SEND in Hertfordshire: A System That Must Listen Better

Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) provision is one of the most urgent responsibilities in public life, and one of the most stretched.

Across the country, families are navigating a system that too often feels adversarial, opaque and under-resourced. In Hertfordshire, as in many counties, the pressure is growing. The stakes are high.

For years, I’ve heard it on doorsteps, at public meetings and in conversations with parents, carers and educators: the SEND system is not working as it should. That message only grew louder during the recent campaign. And now, as a newly elected County Councillor, I hear those voices not just with concern but with responsibility.

Support is too slow. Processes are too complex. Trust is wearing thin.

The National Picture: Promises and Pressure

The UK government has acknowledged the crisis. A Public Accounts Committee report earlier this year warned of a “lost generation” of pupils if urgent reform is not delivered. In response, the Department for Education has committed to a timeline of reforms, including:

• A new definition of inclusion and expectations for mainstream provision by December 2025

• A fully costed plan to improve the SEND system by April 2026

• A solution to council SEND deficits, which are projected to reach £8 billion by 2027

• Greater emphasis on early intervention, with teaching assistants and mainstream schools playing a central role

  
  

These are welcome signals. But families cannot wait for white papers. They need action now, and they need it to be shaped with them, not just for them.

The Local Picture: A Chance to Do Things Differently

Hertfordshire is home to passionate educators, committed officers and families doing everything they can to navigate the system. But navigating is not the goal. Support should be straightforward, timely and fair.

There is now cross-party recognition that things must improve. That starts with shifting the culture from reactive to responsive, from process-heavy to person-focused, from managing demand to meeting it with care.

Real improvement means looking not only at statutory targets but at daily experiences, where delays to Education, Health and Care (EHC) assessments and placement decisions become more than numbers. They become stress, missed opportunities and, sometimes, heartbreak.

An EHC plan is a legally binding document that sets out a child or young person’s special educational, health and social care needs, and the support required to meet them. It is meant to ensure that those with the most complex needs receive the right help, in the right way, at the right time.

This is a moment of risk. It is also a moment of possibility.

What We Need Now

If we are serious about inclusion, we need to do more than fix processes. We need to change culture. That means:

• Listening to families, not just during consultations, but throughout the design and delivery of services

• Investing in early support, so that needs are met before they escalate

• Making accountability visible, so that when things go wrong, people know where to turn

• Valuing the workforce, especially teaching assistants and SENCOs, who are often the first line of support

  
  

SEND is not a side issue. It is a test of whether our public services can hold complexity with care.

In Hertfordshire, we have the chance to lead. Not just by managing a system, but by rebuilding trust in it. That means thinking bigger, not only about how we respond to pressure but how we redesign public life to meet the people it serves with fairness, clarity and care.

Every child deserves to be seen, supported and believed in. Every family deserves a system that works with them, not against them. Every community deserves leadership that knows inclusion is not an add-on. It is the foundation.