Cabinet today received an update on Knowsley’s Local Special Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND) Plan which will be submitted to the Department for Education by 19 June 2026.
The plan is part of the Government’s national SEND reform programme and will set out how the local area partnership will deliver sustainable improvement in outcomes for children and young people with SEND, strengthen inclusion and establish a more resilient and financially sustainable local system.
Work to develop the plan has been ongoing across the local area SEND partnership. This includes stakeholder engagement sessions, the development of a vision and a three-year reform strategy, along with feedback and recommendations received from the Department for Education on an earlier version of the plan. The plan also includes the findings from a consultation seeking feedback from parents, carers, children and young people, professionals, those working in education and community settings which closed on Friday 29 May 2026.
The plan will build on recent and ongoing local improvements, including the creation of an Autism Advisory Team and SEND Improvement Team earlier this year. In addition, schools have been supported with expansion plans over the last two years to create more school places, including a new Special Educational Needs Unit to strengthen local sufficiency and inclusion.
Cabinet also received an update that the council has received a provisional funding allocation of £1.080m for 2026/2027 from the Local Authority SEND Transformation Fund which supports mainstream inclusion, early intervention and local authority capacity to deliver reform. This funding will be used to enhance access to Speech and Language Therapy, Occupational Therapy and Educational Psychologists across the partnership.
Cllr Sean Donnelly, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, said “The development of the Knowsley Local SEND Reform plan has been in collaboration with our partners and importantly, those who access SEND support and services here in Knowsley. Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to share their views and experiences – your views really do matter and do help to inform future support and services.
“We’ll continue to build on the feedback we’ve received and continue to develop the relationships with our partners and our residents who are pivotal to ensuring the successful delivery of the SEND reforms and improving the outcomes for our children and young people.”
The Knowsley Local SEND Reform Plan will be submitted to the Department for Education by the 19 June 2026 deadline and a further update will be shared once feedback has been received.