is reduced.
Meaningful change depends on whether schools are given the time, specialist input and staffing needed to meet these expectations.
Recent research also reveals that pupils with SEND are unevenly distributed across mainstream schools.
Among schools with the highest rates of pupils with EHCPs, some primary schools educate six times as many pupils with EHCPs than those with the lowest rates, creating highly variable workforce pressures.
In secondary schools, the difference is around fivefold. This unevenness means the reforms may not be felt equally.
2. A changing role for SENCOs
The reforms imply a significant evolution in the role of special educational needs coordinators (SENCOs).
Rather than primarily coordinating statutory processes, SENCOs may increasingly act as:
- leaders of whole-school inclusion
- professional development leads for SEND
- coordinators of multi-agency working
- advisers to senior leadership teams on curriculum and behaviour policy
This elevation of the role could strengthen inclusion if SENCOs are given sufficient authority and protected leadership time.
Without these conditions, however, the reforms may intensify workload pressures.
Indeed, research highlights the high workloads, limited time for strategic activity and a sense of professional isolation among SENCOs.
Transition arrangements may add further pressure on time-stretched SENCOs. As EHCPs are reviewed at key phase transitions, SENCOs, particularly in secondary schools, will need to contribute evidence, coordinate support and engage closely with families.
These pressures are likely to be compounded by the need to support parents through system changes. Managing expectations, explaining new processes and responding to heightened anxieties may add further complexity to SENCOs’ workloads.
3. The growing importance of trust-level SEND leadership
Although the white paper frames change through schools and local authorities, and there are examples of best practice across the sector, the reality is that SEND systems are increasingly shaped by multi‑academy trusts (MATs).
As ISPs and inclusion bases become core parts of the system, trust-level leadership may be critical in managing workforce pressures.
MATs can pool specialist expertise, offer structured professional development and surface data on need and capacity across schools, functions many individual schools may struggle to deliver alone.
The white paper also reiterates the government’s ambition for every school to join a trust. Clarifying how MATs will support implementation, and how their responsibilities align with those of local authorities, will be essential.
4. Implementation will determine impact
The reforms offer real potential: strengthening early intervention, improving consistency and embedding SEND within everyday teaching.
But successful reform depends not only on policy design. It hinges on the readiness and capacity of the workforce tasked with delivering it.
Policymakers need to consider not just what SEND reform looks like on paper, but whether schools, and SENCOs in particular, have the ongoing support required to bring it to life.
