Number of children with special education needs rises by more than half since 2010

The number of youngsters with education, health and care (EHC) plans or special educational needs (SEN) statements has risen from 2,168 to 3,299 over the last eight years – a 52 per cent increase.

Last night, the headteacher of a special school and former chair of the Bradford Schools Forum told the Telegraph & Argus that the increases meant Bradford needed three new special schools just to keep up with demand.

And one councillor described the city’s fast-rising young population, funding cuts and greater SEN awareness as the “perfect storm.”

The figures have emerged after Bradford Council voted in April to cut specialist teaching support services for SEN children, and restructure the system to a new 0-25 Inclusive Education Service.

However, the Council is also creating 295 new specialist places from nursery to secondary school at specialist and mainstream schools.

Just last year, 656 children were given a EHC plan following assessments.

EHC plans have been rolled out to replace SEN statements since 2015, and are available to young people aged under 25. The largest age group receiving these plans is 11 to 15.

Dominic Wall, headteacher of Southfield Special School, said Bradford was an “early indicator” of the national picture.

He said: “We have been raising the issue for a couple of years now.

“People were not aware of the growth in numbers at first but now its happening across the country.

“There are multiple factors, one is definitely demographic growth in Bradford; the growth of the youth population.

“There is also the widely recognised improvement in medicine meaning children who would have previously died at an early age are now surviving which is good, but they have complex needs.

“We have noticed it is not unusual for some children to have four or five different health plans.

“Other more controversial factors include the standards agenda, where some schools might think it is too difficult to raise the standards of SEN children, or think it it detrimental to other children in the school.

“Some schools seem to be making SEN children unwelcome. In 2016/17 64 per cent of permanently excluded children had SEN, and of the 672 children in elective home education, 132 children were identified to have SEN before they were withdrawn from school. We also have children who are at home waiting for places.”

Southfield has seen its numbers grow from 202 five years ago to 264, going up to 280 in September, and Mr Wall said the Council wants to extend the school to further increase its capacity.

“The Council is doing all it can to get more children into school but unless we get money to build whole schools we will not solve the problem.

“We really need additional schools. We need three special schools in Bradford to keep up with demand. The Government has announced it will fully fund 30 new special school nationally.

“Bradford Council is applying for three new schools but the chance of getting a tenth of all schools is unlikely.”

Councillor Imran Khan, executive member for education, said: “We know that across the country the number of young people with SEN is increasing.

“Since 2010, numbers have risen nationally by 40 per cent, within Yorkshire by 41 per cent and within our district by 52 per cent.

“At the same time, central government has changed the way it provides funding for children and young people with SEN.

“Since April this year, a new National Funding Formula for children and young people with SEN has come into effect. Under this new formula Bradford should receive an additional £15 million to meet current levels of pupil-need but the government is only making half that available - £7.5 million.

“Following extensive consultation, we will be implementing a new model for providing specialist SEN teaching support services from September 2018 which will make the best use of the resources we receive so that this support is sustainable and affordable in the future and can continue to meet the statutory needs of children and young with SEN.”

Councillor David Ward, the Lib Dem and Independent group’s education spokesperson, said the situation is a “perfect storm” of a rising population, greater awareness of SEN, and funding cuts.

He said: “It is a combination of the fact there are just more children due to an increasing population so there are more children with SEN, and greater awareness of the need to asses children at an early age.

“We also know the links with deprivation which means SEN needs to be identified at an early age, which there has been.

“It means in Bradford there is a real problem meeting the needs which puts enormous pressure on the system.

“We told the Council cutting the service at the same time as there is a rise in children with SEN could be catastrophic, it is almost a perfect storm.

“We need more government funding to reflect the higher numbers, but the Council needs to prioritise its funding.

“The cost will just accumulate if they do not deal with the issue at the beginning. It is a false economy that will come back to bite the Council.”

Counciillor Debbie Davies, Conservative group spokesperson for education, said: “We do have a problem in Bradford with people having cousin marriages, these children sometimes have problems from birth.

“But there has also been an increase in diagnosis where some children’s problems which might not have been recognised in the past are being spotted, which is a positive.

“There needs to be specialist provision for SEN children, either in separate schools or within mainstream schools, as they are often better off being taught separately and can also benefit children in mainstream school too.

Ian Murch, Bradford spokesperson for the National Union of Teachers, said the union has noticed an “undoubted” increase in pressure on teachers.

He said: “This is because Bradford has a rising school population so you would expect more SEN children.

“Schools are under more pressure than in the past to focus on test and exam results, which SEN childen may find harder.

“There is no question services are not being cut because there is less demand, they are being cut due to cuts in Council funding.

“There needs to be more investment from the Government. Its own assessment of Bradford was that we needed £15 million more a year, and they have given us half of that.

“It is the way the Government is funding things. Bradford has had to cut a lot of money everyone knows it needs.”

Nadhim Zahawi, Minister for Children and Families, said: “We want every child to have the support they need to unlock their potential, no matter what challenges they face.

"Thanks to this government’s reforms, more children and young people with SEN are getting the support they need at school and college, and the number who move on to access training schemes, apprenticeships or supported internships is increasing.

“But we are not complacent, and recognise there is more to do to make sure all children and young people have the right support to succeed in the future, and that families get help to navigate the new SEN system.

"That is why we are investing £25 million to help schools deliver high-quality teaching, prioritise SEN support and create better links between mainstream and special education.”