Two former Labour education secretaries have urged the government to restore “sanity and certainty” to England’s special educational needs system, as analysis shows spending has risen fastest in the most affluent councils, leaving deprived areas “trailing behind”.
According to research by the Policy Exchange thinktank, total local authority spending on special educational needs and disabilities (Send) increased by more than £5bn in real terms between 2018-19 and 2024-25 – a 58.5% increase in six years.
The report highlights that Send spending in the wealthiest 50% of councils increased in real terms by 65%, compared with a 51% increase in the most deprived areas. “Given the clear evidence base that ties Send needs to deprivation, these findings are troubling,” the report said.
The Policy Exchange report, From Rates to Ruin: the Ongoing Crisis in Local Authority Send Spending, was published on Tuesday as the government put the finishing touches to its proposals to overhaul the Send system, which will be revealed in a schools white paper due later this month.
Endorsing the report, Ruth Kelly, who was education secretary 2004-06, said: “Dramatic spending increases on Send have placed an unsustainable burden on local authorities, at a time where they are struggling to afford the services on which we all rely. Despite clear links between disadvantage and Send needs, inequitable spending patterns have seen Send spending rise faster in the most affluent councils, with deprived areas trailing behind.
“Restoring sanity and certainty to the system is the only way to secure the long-term future of Send provision in England and ensure fairness for those who rely on it.”
Estelle Morris, who was education secretary in 2001-02, said: “The financial burden that the present system is placing on local authorities is already known but this report explores the details and its different impact on individual local authorities. It concludes that the increased expenditure in recent years is greatest in areas of least deprivation which adds to the evidence for the need for radical change.”
Earlier this week, ministers said they would spend about £5bn clearing 90% of local authority Send debt accumulated by this April. Council leaders had said that without intervention these debts would push 90% of councils into effective bankruptcy by 2028.
Zachary Marsh, research fellow in education at Policy Exchange and author of the report, said: “The government has made the right call to tackle the Send funding crisis head on and take the pressure off local councils and on to the Treasury balance sheet.”
Asked why spending has gone up fastest in wealthier areas, he said it was closely correlated with rising applications for education, health and care plans (EHCPs), the legal agreements supporting pupils with special needs. “Last year nine out of the top 10 councils that saw the highest number of EHCP applications were in the 50% most affluent council areas. It is vital that reform ensures support is accessible early to those who need it most and not only to those well-placed to advocate through the bureaucratic EHCP process.”
Jane Harris, vice-chair of the Disabled Children’s Partnership, said: “We know half of parents have to give up work or reduce their hours because of lack of support for their disabled child. In areas of greatest disadvantage that will tip families into poverty and crisis.
“Every child should have the chance to learn in a setting that is safe and where staff know how to teach them. Common sense and certainty will come when families no longer have to fight for these ordinary expectations, regardless of where they live.”
Madeleine Cassidy, the chief executive of IPSEA, the leading charity in the field of Send law, said: “We know that families who are able to access legal advice, whether paid or free, are in a stronger position to secure the support their children are legally entitled to. That does not mean their children are more in need, but rather they are better equipped to navigate an often unlawful system.
“An increasingly persistent narrative suggests the Send system is under strain because of excessive ‘demand’ from parents. This is neither accurate nor fair. Parents are not asking for more than the law provides – they are simply asking for the law to be followed.”
The Department for Education was approached for comment.
