The Medium Term Impact of the Pandemic on Pupils with SEND

This report examines how the COVID-19 pandemic affected students in England with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), particularly those with Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs). Drawing on national and local authority-level data from 2015–2022, it highlights three key findings and offers policy-focused insights, focussing on widening gaps in absence and achievement, geographical inequities (the `SEND lottery') and the role of pre-pandemic funding. These findings underscore the urgency of sustained, targeted policy responses and funding allocations that support the most vulnerable learners and mitigate long-term disruptions to their education. Specifically, they suggest the importance of: increasing baseline SEND funding in underfunded areas and align resources with local needs; provide enhanced tutoring, mental health support, and specialised training to address the significant rise in both absence and achievement gaps between pupils with EHCPs and their peers; and, since pupils eligible for free school meals also displayed hightened vultnerability, prioritise initiatives such as free digital tools, nutrition programmmes, and community-based academic support to reduce economic barriers.