Back to School: Top tips for SEND Governance

In response to an increasing number of children and young people with SEN and disabilities (SEND), it is vital that the governing boards of maintained school and academies understand their role and responsibility in relation to them. 

New Guidance 

The DfE published new guidance on 30 January 2025 on Special educational needs (SEN) and disabilities: guidance for school governing boards (the DfE's Guidance) which can be seen to be a response to the significant rise of pupil with SEND. It is designed to help governing boards (i.e. the trust board within an academy trust or the governing body in a maintained school) with their role and responsibilities in relation to pupils with SEND and to empower governors and trustees to hold their schools to account. 

In the same month that the DfE Guidance was released, that the Council for Disabled Children published guidance on Equality Act 2010 and disabled pupils: A guide for governors and trustees which is designed to support those with responsibility for a school's duties under the Equality Act 2010 in understanding how well their school is meeting their duties to disabled pupils. 

Key aspects of SEND Governance 

The DfE's Guidance emphasises that governing boards should ensure that they play an active role in supporting and challenging schools in relation to their SEND support and provision, by ensuring that they are familiar with the key aspects of their role in relation to the SEND governance. 

Some of the key aspects of SEND Governance are outlined below to ensure that boards understand their roles and responsibilities in this context:

Strategic oversight

The DfE Guidance makes it clear that the board is responsible for setting the values, culture and tone of the organisation and, as the decision-making body of the school, is responsible for what a school does. The guidance provides a non-exhaustive checklist to support governors and trustees in asking the right questions of senior leaders to assure themselves that the school is providing appropriate support for pupils with SEND. The Council for Disabled Children's recent guidance also provides checkpoints that consist of a set of statements which can be used as prompts for discussions between school leaders and governors and trustees to enable them to consider whether the school needs to make improvements in meeting their duties to disabled pupils. Alternatively, the checkpoints can be used as part of a more formal and systematic review.

Delegation of responsibilities

Whilst the governing board is accountable and responsible for what academies and maintained schools do, where they delegate functions to a sub-committee, the committee should have regard to the DfE Guidance to the extent that it relates to their delegated responsibilities. The DfE Guidance also outlines that there should be a lead member of the governing body or a sub-committee which specific oversight of the school's arrangements for SEND and that this lead member should: 

• champion the school's support for pupils with SEND, including good practice in pupil engagement; 
• ensure that the board has the information it needs for assurance about the school's practice; and 
• work closely with the head teacher or principal, senior leadership team (and in the case of mainstream schools) the SENCO. 

Legal Framework

Governing boards have responsibilities to children and young people with SEND under the Children and Families Act 2014 and to disabled children and young people under the Equality Act 2010 and it is therefore important that boards are familiar with these duties. Appropriate and regular training should therefore be arranged to ensure that the boards are able to discharge their duties effectively to ensure the best possible outcomes for those pupils. 

Connection between duties for SEN and disability

The DfE guidance emphasises that there is a close connection between the duties relating to SEN and equality duties relating to disabilities, particularly as some disabled pupils will also have SEN. The Governing Board must therefore be aware of its wider equality duties to those that meet the definition of 'disability' under the Equality Act 2010, such as the duty not the discriminate and to make reasonable adjustments, and the need for equality objectives and information to include matters relating to the experience of disabled pupils and their education and employment outcomes.  

SEND Policy

All academies and maintained schools must have a SEND policy which should be reviewed annually and it is the responsibility of the board, in collaboration with executive and senior leaders, to establish the school's policy and strategy for addressing the SEND requirements of pupils. 

Training

As well as training for the governing board, the board should also ensure that all school staff and volunteers receive suitable training to ensure that they understand what is expected of them and have the necessary knowledge and skills to carry out their roles in respect of SEND. The level and frequency of training will depend on the role of the individual member of staff. 

Use of data

The DfE Guidance highlights the importance of the role of the governing board in analysing school performance data and building and evidence base to underpin its strategic oversight. It provides suggested data sets which may draw out relevant information for the governing board's use when considering the effectiveness of school support for pupils with SEND which are helpful to governors and trustees.

How can we help? 

Partner Miriam Carrion Benitez is delivering an online training session about the role of governors and trustees in the context of SEN and the Equality Act 2010 on Thursday 25 September 2025 from 11am - 1pm. Please find more information about the event here.  

VWV also offers comprehensive bespoke training for governing boards and/or school staff on matters relating to SEND. If you are interested in bespoke training for your Trust, Federation or school, please contact Miriam Carrion Benitez for further information.

For more information, please contact Miriam Carrion-Benitez in our Academies and Maintained Schools team on 0207 665 0802 or at mbenitez@vwv.co.uk.