ENGLAND: 80% increase in SPED since 2018 due to "increased awareness, diagnoses"
- The end of childhood
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Nov 19, 2025, Hemel Today: Herts council executive warns of 'overspend' linked to 'underfunded' special education services
Hertfordshire County Council is being “constrained” from delivering its legal obligations to SEND children because of underfunding from central government, according to its executive member.
Members of the public are being encouraged to read Hertfordshire County Council’s draft Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) strategy and offer their opinions before it is implemented next year.
A public consultation was launched last week for the draft strategy, which runs from 2026-29 and promises a “transformative shift” in how the authority engages with SEND families, with an emphasis on “collaboration, communication and meaningful outcomes”.
Crucially, the council is waiting on the Government’s Schools White Paper, which contains reforms for SEND, due to be released in early 2026. The policy document is understood to focus on improving standards through increased accountability and changes – including the possible replacement of Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) – but its exact contents are as yet unknown.
Cllr Mark Watkin, executive member for education, SEND and inclusion, told the Local Democracy Service: “While we’re waiting for the education paper to come out in the New Year, we can’t wait for it. We will carry on and we will launch this strategy. . . .
The rise in SEND children across the UK has been exponential, with an 80% increase in the number of children with EHCPs since 2018, largely driven through increased awareness and diagnoses. In Hertfordshire, 9,804 children have EHCPs and 31,966 pupils require special educational needs support – representing 18.5% of all pupils.
Local authorities are legally responsible for ensuring the needs of SEND children despite shortfalls in core grant funding from central government, a situation which has been linked to budget deficits in councils up and down the country.
Cllr Watkin drew attention to the high needs funding crisis, adding: “One of the key challenges that we and every authority face is that we’re not sufficiently funded by central government to meet the statutory needs of our children. . . .
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