£200 million to make inclusion real: what this landmark SEND training means for Northumberland

£200 million to make inclusion real: what this landmark SEND training means for Northumberland

For too long, families in Northumberland have told me the same thing: their child’s needs are identified too late, support varies wildly from school to school, and parents are left fighting a system instead of being helped by it.

That is why the government’s new £200 million SEND training programme matters not as a headline, but for what it will actually mean for children, parents and schools here in Northumberland.

This is the most ambitious and comprehensive training offer the English education system has ever seen. It is designed around one simple principle: every teacher should be equipped to support every child.

What is being delivered nationally?

Over the course of this Parliament, £200 million will be invested to upskill staff in every nursery, school and college. For the first time, there will be a clear national expectation, written into the SEND Code of Practice, that all staff receive training on SEND and inclusion.

This follows years of inconsistency. Almost half of teachers say they lack confidence in supporting pupils with SEND – not because they don’t care, but because the training simply hasn’t been there.

The new offer will change that.

Teachers and support staff will receive high-quality training on:

• Adapting teaching to meet a wide range of needs

• Supporting pupils with speech and language needs and visual impairments

• Using assistive technology such as speech-to-text tools

• Building understanding of additional needs across the whole classroom

Courses will be delivered flexibly, combining online learning with in-person sessions, so they fit around already busy workloads.

Crucially, this is not just for new teachers. For experienced staff who have often been left behind by the system, this finally fills a long-standing gap in professional development.

As Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has made clear, this is about ensuring every child, wherever they live and whatever their needs, can thrive in their local school.

What this means for Northumberland?

This investment has real, practical benefits for our communities.

Earlier support, closer to home

Better-trained staff means needs are identified earlier – reducing the number of children reaching crisis point or being pushed towards specialist provision miles away from their community.

More confidence for parents

Families should not feel they have to battle the system. This programme helps restore trust that support will be there at every stage of a child’s education, from early years through to age 25.

Stronger mainstream schools

Alongside £3 billion nationally to create around 50,000 more inclusive mainstream places, this training ensures those spaces are backed by staff with the skills and confidence to make inclusion work in practice.

Support for early years and teaching assistants

Northumberland relies heavily on early years providers and teaching assistants. Dedicated CPD for early years staff and new investment in training for teaching assistants will help ensure children get the right support from the very start.

Better attendance, wellbeing and outcomes

When children feel safe, understood and included, attendance improves, anxiety reduces and attainment follows. That is good for pupils, families and schools alike.

A reform families have been asking for

This package is not happening in isolation. It builds on extensive engagement with parents, teachers and experts through the national conversation on SEND, and on previous investment of £740 million to create over 10,000 specialist places.

Most importantly, it represents a shift in mindset: inclusive practice becoming the norm, not the exception.

For Northumberland, this is about moving away from a postcode lottery of support and towards a system where children with SEND can succeed in their local nursery, school or college – supported by staff who are trained, confident and properly resourced.

That is what families have been crying out for. This investment is a significant step towards delivering it.