School leaders warn of ‘full-blown’ special needs crisis in England

One wonders how a state with increasingly fascist tendencies would handle this crisis if it became impossible to ignore...

This is the best summary I could come up with:

Shortages and funding cuts are causing a “full-blown crisis” in special needs education for children and young people in England, according to school leaders who say they are struggling to give pupils the support they require.

Ahead of the general election, it is incumbent upon all political parties to pledge the system-wide investment needed to tackle this crisis head on,” Whiteman said.

The school leaders’ complaints come as the number of pupils with identified Send, including those with education, health and care plans (EHCPs), has ballooned.

The Department for Education says the government is tackling the issue, with high needs funding for children and young people increasing above £10.5bn in 2024-25.

But Louise Gittins, the chair of the Local Government Association’s children and young people board, said: “Councils’ high needs deficits currently stand at an estimated £1.9bn, rising to £3.6bn by 2025 with no intervention.

“If political parties think the electorate haven’t noticed, or simply don’t care, I strongly suspect they’re all going to have a nasty shock during the election campaign.”

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