Schools need more specialist help for primary age children with additional needs

New Ofsted research finds that there is a lack of access to specialist help, which means that more primary school children with additional needs are being referred to alternative provision (AP).

Primary-age children are referred to alternative provision when schools are unable to manage their physically or verbally violent behaviour, with negative effects on other children and staff. Around 7,000 primary-age children in England are currently known to be in AP. While this is a small proportion of all primary pupils, the number has risen by over a quarter in the last 5 years.

To understand this increase, Ofsted research explored the role that AP plays in the education system and the reasons primary-age children are referred there in the first place. It also looked at the challenges schools and APs face in supporting young children with additional needs, and how they work together to re-integrate them into mainstream education where possible.

Ofsted’s study found that most primary-age pupils only stayed in AP for a few weeks or months, and usually attended part time. However, some children with additional needs stay in AP for years while they wait for a special school place, and AP staff may be unable to meet their needs fully in the meantime. This absence of appropriate teaching and specialist support could have long-term consequences for these vulnerable children.

Primary school staff told Ofsted that the strain on specialist services nationally - exacerbated by the pandemic - has made it more difficult to support pupils with special educational needs. Limited access to professional help, such as speech and language therapists or educational psychology services, could be leading to more AP referrals and potentially more permanent exclusions.

Study participants also told Ofsted that children were referred to an AP when their schools’ support strategies had not worked - either because of a lack of training, funding or facilities. Support strategies also became ineffective when relationships between parents and school staff broke down. In these cases, an AP referral was sometimes used as a ‘circuit breaker’ to repair relationships, with the AP acting as a mediator between the school and parents, while supporting the child.

School staff also believed pupils’ violent behaviour often stemmed from difficult home lives or undiagnosed SEND. A large majority of children in the study had social, emotional and /or health needs. This aligns with national statistics on pupils referred to AP.

His Majesty’s Chief Inspector, Amanda Spielman, said: "It seems shocking that primary age children, as young as five, could be taken out of school for violent behaviour. But, as our study shows, AP can be a positive choice for these children and play a transformative role in their young lives.

"But limited access to external services, and lengthy waiting times for a special school place, mean some vulnerable children languish for years in APs that cannot provide the specialist support they need. And the consequences for these children may last well into their adult lives."

The report states that a high-quality curriculum and high-quality teaching are crucial in preventing pupils’ needs from developing or worsening. Teachers would also benefit from improved access to appropriate external services, and opportunities to develop the right knowledge and skills. This could allow more mainstream schools to support pupils with additional needs, avoiding an AP referral or exclusion.