Buckinghamshire's special education programme leads to 'inconsistent experiences' says Ofsted

The report covers inspections completed by the education watchdog in November of last year. It looked into the Special Education Needs and Disability (SEND) services in the county which are provided by Bucks Council and the Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West Integrated Care Board (BOB ICB).

After three weeks of reporting Ofsted concluded that local area partnership must work jointly to make improvements to its services.

Ofsted found that children with SEND and their families can experience extended delays when asking for support to identify their needs. The report says: “This means they do not always receive the right support at the right time, including timely, suitable school places as well as prompt diagnosis and treatment.”

The report was also critical of the care plans that are handed over to families. It continues: “Education, health and care (EHC) plans are not always easy to read and lack the detail needed to understand a child or young person’s needs.”

However, Ofsted says improvements are being made and more recent EHCs were of a higher standard.

In the report, which can be read online here, inspectors were impressed by the professionals working within the SEND sector. “Most disabled children who attend specialist education settings receive effective support from dedicated practitioners,” the report states.

Ofsted found that families are advised on specialist disability activities that might be available but often “families struggle to find activities which are local to them”.

Another positive was improvements made in the way the partnership prepares young people with SEND for higher education, however, in some cases these plans are delivered too late, Ofsted says.

A spokesperson for Bucks Council said: “We know that many families in Buckinghamshire continue to face significant pressures navigating the SEND system, and we remain fully committed to improving services and outcomes so children and young people get the support they need to thrive.”

The council also highlighted a number of areas where ‘meaningful progress’ has been made since the last Ofsted report in 2022. Bucks Council was pleased with the improvements recorded in EHCs, its early identification service, and the transformation of its therapy service among others.

Councillor Carl Jackson said: “We welcome Ofsted's clear and constructive insights on the SEND services we provide to children and young people across the county. The inspection acknowledges the genuine progress being made across the partnership and confirms our existing SEND Improvement Programme has the right priorities and is heading in the right direction.

“However, we know there is more work to do to improve the quality and consistency of the service we provide to children, young people and their families in Buckinghamshire. Every child in Buckinghamshire deserves access to the support and services they need to thrive, and we are determined to make that happen.

“As with most local authorities across the country, Buckinghamshire Council's SEND services face growing demand. With the government having repeatedly missed its own deadlines to introduce promised SEND reforms, Buckinghamshire Council has stepped up and invested an extra £3m to cut waiting times for EHCPs."