This is a government that is finally taking the growing crisis in Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) seriously. Hot on the heels of an extra £1bn for SEND provision at the budget, I pushed the PM at PMQs to commit to the whole system reform we desperately need. The PM's reply couldn't have been clearer: this is a government that will finally prioritise fixing SEND provision. And it can't come a moment too soon.

Not a week goes by where my office isn't contacted by a young person or a family with SEND. Over the last decade, we've seen an explosion in the number of families taking councils to tribunal, often after months or even years of trying to navigate a system that has all too often felt stacked against them.

The system should wrap around families and provide clear and compassionate support. Instead, the sad reality is that it can add to the distress, with agonising wait times forcing children to spend even more time out the classroom, falling further and further behind.

Tribunals are not a sustainable model for securing support, cases are appealed at an eyewatering cost to everyone involved. It is clear things need to change.

The Ofsted reports for Hertfordshire and Central Bedfordshire Councils painted a damming picture of local SEND provision and the challenges families face. It is important to acknowledge that since these reports, there have been some welcome signs of progress, such as increasing staff capacity and expanding specialist school provision, even if those changes were long overdue.

However, how families and, crucially, young people in Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire have been let down for so long speaks to the scale of the issue: a nationally broken system. Fixing the system will require huge change. It will require political will – with local leaders collectively striving to be more ambitious for our young people. It will require systemic reform and innovative thinking but crucially, it will require the funds to make this happen.

It's why I've also been campaigning for increased SEND provision funding nationally. The budget marked a key moment for SEND, and as a result of these efforts and because of the tireless campaigning of families, our Labour Chancellor announcing an additional £1 billion specifically for SEND provision. This vital funding is a significant step toward delivering the support our young people urgently need.

However, we also know that all the funding in the world will not make a difference without a trained workforce to deliver the change. We urgently need a comprehensive workforce strategy to ensure local authorities and partnerships are properly supported. From educational psychologists to speech and language therapists, the reality is stark, we just do not have enough trained professionals to fill these vital roles at the moment. Being so close to London further exacerbates the challenge of retaining talent in our region.

I'm proud of the leadership the government has shown on SEND, with steps already underway to improve inclusivity and expertise in mainstream schools while working to ensure special schools meet the needs of children with the most complex challenges. It's a solid start, but it's only the beginning.

To every young person, parent, and teacher fighting every day, doing their absolute best in a broken system: I admire your resilience, but we can't tolerate this any longer. The Prime Minister's promise not to shy away from this challenge must now be matched by real action and I'll be working with our new government to make sure this happens.