Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Yuan Yang and Keir Starmer

Wednesday 4th December 2024 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

We are moving at pace on all relevant issues. We passed the Budget to provide the baseline for what we need, and we will continue to do so.

[Yuan Yang (Earley and Woodley) (Lab)]

Q13. Local councils in my constituency are facing significant financial pressures on special educational needs and disabilities provision. In Wokingham borough, for example, the SEND incidence is twice the national average, yet historically the level of funding has not met the level of need, and that has left families and children waiting too long for help. The previous Government’s safety valve programme was only a sticking plaster, so I welcome this Government’s announcement today of additional SEND funding in mainstream schools. What more can the Government do to make SEND funding sustainable?

[The Prime Minister]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for raising this—I think this is the fifth or sixth time that SEND has been raised at Prime Minister’s questions. We inherited a system neglected to the point of crisis by the last Government, and so we will deliver the change that is desperately needed. That means increasing funding to the core schools budget by £2.3 billion, which includes almost £1 billion more on high needs budgets. Today we are announcing investment of £740 million to create SEN units in mainstream schools which deliver specialist support, and I am very pleased to take that forward.