Council set to approve 450 special needs places

A Bradford Council report said local authorities across the country were struggling to meet demand for additional support needed by some pupils

Senior councillors in Bradford are due to approve more than £22m funding to create an extra 450 special educational needs (SEND) places.

It comes as the number of school-aged children in the district with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP), which is given to pupils with special needs, grew to 50% higher than at the start of 2022.

Bradford Council's executive will be asked to sign off the funding next week to expand existing special schools and create new SEND places to tackle a shortfall, which currently stands at more than 330.

The places would be created within the next 12 months.

A report to the council's executive said efforts to create more SEND spaces had been hampered by a government decision in 2023 that prevented the authority from opening a new special school.

It added: "Bradford, like many local authorities, is struggling to meet the needs of a growing number of children with EHCPs or that require additional support."

It said the problem was creating issues "such as overcapacity in schools and classrooms", pupils "travelling long distances" to school and "increasing numbers being placed in the independent sector due to a shortage of places".

The Local Democracy Reporting Service said that schools likely to receive funding for additional SEND places included Co-Op Delius Special School and High Park Special School.

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