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March 2023 - Education

Most common barrier to post-16 support for learners with SEND is a lack of access to specialist services or professionals: A survey has found that the most common barrier to colleges supporting students aged 16-25 who have special educational needs or disabilities (SEND) is a lack of access to specialist services or professionals.

This was just one of the findings revealed in the latest DfE School and College Panel survey. The purpose of the research is to check in on school and college leaders on a range of topics including mental health, funding and employee pay. 

A total of 1,447 school leaders, 35 college leaders, 1,938 classroom teachers and 93 college teachers participated in the November 2022 wave of the research.

Three-quarters of the colleges polled said that they felt able to effectively support students aged 16 to 25 with SEND/LDD, with 70% of college teachers saying the same. However, more than eight in 10 (84%) colleges said that they face barriers to being able to support these students in the most effective way, with 80% of college teachers saying the same. 

Amongst colleges, the most commonly reported barrier was lack of access to specialist services or professionals (59%) whereas among college teachers the most commonly reported barrier was not having enough time (55%).

Transitioning to work or higher education

Three-quarters of colleges said they believed they could effectively support SEND learners with transitioning to higher education or into employment (75%), with 65% of teachers saying the same. The vast majority of colleges polled (88%) said they were experiencing barriers in this area too, with a lack of suitable destinations (66%), and access to suitable specialist support (56%) the top barriers cited, along with and lack of opportunities for young people with SEND to go into apprenticeships/internships (56%).

Over three-quarters of teachers polled (82%) felt there were barriers to supporting students with transitioning, with half (51%) citing a lack of suitable destinations as the main barrier. 

The School and College Panel survey also looked at how the cost of living crisis is impacting schools and colleges which you can read about here.

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