Services and Support for Visually Impaired Children

Dear constituent,

Thank you for contacting me about services and support for visually impaired children.

The past two years have been incredibly difficult for children with special educational needs and disability (SEND). We know the pandemic has disproportionately affected children with disabilities and had a detrimental effect on the well-being of their families.

In 2014, the system for supporting children with SEND was substantially changed under the Children and Families Act. I am concerned that reforms in this Act have created a postcode lottery of provision, and many children with SEND continue to be let down. I am aware that Guide Dogs’ recent report has raised similar concerns regarding services for visually impaired children, including inconsistent signposting for services and geographic inconsistencies in accessing support.

I know research by the Disabled Children’s Partnership found that at the height of the third lockdown, just 16% of children with Education and Healthcare Plans (EHCPs) were getting all the support set out in their plan. 21% of parents said that their children were not getting any support set out in their EHCPs. This is support to which they are legally entitled, and which too often represents a compromise below the level of support they actually need.

The Government has said that it recognises that improvement is needed so that the system works better for children and their families. However, I remain concerned that the Government’s catch-up package will not be enough to tackle the disproportionate impacts on children with SEND.

The backlog of assessments and health appointments must be cleared, and we need a catch-up plan to deliver targeted support for children with SEND in order to make up for months of lost development in communication, social skills and wellbeing.

I urge the Government to use the opportunity of its review to upgrade the resources that local authorities have to deliver support, and to listen directly to families about how services can be reshaped so that they operate in the best interests of our children and young people. While the Government continue to delay the publication of the long-awaited SEND review, families are suffering now.

Thank you once again for contacting me about this issue.

Yours Sincerely,

Peter Dowd MP