EDUCATION

Councils looking after record 576,000 children with SEND

Councils are looking after record numbers of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

Councils are looking after record numbers of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

Local authorities issued more than 84,000 Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) in 2023 – an increase of 27% on the previous year.

There are now nearly 576,000 children and young people with an EHCP and assessment requests have jumped 21% since 2022.

The increase has driven up the cost of home-to-school transport for children with SEND, with a budgeted net spend of £1.4bn in 2023-24 – a 137% increase since 2016-17.

President of the Association of Directors of Children's Services, Andy Smith, has described the SEND system as ‘increasingly unsustainable'.

EDUCATION

Regeneration: Cardiff's goals

By Heather Jameson | 15 May 2025

As Cardiff prepares to host games at football’s 2028 Euros, the city council is focused on delivering key projects to welcome guests to the city. Leader Huw ...

EDUCATION

Why the Total Place bandwagon should roll again

By Michael Burton | 15 May 2025

John Denham was Labour’s communities secretary 15 years before Angela Rayner. He tells Michael Burton why he would not have embarked on wholescale local gove...

EDUCATION

Cranford: A Hounslow case study in tackling inequalities

By Mandy Skinner | 12 May 2025

Mandy Skinner looks at how Hounslow LBC has begun work to systematically tackle inequity in areas including Cranford using data-driven approaches and residen...

EDUCATION

Closing up the support gap

By Jo Casebourne | 06 May 2025

Jo Casebourne examines why mentoring and befriending matters for young people - and what local leaders can do about it.

Popular articles by William Eichler