(UK) Newcastle: SPED plans delayed due to "rapidly escalating demand"
Assessments of Newcastle children’s special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) are happening faster – but more than half of families are still having to wait too long. Council bosses in the city have had to apologise over recent years for significant delays in producing education, health and care plan (EHCPs), the legal documents that set out what support SEND children will be given.
Local authorities have a legal deadline to issue an EHCP within 20 weeks of a request being made, but rapidly escalating demand has been blamed for Newcastle City Council failing to meet that and leaving worried parents with frustrating hold-ups. At one point in early 2024, it was taking the council an average of 41 weeks to produce an EHCP – more than double the statutory requirement.
Figures presented to councillors this week, however, do show an improving picture. The proportion of EHCPs being issued by Newcastle City Council within the 20-week timescale increased from 11.9% in September 2025 to 47.1% in July 2026, though this does mean the majority are still left overdue.
Cumulatively, 31.4% of plans were produced on time between January and July this year – up from 19.1% in 2025, and fewer than 10% in 2023 and 2024. The average amount of time taken to complete assessments was 22 weeks in July 2026, an improvement from 30 weeks in September 2025.
The city council currently has no assessments that have been pending for more than a year and the number taking more than 30 weeks was down to 12 this July, compared to 80 in October 2024. . . .
Comments