Council writes to chancellor over £130m SEND deficit

A council is writing to Rachel Reeves asking how the government intends to eliminate a £130m black hole in its local special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) budget.

Oxfordshire councillors passed a motion asking the leader to urge the chancellor to "deliver a SEND system that works for children, families and councils alike".

The difference between the funding the authority receives and the amount it needs to provide has been growing year on year since 2019.

A Department for Education spokesperson said the government "inherited a SEND system left on its knees".

Between 2023 and 2024 Oxfordshire saw a 27% increase in requests for education and health care plans, adding to the authority's financial pressures.

These upward trends are predicted to continue this year.

In the last financial year central government gave the council £89.5m through the high needs dedicated school grant, but spending in Oxfordshire amounted to £126m, an overspend of £36m.

This year the council received £109m, but its forecast spend is £154m, an overspend of £45m, increasing its overall high needs spending deficit to an estimated £130m by March.

The county council's deficit reflects the national picture, with the Local Government Association, the national membership body for local authorities in the UK, predicting the deficit will exceed £5bn nationally by next year.

Council leader Liz Leffman said: "We need to make it clear to the Chancellor and the Secretary Of State for Education this is a crisis that needs to be resolved."

The Department for Education spokesperson said the government was providing £740m "to encourage councils to create more specialist places in mainstream schools".

"As part of our Plan for Change, we will restore the confidence of families up and down the country and deliver the improvement they are crying out for so every child can achieve and thrive," they added.

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