Thank you to all the parent carers who have responded to calls for information via face-to-face meet-ups, social media, emails and phone calls. For transparency, we have listed all the themes you have raised with us below. If you feel we have missed (or misrepresented) anything, please get in touch.

SEND Reform Briefing

Plymouth Parent Carer Voice was asked by Plymouth City Council to invite you to a SEND Reform Parent Carer Briefing on Tuesday, 5th May 2026. There were 3 opportunities to join the briefing, which was held online, throughout the day.

We are sorry to say that despite requesting the promised recording of the May presentation on a number of occasions (so those who could not take part could access it at a later date), we were unable to get hold of it.

However, we were able to submit a list of all the questions that you raised. For transparency, we published them here: https://plymouthpcv.co.uk/your-questions-raised-at-the-send-reform-parent-carer-briefing/ 

As soon as we receive a response, we will let you know.

Experts at Hand

“Experts at Hand” is part of the SEND Reform, which aims to improve access to specialist support for children and young people with SEND.

In May, we were asked to submit some evidence of need to the Local Area Partnership. 

They asked:

• What stage (Early Years, Primary, Secondary, Post-16) is/was your young person when you requested support?
• What additional private services did/do you use for your young person that are NOT provided by the local authority, school or health? (eg: tutor, speech and language therapy, play therapy…)

This is what you told us, and what we submitted to the Local Area Partnership: https://plymouthpcv.co.uk/experts-at-hand-what-you-told-us/ 

Other Points Raised by Parent Carers

Attendance

• “Attendance contracts” and “Attendance buses” that are being used by some MATs are not really addressing the issue of why children and young people struggle to attend school, particularly those with SEND.
• Some independent settings are receiving funding for school placements when the young person has not been attending
• Some young people in mainstream schools are not attending school due to anxiety/physical medical issues, but no support/EHCP/Section 19 request is being pursued.
• Whilst beneficial for some families, part-time timetables have been raised in many discussions where families feel forced into it as it is sold as “a favour” (eg, to avoid exclusion). In one case, a part-time timetable has been in place for 8 months.
  

Post-16 Placements

• Some families have found that Post-16 provisions are stating that they can meet the SEND need of young people, but not providing the contents of EHCP. Parents are concerned that placements are just taking the funding and spending it elsewhere.
• Unsuitable post-16 placements being named on EHCP and breaking down after a short time.
• Concerns that supported internships are not a suitable option for many young people. 
• More information about the full range of post-16 options would be useful for parent carers of young people in both mainstream and specialist settings.

Post-18 support

• Families experiencing a lack of support or knowledge about where to get help after their young person turns 18 (for example, medical prescriptions stopped by GP if previously prescribed by CAMHS, transition to adult services). 
• 1 family commented on how helpful they found a social prescriber for their young adult, and themselves. Many families were not aware of this service and how to access it.

SENDCOs Workload

• Parents are expressing genuine concern about the workload of SENDCOs and whether it is sustainable – they don’t want schools to lose really valuable people who they know already go above and beyond.

EHCP/Annual Reviews

• Families are putting in requests for Annual Reviews with some settings, but they are not happening. When raised with the LA, they are told it is up to the setting to raise it. There is no accountability to prevent this happening.
• EHCPs are not being followed and implemented in mainstream settings, even though the settings are claiming that needs can be met.
• Parent carers feel as though schools, colleges and services are focused on funding received through a child or young persons EHCP, rather than implementation of the EHCP.
• Settings (mainstream secondary, specialist, college) accepting learners with EHCPS, then at the end of the academic year, are stating they can no longer meet the needs of the young person. The timing of this has proven difficult for families, as many settings have already agreed/filled the spaces for the following academic year. Some feel that young people with EHCPs are being “cherry picked” – maximum funding for the least amount of effort.
• Communication: Families are not being told the outcome of panel; Families not being told the case was even going to panel until they received a call from the setting; communications between settings regarding EHCP-related information

School Sanctions

• Families are continuing to raise issues about secondary school exclusion s/detentions/recovery periods given out due to young person’s sensory needs or additional needs not being met. 

Health Services

• Families have expressed concerns that the CDC is refusing referrals due to lack of school evidence (for example, other evidence has been submitted but school says that they have no evidence).
• Families who have been on the waiting list for CAMHS/CDC for a long time finally get an appointment to be told “That’s not for us to help you with” (for example, trauma, autism, anxiety).
• Confusion about what the “Hospital Passport” is and how to use it. Some families reported that there are services that did not appear to be aware of it.

Parent Advocacy

• Although PIAS offer a well-regarded workshop to help parent carers manage meetings effectively, some parents still feel like they would benefit from having “a friend in the room” – ie, an advocate to help them process/make notes about the information that is being shared at meetings. Is there a service that could offer this?
• Parent carers who are new to SEND have said that a checklist/flowchart to show them who to reach out to would be useful.

Border Barriers

• More families have raised difficulties regarding the “border barrier”, where they live just over the Tamar, but have to travel to Truro for services/events due to their postcode. This can stop their participation due to the time/distance needed to travel with their young person.

Transport

• Whilst parent carers accept that sometimes issues such as illness and breakdowns can affect their child’s transport to school, there still appear to be routes where this is happening more frequently. 
• Some parent carers have reported that the Transport team have been really helpful when they have contacted them.
• Reluctance to attend school has been attributed to transport difficulties by some families, resulting in parent carers driving long distances and reducing work hours to get their children to their specialist placement.

Accountability

• Some families feel as though the LA won’t hold education settings to account. Examples include deregistering learners with an EHCP because they feel they can no longer meet need, encouraging home education to avoid exclusions, questioning funding for young people with EHCPs who are not in school/on part-time timetables.
• To some families, “inclusion” is feeling like “segregation” in their young person’s setting. In some cases, when families have raised their concerns with this, the setting has stated that they can no longer meet the needs of the young person.

Transitions for September

• Some settings are doing this really well, with enhanced transitions already embedded. However, many families are stating that their children or young people with SEND still haven’t started any transition or have no knowledge of teachers/staff for the next academic year. This is leaving whole families feeling anxious and worried.

Blog added 6/7/26

Photo by Ivan S on Pexels.