What is SEND? Special educational needs and disability explained

SEND is the umbrella term used in England for children and young people who need extra or different help to learn. In further education it covers learners from 16 up to 25.

How does the law define SEND?

Section 20 of the Children and Families Act 2014 says a child or young person has special educational needs if they have a learning difficulty or disability that calls for special educational provision. A young person has a learning difficulty or disability if they have significantly greater difficulty in learning than most others of the same age, or a disability that prevents or hinders them from using the facilities generally provided for others of the same age in mainstream post-16 institutions.

For those over compulsory school age, special educational provision means educational or training provision that is additional to or different from what is generally provided in mainstream post-16 institutions.

The SEND code of practice groups needs into four broad areas: communication and interaction; cognition and learning; social, emotional and mental health; and sensory or physical needs. These are descriptions of need, not diagnoses.

How does SEND apply in FE and apprenticeships?

Colleges and training providers must use their best endeavours to secure the special educational provision a learner with SEND needs. Most do so without any plan from the local authority. Only some learners have an EHCP. Colleges also have duties under the Equality Act 2010, including reasonable adjustments.

Apprentices are in a more complex position. They are employees as well as learners. The training provider has SEND-related duties as a post-16 institution, the employer has Equality Act duties, and funding such as learning support follows separate rules. Our SEND code of practice guide for post-16 explains how these fit together.

What is a common misconception about SEND?

People often treat SEND as a school-age label that stops at 16 or 18. The 0 to 25 framework was designed to remove that cliff edge. Another frequent error is to treat SEND and disability as interchangeable. A learner can have SEND without meeting the Equality Act definition of disability, and a disabled learner may not need special educational provision at all. Providers need to think about both frameworks. Also, SEND is a legal category rather than a diagnosis: a learner does not need a diagnosis to be recognised as having SEND.

Where can you find the official source?

Start with Part 3 of the Children and Families Act 2014 on legislation.gov.uk and the statutory SEND code of practice: 0 to 25 years on gov.uk, which has a chapter on preparing for adulthood and guidance for further education. The government has proposed changes to the SEND system, but the 2014 Act and code stay in force until they are changed by Parliament or replaced.