A Pupil Engagement Framework that recognises all young people
Written by: Mo Varley, Head of Student Welfare at Academy21
The new Pupil Engagement Framework sits within a series of wider efforts, with successive governments attempting to move away from SEND as a separate issue within education or, even worse, an afterthought.
The journey of SEND reforms within the UK education systems
The Rochford Review and its recommendations were formally accepted by the Conservative government in 2017, which began a more holistic approach to students working below the standard of national curriculum tests and offered opportunities to assess progress for students not engaged in formal national curriculum learning.
The new white paper and, in particular, the SEND Reform: Putting Children and Young People First consultation document, build on over a decade of work in this area. With the removal of P levels in 2018 and the introduction of the Engagement Model in the 2021/22 academic year, the current white paper can further develop a strengthening, inclusive approach to SEND education within the education system itself, rather than separating it. This is a reassuring starting point for parents of students with SEND who have long felt that their children are segregated from their peers in terms of policy and practice.
By 2029, schools will be expected to monitor pupils’ sense of belonging. This has caused quite a stir in the British education community, and further guidance on how to measure sense of belonging will certainly be welcome.
One clear thing is that pastoral teams, which anyone who has worked in a busy secondary school will know are the backbone of any school, are moving front and centre in this new framework rather than providing a supporting role to the academic teams.
What is the new Pupil Engagement Framework?
The 2026 SEND Report shifts pupil engagement from a periodic “consultation” to a continuous, statutory requirement. Central to this is the Pupil Engagement Framework, which mandates that schools use real-time feedback loops and standardised digital tools to ensure the student’s lived experience directly shapes their support.
This is most evident in the new Digital Individual Support Plans (ISPs), where pupils – including those who are non-verbal – can use video or voice notes to co-design their learning environments and specify which “Reasonable Adjustments” actually work for them.
TEP data, now drawing from 300,000 children, reveals a direct correlation between diminished engagement, lower attainment levels, and poor attendance. Fostering engagement is the strategic priority and should be delivered through the most effective channels, including digital platforms.
Moreover, under the new tiered support model, a school’s accountability is now tied to how effectively they listen. Ofsted’s 2026 inspection criteria specifically evaluate schools on their implementation of this framework, shifting away from simple data tracking towards a focus on student agency. For those with complex needs at the “Specialist” tier, enhanced advocacy rights ensure that the pupil’s voice remains the primary evidence for assessing the success of their provision, effectively making the student a lead partner in their own educational journey.
According to the report, there is “compelling evidence that shows that positive pupil engagement, including things like having a sense of belonging at school, is key to tackling some of the most important barriers to opportunity.”
Measures and requirements under the new framework
The new framework is specific about measuring the following:
- Sense of belonging
- Feeling safe in school
- Quality of relationships with teachers and peers
- Inclusion and accessibility of learning
- How much do pupils value and feel motivated by school
The word ‘belonging’ must be in the top 5 most used words in education this year. This comes from the government report for 24/25 on pupils’ experiences in schools, which clearly indicated that belonging and safety are areas schools should monitor closely.
The need to belong is biologically and psychologically essential for most human beings. There is no more crucial time in our development than the sense of belonging we have within our schools, and this goes a long way toward explaining why – amid a mental health crisis among our young people – the government is prioritising the measurement of this in our student populations. Belonging is psychological safety for children.
Finding a place to belong is not as straightforward as simply placing a young person at their nearest school. For most, this works fine. For some, there is a need for flexibility and different solutions.
Online learning as a way to engage more students, more efficiently
In 2026, thankfully, we have a plethora of options for students to engage with education, and online classrooms are a tool that more local authorities are collaborating with each year. We can give students that sense of safety and belonging by recognising that their need may be to learn individually rather than in the high-arousal school environment. The paper delivers the clear message that pupils come first, so we must ask ourselves: what does this young person need?
Engagement in recent years has been measured almost exclusively by attendance. It is reassuring to see a real shift in the white paper toward a holistic approach that seeks to identify emerging disconnections before attendance drops. Research from the 24/25 linked pupil survey above highlights that emotional and cognitive disengagement often precedes non‑attendance. Within a school, teachers will be expected to recognise and log these changes.
How we boost (and measure) engagement at Academy21
Within the online classroom at Academy21, we have been successfully measuring engagement in myriad ways for two decades. There may be a lot that mainstream schools could learn from alternative provisions about recognising atypical engagement. In our classrooms, students are given the option to participate as much as they feel on any given day through various tools such as polls, quizzes, asynchronous learning, watching and listening, chat and private chat functions, gamified learning, the list goes on.
The more options students have, alongside the low pressure and reassuring environment, means engagement comes naturally. In a mainstream school, finding new opportunities for students to demonstrate engagement will be challenging, but this paper encourages educators and leaders to think outside the box. This could be a transformative time for our education system, truly putting what pupils need at the heart of our thinking.
Fostering a sense of belonging
Sense of belonging also goes hand in hand with whether pupils feel valued and motivated by the school. Schools are high-arousal environments that most students adapt to and work within.
For some, the busy environment of a school can be overwhelming and debilitating, leading to an escalation in behaviour and a decline in wellbeing. We know online works for our students because we have the privilege of seeing this each day. We also have regular anecdotal evidence from parents and carers of our students.
The amazing thing about online learning is the flexibility it offers, and, quite often, knowing your school is somewhere you belong means it works for you as an individual.
Why online AP works to meet the new pupil engagement framework
Online alternative provision sits clearly within the parameters of the new framework, offering both short- and long-term solutions for students. Many local authorities, MATs and schools across Britain are already using external alternative provision as partners in ensuring all students can be supported at the point of need. The aim of the new framework is to put interventions in sooner rather than waiting until crisis point.
The developing questions and indicators should identify when students begin to feel a drop in their engagement with school and enable earlier support. We often see students with us at Academy 21 who have been out of education for months, even years. The new approach should help to avoid these situations for young people.
It goes without saying that for students to engage, multiple routes to that engagement are required. The growing body of research on the benefits of online education for young people is overwhelmingly positive. Online education offers:
- Flexibility for young people who may struggle with sleep schedules; those with ASD and ADHD may find sleep challenging, as well as students with mental health conditions
- Students who need to develop more independence and attainment, as well as boost their social skills. As one teacher commented, referring to an online education study: “What works really well is shy students being able to be shy and being able to come out gently and not lose out.”
- Perhaps most crucially, online education has been shown to increase engagement in students who had struggled in a traditional classroom setting
The new white paper promises to recognise that a one-size-fits-all approach to education will be left in the past, where it belongs, paving the way for new, innovative relationships between schools, local authorities, MATs, and specialist online provisions that ensure all pupils can engage meaningfully with education and achieve the outcomes they deserve.
