Millions signed off to cover SEND deficit

Gloucestershire is set to receive more than £100m from the government to cover 90% of its Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) deficit.

Gloucestershire County Council leader, Lisa Spivey, said the £112.2m of funding was an "important moment" for the county, and will enable children to get "the right support, at the right time, in the right place".

The council will still have to find an additional £12.5m this financial year to balance the SEND budget.

Gloucester-based charity, Parenting Empowered Autistic Children (PEAK) has welcomed the support, but said more action is needed to reform local SEND systems.

Many council's across England currently have a SEND overspend due to high demand for services. As a result the government has allowed local authorities to run these budgets at a deficit. Gloucestershire has a SEND deficit of £125m.

Across the county there are more than 7,500 young people with an Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP), which gives them legal rights to additional support to aid their learning.

Last year the council had more than 1,300 EHCP requests, up 35% on the year before. Just 30% of last year's submissions were carried out within the statutory 20 week timeframe.

Marco Cetara, founder and CEO of PEAK, said he is concerned paying off the existing deficit only solves the immediate financial issues.

He said while it is important for the overspend to be cleared, families want to see investment in improving services, not funding to maintain the status quo.

The government has also approved the council's SEND Reform Implementation Plan which includes earlier identification of children's needs, support to increase school attendance and reduce exclusions, and measures to improve inclusion in mainstream schools.

Councillor Spivey said the council is committed to making the SEND system "easier to navigate" and more inclusive.

"The real measure of success will be the difference this makes for children, young people and families," she added.

A spokesperson for the Department of Education said: "Fixing the SEND system will take time and councils will need further support with deficits, so we will set out the details before March 2028."

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