While the consensus on the main party manifestos seems to be that detail is generally scant (see Analysis, page 6), nowhere is this more true than in the area of special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
It has recently been reported that councils in England are facing a massive shortfall in budgets for supporting children with SEND, but this is not a fact which jumps out of any of the main parties’ manifestos.
At Nursery World’s Business Summit earlier in the year, the SEND crisis in early years was a hot topic. A large number of delegates confirmed they were having to turn children away from their settings, because the resources and funding to support them is not there. The rise in SEND since the pandemic is well documented and this has placed huge pressures on staff; many say they are physically exhausted and mentally demoralised. Nurseries pride themselves on their inclusive practice, but they now find they simply can’t deliver it because they are having to fund the extra support themselves.
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