Ben Bryant

Ben specialises in developing approaches to support vulnerable young people. He has led major national research projects and local reviews to explore and strengthen support for vulnerable young people.

Ben has led significant national research projects into different aspects of support for vulnerable children and young people. Most recently, Ben co-led a major national research project looking at the scale and root causes of challenges in the “SEND system” in England and what an effective and sustainable future approach would look like. Our report, jointly commissioned by the Local Government Association and the County Councils Network, was published in July 2024. Ben has previously led national research projects on SEND and inclusion, AP, and the enablers of improvement in children’s services and early help. Most recently, Ben led and co-authored research into “rising needs in the early years” and a Nesta-commissioned project looking at integration of early years education and support for families.

Ben is currently part of the RISE (Research and Improvement for SEND Excellence) Consortium, led by the Council for Disabled Children, which has been commissioned to deliver the “What Works in SEND” programme. Ben’s has led on the development and roll-out of the “effective practice evidence” framework, which captures case studies of effective local practice relating to SEND and inclusion, and the development of “learning communities” (including the youth voice learning community).

In the past, Ben has led major national research projects on SEND, alternative provision, enablers of improvement in children’s services and early help, the role of local authorities in education (specifically in relation to place-planning and vulnerable children), and how local areas responded to Covid-19 lockdowns.

Ben has also supported numerous local areas across England on reviews of strategies, services and funding for support for vulnerable young people. This has included working with local areas, such as Wakefield, Rotherham and East Sussex to develop new systems for fostering inclusion and the effective use of alternative provision. Most recently, Ben has worked on projects relating to support for vulnerable young people in Essex, Manchester, Bath & North-East Somerset, Waltham Forest and Lewisham.

Ben is an expert facilitator and has experience of facilitating high-profile summits, stakeholder consultations and strategy development events across the UK and internationally. Before joining Isos Partnership, Ben worked for the Department for Education, where he was one of the authors of the 2011 green paper on SEN and disability, and led reforms of the pupil premium and high-needs funding. Ben is currently a governor at a local primary school.