Councils in England will have to set out plans to create more places in local mainstream schools for children with special educational needs and disabilities as a condition of receiving a share of £860m in new government funding.
Authorities must submit their written plans to the Department for Education (DfE) outlining how they will enable more pupils with Send to attend their local school and reduce the number of children travelling long distances for their education.
Schools will be expected to use the cash to create more inclusive spaces – such as specially adapted rooms to support children with autism or ADHD who may feel overstimulated in the classroom and require a special sensory environment.
The money will also be used to ensure all secondary schools eventually have a dedicated space called an “inclusion base” to enable pupils to move easily between specialist support and mainstream classes.
Ministers have said no child currently at a special school or college will have to move under the reforms unless they choose to. Councils are expected to ensure there are enough special school and alternative provision places for those with the most complex needs.
The government said the £860m – the first tranche of a £3bn fund aimed at creating 50,000 new Send places – was a “significant step” in the progress of its Send reforms announced in a white paper last month.
The changes aim to overhaul a Send system widely regarded as dysfunctional and financially unsustainable, by providing better support to more children in less costly mainstream schools and restoring trust with parents.
Local Send plans will have to be submitted to officials by June 2026, with payments released in autumn 2026 if they are approved. If councils propose to invest in more places in special schools, they will be expected to set out why this best meets local Send needs.
Although ministers have said the policy is not about saving money, councils had warned that without changes four in five English local authorities would be in effect bankrupt by 2028 because of rising Send spending.
This follows rapid growth in the numbers of children and young people with education, health and care plans (EHCPs), which in theory guarantee support for pupils. Numbers have risen from 240,000 in 2014 to about 640,000 in 2024.
The DfE said new forecasts show an extra 260,000 children in need of a special school place received an EHCP in 2025-26, highlighting how demand for Send support continues to outstrip capacity.
Under the government’s changes, schools across England will have a statutory duty to draw up a digital individual support plan for every child with Send, and children currently with an EHCP will have it reviewed when they reach the end of primary or secondary school.
The plan will be backed by £1.6bn for mainstream schools, colleges and early years settings over three years to help them become more inclusive.
In addition, £1.8bn over three years will go towards creating a bank of specialists in every area, such as Send teachers and speech and language therapists, that schools can draw from.
The schools minister Georgia Gould said: “Just last month, we set out once-in-a-generation Send reforms and we’re now acting quickly to deliver the changes that make sure more children can thrive in their local community, with their friends.
“Inclusion is a choice, one this government is proud to make, and the funding we’re backing councils with today will help make it a reality.
“Our Send reforms will deliver specialist places where they are needed and ensure every secondary school has a space designed for children with Send which they – and their families – can rely on. This is a further step towards rebuilding trust in the system and transforming outcomes for young people.”
