Researchers have identified a “shadow” group of pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), but without education, health and care plans (EHCPs), who need better support.
These pupils, who received six or more years of school support, had similarly low GCSE results in 2020 to those with an EHCP, the Education Policy Institute has found.
However, they lacked the statutory support and protection of an EHCP - legal statements that set out the need and support a child with SEND is entitled to.
Pupils without EHCPs can receive extra support in mainstream through a system called SEN support.
However, the researchers say their findings suggest that the “shadow EHCP” pupils are likely to need better provision, particularly during secondary school.
They warn that their analysis calls into question “the current practice of removing some pupils with longstanding school support from the SEND register on transition to secondary school”.
The EPI has also called on policymakers to make a public commitment not to artificially limit or set targets to reduce the number or proportion of pupils who receive the statutory protection of an EHCP.
This comes after it was reported that the DfE had signed a contract with a firm working on a project to help councils manage SEND budgets, which included a target of at least a 20 per cent reduction in new EHCPs.
Covid effect on attainment of pupils with additional needs
Today’s findings have been published today in a new analysis of GCSE English and maths attainment of pupils with additional needs during the Covid pandemic.
The research looked at those with SEND and also pupils who speak English as an additional language (EAL). It also analysed outcomes in these groups by ethnicity.
The analysis was based on 2020 GCSE grades - the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic, which resulted in the use of centre-assessed grades after exams were cancelled.
Jo Hutchinson, director for social mobility and vulnerable learners at EPI, said: “We discovered a shadow EHCP group who had received school support for many years but did not have the protection of a statutory EHCP, despite going on to achieve similarly low GCSE grades to those of pupils with EHCPs. This indicates that some pupils with severe needs are not accessing the right level of support.”
The EPI found that attainment was much more similar across ethnic groups for pupils with SEND than for all pupils.
It also said for pupils with EHCPs, higher ratios of teaching assistants and SEN units were associated with better attainment.
However, the EPI also found that the benefits of additional provision were not uniform across ethnicities. For example, Black Caribbean pupils with EHCPs benefited more than similar Black African pupils from the provision of a SEN unit.
The EPI report also said that attainment for pupils who speak English as an additional language is varied, with those who arrived in school in England before Year 7 achieving good attainment.
But for Gypsy Roma, Traveller Irish and Black Caribbean and White and Caribbean pupils, late arrival in Years 10 or 11 resulted in attainment in the bottom quarter nationally.
