More SEND Kids for Mainstream Schools
East Sussex County Council (ESCC) is gearing up for more children with special education needs and disabilities (SEND) to attend mainstream schools.
MP Helena Dollimore says that, following the government’s recent launch of the Schools White Paper, Every Child Achieving and Thriving, councils will be required to adopt “inclusive strategies focused on delivering better outcomes for children, including increasing specialist capacity in mainstream schools”. And she claimed last month that East Sussex schools will receive “a record £8 million investment to create more specialist places”.
This funding is expected to be paid in Summer 2026. The government will hold the allocation to ESCC and other councils until it is satisfied with their SEND reform plans.
Asked how the SEND reforms would be implemented in academy schools which are not subject to local authority control, an ESCC spokesperson said last week: “We have a shared belief across schools, both maintained and academy, that children and young persons with SEND, and their families, should receive timely support and have the opportunity to go to a school in their local community.
“The council is committed to increasing specialist capacity through the further development of new specialist bases at secondary and primary schools, both academy and maintained. This will provide more children with the opportunity for high-quality, inclusive education close to home.”
It was confirmed, however, that special schools will continue to be provided for children “with the most complex needs”.
According to figures published by the Department for Education, over 1.7 million pupils across England have been assessed to have SEN (Special Education Needs) – that’s 19.5% of all school age children. Of those, 5.3% have EHCPs (Education, Health and Care plans); the other 14.2% receive SEN support without a plan.
The overall numbers have risen hugely in the last ten years. The number of pupils with an EHCP has doubled since 2016; the number with SEN support has risen by almost 30%.
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