MORE than 50 parents took to the streets of Newport to demand the government act to end the national crisis in special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) funding.

The protest was organised alongside 26 other rallies across the country.

According to the National Education Union, special needs provision in England has lost out on £1.2 billion since 2015.

The union said funding granted to local authorities had failed to keep pace with the demand for SEND provision.

The group of Island parents gathered in St Thomas’ Square on Thursday, taking turns talking about their personal experiences with SEND provision on the Island.

Organiser Colleen Brannon has two SEND children, aged 11 and three.

She said: “When you become a SEND parent your whole world changes, and you have to learn a new language.

“The whole system is broken, and it’s not fair that children are paying the price for austerity.

“This could happen to anyone, but it’s not something that is widely talked about.”

Families gathered on blankets spread out across the square, to prevent any of the children feeling claustrophobic or penned in by the crowd.

The campaign is being led by families who have struggled to secure the support their children need to access education.

The Isle of Wight has the highest proportion of home educated children in the UK, at almost one in 50.

Although the Isle of Wight Council has attributed the high levels in part to under-reporting elsewhere in the country, Colleen said this was in part due to families with SEND children taking them out of school due to a lack of support.

Colleen said: “One parent told me, it’s like trying to fit square pegs in round holes and you just damage the peg.

“We are damaging a lot of children because of the lack of provision.”

Green Party education spokesperson Vix Lowthion attended the demonstration in London where a petition with more than 12,000 signatures were delivered to Downing Street.

Colleen said: “People don’t think about this because it doesn’t affect them.

“But if we are a civilised society, one of the first things we should be doing is supporting SEND children. SEND families cannot take it any more.”