Central Bedfordshire Council backs national call for fairer school and SEND funding
Thursday, 12 February 2026
We’re backing a cross-party campaign calling for fairer school funding and urgent reform to tackle the growing crisis in special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
Central Bedfordshire Council has backed a national drive by the cross-party local authority campaign group f40, calling for increased and fairer school funding and urgent reforms to address the growing crisis in special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
Nationally, local authorities are forecast to face a combined SEND deficit of £6bn by April 2026, with Central Bedfordshire Council’s own High Needs deficit projected to reach the mid £40 millions.
That’s because Central Bedfordshire is one of the lowest funded areas in the country for both mainstream education and SEND, despite facing the same statutory expectations as significantly better funded authorities.
For 2026–27, Central Bedfordshire will receive £8,883 per mainstream pupil compared with £14,181 in the highest funded area, and just £1,115 per pupil in High Needs funding, while some authorities receive more than £3,800.
With the Government expected to set out its direction for education and SEND in upcoming policy announcements, Council leaders – including Central Bedfordshire’s Director of Children’s Services, Amana Gordon, and Executive Member for Children and Families, Councillor Gareth Mackey, and his deputy, Councillor Liz Childs – have already spoken with more than 50 MPs, calling on them to support the campaign.
Councillor Mackey said:
We fully support f40’s campaign. Our schools and families deserve a fair chance, and that means a national SEND system that is properly funded and designed around the needs of children today - not historic allocations that no longer reflect reality. Without reform, the gap between need and funding will continue to grow. No child should be worth less because of where they live.
As active members of the f20 Executive board, we are also urging Government ministers to introduce bold, long-term reforms backed by sufficient funding so that all children, regardless of geography, can access the support they need to thrive.
Last month, the campaign group also submitted questions to Parliament that address the unfairness of the education system.
The call for reform follows yesterday’s announcement that the Government will write off 90 per cent of local authority SEND deficits - a move welcomed by f40, though the group stressed that long-term system change and fairer funding remain essential.
The f40 group has also reiterated that the write-off of historic deficits must be accompanied by a sustainable long-term settlement to prevent the same pressures from building again.
For more information about f40, visit the f40 website.