Today, the Save Our Children’s Rights campaign team delivered a petition signed by 132,789 people to 10 Downing Street, calling on the Government to retain the legal rights of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
The petition urges ministers to protect the SEND legal framework, including access to Education, Health and Care (EHC) plans, which give children and young people a legal right to education and support that meets their individual needs.
The hand-in follows a parliamentary debate secured by our petition in September, where more than 90 MPs took part in a three-hour Westminster Hall debate and overwhelmingly backed the call to protect SEND legal rights.
Our campaign team was joined at Downing Street by Chris Coghlan MP, Daisy Cooper MP, Neil Duncan-Jordan MP and Gregory Stafford MP, all of whom have spoken out about the importance of maintaining existing legal protections for children and young people with SEND.
‘Dear Prime Minister’ video calls for protection of SEND legal framework
On the morning of the petition hand-in, our campaign also released a new video, ‘Dear Prime Minister’, featuring actor Sally Phillips alongside parents, carers, children and young people from across England.
The video highlights the reality for families already struggling to secure support that is legally required and warns that any weakening of SEND legal rights would have devastating consequences.
Concerns ahead of the Schools White Paper on SEND reform
Save Our Children’s Rights was launched in response to growing concern about the Government’s plans for SEND reform, expected to be set out in the forthcoming Schools White Paper.
White Papers usually precede new legislation, raising understandable concern that vital statutory rights, clearly set out in the Children and Families Act 2014 and the SEND Code of Practice, could be weakened or removed.
For families already facing delays, refusals and unlawful decisions, uncertainty about the future of EHC plans and SEND legal entitlements is causing significant anxiety.
The petition, started by campaign partner Rachel Filmer, was designed to send a clear message that the SEND crisis is not caused by legal rights – it is caused by those rights not being properly implemented, funded and enforced.
How to support the Save Our Children’s Rights campaign
Although the petition has now been delivered, the campaign continues as the Government develops its SEND reform proposals.
You can support the campaign by:
- Writing to your MP using our template letter calling for SEND legal rights to be protected
- Signing up for campaign updates and future actions
- Following and sharing the campaign on social media: Facebook, Instagram, TikTok
About Save Our Children’s Rights
Our joint campaign is led by a coalition of organisations and individuals, including Special Needs Jungle, IPSEA, Learning Disability Today, SEND National Crisis, SOS!SEN, SEND Rights Alliance, Black SEN Mamas and others committed to defending children’s rights.
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