The information in these VIEW briefings is derived from DfE published statistics. Most of the official SEN data that is published by DfE relates only to a pupil’s primary (or main) special educational need (SEN). However, some additional data included in the DfE ‘Special Educational Needs in England’ series give a breakdown by primary and secondary SEN type.
Characteristics of children and young people whose primary SEN was vision impairment
The information presented in this current briefing contains information only about pupils whose primary SEN was vision impairment (VI). This includes information including age, curriculum year group, ethnicity, type of school attended and eligibility for free school meals. Information about pupils whose primary or secondary SEN was VI, are given in the separate briefing that follows.
As the information provided in this current briefing shows, DfE identified 13,596 pupils whose primary SEN was VI in 2022. The majority of pupils with VI as their primary SEN (72.7%) were on ‘SEN support’; only 27.3% had an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP)
Children and young people whose primary or secondary SEN was vision impairment
This briefing gives details on the type of SEN co-occuring with VI, type of support provided and type of school attended. As the information provided in this briefing shows, by including details of pupils whose secondary SEN was VI, DfE identified a further 5,095 pupils which brings the VI pupil population total to 18,691. This is 0.2% of the pupil population, which is consistent with the prevalence estimate of VI based on the WHO classification of childhood VI and blindness.
72.7% of pupils had VI as their primary SEN and 27.3% had VI as their secondary SEN. The types of SEN most commonly co-occurring with VI were learning difficulties (LD), speech, language and communications needs (SLCN) and physical disability (PD).
Summary of DfE official data on children and young people with vision impairment in England 2021
Characteristics of children and young people whose primary SEN was vision impairment
The information presented in this current briefing contains information only about pupils whose primary SEN was vision impairment (VI). Information about pupils whose primary or secondary SEN was VI, are given in the separate briefing that follows.
As the information provided in this current briefing shows, DfE identified 13,328 pupils whose primary SEN was VI. This is 0.16% of the pupil population, which is lower than the 0.2% prevalence estimate of VI based on the WHO classification of childhood VI and blindness.
Characteristics of children and young people whose primary SEN was vision impairment
Children and young people whose primary SEN was vision impairment – key stage 4 attainment 2018/19 (briefing date: August 2021 – due to Covid 19 there are no equivalent publications for the 2020 or 2021 results)
Summary of DfE official data on children and young people with vision impairment in England 2020
The information provided in this briefing shows, by including details of pupils whose secondary SEN was VI, DfE identified a further 5,156 pupils which brings the VI pupil population total to 18,189. This is 0.2% of the pupil population, which is consistent with the prevalence estimate of VI based on the WHO classification of childhood VI and blindness. For more detailed information download the full briefing below:
VIEW briefing: Children and young people whose primary or secondary SEN was vision impairment
Characteristics of children and young people whose primary SEN was vision impairment in 2019. These statistics apply to pupils in England in January 2019.
The information presented in this current briefing contains information only about pupils whose primary SEN was vision impairment (VI). Information about pupils whose primary or secondary SEN was VI, are given in a separate briefing below.
VIEW briefing: Children and young people whose primary or secondary SEN was vision impairment in 2019. These statistics apply to pupils in England in January 2019.
The information presented in this briefing contains information about pupils whose primary or secondary SEN was vision impairment (VI). Information about pupils whose primary SEN only was VI, is given in a separate briefing above.
This briefing gives a breakdown of attainment of pupils with VI as their primary SEN at the end of Key Stage 4 in 2018. As well as providing a summary of the published DfE statistics, the briefing contains additional data that VIEW has obtained from the DfE research team, which gives a further breakdown for pupils with VI as their primary SEN into two groups: pupils with VI as their sole SEN, and pupils with VI and a secondary SEN.
Children and young people with vision impairment (VI) in England 2010 – 2018 – increase in VI pupils
This briefing has been written for VIEW members in England, in response to enquiries following publication of Scottish Government statistics that indicated an increase in the number of pupils with VI in Scotland. Statistics published by DfE have also shown an increase in the number of pupils recorded with VI over an eight-year period from 2010 to 2018. I’m unclear whether this represents an increase in the VI population or better recording by schools, which is a more likely explanation (although there is some evidence of a slight increase in the VI CYP population). We understand from colleagues in Scotland that the apparent very dramatic increase in pupils recorded with VI in Scotland doesn’t reflect a dramatic increase in the VI child population, but can be explained by changes in recording methods. The Scottish Sensory Centre is the best source of information on this topic.
The current briefing is an updated version of a VIEW briefing dated 6 June 2018. This updated version contains statistics for pupils with SEN in January 2018; the previous version included statistics to 2017 only.
