Campaigners have long warned the UK’s SEND system is at ‘breaking point’ The UK will lead a new international alliance to improve education for special needs children, Metro can reveal. Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson will call on countries to join a UK-led global coalition in 2027 during her opening address at the Education World Forum today. The alliance will spearhead efforts for countries to compare policies and collaborate to stop children with special educational needs (SEND) ‘falling behind their peers’. Phillipson told Metro ahead of her speech today: ‘In England and across the world, children with special educational needs are being let down by systems not built for them. ‘The scale of the shared challenge is stark, and the new International SEND Alliance will mean we can learn from each other and chart a path forward.’ Phillipson will announce the alliance to address children being let down by the system (Picture: Rasid Necati Aslim/Anadolu via Getty Images) Teaching unions and think tanks have long warned that the UK’s SEND system is at ‘breaking point’. More than 1.7million children – or one in five – have special educational needs, driven by rising rates of autistic spectrum disorders, speech and language problems, and emotional and mental health needs. Schools are facing shortages of experts and costs are spiralling, while many parents struggle to get an education, health and care plan (EHCP) for their child. The government is vowing that their new alliance will ‘go beyond warm words’ in reforming SEND education. Across a series of summits next year, member countries will discuss policy, examine what has worked, and agree on clear action plans to deliver better opportunities for affected children. The Education Secretary is particularly keen to learn from Norway’s approach to SEND. The Nordic country has written early intervention into law, implementing compulsory tests and screening from a young age to identify and address potential challenges. Norway also emphasises the inclusion of SEND children into mainstream schools. Ministers want to learn from Norway’s model of inclusive education and early intervention (Picture: Getty Images) Teachers are also trained to spot and respond to needs before problems escalate. Phillipson stressed that inclusivity is an important part of her vision for SEND education in the UK. The Education Secretary added: ‘The right support, in local schools, without having to fight for it, is what we want to give to every child that needs it in this country. ‘In the end, we can’t have a strong and inclusive society without a strong and inclusive education system.’ Phillipson will reveal her plans for the alliance at the Education World Forum, which is the world’s largest gathering of education and skills ministers, taking place at the QEII Centre in Westminster. Members of the alliance will convene at UK-hosted events in 2027, including Bett in January, the Education World Forum in May and the International Summit on the Teaching Profession. The initiative follows a raft of new measures already announced by the government to ‘introduce generational reforms’ to the SEND system. The Education for All Bill – confirmed in the King’s Speech – will focus on providing early support and protections for SEND children. The government want to fix a ‘broken system’ (Picture: Paul ELLIS / POOL / AFP via Getty Images) Ministers will overhaul EHCPs, which are a legal document issued by local authorities that sets out the support a child needs. They will only stay in place for children with the highest levels of need, while every SEND child will be given a new Individual Support Plan – a digital record of a child’s support. The government also plans to introduce dedicated ‘inclusion bases’ in schools to offer specialist support for struggling pupils. Phillipson vowed: ‘We are overhauling a broken system that has failed children for too long, through investment, training and a new law to build foundations that can’t be easily reversed. ‘This means listening to the wisdom of young people, parents, carers, teachers and professionals through our public consultation, but the conversation shouldn’t end there.’ Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk. For more stories like this, check our news page.