This week we joined colleagues from schools, trusts and local authorities at the National SEND Conference 2026 in London. The agenda was full of reform, accountability and adaptive teaching. The word we heard most, on stage and over coffee, was relationships.
The mood matched it. People shared openly, swapped what was working, and seemed ready to take on the next phase of SEND reform instead of bracing for it.
Relationships ran through everything
Relational practice came up in session after session. Christopher Lore of Spaghetti Bridge made the case for a universal relational approach as a route to inclusion. Laura Earnshaw of myHappymind set out the science of belonging and its link to behaviour and attendance. Professor Dame Sonia Blandford framed what works as Belong, Thrive, Achieve.
Belonging first, achievement following. That order kept repeating.
Special schools already know how to do this
Special schools are experts in relational practice, and mainstream schools have a real opportunity to learn from them. Five Acre Wood in Maidstone, Kent, is a prime example. It is the UK’s largest special school, and this year it was shortlisted in the top 10 for the World’s Best School Prize for Innovation.
At Life Lessons, we have collaborated with the team at Five Acre Wood for several years. They have helped shape our approach to SEND best practice and guided the adaptation of our resources, which are now used across mainstream schools.
One of the highlights was seeing in person with Karen Robinson-Jones, Assistant Head, and Jemma Gillies, Learning Approach Lead.
The expertise mainstream schools need exists in the system. The task is to get it moving between settings.
Inclusion bases need supported staff
Inclusion bases were one of the most discussed topics of the day. With DfE funding behind their expansion, Vasilis Strogilos of the University of Southampton asked whether a base is a pathway to participation, a safe space, or both.
Our question is about the people who work in them. A base is only as strong as its staff, and they need the skills and ongoing support to do the job well.
Training came up constantly, as it always does. In our experience, training by itself rarely changes practice. Staff return to busy classrooms with new ideas and nothing to deliver them with.
Schools need frameworks and resources that match the approaches staff are being trained in. Without them, good training fades within a term.
Why PSHE belongs at the centre
This is where PSHE comes in. Our colleague Dawn Aytoun, Head of Product and Impact at Life Lessons, presented Belonging by Design: PSHE at the heart of inclusion. Her argument was that PSHE should stop being treated as content to deliver and start driving a school’s inclusion strategy.
PSHE is where pupils build peer relationships and where teachers can hold safe discussions. Inclusive PSHE resources, for universal and targeted provision, give staff a practical way to do relational work every week. The Life Lessons Inclusion Framework is built to support exactly that.
Are soft skills finally being prioritised?
We left with a question. Are we seeing a real shift towards relationships, belonging and wellbeing as priorities in their own right? The evidence shared on the day suggests these skills are a route to better attendance, behaviour and, ultimately, attainment.
If the openness in that room is any guide, the sector is ready to find out. Thank you to everyone who shared their work, and to IGPP for bringing us together.
Jamie O’Connell, Life Lessons Co-CEO and Founder