Somerset's special education beset by 'culture of blame'

Special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) can affect a child or young person's ability to learn

Special education services in Somerset are beset by a culture of blame among staff, Ofsted inspectors have reported.

And pupils taught by the Send (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) service achieve poor results and the number of school exclusions among them is too high, authorities were told.

One parent said it was a "painful, dedicated fight" to get her child's educational needs met.

County authorities accepted that there are "areas for improvement".

Inspectors described how the service has "widespread weaknesses" with staff "working in isolation" because of the blame culture.

'Pain and trauma'

In the county there is a larger gap in academic performance of Send children than is typical nationally, the report notes.

Sarah Baker, from Bridgwater, who has a young person "in mainstream provision" said she had got "really emotional" reading the report, but relieved her concerns have been recognised.

"How much longer have we got to put up with the pain, the trauma and the after effects of where our children haven't had their [educational] needs met?," she asked.

Send services have a real affect on how well a child or young person can learn.

In Somerset inspectors also identified family issues with many describing strain and stress as they have to continue to fight for what they are entitled to.

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But their report highlighted the good work done by in early years to identify complex needs, and says some schools provide excellent services.

The county council and NHS Somerset Clinical Commissioning Group said they were "sorry that some children, young people and families with Send have not received the effective support and care that they need, and we wish to provide."

Bosses have been told to put together a written statement detailing exactly how they will make urgent improvements to the services.