CALLS for new legal protections to prevent private equity firms and offshore investors treating the UK’s special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) provision as a ‘cash cow’ have been joined by local MP Rachel Gilmour.

A campaign was launched as the Government was delivering its SEND White Paper this week.

The plan would see SEND services officially designated as critical national infrastructure (CNI), a status currently reserved for services such as water and energy.

This would give the Government power to block acquisitions which prioritised profit over the welfare of vulnerable children.

Mrs Gilmour said SEND provision had come under increasing pressure in her Tiverton and Minehead constituency, which covers West Somerset, parts of the Culm Valley and Blackdown Hills, and some parishes around Wellington.

Nationwide, local authority spending on private SEND provision has soared, with some areas seeing a tenfold increase since 2015, and Mrs Gilmour has been campaigning for an ‘overhaul’ to the current system.

Mrs Gilmour attended recent roundtable events with parents and local councillors and has heard from hundreds of families across the constituency.

She said a new Government strategy was needed to fix the ‘broken’ SEND system.

Mrs Gilmour said: “It is appalling that while parents across Somerset and Devon are fighting tooth and nail for the support their children deserve, offshore investors are raking in millions in profit from our local councils.

“Private equity funds have, for years, shamelessly exploited a loophole in the system, funnelling money overseas into shareholders' pockets and away from vital frontline care.

“By designating SEND as critical infrastructure, we can ensure public money stays where it is needed, supporting our most vulnerable children, rather than lining the pockets of sovereign wealth funds in Abu Dhabi or private firms in Europe.”