Great Expectations launches in Parliament

Yesterday saw the successful launch of our new campaign Great Expectations in Parliament.

NAS President Jane Asher (pictured) reflected on the struggles parents had to get the help their children needed at school. She stressed how important it was to get help in early and how much money this could save in the long run.

Disabilities Minister Maria Miller responded to the campaign on behalf of the Government. She said that the special educational needs (SEN) "system was broken" and that the Government were determined to fix it through proposals set out in the SEN Green Paper.

She also said that getting support in place for children with autism was in her experience a particular battle. Some schools were able to be fully inclusive of children on the spectrum, so others should be able to do it too. At the moment, being able to access the right support seemed to be based on luck, she added.

Shadow Education Secretary Andy Burnham stressed the importance of cross party working on SEN reforms to make sure that Government got the reforms right. He noted the success of cross party working on the Autism Act.

Two parents of children with autism also spoke at the event about their experiences of having to fight the system. Sadly, the research we carried out for the campaign showed that their experiences were all too common.  The research, based on survey responses from over 1,000 children with autism and parents and focus groups accross the country, showed:
 
- 48% of parents say they have waited over a year to get the right support for their child, and 27% have waited more than two years.
- 18% of parents have had to take legal action to get the right support for their children, and have been to tribunal an average of 3.5 times each
- Just half of parents (52%) feel their child is making good educational progress.
- 43% of young people feel teachers don’t know enough about autism.
The campaign calls for a system in which parents are treated as equal partners and genuinely involved in decisions about their child’s education and the planning of local services, and for all children with autism to be able to get the support they need quickly and easily, from teachers who understand how to support them.

The event was hosted by the vice chair of the all party parliamentary group on autism Steve Brine MP. It was well attended - the room was full of MPs, peers, parents of children with autism, children with autism and professionals. 

The NAS is calling on all MPs and peers to support the campaign and help ensure that we use the Government's proposed reforms of the SEN system as an opportunity to get things right for children with autism. Please support the campaign, by emailing your MP.

SEN minister addresses APPGA

On Monday, the All Party Parliamentary Group on Autism (APPGA) met at Parliament to discuss the Government's Review of special educational needs (SEN) and how the system can be improved.

The meeting was really well attended by professionals from the sector and MPs, including Graham Stuart MP, chair of the education select committee, Russell Brown MP, Robert Buckland MP and Lord Clement-Jones.

In a speech to the group, Minister for Children and Families, Sarah Teather made assurances that although cuts to government spending will make it more difficult to improve the system, they will not stop reform from happening. She said that it’s “not right” that parents have to battle system to get the right support for their child and that she intends the new system to be much more ‘family friendly’. She also wants there to be a focus on diagnosis and early intervention, giving families more choice in their child's education, and transition to adulthood.

She also thanked Ralph Hemus, one of young campaigners for his excellent speech about his and his family’s experience of the system. Ralph spoke to attendees about how difficult it can be to be a child with autism at a school where there is not enough understanding and how he thinks that teachers and pupils should be educated about autism.  



Minister Sarah Teather (right) and Charlotte Leslie MP (left)
listen to Ralph talk about his experiences of the SEN system



After the speeches, members of Parliament and members of the public had the opportunity to put their questions to the minister, allowing her to explain some more about her ideas for improving the system.

Although the Call for Views is now closed, there will be further opportunities to give your views on the system when the Green Paper is published later this year. We will keep you updated.

Meeting in Parliament on education for children with autism

This Monday Sarah Teather, the Minister in charge of special educational needs (SEN), will be speaking at a meeting of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Autism (APPGA)*.

The Department for Education recently launched a call for views on how the education system is working for children with SEN, which will feed into the publication of a Green Paper on SEN later this year (see earlier post for more details). The APPGA meeting will be a great forum for Sarah Teather to speak more on her ideas. There will also be time for questions and we expect there to be a vibrant discussion about this important issue. 

We will report back to you after the meeting, letting you know how the event went and what was said. But if you would like to attend the meeting you can find out more details about it on the APPGA website. Please contact appga@nas.org.uk if you would like to attend.

Tell us below what you would like to ask to Sarah Teather if you had an opportunity to speak to her.

* The APPGA is a group of MPs and Lords who share an interest in autism. The APPGA meets a few times a year, on a variety of topics. Meetings are open to members of the public to attend, although they take place in the Houses of Parliament and require you to pass through security. If you would like to find out more about the APPGA, please visit www.appga.org.uk