The previous Conservative government should hang its head in shame after it failed those pupils “most in need”, a shadow education minister has said.

Speaking at an event at his party’s conference, Conservative MP Gagan Mohindra accused the previous government of not doing enough for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) during its time in power.

Mr Mohindra, who served in the party’s whips’ office between September 2023 and July 2024, made the comments at a Conservative Party Conference fringe event on Sunday.

He added that he is frustrated that in some cases parents are “pushed from pillar to post” when trying to secure adequate provision for their children.

SEND support ‘is awful’

The MP for South West Hertfordshire said: “Hertfordshire [County Council] has invested into SEND provision, but actually it’s awful.

“I hold my hand up as a Conservative member of Parliament, saying my government didn’t do enough on this.

“Yes, we were fighting a global pandemic and a cost-of-living crisis and all the rest of it, but actually, the inability for politicians to step in when those most in need needed our support, I think is something we should hang our heads in shame and apologise for, and I’ll happily do that on stage today.”

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Mr Mohindra went on to tell the PA news agency: “I don’t think money is a wasted solution.

“I’ve got kids in my constituency who are having to travel quite far because there’s no local provision, and part of that actually is we need more SEND-focused schools.”

The MP added: “The impact on children should be the primary focus. Part of my frustration is that, in a minority of cases, they seem to be pushed from pillar to post.”

The previous government launched a SEND review under former education secretary Gavin Williamson in 2019.

The publication of the findings from the review was delayed because of the Covid pandemic. In 2022 the previous government produced a SEND Green Paper setting out policy proposals based on the review’s findings.

This included plans to simplify the education, health and care plan (EHCP) process by standardising and digitising it.

In March 2023 the previous Conservative government launched a SEND and Alternative Provision Improvement Plan, which was designed to test and implement proposals from the Green Paper.