'Imminent financial threat' over SEND spending, claims BCP leader
Councillor Millie Earl is calling for a solution to what she describes as the "SEND funding crisis"
The leader of BCP Council warns that the authority faces "imminent financial threat", due to debt built up to pay for special educational needs and disabilities services.
Councillor Millie Earl is calling for a solution to what she describes as the "SEND funding crisis".
Cllr Millie Earl has written to Angela Rayner MP, Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, to warn the council faces a £171m hole in its finances due to debt built up to pay for its SEND services.
Back in June's spending review by the Government, it was announced there will be a two-year extension to the statutory override which will now run until 31 March 2028.
This mechanism allows councils to effectively ignore the overspend on providing SEND services, but they still need to provide the cash to fund the services being provided, and it does not solve the problem of who will pick up the bill when the override ends.
Despite the extension, Cllr Earl has warned the council faces further financial challenges due to paying interest on SEND spending which risks further cuts to other key council services.
The letter
Describing the ‘unsustainable pressure’ faced by the council, Cllr Earl’s letter states: “By the end of this financial year, in March 2026, we forecast that the accumulated deficit on the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) will reach £171m, which means that we are both technically insolvent, and also facing an ongoing bill of £7.5m each year, just to service the debt.
“This cost is currently charged to the General Fund revenue account and means that we have had to consider further cuts to vital services including environmental services, play provision and support services in our most deprived communities, because this issue has not been resolved.”
For this last six years the council have had an ongoing deficit in its allocated budget for SEND services, by March 2026 this will have risen to an estimated £171m.
'This decision prevents further damaging cuts'
Cllr Earl’s letter explained: “This decision would prevent us from making further damaging cuts to our vital front-line services, at no cost to the government at this time, and would support the Council to balance its revenue budgets.”
BCP Council is urging the Government to change who is responsible for the borrowing costs on SEND spending above the government grant. If accepted, this would help the council address its future funding challenges.
The government says it's already making progress by investing £1 billion nationally.
Details of how the government intends to reform the SEND system are due to be set out in a Schools White Paper in the autumn.
We have approached the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government for comment.