The Council for Disabled Children is delivering a series of events in relation to the government consultation on SEND reforms.
SEND Engagement Events
The Council for Disabled Children and the Department for Education are partnering to host a series of online and in-person engagement events as part of the SEND Reform: Putting Children and Young People First consultation.
These events are an important opportunity for anyone with an interest in the consultation to share their views on the proposals - including parents and carers, local authorities, schools, early years and further education settings, and social care and health representatives.
Each event will provide an overview of the consultation areas and the vision for reform, followed by breakout groups to discuss key themes – you can choose the groups that are of most interest to you. These breakout sessions will be:
- Working together to respond to needs early
- Parents as partners in the system
- Inclusive mainstream system
- Specialist support and Education, Health and Care Plans
- Support across the whole system and join up between organisations
- Accountability, redress and appeals
- Recording needs across all layers of support
Space at events is limited so that conversations can be meaningful and content will be the same at each event. Please only register for one of these events, so that as many people as possible can take part. If you are unable to secure a place, you can still access a range of information about the consultation through a series of five recorded information webinars.
We encourage you to formally respond to all the consultation questions through submitting a written response to the consultation. You can do that here.
Please register for one of the following:
Monday 20 April – 10 AM – 2 PM – East Midlands - Leicester
Tuesday 21 April- 4 PM - 6.30 PM - Online
Wednesday 22 April – 9.30am – 12.30pm – Online
Monday 27 April 9.30 AM – 12.30 PM – Online
Tuesday 28 April – 10 AM – 2 PM – South West - Bristol
Thursday 30 April – 9.30 AM – 12.30 PM – Online
Friday 1 May – 9.30 AM - 12.30 PM - Online
Tuesday 5 May – 10 AM – 2 PM – South East - Sevenoaks
Wednesday 6 May – 10 AM – 2 PM – North East - Darlington
Friday 8 May 10 AM – 2 PM – East of England - Stansted
Monday 11 May – 10 AM – 2 PM – West Midlands - Birmingham
Tuesday 12 May – 10 AM – 2 PM – North West - Liverpool
Wednesday 13 May- 10 AM - 2 PM - London - Westminster
Thursday 14 May – 10 AM – 2 PM – Yorkshire & Humber - Leeds
Please note registration for these events is on a first come first served basis.
Contact [email protected] if you have any questions.
Department for Education online events for the education sector
In addition, Department for Education Ministers are hosting a series of online events for the education sector - giving you an opportunity to engage directly with proposals, hear from those leading the reform, and ask them questions.
Sign up for the event for those working in early years hosted by the Early Education Minister, Olivia Bailey, on Wednesday 22 April 18:00 - 19:00.
Sign up for the event for those working in primary schools hosted by Minister Georgia Gould, the School Standards Minister, on Wednesday 29th April 4 PM – 4:40 PM.
Sign up for the event for those working in secondary schools hosted by Minister Georgia Gould, the School Standards Minister, on Wednesday 29th April 5 PM – 5:40 PM.
Sign up to receive an email update on the event for those working in post-16 hosted by the Skills Minister once this date is confirmed.
Online event for parents and carers with Minister Georgia Gould
Sign up for the online event for parents and carers with School Standards Minister Georgia Gould, on Wednesday 15 April at 18:00. Minister Gould will be joined by a panel of experts to discuss the proposals and will take questions from you in a live Q&A.
Information Webinars
We delivered a series of information webinars in March 2026 which were designed to support different audiences to understand what is most relevant to them in the SEND Reform: putting Children and Young People First Government Consultation.
These were information sharing sessions designed to help people understand the content of the SEND consultation paper and did not form part of an official consultation.
Watch the recordings from the webinars here
Voices of children and young people in the SEND reforms
The Council for Disabled Children’s Participation team is working throughout this consultation period to support disabled children and young people, and those with special educational needs, to share their thoughts, experiences, and ideas, and help shape the SEND reforms.
Click here to find out more