Derbyshire MP welcomes £200 million landmark SEND training programme set to help teachers ‘support every child’
The nation wide programme is set to provide specialist training for teaching staff across the country.
The Department of Education has launched a new SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) training programme, set to allow teachers to better support their pupils.
The scheme, announced earlier on Friday, January 16, will provide specialised courses available to all teaching staff across the country.
Backed by £200 million, new courses are designed to help teachers adapt their teaching to meet a wide range of needs in the classroom, including visual impairments and speech and language needs.
The announcement has been welcomed by Louise Sandher-Jones, Labour MP for North East Derbyshire.
She said: “Working with the experts and the sector, we’re developing a training package that every teacher will take.
“I heard loud and clear from my local SEND roundtable, the current education system is not inclusive.
"I greatly welcome this news, but know that there is much more to be done.
"I look forward to hearing more about the Government's plan for SEND in the upcoming Schools White Paper.”
The programme comes after years of inconsistent SEND training across the country – and is a response to feedback from parents shared through the national conversation on SEND.
Underpinning the training will be a new expectation set out in the SEND Code of Practice, confirming that all staff in every nursery, school and college should receive training on SEND and inclusion – making sure that every teacher nationwide is reached.
Flexible online self-study sessions and live in-person lessons will be available for teachers, with sessions scheduled to start next year.
Speaking about the programme, Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson said: "Every child, wherever they live and whatever their needs, should have the opportunity to go to a local school where they can achieve and thrive.
“That’s why we’re equipping staff across every stage of education with more training on SEND and inclusion than ever before – helping to deliver our vision of a truly inclusive education system.
“This is a key part of our mission to reform the SEND system so that schools can take children from forgotten to included and give parents the confidence that the right support will be there at every stage of their child’s education.”
Today’s announcement builds on a £3 billion investment to deliver around 50,000 more inclusive spaces in mainstream schools, by matching these spaces with expert staff - and reflects extensive engagement with parents and teachers and experts over the last year and as part of the government’s national conversation on SEND.
This is on top of the £740 million already invested to create over 10,000 specialist places.