Its that time of year again - How many SEND leads are manically trying to stay compliant to bulk consultation drops, whilst only getting 15 days to do those 20/30 and that's if you only work with 1 LA, all whilst trying to do all the other bits the role necessitates. The LA(s) seem to stick so rigid to those 15 days, ironically had they been so rigid in sticking to all other statutory bits like those 20weeks, or getting plans back to education settings in a timely manner or t

Attendance has become yet another data stream placed under the microscope. In my time working in mainstream education, it was constantly pushed as an area to improve – and rightly so. But what always struck me was the limited time, if any, dedicated to understanding why attendance was an issue in the first place. I’ve also seen mainstream settings quietly lower their “minimum expected attendance” figures just to meet criteria. And let’s be honest: how is that helping anyone?