The government’s Every Child Achieving and Thriving proposals set out a clear direction for the future of education in England. At the centre of this is a shift towards greater inclusion, earlier intervention and more consistent support for students with SEND (particularly within mainstream classrooms).
Our short guide below outlines the key themes from the proposals and what they mean in practice, alongside how Teachmate can support schools in preparing for this shift.
What are the ‘Every Child Achieving and Thriving’ proposals?
Led by the Department for Education, the proposals outline a long-term approach to SEND reform with a focus on:
- A more inclusive system, where a greater proportion of SEND students are supported in mainstream settings
- Earlier identification of need and more consistent intervention
- Stronger collaboration between schools, trusts and local services
- A continued emphasis on evidence-informed teaching and curriculum design
- Clearer accountability for outcomes, including engagement, attendance and progress
Implementation will take place in three overlapping phases: aligning to best practice from the 2025/26 academic year, preparing for wider SEND and curriculum reforms from 2026/27, and moving towards full implementation from 2028/29.
Key SEND takeaways for schools and teachers
1. Inclusion becomes a whole-school responsibility
The proposals signal a move away from reliance on external provision, with schools expected to meet a broader range of needs internally.
This will require:
- Greater use of adaptive teaching strategies
- More routine personalisation of learning
- Increased flexibility in how resources are designed and delivered
2. Increased expectations around SEND planning and provision
Schools will be expected to demonstrate clearer, more structured approaches to SEND support, including:
- Digital Individual Support Plans (ISPs) for students with identified needs. These will map out learning barriers, interventions, and outcomes. They replace SEN Support, providing tailored support from a national framework without needing an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP).
- Defined levels of provision (Targeted, Targeted Plus and Specialist) – this will represent a new, tiered SEND support framework intended to replace the current system to create a consistent, graded response to needs.
- More consistent translation of EHCPs into practical classroom strategies
3. A stronger focus on engagement, belonging and attendance
Alongside attainment, there is a growing emphasis on how students experience school.
By 2029, schools will be expected to monitor:
- Student engagement
- Sense of belonging
- Attendance and behaviour
A new Pupil Engagement Framework will support this, providing measurable indicators for schools to track and improve these areas.
4. Greater support for inclusion, alongside increased accountability
The proposals include investment in:
- SEND-specific training
- School improvement programmes such as RISE
- Collaboration across trusts and school groups
At the same time, expectations will increase. Schools will be required to:
- Publish an Inclusion Strategy
- Demonstrate how resources are being used to support students with SEND
- Evidence the impact of their provision more clearly
What this means in practice
In simple terms:
👉 You will need to adapt teaching more frequently
👉 Personalisation will need to happen at scale
👉 SEND provision will need to be clearly evidenced
👉 And all of this will need to sit within existing time constraints
For many teachers, this represents a significant shift in how teaching, planning and support are approached day to day.
Applying SEND reform in practice: how Teachmate supports inclusive teaching
Teachmate’s collection of 20+ specific SEND tools have been developed in collaboration with teachers, SENCOs and specialists, with a focus on supporting practical implementation in real classrooms.
Rather than adding additional processes, the platform is designed to support the efficient delivery of adaptive teaching, personalised learning and SEND provision.
Supporting adaptive teaching and resource development
Teachers are expected to modify content more frequently to meet a wider range of needs. Teachmate supports this through tools such as:
- Differentiate Text, enabling rapid simplification or restructuring of content, tailored to a specific learner’s needs.
- Worksheet Adaptor, allowing resources to be adjusted for specific levels, difficulty, or SEND needs, including scaffolding, language simplification or reduced cognitive load
- Step-by-Step Instructions, supporting clarity and independence through structured task breakdowns
These tools support more responsive teaching without requiring repeated manual adaptation.
Planning for inclusive classrooms
Planning for SEND is increasingly expected to be embedded from the outset, rather than retrofitted.
- The (NEW) SEND Lesson Planner supports multi-pathway lesson design, helping teachers plan for a range of needs within a single lesson
- Sensory Activities and EAL Vocab Mat provide additional routes into the curriculum, supporting engagement and accessibility
Supporting communication, behaviour and engagement
As the focus on belonging and engagement grows, structured communication becomes increasingly important.
- Clear Communicator supports the simplification of instructions and explanations
- Social Awareness Stories help prepare students for both new experiences and behaviour expectations
- Student Checklists support routine, independence and task completion
Strengthening SEND provision and documentation
With increased expectations around SEND planning and accountability, tools that support clarity and consistency are essential.
- EHCP Outcome Generator translates EHCP information into clear, actionable outcomes
- IEP Writer, IDP Writer and Pupil Passport tools support the creation of structured, consistent support plans
- SMART Targets help define measurable next steps for student progress
Supporting sustainable inclusive practice
The direction of reform is clear: inclusive teaching will become a core expectation across all classrooms. Therefore, delivering this effectively requires:
- Efficient systems for adapting teaching
- Consistency in SEND provision
- The ability to respond quickly to individual needs
Teachmate supports this by enabling teachers to implement these approaches more efficiently, while maintaining professional judgement and high standards of teaching.
Prepare now for SEND reform
Schools that are already embedding adaptive teaching, structured SEND provision and efficient planning processes will be best placed to respond to these changes.
The shift is not coming in isolation; it is already underway. The challenge now is ensuring it is sustainable in practice.You can explore our entire SEND & Adaptation Tool Collection here.
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