SEND Provision: East of England

Debate between Helen Grant and James Wild

Tuesday 8th October 2024 Westminster Hall

[James Wild]

I agree. I will come to funding shortly, so I will address that point then.

The third issue is partnerships: we must get education and health groups working together. Currently, the system holds some bodies accountable for things they do not have responsibility for and does not hold other bodies accountable for things they do have control over, so collaboration between key partners is required. The previous Government proposed to create local SEND and alternative provision partnerships to lead change and commission provision, and to improve accountability with refocused Ofsted and CQC inspections. Speech and Language UK, the County Councils Network and the LGA endorsed those recommendations, so will the Minister tell us how the Government plan to pursue the partnership approach and embed it in the system?

My hon. Friend the Member for Broxbourne and others discussed funding. In the previous debate on this subject, I spoke about the increase in the high-needs budget to £10.5 billion this year—a 60% increase from 2020. Some £2.6 billion was invested in new places and in improving the existing provision.

[Helen Grant (Maidstone and Malling) (Con)]

We have heard today about the fantastic work that SEND schools are doing in our constituencies. Does my hon. Friend believe that some form of ringfenced funding with tracked impact measures could help very good SEND schools, such as Five Acre Wood in my constituency, to flourish further?

[James Wild]

My hon. Friend makes an interesting point. We need to track the outcomes and the support that children get, so that is a thoughtful comment.

When I spoke on a panel at the Conservative party conference in Birmingham last week, a representative of the Association of School and College Leaders said that there is enough money in the system, but the problem is that there is too much bureaucracy. Clearly, demand continues to rise and funding is a challenge. Council expenditure has tripled over the past decade. Councils are looking for more clarity on the statutory override, which the previous Government put in place to help local authorities to deal with deficits—I think they are now above £3 billion. Only last week, the NASUWT urged the Chancellor in a letter to extend the period that local authorities have to address their SEND deficits. Perhaps the Minister will be able to give a bit more clarity on that very pressing issue for local authorities.

The hon. Member for Waveney Valley (Adrian Ramsay) referred to the pressures in respect of school transport. In Norfolk alone, that budget is £60 million, of which 80% is used to move pupils with SEN around and outside the county. That is money spent on journeys, not education.

I will touch briefly on VAT on independent schools, although a debate about that is going on in the main Chamber. It is clear that this tax on learning will disrupt children’s education. Reference was made to pupils with EHCPs, but 10,000 pupils with special educational needs at independent schools in the east of England will be hit by those fees, and their education will be disrupted. The Government have not even published an impact assessment, even though the Minister in the earlier debate referred to analysis that had been done. It is extraordinary that that has not been shared with the House. I hope the Minister, even at this point, will listen to parents, pupils, local authorities and others, and will delay those plans. I look forward to having an opportunity shortly to vote to do exactly that.