He believes a shift in policy by Kent County Council – brought about by a £147 million overspend on its overall schools budget, predominantly through SEN provision – means it is now looking to reduce its costs by placing pupils with profound learning disabilities in mainstream primary schools without the appropriate learning support and budget.
He told KentOnline: “Many of these children will struggle in a mainstream environment. They could also impact the teaching and learning of the other pupils. It is essential that KCC’s SEN policy provides a learning environment that allows all young people to reach their full potential.”
The former local Tory leader, who stood down in 2019, added: “About 25 years ago, government policy was for mainstream inclusion.
“I fought against this direction of travel, endeavouring to achieve the right balance between mainstream inclusion and the need for special school placements. I believe we had achieved the appropriate balance through significantly expanding KCC-run special schools, against the direction of travel taken by national government. Special schools are for individuals with profound special needs.
“Then we had the introduction of EHCPs, by David Cameron, which nearly doubled the number of young people being placed into special schools.”
What are EHCPs and why have the numbers in Kent soared?
EHCPs – Education, Health and Care Plans – have been on the rise nationally, most significantly since the pandemic.
An EHCP is a document stating children with defined needs are legally entitled to specialist education support. They can be applied for by parents or schools.
Introduced in 2014 to allow parents a far greater choice in the child’s education setting, local authorities are legally bound to cover the cost of the provision set out in the plans – which can also include transport to and from school.
The national average of children with EHCPs is 5.6%. In Kent, it is 6.2%, which equates to 21,456 pupils as of June 2025 – up 59% from just five years ago, when there were just 13,499.
Experts attribute that sharp rise, in part at least, to the isolating impacts on young children of the Covid pandemic and the enforced lockdowns and lack of social interactions.
But meeting its requirements puts considerable pressure on already stretched local authority education budgets. Additional funding is triggered by an EHCP but it still, primarily, comes out of the local authority’s capped schools’ budget.
What has been the impact of the EHCPs?
Sir Paul says it has upset a once-successful balance in Kent’s schools which had seen those with significant special needs in KCC-run special schools or in units attached to mainstream schools.
He explains: “My particular concern is that it has led in recent years to a significant number of young people being placed in special schools that would have benefited from a mainstream placement with the additional learning support.
“Conversely, the local authority now appears to be going in the opposite direction. There are now children with profound learning disabilities who are being placed in mainstream schools – particularly in Reception and Year 1 – without any additional support or funding.
“In recent years, there has been a massive growth in the establishment of independent special schools where the cost per pupil is in excess of £40,000.
“Yet no criteria or guidance has been published by the government as to the thresholds that require a special school place or mainstream placement.”
It is a view echoed by Tom Rees, chairman of the Department for Education’s expert advisory group on inclusion, who recently said support and resources for children with SEN are inconsistent and more work needs to be done.
The mainstream vs special school debate goes back decades
In the 1970s, Baroness Warnock chaired a UK inquiry on special needs in the nation’s schools. Her conclusion was that, wherever possible, all should go through the mainstream system rather than being siphoned into specialist schools.
It was a policy adopted for the decades which followed, before both she and the government – in the mid-2000s – admitted enforced mainstream education wasn’t to everyone’s benefit.
Then the pendulum swung the other way.
David Cameron’s government in 2014 introduced EHCPs – effectively giving parents significant powers to choose the school their child attended. Perhaps unsurprisingly, many parents took the opportunity to specify specialist places. The costs, met by the local authority, spiralled.
Given the soaring budget and increasing numbers, the current Labour administration has said it is looking at the situation and is expected to outline its intentions in a white paper – a report covering its proposals – expected in October.
The spiralling cost of EHCPs
Many parents of those with special educational needs – which can range from anything from difficulty writing or reading to complex physical disabilities – understandably seek to secure an EHCP to ensure their children get the best start in life.
No criteria or guidance has been published by the government as to the thresholds that requires a special school place or mainstream placement
EHCPs are awarded after an assessment by the local authority. They come with a significant extra cost for meeting those needs and with a recommendation of the school most suitable to them.
Many parents, wanting the very best provision for their child, have pushed for one of a growing number of specialist independent fee-paying schools.
Even if initially turned down for such a place, parents can appeal the decision to a tribunal which, in many cases, the parents win.
Peter Read, a former grammar school head in the county and leading education expert, revealed last year that figures from a Freedom of Information (FOI) request show the cost of such provision in private specialist schools in Kent was £28 million in 2019 – a figure which had then ballooned to £81 million in 2023-24.
At the time the huge cost to the local authority came to light, three years ago, the average fee for a child in a private special school was £47,000 a year – a tab KCC was obliged to foot. This figure is then further swollen by paying the transport costs for the children to attend.
Mr Read’s figures revealed that one child was costing the local authority £350,000 alone, with at least a further 10 resulting in bills of £200,000 each. But they are extreme cases and normally apply only to the handful of children needing the most specialist care. Over the same time, pupil numbers in private SEN schools increased from 901 to 1,597.
By way of comparison, places for children at KCC-run special schools – where the bulk of those with severe needs are now being placed – cost around £22,800 per child at the time. The cost of a child receiving SEN support at a state school could be around £10,414.
Are children from more affluent families more likely to get EHCPs?
Explains Mr Read: “Some of these children will have very severe medical conditions that cannot be managed in KCC schools, but many others were awarded in a lax period of KCC defence [at tribunals], although the success rate for parents at appeal tribunals continues to be very high.
“Back in 2019, KCC conceded 192 appeals before a hearing, leaving 60 to be heard of which 36 were successful. For 2023-24, KCC still conceded 149 cases, with 51 being heard and 46 being successful, as tribunals nationally have become more lenient in their decisions.
“As in many SEN issues, those parents with know-how and/or strong finances will continue to be more likely to achieve preferred decisions for their children. It is difficult to see how KCC will bring these numbers down.”
Mr Read expressed great concern that those at the bottom end of the social spectrum were least likely to be able to claim appropriate support for children with SEN, following through to EHCPs.
Why KCC must bring the numbers down
The county council ultimately overspent its budget by a staggering £147 million. The government, as a consequence, executed what is known as a ‘safety valve’ agreement. It picked up the bulk of the overspend but as part of the rescue package insisted KCC hit its budgets and to “ensure only the most severe and complex needs are supported in special schools”. In other words, KCC was ordered to make significant savings to make up the shortfall. The key method to achieve that is loosen its reliance on special schools – especially those in the private sector.
KCC has reduced the deficit but it is still, according to the council’s last reported position, £97 million.
A KCC spokesperson denied there was any shift in its allocation of pupils, saying: “Through being in the Safety Valve Agreement, Kent will receive a £140 million contribution towards the overspend from the government.
“While the Safety Valve agreement includes commitments to improve value for money and outcomes to reduce the projected overspend and the financial risk to Kent residents, it does not restrict access to EHCPs or special school placements. We continue to fund placements in independent and non-maintained special schools where necessary, though we are working to expand local provision to reduce reliance on these settings over time.”
We continue to fund placements in independent and non-maintained special schools where necessary, though we are working to expand local provision to reduce reliance on these settings over time
KCC has little choice, however. It cannot afford to keep placing children in such expensive settings if it is to ensure it meets the requirements of the government bailout. Failure to do so would come with significant repercussions.
What changes is KCC making?
One aspect it has sought to change is the admissions policy of its special schools. Primarily motivated through a need to bring that overspend down, one key issue was that it wanted them to tighten the admission criteria to take children with more complex special needs – a move opposed by the Kent Special Education Needs Trust (KSent), which represents special schools in the county.
A legal challenge resulted and the process has been halted in its tracks ever since. A brave step by the KCC-run special schools given the heads are mostly all in the employ of the local authority.
KSent said it did not want to comment when approached by KentOnline for this article as “Paul Carter has recognised the national issues which are impacting KCC as well”.
Yet KCC still has to reduce that deficit.
The waters are further muddied by a lack of clear guidance as to exactly what conditions require what level of additional need.
Mainstream schools receive an SEN allocation as part of their overall funding – with additional payments for children who require more than £6,000 worth of support accessible through what is known as high needs funding.
Few would argue against the theory that mainstream integration, where beneficial, is an ideal solution. But putting more children with SEN into mainstream schools isn’t necessarily cheap. There are accessibility requirements, additional support and a host of other factors to take into account. Again, additional costs which schools will struggle to cover. Likewise, expecting KCC-run special schools to upgrade their facilities for more complex needs will face similar costs.
Which leaves the council facing a dilemma. Whatever route it takes, costs lie ahead which it can ill afford, given its bail-out agreement with the government.
What does KCC say in response to the concerns?
KCC says any shift towards mainstream inclusion is merely in line with guidance from above.
Placement decisions are made with the child’s best interests at the centre. There is no evidence to suggest that this has led to widespread disruption in classrooms
A spokesperson added: “We do not agree with the assertion that children are being placed in mainstream schools when a special school would be more suitable due to financial constraints. Placement decisions are made with the child’s best interests at the centre. There is no evidence to suggest that this has led to widespread disruption in classrooms.”
It adds that national data reveals Kent places more children in both state-funded special schools and independent special schools than most other equivalent local authorities with “circa 40% more children placed in specialist provision in Kent than the national average”.
That, however, is at the core of its financial predicament when it comes to SEN provision.
The spokesperson added: “The statutory expectation that mainstream schools are SEN inclusive and are working within the Equality Act 2010, has been reflected in Ofsted’s consultation on a new inspection framework. ‘Inclusion’ is one of the new evaluation areas Ofsted is proposing to introduce.
“Therefore, we remain committed to inclusive education, in line with the SEN Code of Practice, which includes a legal presumption that children with SEN should be educated in mainstream settings with appropriate support, unless doing so would significantly disrupt the education of others and no reasonable adjustments could resolve that.
“There is a wealth of evidence to show that inclusive schools not only support the academic and emotional development of children and young people with SEN, but also help build empathy, understanding and respect among all students.”
Against that, Mr Read argues that from his experience, schools, especially primaries, that welcome pupils with SEN, can suffer in terms of popularity from what he describes as “aspiring parents” who wish to see as little disruption as possible to their children’s progress.
The KCC spokesperson concluded: “All of the transformation work that KCC is undertaking in SEND is reported to the DfE and NHS England and to government ministers. We are looking forward to the national announcements later this year.”
