The government is allocating £6 billion in high needs funding to local authorities in 2018/19. Local authorities are required to delegate funds to a level that enables schools to meet the additional cost of pupils with Special Educational Needs (SEN) up to £6,000 per annum, and should also allocate additional top-up funding to cover excess costs when required. The local authority can also choose to give additional funding from its high needs budget to schools that have a disproportionate number of pupils with SEN.

If a school has concerns about the level of funding they receive for their pupils with SEN, they should discuss those concerns with their local authority. For further information, please see paragraph 81 of the high needs funding operational guide, available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/high-needs-funding-arrangements-2018-to-2019.