New SEND Strategy: Right Support, Right Place, Right Time

Cheshire East has launched a new Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) strategy to ensure every child gets the support they need, when and where they need it.

The SEND and Alternative Provision (AP) Strategy 2025–2028 was developed by the Cheshire East 0–25 SEND Partnership, which includes the council, NHS, schools, health providers, and the Parent Carer Forum. It sets out a clear vision to help children and young people with SEND thrive.

The updated strategy brings together key priorities into a single, unified plan. It aligns with the council’s wider transformation programme and addresses and aligns with critical areas such as: 

• Managing increasing financial pressures on the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) 
• Making developments in line with findings from feedback, inspections and the SEND self-evaluation (SEF)
• National improvement work 

At the heart of the strategy is a shared commitment to helping children and young people with SEND to be HAPI: 

• H - Happy and Healthy 
• A - Achieving their potential
• P - Part of their communities 
• I - Independent as possible, making choices about their future

The SEND and Alternative Provision (AP) Strategy 2025–2028 (PDF, 2MB) was approved on 9 June 2025.