Consultation outcome

A new approach to area SEND inspections: consultation document

Updated 29 November 2022

Applies to England

About Ofsted and the CQC

The Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills (Ofsted) inspects and regulates to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator and inspectorate of health and adult social care in England.

Purpose of the consultation

This consultation sets out the core proposals for our new approach to inspecting area SEND arrangements. Alongside this consultation, we have published a draft area SEND framework and handbook so that respondents can see the full details of what inspections under the new framework are likely to entail.

The consultation is of particular relevance to children and young people who have SEND and their parents and carers, and early years settings, schools, alternative provision settings, the further education sector, and other education, social care and health providers that offer services to these children and young people. It is also of particular interest to local authorities, clinical commissioning groups, and professionals and practitioners involved in the commissioning and delivery of services to children and young people with SEND.

Ofsted and the CQC have already tested aspects of the draft new framework through a series of joint pilot inspections. The outcomes of our pilot inspections and responses to this consultation will help us further develop, refine and finalise our new framework. We will also consider discussions with local area leaders and our continuing engagement with groups representing children and young people with SEND, their parents and carers, and the sector. The new framework will be introduced early in 2023.

Background

The Children and Families Act 2014 (the Act) was introduced in September 2014. It contained new legal duties regarding children and young people with SEND. Guidance on these legal duties is in the SEND code of practice. These legal duties place responsibilities on the local area partnership ^{[footnote 1]} to identify and meet the needs of children and young people aged 0 to 25 who have SEND. The local area partnership includes the local authority and health commissioners and providers, together with all of the area’s early years settings, schools and the post-16 further education sector.

In May 2016, at the request of the Secretary of State for Education, Ofsted and the CQC introduced a one-off programme of inspections to assess how well local areas were implementing the reforms introduced by the Act, and the extent to which they were meeting their responsibilities towards children and young people with SEND. We completed our programme of full inspections under that framework in April 2022.

The Department for Education (DfE), with the support of the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), has commissioned Ofsted and the CQC to develop a new area SEND inspection framework to operate from early 2023. There will be no accountability gap between inspection frameworks, as we will continue to carry out revisits under the current framework to areas issued with a written statement of action (WSoA) before March 2020 until the new framework is introduced.

How local area partnerships are meeting their statutory obligations will always remain important. However, we are proposing that the new framework puts more focus on the impact that a local area partnership is having on the lives of children and young people with SEND.

The changing landscape of the SEND system

The new framework is being introduced against the backdrop of wider system reform, which will take time to develop, implement and embed. However, given the widespread recognition that the SEND system is too often failing to deliver for children and young people, it would not be right to wait until those reforms are fully embedded to introduce a new framework. This view is shared by sector representatives and key stakeholders, who we have engaged with throughout the development of our proposals. Our aim is to promote improvement at a faster pace in the current system, while also helping the sector prepare for future reform.

The Health and Care Act 2022, which received royal assent in April 2022, provides for the establishment of integrated care systems across England.^{[footnote 2]} Integrated care systems are partnerships of NHS bodies and local authorities, working with other relevant local organisations, that come together to plan and deliver joined-up health and care services to improve the lives of people in their area. On 29 March 2022, the DfE published the SEND and alternative provision green paper. This paper, titled ‘SEND review: right support, right place, right time’, is out for consultation. The consultation will remain open until 22 July 2022. The green paper sets out proposals for reforming the SEND system in England. These include the establishment of a national SEND and alternative provision system, which would set nationally consistent standards for every stage of a child or young person’s journey across education, health and care.

We have sought to align the new framework with the direction set out in the green paper. This is so that it addresses the challenges facing the SEND system and supports local areas to begin to focus on those areas where we know the government intends to promote improvement through its reform agenda. For example, our inspections will focus on the impact that local area partnerships have on improving the experiences and outcomes of children and young people with SEND, mirroring the focus of the review.

Alternative provision was not part of the 2014 reforms. The green paper sets out the critical role that alternative provision will play in an integrated SEND system. We will increase our focus on alternative provision, in preparation for this important change.

However, proposals for system reform are still under consultation and will take time to implement. The framework is therefore designed to allow us to promote improvement in the SEND system as it is now. As the landscape changes and reforms are implemented, including in relation to the inspection of integrated care systems, Ofsted and the CQC will need to update the framework and handbook to reflect the new arrangements.

Our priorities for the new area SEND framework

The reforms introduced to the SEND system in 2014 had the right aspirations for an integrated system for those aged 0 to 25 spanning education, health and care that delivers great outcomes for children and young people. However, we know from our inspections that there are a number of recurring weaknesses across local areas. More than 50% of local areas have been required to produce a WSoA that addresses areas of significant concern. These include:

• flaws, inconsistencies and delays in the identification of children and young people’s needs
• not enough of a system-wide focus on providing high-quality universal education, health and care services
• a lack of clarity about who is responsible for what between organisations, resulting in fractures in the way that professionals in these services work together

Inspectors found that area arrangements for identifying, assessing and meeting children and young people’s education, health and care needs were frequently slow. For many families, it felt like a ‘battle’ as their concerns escalated. Too often, families were left feeling dissatisfied with their experience of area SEND arrangements because the quality of services and support failed to live up to what was set out in their children’s education, health and care (EHC) plans. The disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has further exacerbated these weaknesses and it has had a disproportionate impact on children and young people with SEND.

Our aim in introducing a new framework is to promote further improvement in the SEND system. We will do this by strengthening accountability and focusing on the features that we know make local area arrangements most effective in improving the lives of children and young people with SEND. This is so that they are well prepared for education, employment, independent living and participation in society, and to enable them to have as healthy a life as possible.

We propose to do this by:

• focusing not just on whether statutory obligations have been met but on the impact that a local area partnership’s SEND arrangements has on the experiences and outcomes of children and young people
• strengthening accountability and driving continuous improvement by introducing:
  • an ongoing cycle of inspections, which includes full inspections, monitoring visits and annual engagement meetings
  • 3 inspection outcomes, which provide clearer information about how an area is performing, what needs to improve and who is accountable
  • an expectation that all areas produce and publish a strategic plan for SEND, which is updated following inspection
• gathering more evidence directly from children and young people and their families, ensuring that their views and experiences are central to our inspections
• looking more closely at arrangements for children and young people in alternative provision
• including social care inspectors in our inspection teams, so that we can gain a more holistic view of the impact of SEND services in an area

We are consulting on 9 proposals based on these aims. We are also asking a tenth question about how to make surveys more accessible for children and young people.

Development of the new area SEND framework

We have listened carefully to the feedback provided by children, young people and their families, those working in education, health, care and local government and the many organisations that support children and young people with SEND. This feedback has informed our proposals for the new area SEND inspection framework.

Over the last 2 years, we have engaged extensively with representatives from the sector, including bodies representing children and young people with SEND and their parents and carers. This has included regular contact and discussion with:

• groups of children and young people with SEND
• groups representing children and young people with SEND
• groups representing parents and carers of children and young people with SEND
• local area leaders, including from the local authority, local health commissioners and designated SEND health officers
• professional associations, unions and other representative bodies from the education sector, including those representing educators of children and young people with SEND
• charities and other bodies representing people with disabilities and SEN
• bodies representing providers of education, health and social care services for children and young people with SEND
• other government departments and agencies
• researchers and academics

This engagement has enabled us to develop and refine our proposals. We have also tested aspects of our proposed methodology through discussions with local area partnerships, specific development activities and a range of pilot inspections.

Proposal 1: focusing more on impact

We propose that, from early 2023, inspections will focus more on the impact that the local area partnership is having on the lives of children and young people with SEND.

The current area SEND inspection framework, introduced in 2016, places a significant focus on assessing whether local areas are meeting their statutory responsibilities, which were introduced in the 2014 reforms, towards children and young people with SEND.

Eight years on from those reforms, we believe that we should now place more emphasis on how effective the local area partnership’s SEND arrangements are in improving the experiences and outcomes of children and young people with SEND. In other words, we want to focus more on the impact that SEND arrangements are having on the lives of children and young people with SEND.

Statutory responsibilities will continue to have an important role in the new framework, and inspectors will continue to take into account how they are being met. However, it will not be enough to simply meet statutory responsibilities.

The focus of the proposed new framework will be on whether local area partnerships’ SEND arrangements are improving the experiences and outcomes of children and young people with SEND. This will enable inspectors to report on what it is like to be a child or young person with SEND in any local area in England.

Proposal 2: criteria for evaluating impact

We propose to evaluate the impact of the local area partnership’s SEND arrangements on children and young people’s lives, based on a set of core criteria. We have developed a draft set of the core criteria through discussions with children and young people, parents and carers, and sector representatives.

We propose that inspectors assess the impact of the local area partnership’s SEND arrangements by evaluating the extent to which:

• children and young people’s needs are identified accurately and assessed in a timely and effective way
• children, young people and their families participate in decision-making about their individual plans and support
• children and young people receive the right help at the right time
• children and young people are well prepared for their next steps, and achieve strong outcomes
• children and young people with SEND are valued, visible and included in their communities

We believe that these criteria are fundamental when judging whether the local SEND system is having a positive impact on the lives of children and young people with SEND. We want to hear whether you agree or disagree, and whether you feel there are other considerations that inspectors also need to explore. Paragraph 32 of the draft area SEND inspection framework and handbook also includes criteria for evaluating how the local area partners work together to plan, evaluate and develop the SEND system.

Inspectors will explore these factors through inspection activities, including by scrutinising evidence provided by the local area partnership, talking directly to children and young people with SEND and their parents and carers, visiting settings that provide services for children and young people, carrying out case tracking and sampling exercises, and talking to professionals.

Proposal 3: inspection outcomes

We propose to make inspection reports clearer by introducing 3 distinct inspection outcomes.

Up until now, our area SEND inspection reports have highlighted inspectors’ main findings about the local SEND system, including aspects that work well and where improvements can be made. Inspection reports do not provide an overall outcome, though we require local areas to produce WSoAs when we identify significant concerns.

Under the new framework, we propose that our reports provide an overall inspection outcome and set out what this will mean in terms of the next priorities for the local area and future inspection activity. We believe that this approach will deliver clearer information to children and young people and their parents and carers, as well as to local leaders, professionals, and government departments and agencies.

Having an overall outcome will bring greater transparency by being clear about how a local area partnership is performing, what needs to improve and, through providing more precise recommendations in our reports (see also proposal 7), who is responsible for making the necessary improvements. It will also set out clearly what further inspection and other activities Ofsted and the CQC will be carrying out as a result of the initial inspection outcome.

The 3 proposed inspection outcomes are set out below.

• The local area partnership’s SEND arrangements typically lead to positive experiences and outcomes for children and young people.
• The next area SEND inspection will be within approximately 5 years.
• Ofsted and the CQC ask that the local area partnership updates and publishes its strategic planning based on the recommendations set out in this report.

• The local area partnership’s SEND arrangements lead to inconsistent experiences and outcomes for children and young people; the local area partners must work jointly to make improvements.
• The next area SEND inspection will be within approximately 3 years.
• Ofsted and the CQC ask that the local area partnership updates and publishes its strategic planning based on the recommendations set out in this report.

• There are widespread and/or systemic failings leading to significant concerns about the experiences and outcomes of children and young people with SEND, which the local area partnership must address urgently.
• A monitoring inspection will be carried out within approximately 18 months; the next full inspection will be within approximately 3 years.
• His Majesty’s Chief Inspector requires the local area partnership to prepare and submit a priority action plan (area SEND) to address the identified areas for priority action.^{[footnote 3]}

Ofsted and the CQC believe that the outcomes set out above represent a proportionate approach to inspection, for example by enabling earlier re-inspection and/or monitoring inspections depending on the initial inspection outcome. These arrangements, complemented by inviting all local area partnerships to annual engagement meetings (see also proposal 8), allow us to use our resources where they are most needed and are likely to have most impact.

Joint area SEND inspections by Ofsted and the CQC are part of a larger accountability framework, which includes the DfE, the DHSC and NHS England. Following an inspection of a local area partnership, the DfE, DHSC and NHS England will consider whether the local area would benefit from additional support and challenge, or specific interventions designed to address weaknesses.

The 3 distinct inspection outcomes and our more regular inspection activities (and resulting reports) will help the DfE, DHSC and NHS England to better understand what local areas are doing well and where specific improvement is needed, in order to tailor their support and/or interventions accordingly.

Proposal 4: making recommendations in reports

When reporting on an area SEND inspection, we will make clear recommendations on which weaknesses or systemic issues the local area partnership needs to address.

Up until now, our inspection reports have highlighted inspectors’ main findings and aspects of the SEND system that worked well and those that could be improved. In line with our aim to focus more on the impact that the local area partnership’s SEND arrangements are having on the experiences of children and young people with SEND, we propose to change the way we report when we carry out area SEND inspections.

We want to introduce clear and succinct recommendations on which weaknesses the local area partnership should address to improve the lives and experiences of children and young people with SEND and their families.

Where relevant, we will indicate which services, or parts of services, will be primarily responsible for taking forward specific recommendations. In turn, we will ask the local area partnership to update and publish its strategic plans in light of these recommendations. In addition, we will require local area partnerships where we identify widespread and/or systemic concerns to submit a priority action plan (area SEND). This plan must set out how the local area partnership will address the areas for priority action. The local area partnership will submit the plan to Ofsted and the CQC, and will also publish it.

Proposal 5: updating and publishing strategic plans following an inspection

We propose that all local area partnerships should update and publish their strategic plan for SEND following an inspection. Updates should set out how the local area partnership will make any improvements identified in the inspection report.

We believe that this approach will support ongoing improvement and help parents, carers and other stakeholders to understand the local area partnership’s plans for developing the SEND system.

In addition, as described in proposal 3, we will require local area partnerships whose inspection leads to outcome 3 to submit a priority action plan (area SEND) to Ofsted and the CQC. This must set out how they intend to address the areas for priority action and must be published.

We believe that this approach will support ongoing improvement and help parents, carers and other stakeholders to understand the local area partnership’s plans for developing the SEND system.

Proposal 6: gathering more evidence directly from children and young people, and their families

We want to ensure that the views and experiences of children and young people have a central role in our inspection practice.

Our inspections have always taken account of the views of children and young people and their parents and carers, for example through meetings and discussions with groups while inspectors have been on site. The changes we are proposing will provide more opportunities to engage with children and young people directly and enable us to gather a wider range of evidence about their experiences.

The views and experiences of children and young people with SEND will be the starting point of inspections under the new framework. As part of the inspection, before the on-site evidence-gathering activities, inspectors will have in-depth discussions with children and young people, and parents and carers, about their experiences and outcomes. We will also gather evidence about children and young people’s experiences through:

• tracking meetings
• surveys
• sampling visits

The direct evidence about children and young people’s experiences will be triangulated with evidence gathered through a range of on-site inspection activities. This will enable inspectors to evaluate what aspects of the local area partnership’s arrangements have led to specific experiences and outcomes for children and young people.

Tracking meetings

Soon after the initial notification of the inspection, inspectors will select a sample of children and young people to track. Inspectors will take into account their lines of enquiry, the demographic make-up of the local area, including protected characteristics defined by the Equality Act 2010, and any contextual issues specific to the local area. They will choose children and young people with a range of needs, who access a range of services, and who are at different stages in their involvement with health and social care services. Inspectors will usually include at least one child or young person who is studying in alternative provision, and at least 2 children who are receiving SEN support.

Inspectors will hold meetings with the children and young people selected, together with their parents, to talk about their experiences. Inspectors will also hold multi-agency meetings with the practitioners who are working with them. These in-depth discussions will help inspectors to get first-hand evidence of what it is like to be a child or young person with SEND in the local area.

Surveys

Although we already carry out a survey of parents and carers, we are now extending this to children and young people with SEND aged 11 to 25, and to practitioners who work with them.

During the week before the on-site inspection begins, the following surveys will be open:

• a survey of children and young people

• a survey of parents and carers

• a survey of SEND services practitioners

Inspectors will collect and analyse all this evidence and form initial hypotheses and lines of enquiry to be pursued through tailored inspection activities during the on-site inspection week.

Sampling visits

Before the inspectors arrive on site, they will have selected the local area providers and services (including alternative provision) where they will carry out sampling visits. During sampling visits, inspectors will examine records of individual children and young people, and discuss children and young people’s cases with practitioners. Sampling visits enable inspectors to follow up lines of enquiry and gather evidence about a wider range of children and young people’s experiences and outcomes.

Proposal 7: including alternative provision

Area SEND inspections will consider how local authorities use, commission and oversee alternative provision.

Under the new area SEND framework, we propose to place greater emphasis on the experiences of children and young people who attend alternative provision. More than 80% of children and young people who attend alternative provision are identified as having SEND.^{[footnote 4]}

At their best, alternative provision settings are experts in getting children back on track. They play an important role in supporting children who are dealing with multiple challenges, including behavioural, emotional and health needs. However, we are concerned that alternative provision may sometimes be used inappropriately to supplement the SEND system, for example as a temporary placement while children wait for an EHC plan assessment or a place in a special school. Some commissioning practices, such as placing children and young people in low-quality unregistered provision, can lead to children and young people missing out on the education they need.

We therefore want to increase our scrutiny of how local authorities use, commission and oversee alternative provision. This will also help prepare the sector for planned government reforms to create an integrated SEND and alternative provision system, requiring new local SEND partnerships to plan and deliver an alternative provision service based on early intervention. However, we will continue to inspect under the current legal provisions until any legislative changes come into force.

Inspectors will include children and young people with SEND who attend alternative provision as part of the tracking and sampling and other evidence-gathering activities that they carry out during inspection. They will gather evidence on the local authority’s strategy for alternative provision, including commissioning arrangements.

Proposal 8: introducing monitoring inspections

When an inspection finds widespread and/or systemic failings and the local area partnership is required to submit a plan to address the areas for priority action, we propose to carry out a monitoring inspection to assess progress at around 18 months.

When, following an inspection of a local area, His Majesty’s Chief Inspector has determined that the local area partnership needs to produce a plan to address the areas for priority action (see also proposal 5 above), Ofsted and the CQC will carry out a monitoring inspection. Monitoring inspections will usually be carried out around 18 months after the initial inspection.

The purpose of the monitoring inspection will be to assess the extent to which the local area has taken effective action, since the last inspection, to address the areas for priority action set out in the required plan.

We believe that carrying out a monitoring inspection within around 18 months of the initial inspection will provide:

• the local area partnership with an independent external evaluation of the progress it has made towards addressing the urgent priorities identified in the action plan
• the local area partnership with recommendations for further action, where necessary, thereby helping to improve the quality of services it delivers to children and young people with SEND and their families
• up-to-date information for children and young people and their families, as well as for government agencies, on whether the local area partnership is taking effective action to address the systemic weaknesses identified at the initial inspection

Monitoring inspections may also be carried out at the discretion of Ofsted and the CQC when concerns are identified.

Proposal 9: introducing engagement meetings

We propose inviting each local area partnership to engagement meetings, which will focus on the continual improvement of the local SEND system.

We believe that these events will support the improvement of local SEND systems and help keep a spotlight on SEND between inspections. Through these engagement meetings, Ofsted and the CQC will seek to:

• explore how the local area partnership understands the needs of children and young people in its area and the impact of its SEND arrangements and how it is working to improve the services it delivers to children and young people with SEND and their families
• identify any issues of concern
• remain up to date with any changes to the local SEND arrangements

Ofsted and the CQC will also want to explore how the local area partnership has ensured that strategic planning and decision-making are informed by the views and aspirations of children and young people and their families.

We propose that engagement meetings will be scheduled in conversation with the local area partnership, and will normally occur annually.

Request for views: making surveys for children and young people accessible

We want to improve the ways in which children and young people with SEND can contribute their views to the inspection process, including through an accessible survey of those aged 11 to 25.

The SEND code of practice makes it clear that children and young people must be fully involved in decisions about their support and what they want to achieve. This means that their voices and aspirations, and those of their families, must be at the centre of a local area partnership’s strategy for, and design of, the local SEND system.

Ofsted and the CQC consider that seeking the views of children and young people with SEND, and their families, is an essential part of the inspection process. This feedback is vital, because it helps Ofsted and the CQC to understand the impact that these local SEND arrangements have on the lives of children and young people with SEND and their families.

As part of our inspection practice, we ensure that we gather the views of children and young people and their parents and carers in a variety of ways, including meetings, discussions and visits to service providers that we carry out during the on-site inspection.

Under the proposed new framework, we will also carry out a survey of children and young people’s views about the services they receive. The survey will be open to those aged 11 to 25 and will be open for 1 week from the point of notification of inspection. The survey will be in clear and accessible language that is appropriate for the audience. We are developing this survey in collaboration with children and young people and their families.

We are very keen to improve how we engage with children and young people who have SEND by making the ways they can contribute their views as accessible as possible, particularly given the wide range of needs and disabilities that children and young people have.

To ensure that we reach as many children and young people with SEND as possible, we plan to provide:

• an online easy-read version

• voice recordings of the questions

• an easy-read Word version to be disseminated through the local area partnership before the on-site inspection week

Children and young people completing the survey may also be assisted to understand and respond to the survey by their parent or carer, or other adults who support them.

Consultation process

We welcome your responses to this consultation. The consultation opens on 13 June 2022 and closes on 11 September 2022.

The information you provide us with will help us shape the final versions of the area SEND inspection framework and handbook.

We will publish a response to the consultation in autumn 2022.

1. The terms ‘local area partnership’ and ‘local area’ refer to those responsible for the strategic planning, commissioning, management, delivery and evaluation of arrangements for children and young people with SEND. These include the local authority and clinical commissioning group or integrated care board, and other area partners as set out in the Children and Families Act 2014 and described in the SEND code of practice. ↩

2. In accordance with the Health and Social Care Act 2022, with effect from 1 July 2022, clinical commissioning groups will be abolished, and integrated care boards will be established in their place. Integrated care boards are a function of integrated care systems. They will be statutory NHS organisations responsible for developing a plan in collaboration with NHS trusts/foundation trusts and other system partners for meeting the health needs of the population, managing the NHS budget and arranging for the provision of health services in the defined area. ↩

3. In accordance with The Children Act 2004 (Joint Area Reviews) Regulations 2015. ↩

4. As highlighted in ‘SEND review: right support, right place, right time’, Department for Education and Department of Health and Social Care, March 2022. ↩