Reform councils to cut SEN spending

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.. according to the Lib Dem’s. Can they even do this? My DC isn’t SEN but her class has 5 TAs mainly as 121s and I dread what would happen if their funding is removed. Our council isn’t Reform led but they’re pretty neck on neck in no overall control.

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/live/2025/apr/24/ed-miliband-energy-pricing-keir-starmer-nigel-farage-latest-live-uk-politics-news

@Bushmillsbabe many have to appeal. Parents should be supported to do so rather than accept unlawful behaviour.

Depending on the specifics, services could also look at JR to challenge unlawful blanket policies.

Not endorsing these blinkered Reform types as I loathe what they fulminate over (with no suggestion of what is actually to be done, or suggestion of any solutions).
But I am also a secondary school governor and looking this week at our Y11 stats which show that almost 1 in 4 students is SEN. We have an obligation to look after these kids appropriately and yet with finite budgets. Defunding/Sticking fingers in ears to pretend it will all go away, will not work!

(At some point, at the very least though, we will have to drop the "S" as with these numbers the pupils won't be regarded as special!)

And this is the problem. People are so fed up with the current high tax and cost of living and reducing quality of public services. A very limited number of people are net contributors, even relatively higher earners without significant extra needs. For example
DH and I between us earn about 80k - so it would be expected we are net contributors.

• we pay approx 20k a year in tax
• we have 2 children in mainstream school, each costing state around 6k
• we all have some health needs, so cost the nhs I think about 4k a year between us in outpatient hospital care, plus gp appts and nhs dental on top - maybe another 2k so 6k.

-DH and I both on expensive meds, which cost at least 1k a year each, of which we only pay the approx £150 prescription cost.

• Both work public sector, so our employers contributions are around 9% of total salary, so about 8k total
• universal child benefit of around 1.5k per year

So we are 20k in and 32k out by my calculations, and with a decent 80k income, no UC or other benefits, we are still net takers. So where does the money come from?

We tax higher, it pushes highest earners and businesses to go abroad so that's a non starter.

People after many years of being frustrated with Tories, are now also frustrated with labour. When people stop feeling hope in a mainstream party, they look for more extreme options, Reform has filled a void, and there is no benefits in calling their voters mean or racist etc. What has to be looked at is why people are turning to an extreme option, and change this before our country goes downhill.

Oh wow, that is very poor.

My son has just started back at school full time now that his EHCP is in place and he has the support he needs. He's able to receive physio at his mainstream school once a week and then using his DLA, we also pay for private physio and hydrotherapy outside of school.

That is an exceptional level of provision, is this funded by nhs or SEN? 1 hour a week is in reality at least 2.5 hours to include travel and admin time - I'm glad for your son, but this rarely the reality.

We work on training school staff to deliver provision integrated into a child's day, termly visits to review and advise, with a block of sessions post surgery is a standard provision.

Well then the large part of society can't complain when she costs far far more as an adult and needing social care support for the rest of her life, unable to hold down a job so fully reliant on disability benefits, most likely in need of a 1-1 carer at all times. I can guarantee that costs far more.

So what is your suggestion?

A huge part of EHCPs is ensuring they are as independent as possible when preparing for adult hood. Even having a child able to live independently with some support, even if they can't hold down a job is cheaper than them needing 1-1, 24/7 care for the rest of their lives.

The council in my area is opening new, separate wings in existing schools for SEN students to make it more affordable for the taxpayer.

The council closed this provision previously when the conservatives were in control, to save money, presumably on the mistaken assumption that parents with SEN kids would keep quiet and go away.

They didn’t. The council were not providing a basic education for students who were legally entitled to it. They were effectively rationing by the back door because of the high cost, even though it was against the Equality Act.

So parents took the local authority to court and were awarded support for their children plus court costs. That support was usually a place in a private school with transport if not nearby and usually a 1:1, which together is far more costly than providing what they used to before the cuts. The authority admitted that the department in charge was failing and we now have this new strategy.

@Kirbert2 in case you aren’t aware, if more physio and hydrotherapy are required, they can be included in F of the EHCP. Although you may have to appeal.

That is an exceptional level of provision

It really isn’t for DC with more complex needs, which given that poster’s DS has 2:1 is clearly the case. Although many have to appeal to get that level of provision.

Hmm and I wonder how much the top 10 percent of tax contributors, ie the top earners, benefit from the rest of us, either from our labour, or from what we spend our wages on.
It's a bit more complex than you put 20,000 in and take 32,000 out. You could get a private dentist though, and free up the NHS one for someone worse off than yourself, in fact I'm amazed you have one at all.

It's 30 minutes, once a week. I had no idea it was so unusual, it's just the physio he had at home once he was discharged from hospital back in January and moved to the community team and it is the same team that see him at school now instead of at home.

We're still pretty new to all of this, he became suddenly disabled after a complication due to an illness and he was in hospital for 10 months before discharge in January.

The problem isn't too many children needing too much support but too little funding for those.

And you could bring this argument about so many other similar scenarios in the public sector. Why are you so obsessed with pointing the finger at disabled children who need specialist places? They are not bankrupting councils. It's the lack of funding.

All the posters moaning about disabled children are ignoring the disabled adults and elderly requiring social care costing LAs 4x as much.

And you also must wonder how many of those children who got the £££ school places may be living an independent life without the need for social care - and how many do need social care because they never turned into fully functioning adults because they were completely let down the the LAs when they needed support to access an education. Sadly, it's often cheaper in the short term to just refuse to fund a school place (without consideration how much this may be contributing to long term social care costs).

Are there better ways of preparing people for living independently than in a classroom?
At what age should it start?

With many children they start doing chores at an early age and this builds into independence in terms of cooking and life management in time for early adulthood.

Tell me you have never cared for a person with complex learning needs without explicitly saying though.

It looks like you assume that an EOTAS package may be better than a specialist school place. You are aware that EOTAS packages are generally even more expensive than school education? You also know that you cannot compare bringing up a typical child and teaching chores to that of a child with severe learning needs? Gosh, I don't know why some people feel the need to post on this threads when they clearly have no experience or understanding of the matter 🥴🙄

Yes. Access to education is a basic essential.

Some on this thread may not realise that councils are dependent on funds directly from central government as well as local council tax receipts. The central government portion has been pared back over the years.

@mumda EHCP provision isn’t limited to traditional classroom learning. That doesn’t just apply to EOTAS/EOTIS but also to those in settings. Preparation for Adulthood provision must be part of EHCPs from the Y9 annual review (despite what some LAs think), but things like life skills can and are included before that right from EHCPs for DC below compulsory school age.

Because we want to know more? If we don't understand we're called ignorant ... so explain, or point us at something useful to go away and read.

If there's an outcome not met by current provision, what is the right provision?

"Because we want to know more? If we don't understand we're called ignorant ... so explain, or point us at something useful to go away and read."

It is obvious that teaching a child with complex learning needs is very different and much more difficult than teaching a child with no disability.

You clearly don't want to know more. You are just posting judgemental crap questioning why children with complex needs should possibly be worthy of getting an (often, shock horror) expensive education.

Exactly. Lots of repetition. Lots of backward chaining. Lots of visual and vocal prompts, as appropriate. And still, after many years, they may reach a limit of capability that falls short of complete independence. Eg they can dress themselves if easy to put on clothes are provided but someone needs to check they're not wearing something back to front or with their collar tucked in.

People on this thread with experience are saying that all the extra money hasn't had better outcomes.
So me questioning if there is a better way is a good thing?

Which countries deal with this best and have best outcomes for those involved and the tax payer? (I'll accept there might be two different answers to that question)

"People on this thread with experience are saying that all the extra money hasn't had better outcomes."

In what respect ?

No posters have been pulled up on their evidence for this declaration as it is found hugely wanting. They haven’t come back with anything that backs up their claim.

So it's all good and no one has any complaints?
Brilliant.