It is clear to almost everyone who looks at the issue that special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) services are struggling with limited resources. The Conservative manifesto pledged to increase SEND funding, but failed to offer any firm promises.

According to the Local Government Association, the national funding gap will be up to £1.6bn by 2021 – and that’s after the additional £780m announced by the Department for Education (DfE) last year. Council directors across the country have again reported huge growth in demand in 2019/20 and many face huge deficits.