The inequity of education, health and care plan provision for children and young people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
I O Lee, J Wolstencroft, H Housby and 4 others
PMID 38777582WHAT IT FOUND
In England, children and young people with intellectual and developmental disabilities were less likely to have an education, health and care plan if they lived in more deprived areas or outside London, despite below national expected attainment scores and high emotional and behavioural difficulties.
Key findings
01EHCP receipt was 63.0% in the most deprived decile, 86.5% in decile 9 and 84.9% in decile 10.
02EHCP receipt varied by region, with 87.6% in London and 68.8% in the East Midlands.
03EHCP receipt was 73.2% for pupils eligible for free school meals and 80.3% for those not eligible.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The cohort underrepresented Black and Asian children compared with national census data, so ethnic group findings may not apply to all children in England. Educational attainment data were missing for some participants because not all schools used the national standardised system. Each pupil was assigned one primary SEN type, although they could have had multiple SEN types over time. Emotional and behavioural scores came from parent or caregiver reports only, not teacher reports. Exact counts for some minority groups were suppressed for data protection, so those comparisons are less complete. The study did not assign plans, so it cannot show that an EHCP caused the academic or emotional differences.
Declared interests
Funded by the UK Medical Research Council. The authors reported no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read lower EHCP rates in deprived areas as proof that those children need less support. The children without an EHCP had below national expected attainment scores and parent-rated emotional and conduct scores in the high band.