Help with education for a disabled child
Resources available to support children and young people with special educational needs, or who require extra support with their learning (also known as SEN or ASN).
Education can look very different to everybody, especially for children and young people who have special educational needs. Look at the organisations below to get support with your child’s learning needs.
Specialist learning and early year’s education
Information and advice from government
You can find information on support for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) for parent/carers, on the government website.
Use the government website to contact your local council if your child is not in a school or nursery and you need information on how to request an Educational Health and Care Plans (known as an EHCP) assessment.
Visit the GOV.UK websiteCouncil for Disabled Children
Council for Disabled Children provide support, advice and resources for parents, professionals and local authorities. They aim to increase support for disabled children in the UK.
Visit the Council for Disabled Children websiteIndependent Provider of Special Education Advice
Independent Provider of Special Education Advice (IPSEA) offers free and independent legally based information and advice. They help to get the right education for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities for families in England.
Call 0300 222 5899 (Friday, 9:30am to 3:00pm).
Visit the IPSEA websiteContact
Contact is a support charity for families with disabled children. They help parents and carers to feel confident about the challenges of raising a disabled child by providing advice on topics including education and learning. This includes guides on early year’s education, getting an Education Health Care Plan (EHCP) and school transport.
Call 0808 808 3555 (Monday to Friday, 9:30am to 5:00pm).
Visit the Contact websiteNational Autistic Society
National Autistic Society provides information on education for children with autism. Find resources on education jargon, dealing with exclusion, getting extra help at school, difficulties at lunch or break times and finding the right school for your child.
National Autistic Society also have an education rights helpline who can provide general information about educational rights and entitlements, as well as advice on specific topics such as getting extra help in school, assessments, education plans, reviews or school transport.
Call 0808 800 4102, leave a message and a volunteer will call back.
Visit the National Autistic Society websiteEducation support in your home country
Depending on where you live in the UK, there are different types of education support you can access. This could be local support from your parent carer forum or help from local government, and local councils.
England
Help from your local offer
It is the law for every local authority in England to publish all the services that are available to children and young people with special educational needs or disabilities, in one simple place. This is called a local offer. The local offer is a place to find everything from local specialist playgroups, to information about local transport services.
The local offer can be found on your local authority website. To find, and get in touch with, your local authority, visit the GOV.UK website.
You can find out more about your local offer on the Council for Disabled Children’s website.
Help from Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Information Advice and Support Services
The Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Information Advice and Support Services (SENDIASS) offers local information, advice and support for parents and carers of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
The service is free, impartial and confidential and local to your area. You can find your SENDIASS service through the Information, Advice and Support Services Network on the Council for Disabled Children website.
Scotland
Services in Scotland for children with additional support needs (ASN) are called additional support for learning.
Enquire
Enquire is the advice service for additional support learning in Scotland. They support families and schools, working together to ensure children get what they need. Enquire provides resources and advice for parents to help you feel informed about your child’s rights to additional support. It offers advice on how to work with your school, to get the right support in place, and explain options for resolving education disagreements.
Call 0345 123 2303 (Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday 9:30am to 4:30pm).
Visit the Enquire websiteNorthern Ireland
The Special Educational Needs Advice Centre
The Special Educational Needs Advice Centre (SENAC) provides advice on the Northern Ireland special educational needs system. It gives information and advice on how to get help and support in school for children with learning difficulties and special educational needs.
Call 028 9079 5779 (Monday to Thursday, 10:00am to 1:00pm).
Visit the SENAC websiteWales
In September 2021, Wales launched a new system of support for children with additional learning needs (ALN). The ALN framework replaced the existing special educational needs (SEN) system.
SNAP Cymru provides information, advice and support for parents, children and young people who have, or may have, special educational needs or disabilities.
Call 0808 801 0608 (Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 5:00pm).
Visit the SNAP Cymru website