"I'm not going to forget this": The impact of COVID-19 on Young People with Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities

On March 23rd 2020, the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, announced a nationwide lockdown across the UK as a result of the global pandemic caused by the disease which became known as COVID-19. The virus was spreading across the world, and other countries had reported high mortality and the danger of their health services collapsing. To prevent the spread of the virus and to protect the National Health Service, the lockdown had been ordered at speed with no time for society to prepare. Research about many aspects and impacts of the pandemic for children and young people (CYP) with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) began immediately, but due to the restrictions on society these were mostly surveys directed at adults able to respond digitally. Researchers were unable to speak directly to the CYP as schools were closed and mixing prohibited. The researcher was in the situation of having the knowledge and the ability to access this hard-to-reach population. This thesis therefore aimed to help fill the gap in the knowledge society had about the impact of the pandemic on the CYP with SEND by hearing their voices directly. There was information about younger children available, though gained mostly from adults, but there was a gap in hearing older YP's views. YP could remain in education up to the age of 25 if they had an EHCP and so create a distinct group of adolescents and young adults. A qualitative study was therefore conducted involving 46 YP with SEND who were between 14 and 25 years old and in education during the pandemic to gain their perspective of the pandemic years between 2020 and 2022. This was followed by studies involving parents and then professionals to gain their views. The findings indicate that YP with SEND were affected by the restrictions and consequences of policies and guidance during the pandemic with the impacts extending to their education and social and independence skills. The distinctive circumstances of YP with SEND, who were often completing practical courses and who had specific communication needs, were not considered during the closure of schools by government leaders. Furthermore, parents and professionals felt overlooked and unsupported in their attempts to help the YP in their care despite their best efforts in challenging circumstances. Despite there being a solid thread of resilience for many of the participants in these studies, there was also evidence of trauma for many individuals which had not yet been resolved. Additionally, findings exposed a minority of YP for whom the pandemic brought improvements in their wellbeing or education. The thesis ends with suggested recommendations should there be another crisis requiring similar health and safety measures in the UK, as governments do not appear to have learned from past research about pandemics, as can be seen from this quote from the Sprang and Silman paper written in 2013: Pandemics are infrequent but potentially devastating crises that are likely to affect the lives of many children and their families physically, socially, and psychologically. Responders in public health, health care, and behavioral health must collaborate during pandemics to ensure that disease-containment measures are understood and implemented in a manner that minimizes the potential for negative psychosocial consequences in children and families. (Sprang & Silman, 2013)