(UK) Lincs: 'SEND funding is major crisis facing all local authorities'
- The end of childhood
- Nov 1
- 3 min read
Oct 31, 2025, Lincs Online: Lincolnshire county councillor questions whether proposed special educational needs reforms for county go far enough
NE England
Councillors have questioned whether proposed special educational needs reforms in Lincolnshire go far enough.
Members of Lincolnshire County Council’s overview and scrutiny committee discussed a proposed three-year plan to tackle a rising number of children with additional needs (SEN) and create more special school places at a meeting yesterday (Thursday, October 30).
The £13.8 million [$18M] self-sufficiency strategy for Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) and Alternative Provision aims to create more special school places so that children don't have to travel long distances to access support.
It will be funded by the government’s high needs capital allocation grant.
Under the plans, the money will go towards building more SEND hubs, modifying classrooms at special schools to provide additional places and creating bespoke spaces for post-16 SEND students.
But some councillors said they didn’t believe the plans went far enough - and that more should be done to reduce the council county’s reliance on the private sector.
Coun Martin Hill (Conservative), who represents the Folkingham Rural ward, said the county council had managed to avoid further cost increases under the previous Conservative-led administration.
He said: “I think it’s no doubt that SEND funding is the major crisis facing all local authorities who provide children’s services and we are no exception.
“I think we are the last authority now which has yet to go into statutory override and the reason we are the last to go is because we had a £100 million capital programme to expand our special schools across the whole sector.
“That did require, of course, potential borrowing. I don’t want to start a borrowing debate here but these are the dilemmas we have. That investment has saved a lot of money.”
But Coun Hill said that while the plans had the potential to reduce the amount of money the county council spends on private-sector support and transport, he questioned whether even more could be done. . . .
Coun Phil Dilks (Independent), who represents Deepings East, also questioned whether more could be done to tackle the rise in SEN referrals.
The councillor, who also sits on South Kesteven District Council, said: “I welcome the paper. I agree with Councillor Hill. Talking to people at various conferences and elsewhere, this is a national crisis. There’s no getting away from that.
“There’s been a huge increase in SEN referrals since covid. But I’m not sure whether it’s an issue that will even out over the years or if we’re just responding to it better now? I do welcome the proposal but I also conjure with the point of "are we doing enough?” . . .
Coun Finley said: “I get the heat map and there’s obviously a demand for these hubs across the county.
“My thinking behind it was if there’s a high demand and you’re looking for willing hosts to establish hubs and you’re aiming for 40 a year, is it a first come first serve basis or is there a strategy plan for how you intend to evenly distribute it across the county?”
Eileen McMorrow, programme manager for the SEND and Inclusion team at the county council, said: “We are working to prioritise schools which have the most demand. . . . .
“The driver of this provision has been the ongoing demand for SEND and AP (alternative provision).
“The strategy builds on and introduces new workforce development programmes for the workforce so we can build that capacity across the school estate, both in mainstream, early years, post-16 and our special school needs.”
The plans will be formally discussed by councillors at an executive meeting on November 4.
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