(UK) Commentator "outraged" over SPED numbers; 'No wonder our councils are going bankrupt!'

July 7, 2025, GB News: Tom Harwood outraged as special educational needs support for ONE family costs 'more than sending a child to Eton' - 'Staggering!'

GB News hosts Emily Carver and Tom Harwood have hit out at the "staggering" cost of support for special educational needs amid plans for Labour reform.

Speaking on their show Good Afternoon Britain, Tom revealed that a councillor had disclosed that the cost of supporting one family in Britain amounts to "more than sending a child to Eton".

Tom told Emily of the information he received from a UK councillor: "I heard from a councillor not so long ago of a case where one family with two children were getting a separate taxi to go to and from school every single day, because they were classified as Send kids.

"They were going to the same school, but they needed two separate cars because they couldn't bear to be in the same car together, and this was costing more than it costs to send a child to boarding school at Eton.

She said: "With these stories about scratching around for a wealth tax to try and plug this gap, well maybe if you hadn't created this financial black hole, then we wouldn't be in the position where we're scrambling around for more and more things to tax, but that is the state of play.

"Speech, language and communication needs, and social, emotional and mental health needs, which includes ADHD.

"Now 639,000 children in England need this support. 11 per cent increase in the year to January, double what it was six years ago." Tom then stated: "No wonder our councils are going bankrupt?!"

Arguing in favour of Labour reforming the Send system, Emily explained: "This is the thing, the Government may well be right to want to reform this and think can we spend this money better?

"Because it's the councils that have to pick up the bill, isn't it?"

Tom agreed, concluding: "Absolutely, and then councils are going bankrupt left, right and centre, and taxes are going up.

"It's easy to forget that this Government has a massive majority in the House of Commons, and it's behaving like it has no majority at all. Has it just lost control?"

A Department for Education spokesman said: "We have been clear that there are no plans to abolish Send tribunals, or to remove funding or support from children, families and schools."