Nursery World - Parents of autistic children 'let down' by the new SEND reforms

A year on from the introduction of new Special Educational Needs reforms, and parents of autistic
children are still having to battle to get the right support, a charity warns.

According to the National Autistic Society (NAS), which carried out a survey of 1,431 parents and carers of children on the autism spectrum, families are facing ‘exhausting and highly stressful battles’ to get the support they need.

Of those parents that took part in the survey and had also been through the system (36 per cent of respondents), almost half reported being dissatisfied with the process.

Many also felt let down by the new process of applying for statutory support, which they said is extremely stressful and in many cases took longer than the 20-week legal limit.

This is despite the introduction of a new Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) system in September 2014 designed to make it easier for parents to get help for their children and give them a greater say.

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