The Children's Wellbeing and Schools Act and SEND Families

The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill received Royal Assent on 29 April 2026, becoming the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026. It completed Lords Third Reading in February 2026 and moved to the Commons in March before passing into law.

This is a separate piece of legislation from the SEND White Paper (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities White Paper). The two are often confused, but they address different things. The White Paper proposes Individual Support Plans (ISPs) for all children with identified SEND and would restrict Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) to children needing a specialist provision package, rather than abolishing them. This Act changes school registration, home education rules, and attendance monitoring, among other things. Most provisions aren’t yet in force - commencement orders are still to be made.

For SEND families, several provisions matter. Some are reassuring. Others are concerning. This is what each of them could mean for your child.

Your EHCP rights are unchanged

Before anything else: the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 does not change your Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) rights. Every duty under the Children and Families Act 2014 remains fully in force.

• Right to request an EHC needs assessment (Section 36) - unchanged
• Duty to issue an EHCP if criteria are met (Section 37) - unchanged
• Duty to secure the education and health provision in the EHCP (Section 42) - unchanged
• Right to appeal to the SEND Tribunal (Section 51) - unchanged
• Annual review requirements (Section 44) - unchanged
• Right to request a personal budget (Section 49) - unchanged

If your LA suggests that this Act changes your EHCP rights, they’re wrong. Ask them to confirm in writing which legislation they’re relying on.

Clause 24 (now Section 37): home education consent

This is the provision causing the most anxiety among SEND families. It was Clause 24 while the Bill was before Parliament; as enacted, it’s Section 37 of the Act, inserting new sections 434A and 434B into the Education Act 1996. It introduces a requirement for LA consent before a parent can deregister their child from school to home educate, but only in specific circumstances.

You’ll need Local Authority (LA) consent if your child is registered at a special school, is subject to a child protection investigation, or is on a child protection plan (or was on one within the last five years). For children in mainstream schools without those additional factors, the current right to home educate under Section 7 of the Education Act 1996 remains unchanged.

If the LA refuses consent, you generally can’t re-apply for six months. IPSEA (Independent Provider of Special Education Advice) has raised serious concerns about this, arguing the timeline is far too long for a child who may be in crisis or an unsuitable placement.

The Children Not In School register

The Act creates a compulsory register of all children not registered at any school in England. This includes home educated children. Parents will be required to notify the LA that their child is not on a school roll and provide basic information.

What the register doesn’t do is give the LA new powers over your child’s education. It doesn’t require you to follow the national curriculum. It doesn’t change the legal definition of suitable education. It simply means the LA will know your child exists.

Off-rolling protections

This is good news for SEND families. The Act strengthens protections against schools using informal mechanisms to remove children from the roll. If your child has been pushed towards home education, a managed move, or a reduced timetable designed to get them off the books, the new provisions aim to make that harder.

Schools will face greater accountability for children who leave their roll, and LAs will have better data on where children go when they stop attending.

The smartphone ban and assistive technology

Lords Report Stage passed Amendment 215, which would have prohibited smartphones during the school day outright. That didn’t survive intact: after several rounds of “ping pong” between the Commons and the Lords, what was finally enacted is section 36, a duty on schools to have regard to government guidance on mobile phone use during school hours, not a blanket ban written directly into the Act itself. Section 36 came into force automatically on 29 June 2026, two months after Royal Assent, so the duty is already live even though the government’s guidance may still be catching up. Separately, Amendment 216, which would have created a statutory exemption for assistive technology, was defeated by a significant margin.

This means the Act includes no specific carve-out for children who use devices for augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), speech-to-text, or other disability-related needs. However, schools are still required to make reasonable adjustments under the Equality Act 2010 for disabled pupils who need devices. This obligation exists independently of the Act, though enforcement is complaint-driven and parents may need to advocate for their child’s device access. If your child uses a device for communication or learning support, contact the school now to understand their policy and get it in writing.

Multi-academy trust inspection

The Act creates a legal framework for Ofsted to inspect multi-academy trust proprietors, not just individual schools. For SEND families whose children attend academies within large trusts, this adds an extra layer of accountability. If a trust’s approach to SEND is inadequate, Ofsted will have powers to examine that at the trust level.

What this means in practice

The Act received Royal Assent on 29 April 2026 but most provisions aren’t yet in force. Most need a commencement order from the Secretary of State before they take effect, but a handful, including the duty on schools to follow DfE guidance on mobile phones (section 36), came into force automatically two months after Royal Assent, on 29 June 2026, without needing one. Section 37 (home education consent) isn’t among them and still needs a commencement order for England. Some provisions may commence on different dates, and statutory guidance has not yet been published.

Getting help

IPSEA has published analysis of the Act’s SEND implications and continues to campaign for stronger safeguards for children with SEND. Their helpline (0300 222 5899) can advise on how the Act might affect your situation.

Your local SENDIASS (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Information, Advice and Support Service) can help you understand your current rights and plan for any changes the Act introduces.

Special Needs Jungle publishes detailed analysis of the Act’s impact on SEND families.

Stay informed, stay calm

The Act is significant, but it’s not a reason to panic. Your existing rights under the Children and Families Act 2014 are untouched. The home education changes only affect specific groups. And the off-rolling protections are genuinely positive.

Track which provisions have been commenced at bills.parliament.uk. And when statutory guidance is published, we’ll cover what it means for your family.

Sources and further reading

Legislation and official guidance

• Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 (Act page with progress tracker)
• Children and Families Act 2014, Part 3 (existing EHCP rights, unchanged by this Act)
• Education Act 1996, Section 7 (current right to home educate)
• Equality Act 2010 (reasonable adjustments for disability-related device use)