One crucial way that we're failing SEND students
And my proposal to a solution
Welcome to How to be a Teacher. Here, I share what I learn from the experts closest to me who, between them, share more than 70 years of experience in the education world with me. I think it’s only fair that you benefit from that as well.
This week, though, it’s YOUR help I need. I’ve identified a glaring gap in the way we support our most vulnerable students, which I’ve illustrated in the story below, and I want your thoughts on this. Whatever they may be.
Enjoy - and remember to get involved at the end.
Equity everywhere is worth fighting for - John Fetterman
Justice that is not rooted in equity, in social welfare, and in community is not justice at all - DeRay Mckesson
You’ve probably seen this illustration before and understand what it represents.
Equality means giving everyone the same thing; equity is about giving people what they need to achieve similar outcomes (which is possible, as long as they’re invested and willing to take the support they’re given).
Last year, I taught a student I’ll remember for as long as I live. Someone who has taught me a lot about equity.
They arrived to the school I work at in Year 3 (aged 7) and their experience of education to that point had not been what they deserved:
their reading level was towards the lower end of phonics
their maths skills were non-existent
their writing skills were, similarly, non-existent
their social skills were self-destructive and
their time in school had been defined by a total lack of academic integration with peers and one traumatic attempt to break from their routines after another.
I then taught them when they were in Year 4 the following year and again when they reached Year 6. This was their final year of primary school.
The obstacles they’d faced stemmed from a diagnosis for autism and a number of challenging classroom behaviours - reluctance, disrespect, academic deficiency, lack of social skills.
The support they’d received in previous school settings, likewise, held them back. In a big way.
But, after three years with the school I’m in, they progressed. By the end of Year 6, they were a quick reader, they had a basic grasp of arithmetic, they had wonderful ideas for writing and spent large amounts of their time in the classroom with their peers, learning every subject on the curriculum. Best of all - their social skills absolutely sky-rocketed and they found themselves able to bond with a range of individuals and very much part of a highly popular group.
Throughout all of this, they also demonstrated a remarkable talent for art. A proper gift that could take them very far.
In fact, I’ve written about this individual - and both their challenges and their artistic proclivities - before. You can find that piece by clicking here.
The next stage
As Year 6 came to an end, I went to (yes, I’m saying it) exceptional lengths to ease their transition to secondary school. I had seen the challenges they brought with them from a previous setting and knew that this wouldn’t be an easy process for them.
What did I do?
I used my valuable PPA (planning, preparation and assessment) time to visit their new secondary school to get to know the school on their behalf.
I learned what their timetable and support network would be like so that I could replicate them in their primary setting and help them get used to the upcoming expectations.
I even focussed their learning on the skills recommended to us by the secondary school - telling the time, reading fluency, calculating money.
All this to help them settle better in secondary school.
Why?
Many children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), like this student, have a tough time in secondary school.
Attendance has been on a downward trajectory for children with education, health and care plans (EHCPs) since the COVID pandemic [1]. While non-SEND students’ attendances are steadily improving, those with EHCPs are absent 33% more often than before the pandemic - and they were already more likely to be absent than non-SEND students then anyway.
This will come as no surprise to anyone in education but better attendance means better educational outcomes [2].
So, as you can see, just by not attending, SEND students are losing out in their academic outcomes.
I did not want this to be the case with my student.
I did not want secondary school to be the place where all their progress fell apart.
Equity everywhere is worth fighting for - John Fetterman.
That’s why I used my very valuable time to single out this need and do something about it.
And I felt good about that.
Then this year happened.
The feedback loop
Since the beginning of the year, I have spent a lot of time wondering whether my efforts had any impact. Even more on whether there was anything I missed.
Was the student socially prepared? Academically capable enough to succeed? Able to pursue their favourite subject, art, enough? Supported in the way they were with us?
In short - have I done my job?
The thing is, despite our attempts to contact the secondary school for feedback, we have heard nothing.
So I sadly have no answers - none at all - to the questions above.
This has got me thinking…
How do we primary teachers know that what we’re doing is enough?
How do we know we’re setting up our most vulnerable individuals for the best chances of academic success?
How do we know they’ve got the future they deserve?
The answer
Fortunately, I think there’s a way to solve this.
It’s something that I don’t see in many of the conversations I’ve had recently.
It’s something that does not exist within my local authority.
And that is…
A dedicated transition coordinator.
Someone who oversees the transition of as many SEND and EHCP students from primary school to secondary school as possible
Someone who maintains contact with them well into their latter secondary school years if necessary.
Someone responsible to maintaining a feedback loop whereby secondary schools let primary schools in on how effective their efforts and - more importantly - where more work needs to be done.
Justice that is not rooted in equity, in social welfare, and in community is not justice at all - DeRay Mckesson
This additional support for SEND students represents a real-world form of equity; a leg-up for those feeling downtrodden by their education experiences, for those who find school a constant battle to survive, for those who simply do not have the opportunities others get in life because their school days held them back.
My plea - I need your help
I believe there is a valuable piece of research waiting to be conducted here. An opportunity for someone to take on this role - at least part of it - and measure the outcomes for students who are supported in their transition vs those who are not.
I believe there is an opportunity to make a tangible, impactful, direct difference in the lives of those who need it the most.
But what I need is your thoughts.
Do your schools have a full feedback loop between primary and secondary to inform primary schools of the impact of their efforts?
Does your local authority have someone responsible for overseeing these transitions for SEND students?
If so, when do they cease their involvement in the students school journey?
Please, please do comment below with your thoughts - I am very interested in pursuing this as a research project, but I first need to establish whether this is indeed the case elsewhere.
My initial discussions tell me that is is the case everywhere - but I need to be certain.
Comment any thoughts you have below. I will be beyond grateful for every single one.
The Growing School Absence Gap for Vulnerable Children. SSS Learning, 2024: https://ssslearning.co.uk/safeguarding-articles/absence-gap?srsltid=AfmBOoojmS2ex0tnEbESNk6QwxZ0JtuiOcKSEsHLL8tovbmh06h-EZwE
The link between attendance and attainment in an assessment year. Department for Education, 2024. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/67c96d7dd0fba2f1334cf2ed/The_link_between_attendance_and_attainment_in_an_assessment_year_-_March_2025.pdf
In my opinion, this is definitely a role that's needed! My LA doesn't have this but the Area Inclusion Partnership does. This is a paid service from a select cluster of schools and doesn't focus on SEND pupils, so there are loads of SEND pupils not getting this level of support.
To have one (or several) person employed by the LA to specifically support SEND learners from Y6 to Y7, just makes sense to me. I'd imagine you'd seen attendance improve dramatically after the first year.
As a year 6 teacher for many years, I feel there was often good transition in terms of preparation: including meetings with receiving school to discuss individual pupils, sharing of support plans; additional visits to the high school prior to the official transition days. However, you are right that what was missing was often any indication of whether this was successful. They left us and, apart from what might be heard indirectly from siblings, parents or the occasional student that pops back to see their old school, that was it. I am also aware of many SEND pupils who were able to cope, access school and make progress in primary settings, but who struggled and often became persistent absentees or even excluded in the secondary environment.
In Norfolk, there is no specific role like you describe for co-ordinating transition for SEND pupils. For those who have additional services involved, such as the Inclusion Team or Social Workers, there is someone responsible for checking appropriate support continues but it is not in place for all SEND. It often feels to me like pupils have to fail before they will get help, rather than anticipating potential difficulties and putting preventative strategies in place before this occurs.
I think there is also a wider question around the jump from primary to secondary and the lack of continuity in general. A few years back we had a wonderful project where secondary colleagues were invited to join in with year 6 teachers moderating writing. Sadly few came but those that did were shocked at the end of key stage 2 expectations. The more we talked, the more we realise that this applied to Maths and other subjects too. Comments like "we don't expect them to do any of this in year 7" and "we teach that all over again in year 10" stuck with me. I was working so hard to get the children where they 'needed to be' but none of it was being built on. We think we're doing a good job but without feedback from the next stage. how do we really know if it's the right things we are focussing on? Yes, I know some of this is linked to SATS and the pressure for results, but I still think more of a co-ordinated approach between primary and secondary could benefit both sides.