Department for Education hires Gemma Collins for PR campaign

The Department for Education (DfE) is attempting to rehabilitate its image by working with reality TV star Gemma Collins for a series of social media posts. The move has been widely criticised by parents of SEND children and disabled campaigners.

Department for Education makes a mockery of SEND crisis

On Tuesday 20 May the Department for Education shared across their social media a video of The Only Way is Essex star Gemma Collins dramatically turning up at their offices.

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In the video the GC demands with her hands on her hips:

Right! What are we doing to help the children?!

She was then met by Secretary of State Bridget Phillipson, who just happened to be popping her head out of her office door to tell her:

Come in let’s have a chat

This has angered many campaigners who either have children struggling in the system or struggled themselves. What’s even more insulting is that the video came just a day after the SEND reform consultation closed. Throughout the SEND consultation process, campaigners have tried to have meaningful conversations with the department, to no avail.

As The Canary previously reported:

As BBC News reported:

In a highly critical report, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) found a SEND system “in disarray”, “mired in red tape, lacking funding, and failing to produce value for money”.

An estimated 1.7 million school-aged children have special education needs and disabilities in England.

The Department for Education (DfE) said the government was “making progress” on the issue with a £1bn investment in Send.

Despite a 58% increase in high needs funding over the past decade, the number of children with Education, Health, and Care (EHC) plans has surged by 140%, leading to funding not keeping pace with demand. This disparity has resulted in stagnant outcomes for children, eroding parental confidence in the system.

So to see the department welcome in a C-lister who has no experience of the SEND system is a kick in the teeth to campaigners.

Campaigners angry

One commenter asked:

What expertise or experience does GC have with education or SEND or children in general???

Content creator theminimesandme said

Parents are out here fighting daily battles for support, assessments, EHCPs and suitable education for their children, while also trying to navigate school trauma, burnout and a system that too often leaves families feeling unheard. And the Department for Education’s answer is a celebrity cameo pretending she’s going to “change everything and help everyone”?

This isn’t entertainment for us. This is real life.

Oliver Lee of AskEllie.co.uk, a page that offers SEND support, hit the nail on the head by commenting:

The most worrying part about this video is that somebody, somewhere inside the Department for Education, genuinely thought this was the right tone during the biggest crises in modern education.

Parents are not asking for celebrity skits or social media optics.

They are asking for:
school places,
mental health support,
EHCP provision,
safe environments,
and systems that stop pushing families to breaking point.

The backlash is not about Gemma Collins. It’s about a growing feeling that the people leading are no longer truly listening to the reality families are living every single day.

To add insult to injury, if the department actually was interested in bringing in a well-known person, there are many disabled influencers and parents of SEND children who have been involved in campaigning. For instance, Izzy Judd, who has a neurodivergent child.

Judd reposted the DfE’s videos, saying:

A campaign should educate, inform, empower or create real change. Right now, many parents are asking, who was this actually for? The SEN crisis is not entertainment content. It’s real life for thousands of families every single day.

GC and DfE not helping

Gemma Collins responded to comments attempting to alleviate the situation, but she didn’t really make it better. She replied:

I see all your comments I’m going to change everything and help everyone please do not worry

Oh, cool, cheers GC, all our fears are gone.

The Department for Education updated followers and this morning unveiled that Collins is helping promote vocational subjects. To do that she and Philipson made two videos talking rubbish about how they did at school.

In the first, insultingly Collins says:

You better make sure hunnies that whatever you’re learning you concentrate because you’re going to be taking it into your future career

Which is another huge insult to disabled kids and their parents who are trying their hardest to stay in school.

This latest publicity stunt by the Department for Education shows just how little the government takes disabled children and parents seriously. Ultimately they care more about their public image than meaningful support for SEND kids.

Featured image via Dan Kitwood/Getty Images