Dear Buckinghamshire MPs,

We are writing as your constituents to strongly urge you to attend a vital parliamentary debate on retaining the legal right to assessment and support in education for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

The debate has now been confirmed for Monday 15 September at 4.30pm.

It follows a petition launched by the Save Our Children’s Rights campaign, which has been signed by over 119,000 people. You can view the full petition here: https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/711021

We are Greater Resources for Autism Supporting Parents and Siblings (GRASPS), a Facebook group established in 2013 to support SEN parents and their families in Buckinghamshire. We have 2.6k members and represent a significant proportion of SEN families in the County, many of whom are in very difficult situations. We all have direct experience with the SEN system and are clear that any change to the current legislation will do nothing to help SEN children in this area and instead will effectively exclude many SEN children from the education system.

We urge you to attend and speak up in support of children, young people and their families in your constituencies by asking the Government to commit to maintaining existing legal rights and protections.

There are growing concerns that the Government is considering reforms to the SEND system that could restrict or even remove access to Education, Health and Care (EHC) plans. This would be devastating for hundreds of thousands of families - including many children who are only able to attend mainstream school because of the provision set out in their EHC plan.

Many of our children have had long periods out of mainstream education due to the overwhelming anxiety and trauma that they have experienced as a result of sensory overwhelm, communication issues, social difficulties and cognitive differences that cannot be supported by the ordinarily available provision in already chronically overstretched schools. Many still struggle; those who are now thriving have been able to as a direct result of existing SEN law. Any changes to the legislation without wholesale revision of England’s education system would strip these children of their right to the same education as their non-disabled peers. This cannot be an acceptable reality in 2025.

Please support SEN families in your constituencies by attending the debate on 15 September and opposing any reform that reduces or removes children’s existing legal rights.

Whatever the SEND system’s problems, the answer is not to remove the rights of children and young people to support that meets their needs. Families can’t afford to lose these vital legal protections. Any changes to the SEND system should instead focus on protecting, strengthening and enforcing the existing law.

For a more detailed analysis, I encourage you to read IPSEA’s written evidence to the Education Select Committee inquiry on solving the SEND crisis: https://bit.ly/4kl8huW

You can also find further information about the Save Our Children’s Rights campaign here: https://www.saveourchildrensrights.org.uk/

I would be very grateful for a response, and to hear that you will attend the debate in support of children and young people with SEND.

Yours sincerely

GRASPS