School governing boards are urging Ofsted to ensure cash-strapped leaders are using SEND funding for children and not to fill other budgetary holes. The has today warned the SEND system is on a 鈥渢rajectory toward complete breakdown鈥 and 鈥渋ncremental change will not suffice鈥, after publishing a report on how to solve the crisis. Emma Balchin It is urging the government to bring special educational needs funding 鈥 which has been frozen for 12 years 鈥 in line with current costs and for education, health and care plans (EHCPs) to be reserved 鈥渇or multi-agency cases鈥. The organisation 鈥 which represents governors, trustees and governance professionals 鈥 has called for 鈥渘ational standards鈥 for inclusive education to be drawn up to mend relations between schools and parents. NGA chief executive Emma Balchin said: 鈥淭he time for small adjustments has passed. Only whole-system change will deliver the support that young people with SEND need and have a right to expect.鈥 Restructure funding Department for Education guidance says mainstream schools are expected to contribute up to the first 拢6,000 from their notional SEN allocation towards the costs of a child鈥檚 provision. Further funding can then be provided by councils if a child secures an EHCP. However, the 拢6,000 threshold has remained the same since 2014 and 鈥渆roded by over 30 per cent in real terms鈥, the NGA report said, forcing 鈥渂oards to choose between supporting pupils with SEND and maintaining financial viability鈥. The organisation is urging the government to 鈥渁pply inflation-linked indices to the notional SEN budget鈥 to protect its real-terms value. It also believes this would allow the threshold for top-up funding to be increased to 鈥渞eflect current costs鈥. Doing this, NGA said, would allow councils to 鈥渇ocus their resources on pupils with the most complex needs鈥, promoting a 鈥渇ocus on earlier intervention鈥. This would reduce 鈥渃oncerns about inconsistent or delayed provision caused by attempts to navigate existing inefficient EHCP processes which privilege the more socially-economically advantaged鈥. The group warned the changes 鈥渕ust鈥be] part of a concerted effort to maximise inclusion in schools鈥. NGA said this should include Ofsted checking that 鈥渢he notional SEN budget is being invested in SEN children, not diverted to fill other budgetary holes鈥 as part of its inclusion drive.聽 Workforce training NGA figures show just 42 per cent of boards believe their staff are equipped to support increasingly complex requirements. It is calling for 鈥渃omprehensive SEND training鈥 from 鈥渋nitial teacher training through early career frameworks to national professional qualification鈥, adding they should 鈥渂e equipped to identify needs early and differentiate learning effectively鈥. Parent complaints The report pointed to NGA research showing the scale of the 鈥渂reakdown鈥 in relations between schools and parents. Eighty-two per cent of boards have witnessed an increase in complaints, with 鈥淪END provision the primary concern鈥. The body said boards must 鈥渃hampion a fundamental redefinition of how the system measures school success 鈥 shifting from narrow attainment data to indicators that genuinely reflect inclusive practice and support for children with additional needs鈥. This would 鈥渉elp to eliminate the perverse incentives鈥 that lead to some schools not being inclusive. To rebuild 鈥渃ollaboration鈥 with parents, NGA recommended 鈥減rofessional development in relationship-building for school staff鈥. This would incorporate 鈥減arent engagement training鈥 and 鈥渆quipping staff to handle difficult conversations and prevent escalation鈥. It also called for new 鈥渘ational standards鈥 co-designed with parents, pupils and providers 鈥渆stablishing universal expectations for inclusive education that move beyond individual legal battles toward cohort-wide accountability鈥. For schools, this would 鈥減rovide clarity, and a level playing field, including certainty on the support [they] can expect from external providers鈥. 鈥楰eep EHCPs鈥 One in 20 children in England now have an education, health and care plan (EHCP), 11 per cent up since last year. EHCPs attract extra funding and detail the support a child is legally entitled to, naming the school that must deliver it. With councils 鈥渟truggling to absorb鈥 growing expenditure related to the plans, NGA argued for 鈥渃ohort-based interventions for shared needs鈥 to be implemented to reduce the 鈥渄ependency鈥 on EHCPs. An example it gave was 鈥渢he 1.5 million children with pandemic-related language delays鈥. It also said that 鈥渞ather than removing EHCPs or starting from scratch鈥, the plans should be reserved 鈥渇or multi-agency cases requiring co-ordinated health, education and social care input or specialist placements鈥. 鈥淲ithout urgent action, the SEND system will continue its trajectory toward complete breakdown, taking school budgets, workforce wellbeing, and most importantly, children’s futures with it. 鈥淚ncremental change will not suffice鈥he system requires fundamental transformation that addresses its interconnected failures simultaneously.鈥