SEND reform is an opportunity, but only if it works in practice

Written by Nina Hinton, Director of Business and Development 

Attending the Bridging the SEND Transition Collective event (hosted by FE News and the Education and Training Foundation) last week reinforced something many already know: the system isn’t short of ambition, but it is still catching up with the realities learners face.

SEND reform in England presents a genuine opportunity to rethink how we support progression, recognise achievement and design learning that works for more people. The challenge is ensuring this leads to changes education settings can actually deliver.

Moving beyond narrow definitions of success

A consistent challenge raised throughout the event was the continued dominance of a narrow definition of success.

High-stakes exams and performance measures still shape the system, and too many learners are defined by what they can’t do, rather than what they can.  For learners with SEND, this can limit both engagement and progression.

For providers, this tension is familiar. Balancing accountability requirements with the needs of individual learners remains a daily reality.

While there are signs of increased flexibility, such as the reintroduction of stepping-stone style English and maths qualifications, the question is whether this will meaningfully shift delivery, or simply sit alongside existing pressures.

Lessons from Wales: flexibility vs. workload

Wales offers a useful point of comparison.

Qualification reform there has broadened what is assessed and how, with greater emphasis on applied learning and internal assessment. This aligns closely with approaches many already use to support SEND learners effectively. However, implementation has not been without challenge, with increased creativity and flexibility bringing new considerations around teacher workload and capacity.

Flexibility only works if it is deliverable.

As reforms continue in England, balancing inclusive assessment with staff capacity will be critical.

Transition remains the pressure point

Transition, particularly from secondary into post-16, remains a pressure point.

While challenges in secondary education are increasing, post-16 provision is often where more flexible, learner-centred approaches begin. Yet education providers report that too many learners arrive without confidence, curiosity, or a clear understanding of how they learn.

This creates both a challenge and an opportunity: not just to deliver qualifications, but to re-engage learners and rebuild their relationship with learning, potentially while compensating for gaps created earlier in the system.

Lifelong curiosity and learning how to learn

One of the key takeaways for me was how little emphasis the system places on learning how to learn.

There is still a strong focus on knowledge recall and end-point assessment, and not enough on:

• adaptability
• curiosity
• the ability to continue learning over time

In a rapidly changing labour market, these skills are essential. For learners with SEND, they are fundamental to long-term success.

Embedding this doesn’t require wholesale redesign, but it does mean creating space for exploration, valuing process as well as outcomes, and helping learners understand how they learn, not just what they learn.

The role of adult education, Access to HE and the Lifelong Learning Entitlement

The role of adult education came through strongly.

Many learners with SEND do not follow a linear path. Late diagnosis, disrupted experiences and re-engagement later in life are common. Yet these learners are not always fully considered in mainstream reform discussions.

This is where Access to HE plays a vital role.

It already provides a flexible, proven route into higher education for learners who need a second chance or a different pathway. For many learners with SEND, it offers both structure and adaptability at the point they are ready to progress.

Alongside this, the Lifelong Learning Entitlement (LLE) has the potential to shift the system further, towards modular, flexible learning across a lifetime.

Done well, this could:

• support learners to build learning over time
• enable re-entry at different stages
• reinforce a culture of ongoing development

But this only works if learners are supported to stay engaged with learning. Lifelong entitlement needs to be matched by lifelong curiosity and so the question becomes: how do we design programmes that support both?

Reform, but with realism

Providers are already testing and delivering more personalised and flexible approaches, including project-based learning, work-based programmes, increased use of assistive technology and RARPA-based accreditation.

But the context is important: the sector is managing a significant volume of change. SEND reform, qualification reform and wider system pressures are all landing at once, and fatigue is real.

For any reform to succeed, it must:

• be practical to deliver
• reduce unnecessary complexity
• support staff as well as learners

As we reflect on this at Open Awards, we fully recognise that the system needs qualifications that:

• recognise diverse forms of achievement
• support progression at different stages of life
• are flexible without increasing delivery burden

Our role, while aligning with the direction of reform and supporting consistent standards, is to work alongside our providers to create solutions that are practical, inclusive, and support both learner outcomes and delivery realities.

There is a real opportunity to make SEND reform count, but it will only happen through collaboration.

As a sector, we need to:

• broaden what we value in learning and assessment
• embed skills for lifelong learning and curiosity
• make the most of opportunities like Access to HE and the Lifelong Learning Entitlement

Crucially, we need to work more collaboratively across the system, with learners, parents and carers, providers, policymakers and awarding organisations, to build on what we already know works.

Flexible post-16 pathways, personalised approaches, and second-chance routes like Access to HE are not new ideas. The opportunity now is to connect and scale them more effectively.

Most importantly, we need to focus on progression in the fullest sense; not just in qualifications, but confidence, adaptability and the ability to keep learning.

If we are to take that opportunity, the question for us at Open Awards is simple:

What should we be doing next to better support you and your learners?