This new narrative helps reframe how specialist provision is recognised. Developed in consultation with CST members that run special schools and alternative provision settings, it reflects a shared ambition: to articulate a confident, collective voice that positions this part of the sector.
The special schools system has been consistently treated as distinct from the education system – frequently overlooking alternative provision entirely – and failing to recognise the vital role both play in providing specialist provision within one system. A reductionist narrative prevails, focused on cost, ‘adversarial’ relationships between commissioners, providers, and families, and with little recognition of the social value gained by supporting our most vulnerable children through specialist provision. This must change.
Specialist provision is not an expensive indulgence, but an essential public asset. If we are serious about an inclusive education system, we must stop marginalising the settings that support those whose needs cannot currently be met in mainstream, ensuring that their success, and the success of those who attend them, is central to the reform of the education system. This new narrative helps reframe how specialist provision is recognised. Developed in consultation with CST members that run special schools and alternative provision settings, it reflects a shared ambition: to articulate a confident, collective voice that positions this part of the sector not as a fiscal pressure, but as critical social foundation for inclusion, impact, and innovation for our most vulnerable children.
