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Education, SEND & Inclusion Cabinet Panel - Friday, 6 June 2025 2.00 pm
June 6, 2025 View on council website Watch video of meeting Watch video of meeting Read transcript (Professional subscription required)Summary
The Education, SEND & Inclusion Cabinet Panel met to discuss SEND and inclusion performance for the fourth quarter of 2024/25. Councillor Mark Watkin, Executive member for Education, SEND and Inclusion, welcomed new panel members and Dame Christine Lenahan, Independent Chair of the SEND Executive. The panel reviewed key performance indicators and discussed strategies for improvement, particularly around timeliness of assessments, quality of education, health and care plans (EHCPs), and support for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
SEND & Inclusion Performance: Quarter 4 2024/25
The panel reviewed the SEND & Inclusion Performance Quarter 4 2024/25 report which summarised key performance data related to SEND and inclusion.
David Butcher, Strategic Lead for Intelligence and Insight, presented the report, which covered:
- Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs), statutory assessment and review
- Tribunals, SEND graduated offer, early intervention and specialist provision
- Access, inclusion and participation
Butcher clarified that this report complemented other updates presented throughout the year, including progress against the SEND Priority Action and Improvement Plan.
Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs)
The number of children and young people in Hertfordshire with EHCPs stood at 13,365 at the end of March, a 7% increase from 2024. While Hertfordshire has one of the largest EHCP populations in the country, it is relatively low compared to its overall population.
Requests for statutory needs assessments continue to rise, with a 6% increase in the first three months of 2025. Around 72% of requests proceed to assessment. The number of new EHCPs issued in 2024 was higher than in any previous year since the SEND reforms1. However, the focus on completing overdue assessments has impacted timeliness, with only 36% of assessments completed within 20 weeks during the quarter. It is expected that timeliness will improve in the next quarter.
The quality of new EHCPs has improved, with 55% of audited plans rated as good or outstanding in the last quarter, compared to 19% in 2023/24. Parental satisfaction with the EHCP process has also increased, with 65% of parents surveyed expressing satisfaction, compared to 51% in the previous year.
The number of amended plans issued following annual reviews has more than doubled compared to the same period in 2024, and 44.5% of final plans were issued within 12 weeks of the annual review meeting.
Appeals and Tribunals
The proportion of families lodging appeals with the SEND tribunal is decreasing, with the overall appeal rate reducing from 4.7% in July 2024 to 3.8% in March 2025. In 2024, 609 appeals were lodged, a 6% increase from 2023. Hertfordshire's appeal rate remains higher than the statistical neighbour and national averages.
Specialist Provision
There was discussion of the number of children waiting for specialist provision for over a year. While numbers have reduced significantly over the last year, they increased during the quarter. There were 81 children on referral for specialist school placement for more than 12 months as of March 2025, a 57% reduction from September 2023. Since 2018, the number of specialist places has increased by 764 (33%), along with 255 Specialist Resource Provision places.
A new long-term SEND Sufficiency Strategy is under development.
ASK SALI and Valuing SEND
47% of contacts to ASK SALI2 related to children with EHCPs. 96% of Hertfordshire schools have been trained in the Valuing SEND approach, 66% have completed setting readiness assessments, and 58% have completed one or more child profiles.
Reduced Timetables
There were 1,187 children and young people registered with reduced timetables at the end of March 2025, with 515 of those pupils supported by an EHCP. This is a reduction from February 2024, attributed to increased focus on supporting reintegration and improved reporting by schools.
Children Missing Education (CME) and Elective Home Education (EHE)
The increased capacity across the Elective Home Education and Children Missing Education services has led to more robust monitoring and tracking. This has led in some cases to the reclassification of the educational status of a child, ensuring educational arrangements are quality assured.
Permanent Exclusions
The number of permanent exclusions notified in 2024/25 is lower than in the previous two academic years. Hertfordshire’s overall permanent exclusion rate remains low, although the rate of exclusion for EHCP pupils is higher than comparator rates.
Young People Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET)
At the end of March, 2.75% of young people aged 16-18 were NEET. This NEET rate remains positive compared to statistical neighbours and national figures.
Questions and Actions
- Paula Hiscocks asked about support for children waiting for specialist provision and clarification on
other support
in reduced timetables data. - Chris Lloyd asked about follow-up with schools trained in Valuing SEND and data on ongoing use of the process.
- Ralph Muncer raised concerns about rural communities being disadvantaged in accessing specialist resource provisions (SRPs).
- Hillary Skoczylas sought clarification on data related to EHCP cohorts and pupils in state schools.
- Kirsty Taylor-Moran asked about appeals related to specialist provision and independent placements, as well as the reasons for withdrawn or cancelled permanent exclusions.
- Jan Maddern asked whether the percentage of Hertfordshire schools trained in Valuing SEND included independent schools.
- Tina Bhartwas asked about the length of time children have been waiting for specialist provision and the likelihood of their needs being met.
Officers agreed to provide further information and analysis on these issues in future reports.
Closing Remarks
Dame Christine Lenahan, Independent Chair of the SEND Executive, provided context on the national SEND landscape and the challenges faced by local authorities. She emphasised the importance of partnership working between the local authority, integrated care board (ICB), schools, and parents. Lisa Cooper, Chair of the Hertfordshire Parent Carer Involvement group (HPCI), spoke about the role of HPCI in representing the voices of parent carers in decision-making.
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