Families and Children Bill to reform SEN and adoption systems

The bill will include measures to reform the system of support for children with special educational needs (SEN) and disabilities, speed up the adoptions process, reduce delays in the family courts, strengthen the role of the children’s commissioner and introduce flexible parental leave, so that new parents can share time-off work immediately after a baby is born.

The bill means that SEN statements will be replaced with a single assessment and education, health and care plan for 0-25 year-olds from 2014.

Councils and health services will be required to jointly plan and commission the services that children, young people and families with SEN or disabilities need.

In terms of adoption, local authorities will be prevented from delaying an adoption to find the perfect match if there are suitable adopters available.

The ethnicity of a child and prospective adopters will come second, in most cases, to the speed of placing a child in a permanent home.

In family courts, child protection cases will have to be completed within a six-month time frame.

The government also intends to strengthen the law so that children are supported to have a relationship with both their parents after family separation.

Meanwhile, the Office of the Children’s Commissioner will have increased powers to promote and protect children’s rights, and will take on functions currently carried out by the children’s rights director at Ofsted.

The commissioner will have more independence from ministers and the power to carry out assessments of the impact of policies and legislation on children.

“My government will strive to improve the lives of children and families,” the Queen said.

A joint statement from the Prime Minister David Cameron and the Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg added: “Our Families and Children Bill will put families front and centre of our national life, with unprecedented support for parents and the biggest reform for 30 years of support for children with special needs or disabilities.”