The overwhelming consensus that change is necessary. Investment and reform are long overdue and desperately needed if we are to turn around the ailing system of support for children with SEND, says Paul Whiteman
Underfunded: Previous governments increased SEND funding, but by nowhere near enough to meet demand. Since 2016, the number of pupils with an Education, Health and Care Plan has increased by more than 80% - Adobe Stock

With the start of a new year comes new hope – something that has been in short supply when it comes to provision for pupils with SEND.

It is no exaggeration to say that nobody is happy with the current system. Most importantly, parents and families feel their children are being let down – despite the best efforts of schools and specialists.

The overwhelming consensus that change is necessary, and the education secretary’s stated determination to tackle the issue, mean there is hope. It is clear, however, that reform and a significant increase in investment will be needed.

Previous governments increased SEND funding, but by nowhere near enough to meet soaring demand fuelled by the introduction of Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) in 2014, which raised the age up to which children are entitled to a specified level of statutory support to 25.

While EHCPs play a necessary role, since 2016 the number of pupils with a plan has increased by more than 80% (DfE, 2024), putting huge strain on the system.

When we surveyed school leaders last year, just 1% said that the funding they receive for pupils with SEND is sufficient to meet needs (NAHT, 2024). And special school leaders are angry that the £10,000 they receive per-pupil has been frozen since 2013.

Pupils who should really be in specialist provision are increasingly being supported in mainstream due to a shortage of capacity. But these schools do not receive the equivalent £10,000, despite often lacking the staffing, training or facilities needed.

Schools in this position should be able to access local authority “top-up” funding if the additional cost of SEND support is more than £6,000. But often they don’t receive the top-up funding required (the £6,000 threshold has also been frozen for more than 10 years).

Local authorities have different systems for distributing money to support pupils with the most severe needs. The National Audit Office (NAO, 2024) found that many had been forced to raise the thresholds for support resulting in a postcode funding lottery for schools. Some schools and councils have accumulated significant deficits in doing their best to offer appropriate support.

In our survey, 78% of school leaders told us they had been forced to reduce the number of teaching assistants (or their working hours) in the last three years – a real issue as teaching assistants are integral to SEND support.

Schools face more pressure trying to fill gaps left by under-resourced health and social care services. In our survey, 85% said they were subsidising healthcare provision for SEND children. Funding pressures and shortages of specialists like educational psychologists and speech and language therapists are big problems, leading to long waits for EHCPs from overwhelmed councils, further delaying support.

 

Untangling the mess

We supported some of the measures in last year’s SEND improvement plan, such as better early intervention, increasing the specialist workforce, giving alternative provision a greater role, and improving the EHCP process. 

However, we warned it would fail without significant extra funding. This never materialised. Simply rearranging the deckchairs and moving existing insufficient funding around is not enough.

We now have a new government and it announced an extra £1bn for SEND in the recent Budget. This must be the start of sustained long-term investment and reform, but the worry is that councils will just use this money to reduce existing deficits. Two-fifths of councils face bankruptcy in 2026 when accounting arrangements permitting high needs deficits end (NAO, 2024). More than six in 10 are involved in government deficit reduction programmes, but we fear these are just reducing support for children.

We urge ministers to write off these deficits to allow a reset, but we also recognise that without sustained investment and change debts will just accumulate again. 

We agree with the f40 group of local authorities (2024) that an extra £4.6bn is needed for high needs provision just to make the current system sustainable in the short-term. But long-term reforms are also needed.

Investment is required to train more educational psychologists and speech and language therapists and help alleviate the burden on those currently in post. SEND funding for schools, health, social care and other support services must be based on current demand and future projections – not constrained by artificial limits. 

More capital funding is needed. The £740m announced by the government (DfE, 2024b) to help local authorities expand and update provision in mainstream schools is a welcome start. But much more is needed, not only in mainstream settings but also in special schools, many of which are oversubscribed.

I have heard about one special school head forced to set up office in a store cupboard due to space constraints, while pupils in another school are having to work in corridors.

Investment in improving facilities and increasing the number of places available in special schools will remain crucial as the government seeks to better equip mainstream schools to provide support.

The sheer scale of the challenge in turning around this ailing system is clear. Inevitably, this means that doing so will not be easy or happen overnight – but it is simply too important to be left in a “too hard to do” box.

 

Headteacher Update Spring Term Edition 2025

This article first appeared in Headteacher Update's Spring Term Edition 2025. This edition was sent free of charge to UK primary schools in January 2025. A free-to-download digital edition is also available via www.headteacher-update.com/content/downloads 

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