The schools taking the most SEND pupils are the ones being marked down for inclusion
What happened
Two separate analyses of Ofsted's new inspection results have found the same uncomfortable pattern. The schools that take the most pupils with special educational needs and disabilities are the schools most likely to be marked down on inclusion. The findings were reported by Tes on 11 September 2026, in an article by Cerys Turner and John Roberts. Ofsted introduced a new inspection framework this term. One of the areas it grades is inclusion. The intention was to give credit to schools that look after their most vulnerable pupils well. The first analysis came from SchoolDash, an education data organisation. It found that schools rated exceptional on inclusion had, on average, 12.2 per cent of pupils on SEN support. Schools rated as needing urgent improvement on inclusion had 17.1 per cent. The same gap appeared for pupils with Education, Health and Care Plans: 3.58 per cent in the highest-rated schools, against 5.22 per cent in the lowest-rated. The second analysis came from Steve Wren, a former Ofsted inspector. He found that 3 per cent of secondary schools with the lowest SEND levels fell below the expected standard. Among secondaries with the highest SEND levels, the figure was 15 per cent.
Why this matters
Five times. That is the headline comparison, and it points at something that should worry anyone who cares how schools behave. Schools respond to how they are judged. That is not cynicism, it is simply how accountability systems work. If taking more pupils with additional needs makes a poor inspection result more likely, then over time some schools will quietly become harder to get into. That is the opposite of what the inclusion judgement was designed to achieve. Andy Jordan of the Association of School and College Leaders put the concern plainly. Schools with higher percentages of pupils on the SEND register doing less well in the inclusion evaluation area, he said, demonstrates that inspections are not taking context fully into account. Jonny Uttley, a trust leader, went further, warning that the framework damages inclusive schools by ignoring admissions patterns when assessing inclusion. For parents, the practical consequence is the one that matters. If your child has additional needs, you want schools competing to admit them, not quietly hoping they go elsewhere.
What the evidence actually says
There is an important distinction to hold on to here: this is a correlation, and a correlation has more than one explanation. Explanation one is the one the critics offer. Inspectors are not adjusting for context, so schools with harder intakes look worse than they are. Explanation two is less comfortable but has to be stated. It is possible that some schools with high SEND numbers are genuinely struggling to meet those needs, because they are under-resourced, understaffed or both. In that case the inspection is measuring something real. The two explanations are not mutually exclusive. Both could be true at once, in different schools. What makes the finding more credible than a single study would be is that two independent analyses, using different methods, found the same direction of effect. SchoolDash looked at average SEND proportions by grade. Steve Wren looked at the proportion of schools falling below standard by SEND band. Agreement between separate approaches counts for something. What we do not yet have is Ofsted's own response, or enough inspections under the new framework to be certain the pattern holds across a full year. This is early data from a framework only weeks old. It is a warning sign, clearly flagged. It is not yet a proven design fault.
Practical advice
If you are a parent choosing a school for a child with additional needs, do not use the inclusion grade as your main guide. Not yet. Instead, ask the school directly. How many pupils here are on SEN support? How many have an EHCP? Who is the SENCO and how long have they been in post? Can I meet them? Ask what happens when a child struggles. A school that describes a process, with names attached, is telling you more than any grade. Talk to other parents. Local parent carer forums exist in every area and are usually candid in a way that prospectuses are not. If your child already has needs that are not being met, put your concerns in writing to the school and keep a copy. If that does not work, your local authority has a statutory duty to assess, and you can request an EHCP assessment yourself as a parent. You do not need the school to do it for you. And if a school appears reluctant to admit your child, that is worth raising with the local authority admissions team. Schools cannot pick and choose on the basis of need.
What to know
Two independent analyses of Ofsted's new inspection framework found that secondary schools with the highest proportions of SEND pupils are around five times more likely to fall below the expected standard on inclusion than those with the lowest. SchoolDash found a consistent gap in both SEN support and EHCP proportions between the best and worst rated schools. Former inspector Steve Wren found 3 per cent of low-SEND secondaries below standard against 15 per cent of high-SEND secondaries. School leaders have warned this creates an incentive to admit fewer pupils with additional needs. The data is early and correlation is not proof of a flawed framework, but two separate analyses agreeing is a signal worth taking seriously. If you are a parent, ask schools direct questions rather than relying on the grade. Sources: Tes, 'High SEND schools 5 times more likely to miss Ofsted inclusion standard', by Cerys Turner and John Roberts, 11 September 2026, https://www.tes.com/magazine/news/general/high-send-schools-more-likely-miss-ofsted-inclusion-standard ; SchoolDash, analysis of Ofsted inspection outcomes, September 2026, https://www.schooldash.com ; Ofsted, school inspection framework, https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted This article is for general information and does not replace advice from a doctor, pharmacist or other qualified healthcare professional, or from a qualified education or legal adviser.
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