The majority of children and young people (CYP) with a Special Educational Need or Disability (SEND) will be able to have their educational needs met at one of ßÙßÇÂþ»'s mainstream schools or colleges with additional support. The support provided is different or additional to that normally available to pupils of the same age and is designed to help CYP to access the National Curriculum.
For children under two years old it is educational provision of any kind.
A minority of children and young people who have an Education Health and Care (EHC) plan may find mainstream education is not considered suitable to meet their needs and require a more specialist type of placement such as:
- specialist centres at mainstream schools
- maintained specialist schools
- non-maintained specialist schools
- independent specialist schools approved under Section 41 of the Children and Families Act
- alternative learning provision.
Types of specialist schools
You can find out more about the different types of specialists schools as follows:
- Our Directory of ßÙßÇÂþ» schools has details of maintained schools, specialist centres at mainstream schools and maintained specialist schools.
- School admissions guidance for children with an Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan
- Primary schools for children with special educational needs and disabilities
- Secondary schools for children with special educational needs and disabilities
- .
- Details of all specialist schools in England are available on the
- The explains how parents can ask for one of these specialist schools or special post-16 institutions to be named in their child’s Education, Health and Care plan.
Specialist centres support CYP with Special Educational Need or Disability (SEND) who would benefit from being in a mainstream school setting, but who need extra support through personalised teaching and learning in smaller groups.
Some specialist centres may also specialise in supporting pupils who have:
- physical and sensory needs
- learning difficulties, with or without additional needs such as autism or speech and language needs
- communication and interaction difficulties.
Sometimes the EHC plan may show that a child or young person has such high needs for special arrangements throughout the school day, that they would be best supported in a specialist school that only caters for children with SEND.
ßÙßÇÂþ» has over 20 maintained specialist schools and academies. These schools have the best arrangements in place to meet the needs of these particular pupils and will detail their offer on their websites.
if a child or young person's needs cannot be met by any of these schools, it may be agreed that a non-maintained special school or independent provision is the best option.
If your child or young person's needs cannot be met by maintained specialist schools, it may be agreed that a non-maintained specialist school is the best option.
These schools are independent of local authority control, but are usually managed by charitable organisations and are not for profit
Non-maintained Specialist Schools (NMSS) are approved by the Secretary of State for Education and must:
- be non-profit making
- operate to a level at least equivalent to state maintained specialist schools
- be overseen by a governing body
- comply with the .
If your child or young person's needs cannot be met by maintained specialist schools, it may be agreed that an independent specialist school is the best option.
These schools are privately run and are typically funded by tuition fees charged to parents or guardians. They are not overseen or maintained by local authorities or the government.
Independent specialist schools provide specialist support to children with special educational needs. The Secretary of State publishes a .
Alternative education provision
Each Local Authority has a statutory duty to provide suitable education for children of compulsory school age who cannot attend school, in line with from the Department of Education. In ßÙßÇÂþ», this is provided through the following below.
You may also find it helpful to refer to our Alternative Curriculum Pathways and Reintegration Support policy (PDF) or the Alternative Provision (AP): Alternative Curriculum Pathways and Reintegration Support web page.
Access to Education (A2E) is a short-term teaching service for children in ßÙßÇÂþ» who cannot attend school for a period of time due to exceptional circumstances (see referral criteria below).
A2E helps student stay engaged in learning while they are out of school. The service offers:
- Teaching in core subjects like English, maths, and science
- Mentoring and emotional support to help students manage their situation.
- Access to online learning tools and resources
- A personalised support plan that sets out what the students’ needs and how they will be supported.
- Regular reviews with families and schools to plan the next steps.
This interim support is available for up to two terms but may be extended in exceptional circumstances.
Referral
The A2E service will consider referrals for children who:
- Have recently move into ßÙßÇÂþ» with an EHCP and without an agreed school place.
- Are not currently on a school roll and have been unable to be placed on a school roll within 20 days after having come to the attention of the Council (missing education).
- Have been permanently excluded and have an EHCP naming a specialist provision.
- Due to illness or other reasons are unable to attend school.
Referrals should include relevant background information and evidence of need. Each student will receive a personalised support plan, developed and reviewed in partnership with families and education settings.
Pupil Referral Units are educational settings specifically providing education for children who are excluded, sick, or otherwise unable to attend a mainstream or special maintained school.
Further details of Pupil Referral Units can be found on the Alternative Provision (AP): Alternative Curriculum Pathways and Reintegration Support.
(SOS) provides live lessons and online learning experiences, delivered by qualified teachers supporting pupils who:
- have been permanently excluded or who are at risk of permanent exclusion.
- due to illness or other reasons are unable to attend school.
- are looked after children not on roll of a school and awaiting a school place offer.
The aim of SOS is to provide continuity of education and support pupils to re-engage with learning. Education provision starts at Key Stage 1 through to subjects offered at GCSE and A Level. All pupils accessing SOS must remain on roll at their referring school. If pupils access remote learning outside of the school setting as part of a reduced timetable, they must be recorded as absent.
Referral
Students must be referred by their school or their council. Referrals can be made at any time of the year. Funding of SOS is the responsibility of the referrer.
Education otherwise than at school (EOTAS) are education arrangements that meet the needs of children or young people who, for whatever reason, are unable to attend any mainstream or specialist education setting. Find out more about: Education otherwise than at school.
Please note: EOTAS is different from elective home education (EHE). If you choose to home educate, parents are responsible for making their own arrangements for their child's or young person's educational provision, see the Home education page for more information.
Parents can choose to home educate their child or young person at any age, whether they have been enrolled at school previously or not.
If your child has an Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan, the right to home educate still applies.
Please see our Home education page for more information.