Bercow Review: 'Grave concerns' over lack of progress on speech and language support

In its official response to the Bercow: Ten Years On report - a review of progress in provision for children and young people with SLCN in England in the last decade - the government set out actions it is taking to improve support for children with special educational needs or disabilities (SEND), such as the introduction of education, health and care (EHC) plans.

However, the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (RCSLT) and charity I CAN, which published the review in March this year, have pointed out that children with SLCN may not meet requirements for an EHC plan.

In a joint statement they said: "The RCSLT and I CAN have grave concerns that the government's actions will not cover the vast majority of children and young people (10 per cent) who have persistent long-term speech, language and communication needs.

"It is these children and young people who don't meet the threshold for an education and health care plan."

The Bercow: Ten Years On review found parents accessing support for SLCN had experienced little improvement over the past decade.

The original Bercow report published in 2008 found that 77 per cent of parents and carers said information on children and young people's SLCN was hard to obtain. The new report found slightly more parents and carers (78 per cent) felt that way.

It also found that the postcode lottery in SLCN support persists, with half of parents waiting more than six months before their child gets the help they need.