Labour must keep EHCPs in Send system, says education committee chair

Helen Hayes, the MP for Dulwich and West Norwood, told the BBC that giving assurances over EHCPs was ‘the right thing to do’. Photograph: Sean Smith/The Guardian

Downing Street should commit to education, health and care plans (EHCPs) to keep the trust of families who have children with special educational needs, the Labour MP who chairs the education select committee has said.

A letter to the Guardian on Monday, signed by dozens of special needs and disability charities and campaigners, warned against government changes to the Send system that would restrict or abolish EHCPs. More than 600,000 children and young people rely on EHCPs for individual support in England.