Schools White Paper cannot ignore “looming” £3.4bn SEND transport bill, say county councils

Analysis by the County Councils Network (CCN), published today (19 February), found that councils in England are on course to be transporting over 100,000 more young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) to school by the end of the decade, if the system is not reformed.

CCN estimates that the yearly costs of providing school transport for young people with SEND could reach £3.4bn by 2030/31 - £1.4bn more than last year.

This represents an almost five-fold increase on the £645m they were spending in 2015, the first year that SEND reforms increased eligibility.

The CCN described demand as continuing to rise at an “unsustainable rate”.

Meanwhile, the research found that rising SEND demand is squeezing transport provision for mainstream pupils.

The report said: “In 2015, 64% of councils’ entire school transport budgets were spent on SEND school transport, and this is projected to rise to 85% by 2030/31. Faced with mounting costs, a recent CCN survey found that three quarters of councils plan to tighten eligibility for mainstream school transport over the next three years.”

Earlier this month, the Government announced that 90% of the estimated £6.6bn in SEND deficits that councils have accrued over the last decade to deliver the non-transport, day-to-day services will be paid for by the Treasury.

The Government will also absorbing all SEND spending into central government from 2028 onwards.

CCN said: “Whilst councils have welcomed these moves, they do not account for expenditure on SEND home to school transport. Rising demand for ECHPs has also meant SEND home to school transport has become one of the biggest challenges for councils. The £1.4bn rise in cost between 2024/25 and 2030/31 is the third highest spend pressure facing councils over the next few years, behind their growing expenditure of care services.”

The Network argues that the upcoming Schools White Paper should set out reforms to mainstream schools, enabling them to better support more SEND in their local school and closer to home, reducing a “growing reliance” on special and independent school places.

With Education Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) projected to increase by a further 200,000 by 2029 without reform, councils also called on government to “go further” with legislative changes, to focus EHCPs on those most in need, underpinned by changes to the tribunal system.

Lastly, the report recommended that the Government could consider a “means-testing policy” for school transport, which could help to ensure that support is focused on those that need it the most.

Cllr Bill Revans, SEND Spokesperson for the County Councils Network, said: “After the Government’s announcement that SEND deficits will be largely paid off, all eyes are on the Schools White Paper as a means to bring the system back to sustainability. It is vital that government does not ignore the alarming rise in SEND school transport costs, which has become one of the biggest pressures on council budgets over the last few years.

“The numbers are becoming overwhelming for many councils’ budgets. Last year the County Councils Network estimates that councils transported a record number of SEND pupils, many in single-occupancy vehicles. If nothing changes, they will be transporting more than 100,000 additional pupils within six years – a city’s worth of young people.

“There are many unintended consequences to this, not least a tighter squeeze on who is eligible for mainstream school transport. Therefore, the Government must ensure the White Paper sets out proposals that are comprehensive enough to deal with the scale of the transport challenge, not just what happens in the classroom – including changes to EHCPs and tribunals.”

Commenting on the CCN’s findings, Cllr Amanda Hopgood, Chair of the Local Government Association’s Children, Young People and Families Committee, said: “These findings reinforce the need for comprehensive reform of the SEND system, and that the Schools White Paper must consider how we fund and provide home to school transport.

“Councils are consistently overspending on this service, diverting funds from other priorities to manage the growing costs.

“To help tackle this, the SEND reforms have to deliver significant improvements to inclusion in mainstream settings, whilst still ensuring we have adequate provision in special schools for those who need it."

Cllr Hopgood added: “It is simply not right that a child has to travel a long distance to school because there is no adequate provision near to their home.

“Councils stand ready to work with government to ensure we have a SEND system which improves outcomes for children and their families.”

Lottie Winson