High needs fund ‘not enough’ to meet rising SEND demand, warns heads union

Funding for pupils with complex needs is insufficient to meet a dramatic rise in the number of children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), head teachers have warned. The government currently pays £5.9bn to local authorities through its “high needs block” funding, which is then allocated to schools to support children with complex needs. But analysis by the National Association of Headteachers (NAHT) concluded this block of funding needs to be boosted due to increasing demand for SEND support. Heightened pressures include a 21 per cent increase between 2014 and 2017 in the number of pupils with statements of SEN or education, health and care (EHC) plans. Between 2016 and 2017 alone the number of pupils with an EHC plan or statement rose by 31,000, NAHT said.