EHCPs Are Changing: What the 2026 SEND White Paper Actually Proposes — and What It Means for Your Child Right Now
The Schools White Paper proposes the biggest SEND shake-up in a decade: EHCPs reserved for the most complex needs, new Individual Support Plans, and 'inclusion bases' in mainstream schools. Here's what is proposed, what is law, and what parents should do today.
What you need to know first
- These are PROPOSALS, not law. Nothing about your child's current EHCP or rights changes today.
- The white paper ('Every Child Achieving and Thriving', February 2026) proposes reserving EHCPs for children with the most complex needs — roughly halving their number over time.
- Most children currently on EHCPs would instead have a new Individual Support Plan (ISP) delivered in mainstream school, backed by new 'inclusion bases'.
- Implementation is proposed to phase in from around 2030 — with transition arrangements still to be designed.
- The public consultation closed in May 2026; the government's response and draft legislation come next.
- Your rights under the Children and Families Act 2014 — to request an EHC needs assessment, to appeal, to name a school — are all still in force.
If you parent a child with special educational needs, you've probably seen alarming headlines about EHCPs being 'scrapped'. The reality is more specific — and further away — than the headlines suggest. This is what the white paper actually proposes, what's genuinely worrying campaigners, and what you should (and shouldn't) do about it now.
What the white paper proposes
The February 2026 Schools White Paper sets out a tiered vision for SEND support in England:
- EHCPs become a specialist instrument — legally-backed plans reserved for children with the most complex needs, typically those needing specialist placements. The government's stated aim is roughly to halve EHCP numbers from today's level.
- Individual Support Plans (ISPs) — a new, lighter-weight plan for the much larger group of children whose needs are met in mainstream schools, intended to be quicker to obtain than the current EHC needs assessment process.
- Inclusion bases — specialist provision embedded inside mainstream schools, expanding the resourced-provision model many schools already run.
- Money attached: for 2026-27 the government committed £1.6 billion to an Inclusive Mainstream Fund, £1.8 billion to specialist 'Experts at Hand' support, and over £200 million to SEND training for school staff.
What campaigners are worried about
The central concern is legal force. An EHCP is enforceable: it names provision your child must receive, and you can appeal to a tribunal when it isn't delivered. Whether ISPs will carry comparable enforceable rights is the open question of this reform, and charities pressed it hard in the consultation. The government says the response to consultation will set out the rights framework. Until draft legislation appears, both the hopes and the fears are provisional.
Don't act on rumours
What actually applies today
Now vs proposed
| Today (in force) | White paper proposal (from ~2030) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Legal plan | EHCP under the Children & Families Act 2014 | EHCP (complex needs only) or ISP (most children) | |
| Who qualifies for an EHCP | Any child whose needs cannot be met through SEN support | Children with the most complex needs, typically specialist placements | |
| Where support happens | Mainstream, resourced provision, or special school | Mainstream-first, with inclusion bases; special schools for complex needs | |
| Appeal rights | SEND Tribunal for assessment, content and placement | To be confirmed in the consultation response |
- Legal plan
- EHCP under the Children & Families Act 2014
- Who qualifies for an EHCP
- Any child whose needs cannot be met through SEN support
- Where support happens
- Mainstream, resourced provision, or special school
- Appeal rights
- SEND Tribunal for assessment, content and placement
Today (in force)
- Legal plan
- EHCP (complex needs only) or ISP (most children)
- Who qualifies for an EHCP
- Children with the most complex needs, typically specialist placements
- Where support happens
- Mainstream-first, with inclusion bases; special schools for complex needs
- Appeal rights
- To be confirmed in the consultation response
White paper proposal (from ~2030)
- Legal plan
- Who qualifies for an EHCP
- Where support happens
- Appeal rights
What to do now
A calm checklist for SEND families
The timeline from here
The consultation ('Putting Children and Young People First') closed on 18 May 2026. Next comes the government response, then draft legislation that must pass through Parliament, then phased implementation the white paper itself places around 2030 — with existing EHCPs expected to carry transition protections negotiated along the way. In other words: this is a direction of travel, not this year's admissions cycle. We'll update our SEND guides at each concrete step.
Your rights today, explained
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