Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what funding announced in the Special Educational Needs and Disability and Alternative Provision Green Paper was previously announced in the (a) Spending Review 2021 and (b) any other announcement by his Department.

The Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) green paper published on 29 March 2022 sets out proposals for a system that offers children and young people the opportunity to thrive, with access to the right support, in the right place, and at the right time, so they can fulfil their potential and lead happy, healthy and productive adult lives.

The funding commitments in the green paper reflect what was secured as part of the Spending Review 2021 settlement, reflecting the ongoing investment into the high needs system. In the green paper, the department announced the investment of £70 million to support delivery through a SEND and AP change programme, £300 million for the ‘safety valve’ intervention programme, and £85 million for the Delivering Better Value in SEND programme to support local authorities with deficits.