Councils are set to pay almost £2 billion in school transport costs for special needs children following a 200 per cent rise in a decade.
A new report from the Local Government Association (LGA) reveals the ‘huge pressures’ on council budgets from a rise in special needs diagnoses.
It said annual spend on school transport for these children jumped from £645 million in 2015/16 to £1.73 billion in 2023/24.
However, it predicted this figure will rise to £1.97 billion in 2025/26.
It comes amid fears the system may become even more overwhelmed if Labour’s VAT on private school fees force more special needs pupils into the state sector.
The LGA said the rise in costs is partly down to a rise in the number of children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) being given Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs).
These entitle holders to state-funded help, including school transport if needed.
There has also been a rise in children being placed in schools far from their homes due to local ones being full, the report said.
Councils are set to pay almost £2 billion in school transport costs for special needs children following a 200 per cent rise in a decade (file picture)
And some children may also have more ‘complex’ needs, requiring ‘individualised’ transport.
According to separate Government figures, the number of pupils with EHCPs is now 482,640 – the highest figure on record – and double the number in 2016.
Many of these children are disabled, or need a specific special needs school, necessitating the state paying for transport.
In addition, some children without SEND are eligible if they live far away from their nearest school or are on a low income.
It means the total spent on transporting all children was £2.24 billion in 2023-24, expected to rise to £2.5 billion by 2025-26.
The average cost per child of providing SEND transport is around £8,900 a year, compared with just £3,100 for a child without SEND.
An LGA survey found nine in 10 councils thought spending on SEND school transport would increase over the next five years.
In addition, councils have seen a 40 per cent increase over the last five years in under 16s with SEND needing school transport.
A new report from the Local Government Association (LGA) reveals the ‘huge pressures’ on council budgets from a rise in special needs diagnoses (file picture)
Councillor Arooj Shah of the LGA said the ‘rapid rise’ is ‘another reminder of the huge pressures on the SEND system’.
She added: ‘It is also wrong that children are increasingly having to travel long distances to get to school because of a lack of provision near to their home. This has to change.’
A Department for Education spokesman said: ‘This Government inherited a Send system left on its knees – which is why we are looking at changes to enable more children to thrive in mainstream settings and stop parents having to fight for help, while bringing about financial sustainability for councils.
‘Through our plan for change, we’re already making progress by investing £740 million to create more places for children with Send in mainstream schools, as well as increasing early access to speech, language and neurodiversity support to prevent needs from escalating.
‘This will pave the way for significant, long-term reform – improving children’s and parents’ experiences and addressing the pressures councils are facing, including around home to school transport.’
