Northamptonshire SEND parents rally outside parliament
Northants group SEND Mummas took part in an ‘inspiring’ protest outside parliament this week, over growing concerns the government could get rid of important support for students with special educational needs.
Northants group SEND Mummas took part in an ‘inspiring’ protest outside parliament this week, over growing concerns the government could get rid of important support for students with special educational needs.
Hundreds of parents from across the country stood on Parliament Square on Monday (September 15), brandishing homemade signs and calling on the government to listen to their voices on their SEND overhaul plans.
The rally was triggered by a debate in Westminster Hall on whether the government would commit to maintaining current levels of mandatory support for children. This was accompanied by growing concerns that education, health and care plans (EHCPs), which outline specific support for young people with complex needs, could be restricted or abolished.
Protesting on the day was mum Emma Briggs, who co-founded Northants SEND Mummas as a local support group. She spoke about how important EHCPs are for children with additional needs and the “catastrophic” impact when there isn’t one in place.
She said: “My son is in mainstream school, he’s just started year 5, and when he started struggling in school he was in reception.
“His care plan is so important because his learning is tailored to him. Rather than going into a class and doing what everyone else is doing, it’s broken down.
“Some children just don’t learn that way- they process things differently and the EHCP is meant to help them do well.
“If they didn’t have that and they were expected to learn in the same way as neurotypical children it would be so difficult. If the EHCP wasn’t there, we don’t even know what the alternative would be.”
According to Department for Education (DfE) statistics from June 2025, 638,745 children nationally have EHCPs, the highest number since they were introduced a decade ago.
A parliamentary debate was called on Monday after more than 125,000 people signed a petition calling for commitment from ministers to ensure statutory responsibilities to assess and support children with SEND remain in place.
Emma said that it was “inspiring” to go to the rally with other members of the local group and meet parents from across the country who all want to raise awareness around the issue and make sure their voices are heard.
The government is expected to outline its education plans in the schools white paper, which will be published later this autumn.
The campaign, which is called ‘Fight for Ordinary’, was created to demand that children with special education needs get the same ordinary things as other children, such as a school place, as well as accountability in all parts of the SEND system. It has set out to champion families who want to get the support their children need “without an unnecessary fight”.
The DfE said it was committed to ensuring a legal right to additional support for children. It added that any changes to the SEND system, which it says are “badly needed”, will “improve support for families, stop parents from having to fight for support, and protect effective support currently in place”.
MP Georgia Gould, who was appointed as Minister of State at the Department for Education in September, also told MPs at the end of the three-hour debate that she was committed to working with parents “to set out reforms that really transform young people’s lives”.