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As the education and skills sector navigates significant changes to SEND reform, funding models and Ofsted expectations, one thing is becoming increasingly clear: inclusion can no longer sit solely with specialist teams. It must be embedded across every stage of the learner journey.
That was the key message from our recent webinar, Inclusion 2.0: Rising Demand, Finite Funding, No Learner Left Behind, where experts from Cognassist and Tribal explored how providers can deliver personalised support at scale, while balancing growing learner needs, compliance requirements and limited resources.
A New Era for Inclusion
The inclusion landscape is changing rapidly. New Ofsted expectations place greater emphasis on providers demonstrating effective inclusion strategies, while SEND reforms are expected to increase responsibility for identifying, supporting and evidencing learner needs at provider level. At the same time, the introduction of the Inclusive Mainstream Fund (IMF) signals a shift towards giving providers greater control over how funding is spent, alongside greater accountability for outcomes. For many providers, this raises an important challenge:
- How do you deliver personalised support to more learners without significantly increasing administrative burden or specialist staffing requirements?
- During the webinar, Cognassist founder Chris Quickfall highlighted that the future of inclusion is likely to focus on creating a "mainstreamed inclusion layer" where adaptive support becomes part of everyday teaching and learning, rather than something reserved only for learners with the highest levels of identified need.
Why Evidence Matters More Than Ever
A recurring theme throughout the discussion was the importance of being able to evidence support.
Whether through Additional Learning Support (ALS) funding, Inclusive Mainstream Funding or Ofsted inspection activity, providers are increasingly expected to demonstrate a clear process of:
- Assess
- Plan
- Do
- Review
This graduated approach requires providers not only to identify learner needs, but also to document decisions, implement support plans and regularly review their impact.
The challenge is that many organisations are already operating with stretched teams.
As learner numbers grow and support needs become more complex, providers need systems that help them capture evidence, demonstrate impact and ensure learners receive the right support at the right time.
Bringing Inclusion Data into the Learner Journey
From a Tribal perspective, this is where the partnership between MAYTAS and Cognassist becomes particularly powerful.
As Ben Lowther, Product Manager for MAYTAS, explained during the webinar, providers are under increasing pressure to personalise delivery, improve outcomes and evidence compliance, often without additional resource.
MAYTAS already acts as the system of record for learner management, funding, compliance and reporting. By integrating with Cognassist, providers can enrich that learner record with valuable insight into individual learning needs and support requirements.
Rather than managing information across disconnected systems, providers gain access to:
- Reduced administrative effort and duplication
- Better visibility of learner support requirements
- Stronger evidence for compliance and funding audits
- Earlier identification of learners who may need intervention
- Enhanced support planning and review processes
All within the systems that delivery teams are already using every day.
Turning Data into Better Outcomes
The value of this approach extends far beyond compliance. By combining operational learner data held in MAYTAS with cognitive and inclusion data from Cognassist, providers can begin to build a much richer understanding of learner success.
Charles Doherty, who leads the MAYTAS services team at Tribal, highlighted how joined-up data can help providers identify factors influencing achievement, retention and learner progress. For example, support plans can inform:
- More effective onboarding processes
- Better training plan design
- More meaningful progress reviews
- Earlier interventions when risks emerge
- Improved learner engagement and retention
Perhaps most importantly, it enables providers to move beyond supporting individual learners in isolation and begin identifying trends across entire cohorts.
The Opportunity Ahead
While the reform landscape may feel challenging, it also presents an opportunity.
Providers that can demonstrate they understand their learners, tailor support effectively and evidence impact throughout the learner journey will be well positioned for future funding and inspection requirements.
Technology alone is not the answer. But by connecting systems, reducing administrative burden and making learner insight more accessible to staff, providers can create a more scalable and sustainable approach to inclusion.
As Chris Quickfall concluded, the organisations that successfully combine cognitive insight with operational learner data will be able to understand not just what is happening, but why it is happening, enabling earlier intervention and better learner outcomes.
Watch the Webinar On Demand
Missed the live session or want to revisit the discussion? Watch Inclusion 2.0: Rising Demand, Finite Funding, No Learner Left Behind on demand to hear expert insights from Cognassist and Tribal and learn how providers can prepare for the next phase of SEND reform, funding accountability and inclusive learner support.
