Individual Support Plans (ISPs): what the SEND reforms propose and how to get ready

What has been proposed

The Schools White Paper, Every Child Achieving and Thriving, published on 23 February 2026, proposes that every child and young person with special educational needs should have an Individual Support Plan (ISP), recorded and reviewed by their school or setting. Today, only pupils with an education, health and care (EHC) plan have a statutory document; pupils on SEN support have whatever the school chooses to write. The proposal would put a plan for every pupil with SEND on a statutory footing.

The White Paper describes support in tiers: Targeted, Targeted Plus and Specialist. Most pupils would be supported through an ISP at the Targeted or Targeted Plus tier, with EHC plans kept for the most complex needs at the Specialist tier. The consultation closed on 18 May 2026. The details below are proposals; legislation and statutory guidance will set the final requirements, so check the latest DfE publications before relying on any of them.

What an ISP is likely to contain

The final template has not been published. Based on the White Paper and on existing good practice for SEN support plans and one-page profiles, an ISP will almost certainly need to record:

• The pupil’s strengths, what is important to them, and how best to support them, in language the pupil and family recognise.
• A clear description of the pupil’s needs and the barriers to learning.
• The reasonable adjustments and adaptations every adult should make.
• The targeted provision: what, who, how often, for how long and in what group size.
• Outcomes that can be measured, and a review date.
• The pupil’s and parents’ views, captured at each review.

Most of this is what Chapter 6 of the Code of Practice already expects a school to record under the graduated approach. The change is that the record would become statutory, consistent and visible to families.

The three tiers in practice

What to do now

1. Use one plan template for every pupil on the SEND register, with the sections above. Consistency matters more than the name.
2. Set a review date on every plan and hold reviews termly; the Code already expects parents to be met at least three times a year (6.65).
3. Record provision with frequency, duration and cost, so a costed provision map can be built from it.
4. Share the plan with parents in plain language, and capture the pupil’s views in their own words.
5. Note the tier you would assign each pupil today. It will make the transition, and your inclusion strategy, far easier.

Sendiphany’s Support plans feature is built around these sections, including the three proposed tiers, termly reviews with pupil and parent contributions, a Word export with a one-page profile, and optional sharing with families through the parent portal.