Local authority SEND transport costs could top £1bn by 2028, council leaders warn
Fiona Simpson
Monday, November 20, 2023
The cost of school transport for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) across county councils could reach more than £1 billion for the first time over the next five years, local authority leaders warn.
An increase in the number of children with an education, health and care plan (EHCP) – from 105,000 eight years ago to 230,000 this year – is behind the “spiraling” costs, the County Councils Network (CCN) has said in new research.
It finds that local authorities believe the cost of such transport is “threatening their financial sustainability”.
In 2022/23 £725m was spent on home to school transport for children with SEND compared with £397m in 2018/19.
Projections from local authorities, submitted to researchers, finds that spending could reach £1.125m by 2027/28.
The report highlights a 36 per cent increase in the use of private taxis as home to school transport for children with SEND since 2019 “due to the complexity of children’s needs, parental expectations and demand for individual travel arrangements”.
The CCN report states: “Taxis are now on par with minibuses as the most common form of council-funded school transport, with councils in county areas spending substantially more on these services as they do on Sure Start, family services and youth services combined.”
Councils are warning that such overspends on home to school transport is contributing to a £4bn projected funding deficit over the next three years for county councils, with one in 10 unsure or not confident they could prevent insolvency this year – rising to four in 10 in 2024/25 and six in 10 by 2025/26.
Councillor Roger Gough, children’s services spokesperson for the CCN said: “Councils work hard to ensure that every eligible child receives school transport, and we know this is a highly valued service for families. But this report shows the reality of a mounting tide of costs in SEND transport, exacerbated by long distances travelled in large rural areas, complex needs and parental expectations.
“A home to school transport duty for the 21st century needs to be fit to address 21st century challenges and must be financially, educationally and ecologically sustainable both for local government and for families.”
Council leaders are calling on the government to provide an emergency injection of resources at Wednesday’s autumn statement.
The report also recommends a range of reforms to home to school transport and SEND legislation, including the introduction of a national means-testing policy so that families above a specified income threshold are required to make a financial contribution to home to school transport.
Other recommendations include capital investment for councils to create more specialist school places and rules to ensure that SEND tribunals do not rule on cases until there is full consideration of transport costs.
