Beyond The School Gates

WHY THE POST-16 SEND TRANSITION NEEDS MUCH MORE ATTENTION

For many young people, reaching the age of 16 represents an exciting new chapter. It can mean starting college, exploring employment opportunities, developing independence and beginning to make decisions about the future. But for young people with special educational needs and disabilities, the transition into adulthood can be considerably more complicated.

In fact, one of the issues attracting renewed attention across the SEND sector this October is the number of young people with SEND who find themselves outside education, employment or training after leaving school.

A parliamentary question answered on 27 October 2026 highlighted figures from the Disabled Children's Partnership suggesting that young people with SEND are around 80% more likely to be not in education, employment or training than their peers.

The Government acknowledged the significant disparities in post-16 outcomes and stated that improving pathways from school into further education, higher education, training and employment is central to its proposed SEND reforms.

This is an important conversation because preparation for adulthood should never begin on a young person's sixteenth birthday. It should be part of their educational journey long before they reach the end of compulsory schooling.

For some young people, the transition may involve moving from a familiar school environment into a large college with different routines, expectations and support arrangements. For others, it may mean exploring supported internships, vocational programmes, specialist further education or opportunities to develop independent living skills.

Whatever the pathway, planning needs to be individualised and based on the young person's strengths, interests, aspirations and support requirements.

One of the difficulties families frequently encounter is the gap between what is available in theory and what can actually be accessed locally. A young person may have clear ambitions to attend college or take part in a training programme, but the right provision may not exist nearby. Transport can become a major obstacle, particularly for young people who cannot travel independently.

The issue of post-16 transport was also raised in parliamentary questions answered on 27 October. The Department for Education acknowledged that local authorities are responsible for determining the transport and financial support needed to enable young people with SEND to participate in education or training. Councils must have regard to statutory guidance and consider the needs of individual learners when making decisions.

This is particularly important because transport is not simply a convenience. For some young people, it is the difference between being able to attend college and being unable to access education at all.

There is also a wider concern about what happens when young people reach the end of one stage of statutory support and move into another. Families can find themselves navigating different systems, new professionals and different eligibility criteria at precisely the time when consistency and stability are most important.

The Government has proposed improving transition planning, with processes beginning at least 12 months before a young person moves from school to college. This is a welcome ambition, but the real test will be whether it leads to better communication, properly coordinated support and genuine opportunities.

We also need to challenge the idea that success after school must look the same for everybody. For some young people, success may mean gaining qualifications and moving into paid employment. For others, it may mean developing communication skills, learning to travel more independently, building friendships or participating more fully in their community.

All of these outcomes matter.

Preparation for adulthood should not be reduced to a single conversation about employment statistics. It should recognise the whole person and the different ways young people can achieve independence, fulfilment and a meaningful life.

The transition from childhood into adulthood is significant for every family. For families of young people with SEND, it can also bring considerable anxiety about whether the right support will continue.

If we genuinely want better outcomes, we need to start planning earlier, listen more carefully to young people and ensure that the opportunities available to them are shaped around their individual ambitions.

Leaving school should be the beginning of new possibilities, not the point at which support suddenly disappears.