Our Perspective on the SEND Reform White Paper

After reflecting on the SEND White Paper, we’ve been thinking about what meaningful reform really requires.

Anything that makes access to provision easier for the learners who need it most, we are a huge supporter of.

Children need specialist support in the right environment, at the right time. But more than that, they need a system that is truly joined up. Every professional involved — schools, alternative provision, therapists, local authorities — should have a coherent understanding of how they are contributing to that child’s journey.

Without that, even the best intentions become disjointed.

One of our concerns is that while bringing more expertise and funding into the system is absolutely the right principle, without coherence and synchronicity it risks adding complexity rather than clarity. More people in the system does not automatically mean better support. Joined-up thinking, shared visibility and aligned planning are what truly move the needle on a child’s progression.

That is why we created Bloom.

Schools need the agility to support learners as they transition between settings. They need academic, engagement and wellbeing data tracked in a way that aligns with care plans and learning objectives — so that the data is meaningful, not just recorded.

We want to see a coherent infrastructure behind the headlines. One that reduces the fight for parents. One that makes visibility easier for SENCOs and professionals supporting each child. One that operationally — not just rhetorically — puts the child at the heart of SEND reform.

Below is part of the Executive Summary from the England SEND Whitepaper February 2026

Too many children with SEND have been told they cannot thrive in mainstream schools, and that learning alongside their friends and neighbours is not for them. The principle that disabled people should be able to fully participate in our society if we remove the barriers they face risks slipping away from our education system.

More children are being educated in specialist settings now than at any time in the last half century,[footnote 11] alongside more moving into unregistered alternative provision or home education attributed to unmet SEND needs.[footnote 12],[footnote 13],[footnote 14]

For children, the level of support they receive is too often determined by how hard their families fight, or how much their families can spend.[footnote 15]

It is clear that we must reset how we are equipping mainstream schools and the services that should wrap around them to enable all children to achieve and thrive in education, alongside securing high-quality specialist provision for children with complex needs who need a tailored educational experience.
We know that if we build an education system that enables the success of our most disadvantaged children, we will enable the success of all. The shifts set out in this white paper are built on strong foundations, learning from innovative leaders and teachers who have improved standards.

This white paper shows that standards and inclusion together, working hand-in-hand, are how we can transform opportunities and outcomes to enable every child to achieve and thrive.

Read the full report here.