As first was going to press, an announcement was expected on how ministers plan to deal with councils’ mounting deficits in respect of costs for supporting children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in England.
Ahead of that announcement, the LGA reiterated its call for high-needs deficits to be written off, as it published a new survey in which four in five responding councils with SEND responsibilities warned they will otherwise become insolvent.
Councils are currently able to keep high-needs deficits off their main balance sheets through a temporary accounting mechanism known as a ‘statutory override’.
The survey found 95 per cent of responding councils had high-needs dedicated schools grant deficits.
With the override due to end in March 2028, when the deficits would move onto councils’ books, 79 per cent of councils responding to the survey said they will not be able to set a balanced general fund budget in 2028/29.
The Office for Budget Responsibility has forecast that councils’ cumulative high-needs deficits will reach £14 billion by the end of 2027/28. The LGA is calling for the deficits to be written off, or else risk undermining councils’ ability to plan sustainable services and improve outcomes for children and families.
The challenges within the SEND system are not just financial, however.
The forthcoming Schools White Paper “must deliver brave and bold reform, where more children are able to get the support they need in a mainstream school, without having to go down the route of needing a statutory plan”, said Cllr Amanda Hopgood, Chair of the LGA’s Children, Young People and Families Committee.