Special educational needs system 'has burst'

Neighbouring Cheshire East Council spent £40m on 624 independent school placements in 2023-24 - an average cost of £64,000 per student.

It has a SEND deficit of £78m - the biggest in England.

Former council leader Sam Corcoran said: "The system is broken and it is breaking families and councils.

"Funding has not kept pace with demand and the number of special school places is vastly outstripped by the number of families with children needing one."

Mr Corcoran, who quit in July just before he was due to face a vote of no confidence over the state of the local authority's finances, claimed mainstream schools were "starved of funds" and "do not have the resources to cope".

The Labour councillor said this meant "too often, children are having to travel long distances to out-of-area placements".

Cole Andrew, a former special school head teacher and local authority SEND advisor, said staff at mainstream schools were having to support children with fewer resources than ever.

With special schools also at capacity, the education consultant said local authorities were being forced to pay for costly independent schools.

The shortage also means local authorities are having to search further afield.

During the last financial year, 17 councils in the North West arranged 5,220 out-of-borough EHCP placements, the highest on record.

A dozen local authorities spent £16.8m on taxi fares, transporting students to and from schools in other areas.

Cheshire West and Chester Council paid out £2.7m.

This included 200-mile, four-hour journeys to and from Beechwood College, an independent college in Glamorgan which specialises in providing education for people with autism.