It’s been an inspiring and action-packed few weeks for Supporting Education Group. From hosting meaningful roundtables to championing SEND & inclusion on a national stage, the collective efforts across our businesses are shaping a more inclusive and collaborative education sector.
Roundtable discussion: How Supporting Education Group can support Multi-Academy Trusts (MATs) with SEND & Inclusion Provision
The recent flurry of insightful conversations with the MAT leaders began on Wednesday 18 June with a roundtable discussion at our Central London Office. The event brought together leaders from Learning Community Trust, Tudor Grange Teaching School Hub and South West Essex Community Education Trust to discuss the main challenges facing schools when it comes to setting up SEND Provision – and how Supporting Education Group can support.
From Supporting Education Group (SEG), we were joined by representatives from Thrive, Best Practice Network (BPN), Fleet, LMP Education, Judicium and Teaching Personnel. Their presence and expertise highlighted how experts from across SEG can add real depth and insight to such a key challenge for the sector right now.
MAT Excellence in Action Conference
On Thursday 19 June, Judicium, Teaching Personnel, BPN, Thrive and LMP Education attended the MAT Excellence in Action conference in London, where SEG was the headline sponsor.
The conference brought together MATs from across the country to network and share best practices around topics such as SEND, budget efficiencies, staffing, training and development and more – conversations in which SEG was able to engage and advise, directing MATs to our various businesses depending on their needs and questions.
On the day, I also chaired the SEND panel discussion, which invited a selection of the nominees for the award taking place later that evening.
The passionate and lively discussion saw Nicola Taylor from Bishop Bewick Catholic Education Trust, Helen Bray from East Midlands Education Trust and John Halliwell from STEP Academy Trust each sharing their journeys and SEND nomination entries for the Excellence Awards with attendees.
What came through from every story was the incredible journeys that demonstrated passion, determination, collaboration and innovation – a strong focus to get it right for every young person and bravery to challenge core beliefs and status quo and fight for change.
I echo John Halliwell’s thoughts that “this seemingly insurmountable challenge” has to be broken down and tackled bit by bit – inaction is not an option.
Several times, I heard the term “a new breed of role” and over the last few years, we have seen SEND lead roles across MATs develop and grow and be the trailblazers for change.
These leaders talked about the need to create SEND & Inclusion training not just for those entering the education sector, but right through to senior leadership. They also talked about the importance of creating parent and carer partnerships and empowering them to support their children, and the need for more opportunities to network and collaborate outside of their Trusts.
Keynote address on SEND & Inclusion
After the panel discussion, I delivered a keynote address to the conference. I looked in detail at the challenges in the sector around SEND & Inclusion.
Key topics included:
- The urgent need for central direction and policy to drive meaningful progress in SEND & inclusion, reduce suspensions and exclusions and improve attendance and outcomes across the system.
- The rising number of pupils with neurodiverse needs, and the growing concern that the current workforce often lacks the skills, capacity, strategy and leadership needed to respond effectively – contributing to increasing workforce turnover.
- The serious consequences of unmet needs, which often lead to escalating behavioural challenges, a decline in educational outcomes and a rise in exclusions – a pattern that not only damages young people’s life chances, but also has a broader impact on communities, health services and society as a whole.
What the day demonstrated, however, was that even against the backdrop of delays from central policy makers, there are opportunities to collaborate and drive positive change within the sector.
MAT Excellence Awards
This positive sentiment continued into the evening at the MAT Excellence Awards, where we celebrated the incredible work trusts are doing to support students with SEND and respond to the wider challenges facing the sector.
A huge congratulations to STEP Academy Trust, the overall winners on the night — a well-deserved recognition of their commitment to inclusion and impact.
At Supporting Education Group, we’re proud to work with 94% of all MATs, helping them strengthen their approach to SEND & inclusion, leadership development and workforce strategy.
Connect with our experts to support your SEND strategy.