Photo: Coyot, Pixabay
Special educational services are set for a £700m boost but directors have cautioned money alone isn’t enough.
As part of a major spending pledge for primary and secondary education, the prime minister has revealed there will be an extra £700m allocated for children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) in 2020-21.
The statement said it was so “every pupil can access the education that is right for them, and none are held back from reaching their potential”.
The funding package includes £2.6bn for 2020-21, £4.8bn for 21-22, and £7.1bn for 22-23. This will bring the schools budget to £52.2bn in 22-23.
In addition, schools will receive £4.4bn over three years to cover rising pension costs.
Boris Johnson said: “The additional funding comes ahead of next week’s Spending Round and gives schools the certainty they need to plan their budgets.”
Special educational needs spending has put severe pressure on council budgets and cuts have led to limits on provision. Local authorities welcomed the announcement.
But leaders for children’s services said a change in approach by central government towards children with special needs was vital to improve outcomes.
Rachel Dickinson, president of the Association of Directors of Children’s Services, said the extra cash injection signalled the government had acknowledged the funding “crisis” in these areas.
“However,” she said, “the suggestion that headteachers should be encouraged to use exclusion to deal with pupils presenting difficulties is deeply worrying.”
She added: “It makes moral, and financial, sense to support children and families as and when their needs arise but we cannot do this if we are forced to spend what little resource we have on acute interventions when a child is presenting the greatest level of need.
“Currently, local authorities are having to make the kind of difficult decisions that are not in the best, long-term interests of children and families and the human, and financial cost of this is huge.”
The LGA, which represents councils in England and Wales, said the cash would help those most in need.
Cllr Anntoinette Bramble, chair of the association’s children and young people board, said: “Councils want to ensure every child gets the best education possible and that every parent can choose the sort of education setting they want for their child.
“This funding will help councils meet unprecedented demand for SEND support next year and ensure our most vulnerable children get the support they need.”
