Montessori Classroom” (photo by KJJS) — licensed CC BY 2.0
I’ve done a lot of reflecting over the last couple of days, and wanted to get an important point of view across. I hope this is helpful to those with children in KS1/2 who will be affected by the SEND reforms, and this idea of ISPs replacing EHCPs for non-“complex” children.
The SEND White Paper conversation has brought one word into sharper focus: “complex”. For many families, that label can feel confusing — especially when a child’s needs don’t sit neatly inside one diagnosis, and yet that one diagnosis is all they have…
Diagnoses can be hugely positive. For many people they bring relief, identity, community, and a route to support. The challenge is that they can also be extremely broad umbrellas. Two children can share the same diagnosis and have very different learning needs — sensory processing, language, working memory, motor coordination, anxiety, fatigue, and how quickly they tip into overwhelm.
That’s why it often helps to go beyond the label and build a learning needs profile. In practice, effective SEND support usually comes from understanding how a young person learns and what blocks access to learning in real-life settings (especially in busy classrooms).
Polyvagal theory: learning starts with nervous system regulation
Polyvagal theory, which I talk about all the time, helps explain why this matters. When a child feels safe and connected, their nervous system is more available for communication, flexibility, memory and problem-solving. When their body senses threat — and threat can be subtle (noise, time pressure, unpredictability, social stress) — protective states may show up as fight/flight, freeze or shutdown. That’s when “can’t” can be misread as “won’t”.
So support can’t just focus on behaviour. It needs to focus on state:
- more cues of safety
- more co-regulation
- fewer hidden stressors
- predictable routines and transitions
- adjustments matched to sensory and processing needs
Primitive reflexes: the body piece that often gets missed
This is also where primitive reflexes are relevant. Primitive reflexes are early movement patterns that should integrate as the brain and body mature. When reflexes remain retained (partially or fully), children may work much harder to sit still, track a line of text, cross the midline, coordinate handwriting, tolerate posture demands, or stay regulated under cognitive load.
Retained reflexes can look like inattentiveness, anxiety, fidgeting, poor stamina, or emotional reactivity — and they can amplify sensory sensitivity and stress responses. Supporting reflex integration can reduce the load on the nervous system, making regulation and learning more accessible.
Labels open doors. Profiles guide support.
If systems are going to sort children into boxes like “complex needs”, we need to keep returning to what actually helps:
a diagnosis may open the door — but a detailed profile (including nervous system regulation) is what guides effective SEND support.
