Ofsted finds gaps in SEND preparation across teacher training

Ofsted has identified inconsistencies in how initial teacher education (ITE) providers prepare trainees to teach pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, following thematic monitoring visits in 2024/25.

Inspectors found most providers integrate SEND across the curriculum, often drawing on Education Endowment Foundation research and government guidance. However, coverage is uneven, with some training offered too late or not revisited, limiting recall and classroom confidence for a minority of trainees.

In early years ITE, trainees generally build strong foundations, but the watchdog found that mentor expertise is variable with some setting-based mentors lacking up-to-date knowledge of speech, language and communication needs, making it harder for trainees to apply theory in practice.

The findings come following visits to 78 providers between spring and summer 2025. It added that primary providers typically thread adaptive teaching and SEND through subject sessions, and generally while leaders plan for trainees to be able to put into practice what they have learned, in a small number of cases the timing of activities is not as well aligned with other topics as leaders would like. The opportunities for trainees to put into practice what they have learned about SEND varies between the individual placement schools.

In the secondary phase, Ofsted found that trainees often visit specialist settings and receive subject-specific guidance. Yet, it added that gaps persist where mentors are unaware of ITE content or where SEND is treated too broadly, leaving some trainees with generic, rather than pupil-specific, adaptations.

In further education and skills provision, inspectors found more variability. While many programmes align with the new diploma in teaching framework, some still teach outdated concepts without critique. Trainees in certain providers lacked subject-specific mentoring, weakening preparation for learners with SEND.

Ofsted said: “Although inspectors saw many strong examples of SEND in the ITE curriculum, there are a small number of trainees whose knowledge and understanding of SEND lacks depth. This is because some elements of the training on SEND are not precise enough or are not connected to other teaching.”

The watchdog concluded that improving the precision, timing and reinforcement of SEND content — coupled with stronger, quality-assured mentor training — would reduce variability and better equip trainees to meet diverse needs.