Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what are her plans for investment in inclusion bases in Essex.

As part of the department’s £3.7 billion high needs capital settlement, we are investing in a transformational expansion of inclusion bases. This will make them a core part of every local education offer, delivering high-quality teaching and support to children who would benefit from provision that bridges the current gap between mainstream and specialist.

Of this funding, Essex has been allocated just over £20.9 million in the 2025/26 financial year and just over £21.2 million in the 2026/27 financial year through High Needs Provision Capital Allocations. Further allocations will be published in spring 2027.

To ensure children get the specialist places they need as quickly as possible, we are providing alternative per- place funding to local authorities for cancelled free school projects that would have included a specialist base.

The total per place allocation for Essex is just over £600,000, providing £50,000 per specialist place which free schools would have delivered. This will be paid over two years, in 2026/27 and 2027/28 and is alongside a proposed new special school in Essex, Wolsey Park Special Free School.