Councils seek more free schools to meet rising SEND demand in London

A report by London Councils into demand for school places found that the number of pupils with either SEND statements or education, health and care plans has risen by 22 per cent since 2010 in the capital, compared with a 5.7 per cent rise across England over the same period.

The £69,055 cost of creating each school place for this group of pupils is three times that of providing a mainstream school place, and London Councils wants to see more special free schools created to help meet this cost.

The group, which represents the capital's 32 boroughs and the City of London, says that 17 London councils want to apply to create a special free school in their area and are urging the government to ensure they are prioritised by the Department for Education.

"The DfE's commitment to working alongside local authorities to target free schools that meet specific need in the local area is a move in the right direction," states London Councils' Do the Maths report.

"Given the rise in demand, changing types of need, and large overspends on high needs budgets, another round of new special free schools would be a cost-effective way to meet specialist SEND need in the capital," it states.

These extra schools would be in addition to five special schools that the DfE recently approved for London. This includes a school supporting children with social, emotional and mental health needs in Havering, which will also help ensure local children with such needs do not have to be placed out of the area.

The report is also concerned about emerging evidence that academies are refusing to admit SEND children into mainstream schools, due to the extra costs involved and the impact on exam results.

London Councils found that 19 out of 24 boroughs had experienced this resistance from academies and 14 said they had encountered this on more than four occasions.

It is calling for academies to be directed by government to enrol children with SEND if they have capacity, and for ministers to take action if they refuse.

"While local authorities can experience resistance from maintained schools as well as academies, the challenge is particularly great in relation to academies because councils do not have the power to direct an academy to change their approach, as they would a maintained school," the report adds.