The Island Project

29/09/2026

Blooming heck, you lot.

For the first 150 days of this petition, we averaged 267 signatures per day.

We just casually hit a daily total of 3,750 signatures with 850 in the last HOUR.

This is how we send a message. Keep going!

Link in comments and bio

25/09/2026

Last week, the Government’s consultation on education otherwise than in school (EOTIS) closed.

While no final decisions have been made, the consultation paper appears to clarify an intention to remove the current right of appeal over how a child or young person’s needs and special educational provision are described in an EHC plan. These changes could affect all children and young people with EHC plans, not just those who require EOTIS.

In our latest blog, we explore what the two recent Government consultations could mean for children and young people with SEND, including concerns about the proposals moving away from individually tailored, legally enforceable support.

Read our blog and consultation response: https://www.ipsea.org.uk/blog/send-reforms-we-need-a-system-thats-accountable-and-meets-individual-needs

22/09/2026

If you DON’T have children with special educational needs or disabilities, please read this.

There’s a petition closing in 3 weeks, asking the government to protect the legal right to support for children with SEND.

If it gets 100,000 signatures, it will be debated in Parliament. At the time of writing this post, it has 57,665.

Many people signed a very similar petition earlier this year, before the schools White Paper was published with its disastrous proposals for SEND reform.

This one is different. We now know what a total car crash the SEND reform proposals are, and the government is still not listening.

So why should you care about these proposals if your child doesn’t have SEND?

They put the main responsibility for deciding whether a child needs support and what that support should look like on already overworked teachers, most of whom have little or no specific training on SEND.

They also give responsibility (and power) to local authorities - the same ones that break the existing law over and over again.

Over 98% of parental appeals to the SEND tribunal against decisions by local authorities are upheld.

That’s an extraordinary statistic - imagine the outcry if any other public or private body was breaking the law to this extent.

A carefully drip fed stream of articles in the media has claimed that the SEND crisis has been caused by pushy, demanding parents whose children probably have fake diagnoses.

A tribunal doesn’t find in your favour because you’re pushy and demanding, but because the law is on your side. And support is given based on actual observed need, not diagnosis.

The proposed reforms aim to solve the current crisis by removing parents’ rights of appeal and reducing the accountability of local authorities and schools.

How will this affect your child?

Well, there will be more children in your child’s class with unmet needs.

They may be noisy, disruptive, need a lot more of the teacher’s time and attention. The proposed funding will not provide the level of support they need.

Never mind my children’s education. Please sign and share this petition as widely as you can, to protect the education of all children.

Link in comments.

15/09/2026

15/09/2026

13/09/2026

Statement on the Sale of the Halescroft Centre:
Halescroft Centre was sold at auction yesterday for £555,000. We are deeply sorry for the SEND community that we were unable to stop this outcome, despite our best efforts in the limited time available. We remain incredibly proud of the campaign we delivered and the widespread support it generated, from SEND families and from the wider public who recognised how vital and welcome a dedicated SEND centre would have been.

A Loss Far Beyond SEND:
Halescroft should not have been sold, full stop. The opportunities it presented for community use were enormous, and it is short‑sighted of Birmingham City Council to assume that a £555,000 sale outweighed public need, particularly in SEND where so many families are already in crisis.

The centre could have been a hive of activity: youth provision, wellbeing programmes, adult learning, intergenerational projects, local clubs, food support, community safety initiatives, and countless neighbourhood‑led ideas. Its loss affects Bartley Green, Birmingham, and every resident who relies on community spaces to stay connected and supported.

A Missed Opportunity for Birmingham City Council:
This sale represents a profound missed opportunity for Birmingham City Council to support a trusted, proven, high‑impact organisation already delivering outcomes the council struggles to achieve. Instead, a building with enormous social value has been lost to private ownership.

The Reality for SEND Families:
SEND Socials Birmingham CIC has been helping to plug gaps in SEND services for years. Over the last eight years, we have delivered around 50,000 activity spaces for SEND children and their families. Despite the council regularly signposting families to our provision, we were not considered a viable contender.

At a time when school places for SEND children are stretched beyond capacity, families are turning to organisations like ours to deliver what the local authority has been unable to provide. Our cohort of children not in full‑time school‑based education could easily fill two well‑sized special schools. We have been stepping up for these children when they have been deeply let down by the SEND system.

Likewise, our parent‑carer support is an embedded part of our delivery. We plug the gaps where social provision for respite is scarce. Mainstream youth services have been stripped back to the bone, and SEND young people are even further forgotten. Halescroft could have been a lifeline, a place where youth work, SEND support, and community resilience could grow side by side.

Next Steps:
We welcome, and will be taking up David’s offer to open a dialogue about identifying alternative community assets that could serve as a future home for SEND Socials Birmingham CIC.

We also remain hopeful that our ACV nomination will receive a fair and transparent hearing. The building can still be listed as an Asset of Community Value, and we expect the process to be followed lawfully and without prejudice.

We invite councillors, MPs, community partners, and residents to work with us to protect remaining community assets, challenge the ongoing stripping of public spaces, and help secure a future home for SEND Socials Birmingham CIC. Our city deserves better. Our families deserve better. And we will continue fighting for it.

Gratitude:
We want to thank every parent, volunteer, supporter, partner organisation, and member of the public who stood with us.
To everyone who submitted supporting letters, signed the petition, and shared the campaign, your voices mattered, and we are deeply grateful.

Looking Ahead:
For now, it is business as usual. Our current delivery is not impacted by this disappointing news. Some of our pipeline projects remain on hold until we can secure a suitable space but our commitment to SEND families remains unwavering.

SEND Socials Birmingham CIC

12/09/2026

We are so lucky to have support from Digital Office Group and the wonderful McPhillips family

A wonderful family run company with a professional approach, amazing staff and a caring ethos

Thank you!