What SEND means

Children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) often need extra help and support to learn.

They may have more problems than most children their age with:

• communicating, expressing themselves or understanding what others are saying
• understanding and learning, such as reading or writing
• sensory and physical development, such as hearing or visual impairments, mobility issues
• behaviour or interacting with other people, for example, they struggle to make friends

Full definition of SEND

The Children and Families Act 2014 says that children or young people with special educational needs need extra support in education because they:

• find it harder to learn than other people their age
• have difficulty using the facilities in a mainstream education provider without special help or equipment

The Equality Act 2010 says a disability is a mental or physical impairment that has a substantial and long-term negative effect on a person's ability to do normal day to day activities.