Tag: Education
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A National Picture of Harm: Families speak out on SEND
Measure What Matters. National Database: Indexed Testimony on SEND Maladministration · Volume 3 · 22 February 2026 Volume 3: National Database: Indexed Testimony on SEND Maladministration The largest published qualitative primary source dataset on the lived experience of families navigating the SEND system in England — now containing 1,253 testimonies from 134 Local Authorities across…
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Children Died. The System Looked Away. Today the Government Will Call That Reform.
A Measure What Matters investigation into the suicide of neurodivergent children failed by the SEND system — and a system that answered their deaths with no learning, no accountability, and, as of today, no recourse. Content warning: This report contains detailed accounts of child suicide, suicidal ideation, and self-harm. It has been prepared with regard…
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What the Cases Reveal: Failure, Fragmentation, and the Absence of Scrutiny
A Measure What Matters investigation into the suicide of neurodivergent children failed by the SEND system — and a system that answered their deaths with no learning, no accountability, and, as of today, no recourse. Content warning: This report contains detailed accounts of child suicide, suicidal ideation, and self-harm. It has been prepared with regard…
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A National Picture of Harm: Families speak out on SEND
Today, we are publishing an initial collection of anonymous testimonies from families across England who have experienced unlawful, unethical, or harmful behaviour while trying to secure Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) support for their children. This publication is the first output from our national data collection campaign. It offers both a sobering account of…
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Family Testimonies: A Foreword
The following document contains a series of anonymised testimonies submitted by parents and carers of children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) in Surrey over the last 2 months. The responses were collected in answer to the following question: “Have you experienced unethical, dishonest, unlawful or harmful behaviour from Surrey County…
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Open Letter to Rt. Hon. BRIDGET PHILLIPSON MP, Secretary of State for Education
Re: Urgent concerns over unlawful conduct, maladministration, and breakdown of accountability at Surrey County Council in the management of their statutory SEND responsibilities. June 2025 Dear Rt. Hon. Bridget Phillipson, MP, We are writing to you today not as professionals, politicians, or campaigners — but as parents and carers of children with Special Educational Needs…
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🚨 ACTION NEEDED: Will You Add Your Voice?
Why We’ve Written This Letter – And Why YOUR Voice Matters Now More Than Ever A call to families in Surrey – and beyond – to support urgent ministerial intervention in Surrey County Council’s SEND services. Since beginning our deep-dive into the inner workings of Surrey County Council over nine months ago, one thing has…
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Overwritten and Obscured: How Surrey (*literally) Obscures their catastrophic SEND Performance
Surrey County Council’s Public Report on SEND: A Masterclass in Data Obfuscation We’ve covered Surrey County Council’s somewhat selective approach to performance reporting before. But unfortunately, their latest KPI Information, contained in the ‘Public Report Pack’ ahead of the ‘Children Families and Lifelong Learning Culture Committee’ this week, is probably their most ridiculous example yet…
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The Cost of Silence: A Closer Look at Surrey’s Approach to Complaint Handling and Accountability
We’re taking a slight departure from our usual data analysis work to address some growing, urgent concerns regarding reported changes in Surrey County Council’s approach to managing complaints that have emerged since our last analysis reports were published. Firstly, we make no apologies for our relentless focus on the management of complaints in Local Government.…
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A Forensic Review: Breakdown in Governance at Surrey County Council’s Audit and Governance Committee
Data Extracted from; Local government complaint reviews – Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (‘Complaints Decided’ by Local Authority, 2021-2024) At Measure What Matters, our mission is to track local government performance, simplify key metrics, and promote transparency and accountability. Following our previous analysis of Surrey’s Troubling Education Complaint Crisis; this forensic review of Surrey…
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