Why SEND matters to everyone.

Firstly, what is SEND?
It stands for Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities. It encompasses everything that is needed to support education and day to day living for those children, young people and adults who face challenges with learning significantly greater than their peers and/or have a disability that prevents or hinders them from accessing what is available in mainstream school or colleges.

SEND matters to you, if you have a child with SEND.
If your child has SEND it matters to you that they can access education.

SEND matters to you, if you have a child at a mainstream school/college.
If your child goes to a mainstream school or college it matters to you that your child has access to the best education that School or college can provide. It matters to you if your child doesn’t have access to a teaching assistant, if their teacher is too stretched to meet the needs of all the children in their class. It matters to you if costs of school trips/visits increase. It matters to you if there isn’t enough money for necessary resources. Money for SEND is ring fenced, but it simply isn’t enough so often the shortfall comes from the general School budget.

SEND matters to you,if your a taxpayer.
If you pay taxes SEND matters, most people don’t like paying their taxes, but what matters more is using those taxes effectively. Supporting a child with early intervention costs a lot less than specialised placements later on, paying lawyers to argue with parents about what’s best for their children, paying for supported living in adulthood. Some children with SEND won’t end up paying their own taxes and contributing financially to society, but many, many will, if given the right support as early as possible.

SEND matters to you, if you believe every child and young person living in Surrey in 2018 has the right to matter.