Commenting on the government’s commitment to write off 90 per cent of councils’ SEND deficits (1), Daniel Kebede, general secretary of the National Education Union, said:
"The NEU welcomes the government’s decision to write off the vast majority of local authorities’ accumulated SEND-related debts. This was a welcome recognition of the reality of the underlying situation. These debts were not going to be repaid and their existence threatened the stability of local government finances.
"Writing off the debts does not however address the underlying issue. There is a massive and growing gap between what is supposed to be spent on High Needs Budgets and what is actually being spent. The OBR estimates the gap will be over £6billion by 2028-29. Central government is taking this spending onto its books in 2028-29. It cannot land on the Department for Education’s Core Schools Budget without massive cuts being made to mainstream funding.
"2028-29 also sees the introduction of the new SEND provision system following the much-delayed education White Paper. The government needs to recognise that pupils with SEND are not just lines on a balance sheet. Education provision must be fitted to the needs of young people and not just constructed to save money. It isn’t going to be easy, and the government should cure itself of any thoughts that it’s going to be cheap."
Editor’s Note