Ring-fenced funding for inclusion. Spend it on the teaching.
Every mainstream school in England now has ring-fenced money for inclusion. Teachmate’s 20+ SEND and adaptation tools help you adapt planning, resources and support around each learner, within the DfE’s principle of adaptive teaching.
EdTech Company of the Year 2026
20+ SEND & adaptation tools, all included in a School account. Hover to pause.
- Differentiate TextSimplify a text to make it more accessible
- Inclusion Strategy GeneratorCreate your inclusion strategy on how you overcome barriers to learning
- One Page Support ProfileCreate a one page student-centred profile
- SEND Lesson PlannerMulti-pathway lesson planning for diverse SEND needs
- Step-by-Step InstructionsQuickly create step-by-step instructions for students for any task
- SEND SupportSupport, general strategies and information on catering for students’ specific needs
- IEP WriterDraft an IEP support plan for your students
- Pupil Passport with TargetsDraft a Pupil Passport with targets for students
- EHCP Outcome GeneratorGenerate outcomes and actions from an anonymised EHCP
- EHCP to Curriculum PlanCreate a curriculum plan from an EHCP, adapted from existing plans or from scratch
- SMART TargetsGenerate SMART target plans to support your students
- Individual Student Behaviour PlanGenerate a behaviour support plan for a student
- Social Awareness Story: BehaviourCreate a social story around behaviour
- Social Awareness Story: ExperienceCreate a social story for an experience a student may face
- Sensory ActivitiesIdeas for sensory activities linked to a topic
- Clear CommunicatorUse this tool to simplify your communication
- EAL Vocab MatGenerate a list of vocabulary with translations
- Language TranslatorTranslate text into a different language
- Define VocabularyGenerate definitions, synonyms, etymology and example sentences
- Alternative VocabularyGenerate more sophisticated vocabulary to replace overused words
- Flash Card GeneratorGenerate flash cards with key vocabulary for any topic
- IDP Writer for WalesCreate an IDP for your learner
- 20+
- SEND & adaptation tools
- 160+
- Curriculum-aligned AI tools
- 2,400+
- Schools using Teachmate
- 440,000+
- Teachers worldwide
What the fund is
What the Inclusive Mainstream Fund asks of your school
New money, with clear rules on what it can fund and what you must publish.
Allocated automatically, ring-fenced for inclusion
Academies are paid directly; maintained schools through their local authority. It can’t be absorbed into running costs, capital works or unrelated staff time.
Spend it on evidence-informed activity
Every pound must map to at least one of the seven principles. Keep records of spend and impact: the DfE reviews a sample and Ofsted can view it.
Publish an inclusion strategy by 31 December 2026
A public document setting out barriers, funded activities, budgeted costs and intended outcomes.
Use it by 31 March 2028
Unspent funds carry forward until then, so spending can be phased.
Key dates
- February 2026Fund announcedSchools white paper Every Child Achieving and Thriving and the SEND reform consultation.
- 2026Funding allocatedPaid automatically to every mainstream school in England.
- 31 December 2026Publish your inclusion strategyBarriers, activities, budgeted costs and intended outcomes.Create your strategy
- 31 March 2028Deadline to spend the fundingUnspent money can be carried forward until this date.
What it can’t be spent on
- General running costs or operational spend
- Capital works
- Staff time unrelated to inclusion
- Subsidising pre-existing activity: it can’t simply renew an existing contract at the same scope
The seven principles
Where Teachmate fits, principle by principle
Spending must map to the DfE’s seven principles. Teachmate is strongest where the evidence says it matters most: everyday, high-quality teaching. Select a principle to see which tools apply, and where Teachmate doesn’t.
Principle 1 · Supports
Ambitious leadership & governance
Leaders set the vision for inclusion, hold the strategy and are accountable for its impact.
Teachmate gives leaders a practical way to draft and structure the inclusion strategy itself, and profiles like the One Page Support Profile feed a whole-school picture of provision.
- Inclusion Strategy Generator
- One Page Support Profile
- SMART Targets
Worth knowing: the strategy is due 31 December 2026 and is a public document.
Principle 2 · Strong fit
Evidence-based support, early intervention
Noticing need early and responding with support that has evidence behind it.
Notice where a student is struggling early and respond in the next lesson, not weeks later. Exit tickets, diagnostic feedback and assessment task ideas make checking for understanding part of every lesson.
- Exit Ticket Generator
- Diagnostic Feedback – Action It!
- Assessment Task Ideas
- Quiz Generator
- Whole Class Feedback
Principle 3 · Strongest fit
High-quality adaptive teaching
Designing a curriculum every child can access, with explicit instruction, scaffolding and clear feedback.
This is where Teachmate helps most. These tools make it quick to plan explicit instruction, scaffold learning and give clear feedback, so more students keep up with the same rich lesson.
- Differentiate Text
- Model Text Generator
- Enhance This Answer
- Success Criteria Generator
- Modelled Reading Support
- Concept Explainer
- Word Mat Generator
- Step-by-Step Instructions
- SEND Lesson Planner
Why it matters: everyday teaching quality is the biggest lever for students with SEND, which makes this principle the strongest case for the fund.
Principle 4 · Not Teachmate’s area
Enriching provision beyond the classroom
Clubs, trips, enrichment and wider experiences that build belonging and broaden horizons.
Teachmate is focused on teaching, assessment and inclusion in the classroom. Provision beyond the classroom will sit with other parts of your offer, and Teachmate would rather say so than over-claim.
Suggestion: fund this principle from your wider enrichment budget and keep Teachmate within principles 2, 3, 5, 6 and 7.
Principle 5 · Strong fit
Safe & respectful culture
Belonging, attendance and participation: a climate where every child feels safe and ready to learn.
Build calm, consistent classrooms and repair relationships when things go wrong.
- Class Behaviour Management Support
- Restorative Practice Resource
- Social Awareness Story: Behaviour
- Social Awareness Story: Experience
- Individual Student Behaviour Plan
Principle 6 · Supports
Strong partnerships with families
Working alongside parents and carers so support is understood, shared and consistent.
Plan and communicate confidently alongside parents and carers, in plain language they can act on.
- One Page Support Profile
- SEND Support
- Difficult Conversations Made Easier
- Clear Communicator
- Pupil Passport with Targets
Principle 7 · Supports
Inclusive, accessible environments
Physical, sensory and communication environments that let every child take part.
Produce visual supports, communication aids and easier-to-read materials, with language tools for students and families working in more than one language.
- Word Mat Generator
- Differentiate Text
- Social Awareness Story tools
- EAL Vocab Mat
- Language Translator
- Sensory Activities
As a SEND teacher, Teachmate has made my job so much easier! The SEND tools are fab and allow me to individualise learning without the extra hours of work! It’s also perfect when I need a quick lesson plan in a pinch!
Inclusive-teaching model
Tools mapped to the inclusive teaching model
How Teachmate’s tools support students with SEND, grouped by the four parts of everyday inclusive teaching.
Explicit instruction
Breaking learning into small steps, clear explanations, modelling, checking misconceptions and guided practice.
- Step-by-Step Instructions
- Clear Communicator
- Concept Explainer
- Misconceptions Generator
- Story Generator
- Word Mat Generator
- Model Text Generator
Scaffolding
Adjusting teaching in response to need, with scaffolds, alternative representations and flexible support.
- Model Text Generator
- Enhance This Answer
- Differentiate Text
- Success Criteria Generator
- Modelled Reading Support
Assessment & feedback
Checking what students know and can do, identifying misconceptions and using evidence to adapt teaching.
- Exit Ticket / Retrieval Generator
- Assessment Task Ideas
- Diagnostic Feedback – Action It!
- AI-Proof Assessment Ideas
- Whole Class Feedback
- Quiz Generator
- Success Criteria Generator
Positive relationships & calm classrooms
Knowing students well, high expectations, routines and consistency: a climate where students feel safe and ready to learn.
- One Page Support Profile
- SEND Support
- Difficult Conversations Made Easier
- Class Behaviour Management Support
- Restorative Practice Resource
- Social Awareness Story tools
A GDPR-compliant chat for the questions tools can’t predict
Not every SEND question fits a template. Open Chat lets you ask anything, attach a document and get a classroom-ready answer, inside a platform built for schools.
- GDPR-compliant by design. Built for UK schools, with data minimisation and review-before-use built in.
- Attach what you’re working from. Upload a text, plan or profile and ask for it adapted, chunked or explained differently.
- Save the prompts your SENDCo trusts. A bank of school templates so every teacher starts from the same good question.
Strategy due 31 December 2026
The deadline that comes before the spending
Before the fund can do anything, every school must publish an inclusion strategy. Here is what it must contain, and how Teachmate helps you draft it.
What your published strategy must include
The DfE expects four things, in writing, by 31 December 2026.
- BarriersThe barriers to learning and participation your students face.
- ActivitiesWhat you will do about them, mapped to at least one principle.
- Budgeted costsWhat each activity costs, so the fund is accounted for line by line.
- Intended outcomesWhat should be different for students, so impact can be reviewed.
Teachmate tool
Inclusion Strategy Generator
Give it your school’s context and the barriers you have identified, and it drafts a strategy structured around barriers, activities, costs and outcomes, ready for your leadership team to check, cost and publish.
A starting point, not a submission. The thinking, costings and sign-off stay with you.
Included in School and Trust accounts.
What Teachmate could look like as a line in your plan
Three illustrative rows in the four-part structure the DfE asks for. Swap in your own barriers and numbers.
| Barrier | Funded activity | Budgeted cost | Intended outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| Students with SEND can’t access the same texts and tasks as their peers | School account for all teaching staff, with SENDCo-led CPD on adapting texts, success criteria and worked examples | School account (see school pricing) plus CPD time | More students keep up with the same lesson; adapted resources become routine |
| Gaps in understanding are spotted weeks late, after assessments | Weekly exit tickets and diagnostic feedback built into planning, with next-lesson responses agreed in departments | Within the School account; department meeting time | Earlier support; fewer students needing intervention later |
| Families of students with SEND don’t have a clear, shared picture of the support in place | One Page Support Profiles for every student on the SEND register, reviewed with families each term | Within the School account; SENDCo and tutor time | Stronger partnerships with families; consistent support across staff |
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See how Teachmate fits your inclusion strategy
Bring your barriers and your budget. A demo walks your SENDCo and leadership team through the SEND tools, Open Chat and how a School account maps to the seven principles.
- 31 December 2026
- Publish your inclusion strategy
- 31 March 2028
- Deadline to spend the funding