A government commissioner parachuted in to run special educational needs and disabilities services in Birmingham found caseloads hit more than 500 children per worker, concluding the place of vulnerable youngsters has become “unclear if not lost”.
Ex-Hampshire County Council chief executive John Coughlan’s appointment was mandated last year, the first time the government has taken such drastic intervention in a council’s SEND services.
In his first report today, he issued not only a damning report on the “dire” state of SEND provision locally, but also pointed the finger at government – including over its 2014 reforms.
