SEND Improvement History
Following this revisit, Birmingham developed a comprehensive Accelerated Progress Plan (APP) in partnership with families, schools, health services, and other stakeholders. The APP sets out the actions needed to address the key areas of weakness identified by the inspection. The remaining APP actions have been incorporated into the latest version of the SEND & AP Improvement Plan 2025.
May 2021 – October 2021
In May 2021, Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) carried out a revisit of SEND services and found that insufficient progress had been made in most areas. As a result, the Department for Education (DfE) appointed a Commissioner, John Coughlan CBE, to hold the local area to account and support the delivery of required improvements.
Following the revisit, our updates included:
- A transparent update on progress that has been made, as well as on areas where we have not made as much progress as we might have liked.
- A ‘You Said, We Did’ update that gives an update on the feedback we have received and what we have done about it.
- Information on priorities for the next term.
- Information on opportunities for co-production or feedback so that we can hear from children and young people, families, schools and other stakeholders.
Accelerated Progress Plan (APP) and feedback reports
The DfE, in conjunction with NHS England, requested that the Local Area Partnership, in conjunction with parent carers, prepare an Accelerated Progress Plan (APP), which demonstrated how the local area was to resolve the 12 outstanding areas of significant weakness identified in the original inspection in 2018. The Accelerated Progress Plan outlined agreed targets, actions, and milestones to improve SEND services across Birmingham. Progress against these actions was regularly reviewed through structured stocktake reports submitted to the Department of Education.
APP and APP feedback
- Accelerated Progress Plan – July 2021
- 18-month APP feedback – February 2022
- 24-month APP feedback – February 2024
Monitoring and oversight
The APP and wider improvement work is overseen by the SEND and AP Improvement Board, which brings together the Birmingham Local Area SEND Partnership made up of Birmingham City Council, Birmingham Children’s Trust, and NHS Birmingham and Solihull Integrated Care Board (ICB). The SEND team work closely with Birmingham Parent Carer Forum (PCF) to ensure the voices of parents/carers, children, and young people are part of the work that is co-produced. The Board meet regularly to review progress and publish board updates after each meeting.
July 2022
The Local Area Partnership met with the Department for Education SEND and NHS England officials on 8 June 2022 to review the progress made against the APP over the previous six months.
“We are particularly grateful for the contributions from your Parent Carer Forum and school representatives. The evidence submitted supports strong intentions by officer leadership in Birmingham and commitment from front-line staff. The evidence provided alongside the feedback from partners demonstrated the range of actions you have taken to accelerate improvement.” – Katie Moore, Regional Lead, West Midlands Regions Group, Department for Education.
June 2025 – Ofsted/CQC Area SEND Inspection Outcome
In June 2025, Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) carried out a three-week inspection to evaluate how effectively the Birmingham Local Area Partnership supports children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND). The inspection assessed how well education, health, and care services work together.
The next full area SEND inspection will be within approximately three years.
We fully accept the findings and are committed to delivering the improvements needed, working together as a partnership, with children, young people, families, schools, health services and the voluntary sector to deliver the change Birmingham’s children and young people deserve. The remaining APP actions have been incorporated into the updated version of the SEND & AP Improvement Plan 2025.