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Political party arguments over SEND provision in county
13/12/2022
MPs describe progress with SEND issues as “glacial” but one County Councillor decries the situation being used for political motives
The education provision for children with special educational needs and disabilities has been the focus of political moves by the county’s MP and County Councillors.
Known as SEND, Oxfordshire County Council has recently faced petitions and demonstrations from parents, carers and teachers who claim children have been left without adequate provision. The parents say they haven’t been communicated with by the council’s SEND team.
Now four Oxfordshire Conservative MPs have written to the Minister for Children, Families and Wellbeing, requesting a meeting to discuss the situation. They say they have raised the issues they have been made aware of with the County Council, but describe progress as “glacial” with “significant communication difficulties between the relevant authorities”.
The letter acknowledges that the County Council faces “unprecedented pressures” but says parents feel Oxfordshire County Council is not meeting its statutory responsibility to secure SEND provision and find the authority “unreceptive and inaccessible”.
The County Council is run by an alliance of Liberal Democrat, Labour and Green party politicians.
Banbury’s MP Victoria Prentis said: “My parliamentary colleagues and I have become increasingly concerned by the number of cases we have all seen relating to Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) provision in Oxfordshire over recent months.
“Given how important the issue is, we have sent a joint letter to the Minister for Children, Families and Wellbeing, requesting a meeting to discuss the issues our constituents are facing and how we can improve local provision.”
At a full meeting of Oxfordshire County Council on Tuesday, the leader of the Conservative opposition Group – Councillor Eddie Reeves – put forward a motion resolving to improve service delivery and working practices for SEND provision.
The motion also proposed a cross-party advisory group be formed to improve the administration of the SEND provision in the county, but a number of Conservative councillors indicated they would abstain when a vote was held after an amendment was accepted, removing this and other elements of the original motion.
Councillor Sally Povolotsky expressed her frustration that the issue of SEND provision was being used for political motives by both sides of the chamber. She said: “A motion raised by the opposition, who’s own government have underfunded our children for years, especially in the high needs block; an amendment so the opposition don’t own the motion; political posturing.
“In the midst of all of this, our children, our county’s children and their parents who rightly feel that in this Chamber, we’re letting them down.
“We had a chance to work together on this and I’m disappointed to stand here and say this – disappointed in both sides of this Chamber: we don’t need words anymore – we need actions and urgent ones.”
Published: by Banbury FM Newsteam