A groundbreaking blueprint for tracking progress for pupils with SEND has been developed and launched by Outcomes First Group (OFG) – the UK’s largest provider of specialist provision.
The new framework – ‘Progress X’ – is designed to transform SEND assessment and support – an area the Department for Education (DfE) identified as challenging but essential in the recent Curriculum and Assessment Review.
‘Supporting the needs and abilities of all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) must be underpinned by an accountability system that captures and celebrates the progress of all of them and so incentivises schools to provide an inclusive curriculum.’ Professor Becky Francis CBE, Review Chair.
The launch of Progress X comes at a pivotal time ahead of the publication of the Schools White Paper, as mainstream settings gear up towards becoming more inclusive.
Commenting on the launch, Dr Rebecca Lawton, Quality and Compliance Director, at OFG, explained, “Schools must be supported and incentivised, to enable them to reintegrate SEND pupils successfully. Reducing the often hyper focus on high-stakes exams, and presenting SEND performance data separately, would encourage greater engagement without fear of negatively impacting overall school performance. It would also positively recognise the myriad of talents and achievements of pupils with SEND.
“Traditional academic measures like SATs and Progress 8 don’t reflect the progress of many pupils with complex needs. These tools often overlook vital areas of development such as independence, creativity, and sporting achievement. Many of our children simply cannot access formal testing, and these metrics risk demotivating pupils, families, and staff.
“Determined to set high aspirations while recognising the unpredictable nature of progress, the Progress X framework provides a personalised approach to tracking pupil development. EHCP targets are used to create tailored learning goals, reviewed every half term by multidisciplinary teams. Progress is assessed using a developmental scale – emerging, developing, secure, mastery – allowing for flexible, responsive support.
“A centralised dashboard enables analysis of pupil progress by school, region, diagnosis, gender or other key factors. It tracks pupil destinations after leaving school, compares performance to national data where it is available, and where none is available, our extensive data set can create a new benchmark.
‘The dashboard allows rapid responses to queries and provides unprecedented insight into SEND pupil progress. The framework standardises assessment across different school types, ages, and local authorities, allowing meaningful comparisons and informed decision-making. Going forward, we believe Progress X has the potential to shape sector-wide standards and are sharing our learning with policymakers to ensure every pupil’s progress is recognised and celebrated.”
For this academic year alone, Progress X has enabled Outcomes First Group to monitor progress for 2,100 pupils, tracking over 21,000 personalised targets aligned with EHCP goals. The data is helping the Group build a rich picture of pupil progress with the first full Group-wide data set expected in Summer 2026.
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