Abstract
With the introduction of the Children and Families Act 2014, changes to the process of assessment and identification of children in need of special support in England and Wales have been introduced. These changes are regarded as the most significant in two decades, with consequent implications for service provision. In this paper we suggest that there is a gap between the theoretical approach to disability portrayed in the new policy, and many of the practical changes consequently introduced. To examine this mismatch, a sequence of arguments is presented, as a critical analysis of the approach introduced by the new policy, in light of a framework recognised worldwide for conceiving and classifying disability – the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health for Children and Youth (ICF-CY). Although the ICF-CY is not mentioned in the new policy for special educational needs and disability, possible links between the two are presented, with implications for service provision.
Highlights
A considerable shift has recently been observed in the policy regulating the provision of special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) services for children and young people in England
We offer a critical analysis of the new approach introduced by the Children and Families Act 2014 and the new SEND Code of Practice, which leads to recommendations for the implementation of the EHC assessment and planning process purported by law in England
In the first part of this paper, we present an overview of the ICF-CY model and of the changes that have been introduced in the SEND provision system in England
Summary
A considerable shift has recently been observed in the policy regulating the provision of special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) services for children and young people in England. This is a substantial change, as it entails a considerable move toward a new conceptualization of SEND, with implications for professional practice and service provision for vulnerable children and young people Despite this philosophical shift, the new policy documents regulating SEND provision in England – the Children and Families Act 2014 (Part 3) (Department for Education, 2014a) and the Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice 2014 (Department for Education, 2014b) – do not explicitly present a theoretical model underpinning its innovative approach. In this paper, we suggest that there is a gap between the theoretical approach to SEND in the new policy and some of its implications for service provision To support this argument, we offer a critical analysis of the new approach introduced by the Children and Families Act 2014 and the new SEND Code of Practice, which leads to recommendations for the implementation of the EHC assessment and planning process purported by law in England.
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