'Councils buckling under SEND strain'

THE majority of councils have warned that without significant reform they face insolvency over mounting Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) deficits, a survey has found.

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About eight in 10 councils (79%) said they will not be able to set a balanced budget in 2028 when the statutory override keeping overspends off their books ends, findings from Local Government Association (LGA) research show.

The Government said at the autumn budget that local authorities will not be expected to fund SEND costs once the statutory override ends.

However, councils said even if deficits are removed, without reform they would continue to have to overspend and could see deficits quickly return.