SEND Deficits Write-Off – A Promise or a Trap?

The Government's recent promise to write off £5bn of SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) deficits might sound like good news on the surface. After all, for years, families and schools have been struggling with inadequate funding, and this pledge could provide some much-needed relief.

However, the real question is: what’s the catch?

We’ve seen this from Labour before - a shiny headline that falls apart once you dig a little deeper. Take, for instance, the much-lauded breakfast clubs that schools were forced to abandon when funding simply wasn’t enough. Or free school meals, which many schools are now subsidising themselves because the promised funding has yet to materialise. These promises are often stretched so thin that they barely hold up under scrutiny.

I want to make it clear that the intention behind the Government’s commitment is very much welcome. We should be doing everything possible to ensure our children with SEND are properly supported. But looking at this Government’s record, we have serious cause for concern. How much of this will actually reach the schools and families who need it most?

With a track record of broken promises and underfunded initiatives, we must ask ourselves whether this debt write-off will end up as another empty promise or whether it will genuinely improve the lives of children with SEND.

I’ll be watching closely, and I encourage all of us to remain vigilant and hold the Government to account.