EHCP review could ease £4bn council funding gap, say MPs
Joe Lepper
Thursday, February 1, 2024
The government is being called on by MPs to carry out a review of education, health and care plans (EHCPs) as part of measures to ease a £4bn gap in council finances, caused by “systemic underfunding” of local government.
Under the current system councils are unable to provide sufficient locally available school places to keep up with demand from the increasing number of children subject to the plans, which are in place to support children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
This means that many councils are required to spend an increasing proportion of their budgets on transporting children over long distances, according to members of the Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (LUHC) committee in their report into local authorities’ finances.
They cite figures from the County Councils Network that the number of children travelling to special schools has increased by a quarter over the last five years.
The local government body adds that the use of taxis to transport children to school has increased by more than a third over the last three years.
“The increased cost is being borne by the local authorities responsible for delivering these services,” warn MPs, who are concerned that current funding “is far from sufficient to meet” demand from children on EHCPs.
A factor in rising demand is due to more parents and carers seeing the need to secure a EHCP as the only way to get specialist support for their children.
MPs note that local government minister Simon Hoare in December admitted to them that there is “low confidence in mainstream settings” among parents of children with SEND.
“The government must commit to a full review of the EHC plan system and consider reforms to make SEND provision financially sustainable,” say MPs in their report.
According to latest figures there are 1.6m school pupils with an identified SEND, of which less than a third have an EHCP in place.
The Government must fix the £4bn hole in council funding arrangements for 2024-25 or risk severe impact to council services and the prospect of further councils in England facing effective bankruptcy.
— Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Committee (@CommonsLUHC) February 1, 2024
Read our report: https://t.co/IJoAb6POGe pic.twitter.com/JKDXEVardN
“Increasing demands on council services such as social care and special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) provision has resulted in rocketing costs but the levels of funding available to councils has failed to keep track,” said LUHC committee chair Clive Betts, who is Labour MP for Sheffield South East.
“Long-term reform is vitally needed. The funding model for local councils is broken.”
Earlier this week children’s commissioner for England Dame Rachel de Souza called for “radical reform” of the SEND system and raised concerns around delays implementing EHCPs and keeping them up to date.
She warns that “children and their families are often having to chase an EHCP to get the support they need to thrive in school”.
Last month the government announced £600m in extra funding to relive pressure on councils.
However council leaders warned local authorities still face "difficult decisions" despite the additional money.
