More money, more promises: the Schools White Paper on SEND system reform in England 2026

Divorce settlements and the White Paper

As experienced family lawyers specialising in cases involving SEND children, we find many parents struggling to get the provision their child needs. When you add an impending separation or divorce into the equation, it can see a major mountain to climb.

In theory, the changes announced should make it easier for parents by creating more SEND provision for more children in mainstream schools. However, experience has shown that these changes may take a considerable time to implement. So, in the meantime, we have examined the planned changes and formulated our own approach to financial settlements for parents on SEND children in the light of the proposed changes.

1. To ensure any financial settlements are flexible enough to adapt to announced changes now and into the future regarding provision and funding of SEND and changes to EHCPs.
2. To build in adequate provision to go private in case the state system support in your area is slow to be implemented, inadequate or inappropriate.
3. To include the importance of being near state schools that already have or will speedily implement their own inclusion unit, which may mean moving or (conversely) keeping the family home for longer.
4. With our child-centred approach, we will always work to minimise/mitigate disruption for SEND and other children as far as possible during and after a separation or divorce.

What is SEND provision?

SEND provision is aimed to give additional support to meet their individual needs including physical, communication, social, emotional and/or mental health. Central to this provision is an education, health and care plan (EHCP) which lays down the additional support required above what is usually found in a mainstream school.

As the charity Scope states:

“An Education, Health and Care Plan, also called an EHCP or EHC Plan, is a legal document. This means that legally your local authority must provide the provision agreed in your child’s plan.” (5)

 

The financial costs of SEND

The issue has been that the number of children diagnosed as requiring additional SEND provision has risen considerably, as has the financial costs of providing it.

• Last month, the government announced that they would allocate £8bn to clear the debts local authorities had incurred to finance SEND provision.
• The government also announced in December 2025 that the Government will take on SEND costs from 2028/29. (6)
• On 23 February 2026, the government announced an extra £4bn of funding for mainstream schools.

 

SEND system overhaul

In addition the government have announced an 'overhaul' of the system which changes eligibility and longevity of the EHCP:

• Children who currently have an EHCP will keep them until they reach the next stage of their education.
• Children will be reassessed for EHCPs as they move up to their next stage from 2029.
• By 2035, EHCPs will be reserved for only the most complex special educational needs. (1)

The projections are that the number of children with SEND on the current highest level of support in school will start to fall from 2029.

SEND provision will be provided at two levels of support:

• Targeted - applies to all pupils in mainstream schools
• Specialist - for children with the most complex needs

The Specialist level is the basis for the EHCPs moving towards 2035.

Replacing the previous SEND unit, there will now be:

• ‘Support Bases’ – commissioned and funded by individual settings and multi-academy trusts to deliver targeted support; and
• ‘Specialist Bases’ – commissioned and funded by the local authority to deliver specialist support. (3)

 

EHCPs: long waits and appeals

The process to apply for and receive can be a long wait. Less than 50% of EHCPs were issued within the 20 weeks legal timeframe in 2024, for example.

Parents can appeal against a refusal of an EHCP, or to challenge what is offered. In 2024/5 there were a record number of tribunals with parents challenging the decisions on support.

• According to the BBC, just over 1.7 million (about one in five) pupils in England's schools receive support for special educational needs. (1)
• According to the MoJ, there was an 18% increase in registered SEN appeals when compared to 2023/24 academic year.(2) This number is probably only set to rise as the number of EHCP’s available dwindles
  towards 2035.
• According to the Local Government Association, 99 per cent of appeals to the SEND Tribunal were upheld in 2023/24. (7)

There is one important change to the appeal system if a child changes from holding an EHCP to an individual support plan (ISP). Their appeal will be heard by a school complaints board, and not an independent tribunal as happens at present. As The Guardian comments:

“That will be viewed by some as a less clear guarantee of legal protection.” (8)

The government counter that argument, saying:

“The school complaints process will be updated, with an independent SEND expert added to the complaints panel … The SEND tribunal will continue as an important legal backstop in the system, with parents retaining the ability to appeal decisions … alongside strengthened mediation services and an improved complaints process.” (7)

Delivering SEND provision in schools

Much of the responsibility for SEND falls on individual schools, many of whom have limited resources and even more limited budgets to try and create the level of SEND provision required. Whilst the government has set a target of recruiting 6,500 new teachers as part of its election manifesto, only today has it outlined exactly how it will achieve that.

Speaking about the new plans, Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson described her approach as "for all children"

“The disadvantage gap is still wide, children with SEND are sidelined and bright children from ordinary families are still not achieving all that they should… I want your child to achieve, I want your child to thrive … we have a moral responsibility to work together on this". (1)

The impact timeline for SEND families

Sifting through the proposed changes involves working through a transitional timeframe which frankly left us scratching our heads at times. An article in The Guardian detangled the details by giving four real-world examples for children of different ages with varied needs. (8) The examples point to a very important consideration for parents: the younger your SEND child, the more you need to plan ahead.

• A child with an existing EHCP and at secondary level private school will have their provisions in place "until they finish education", including transport. So effectively, no change.
• A child at primary school with special needs but not currently eligible for an EHCP will have the right to be assessed for an individual support plan (ISP). That support will be provided by the school plus other external services if required.
• A child with an EHCP moving from primary to secondary school will move to an individual support plan (ISP) for in-school support. By 2030, all state secondary schools will have an “inclusion base” for pupils with special needs.
• A child just starting primary school with an EHCP will keep that plan until they go to secondary school no earlier than 2029/2030. Those with “specialist provision packages” will go to a special school or unit, whilst those who need additional support that can be provided in the mainstream schools will get a new individual support plan (ISP).
• A child who will start reception class school in 2030 will be most affected. By then:

"EHCPs will be granted on the basis of “specialist provision packages”, standardising the thresholds for support similar to how the NHS uses clinical pathways to manage treatment for different conditions." (8)

https://www.theguardian.com/education/2026/feb/23/send-changes-impact-england-scenarios-children

Private schools: plugging the SEND gap

The White Paper sets out a vision of a single education system for SEND children:

“Every child deserves high-quality, inclusive education close to home, where they can learn, make friends, and participate in their community. To make that happen, we want to take the best of the SEND system and make it part of the mainstream, so that we have one education system, not two parallel ones.”

However, with secondary schools in particular struggling to provide the levels of SEND support required, local authorities have increasingly turned to the private school sector to fill the gap. In many areas of England, children with the most need have been placed in private schools and their fees paid for by the local authority. This will still continue, as the White Paper explains:

“A greater proportion of the school population is now educated in special schools than at any time in the past half century (1.9%) … We will also update the law for independent special schools to ensure children receive suitable, high-quality placements and that local authorities pay fair, reasonable costs for them.” (3)

The Local Government Association calculates this has amounted to a:

“165 per cent rise in those placed in Independent and Non-Maintained Special Schools since 2014. (In addition) SEND transport expenditure has increased substantially, rising from £644 million in 2015–16 to over £1.7 billion in 2023–24. (6)

Paying for private schools in divorce

As experienced family lawyers, we have seen how parents have lost faith in the SEND system and have gone direct to private schools to get the education provision that’s right for their child.

For many separating parents, the need to secure the payment of private school fees is a major part of the financial settlement. For parents of SEND children that need is even greater, and extends into the need for specialist provision after they leave school too.

Settlements involving SEND children

These changes do not fully address the emotional and practical considerations of caring for SEND children - which is where LGFL come in. We have had considerable success in helping both parents see the holistic
view of providing long-term financing for their SEND school and education, and how a wealth preservation approach can create fairer and more balanced financial divorce settlements.

To discuss your situation in complete confidence, contact us for a reduced fee initial consultation.

• Call us 
• Email us
• Request your initial reduced fee consultation

About the author

Rita Gupta is Co-founder and Managing Director of family law firm LGFL Ltd, serving family law for clients in the Reading and Thames Valley area, across the UK and for international clients involved in UK divorce cases. She has featured as a family law expert on national TV and radio, including BBC Radio 5 Live with Nicky Campbell, LBC, GB News with Darren McCaffrey and local TV and radio.

• Legal 500 Recommended Lawyer
• Listed in Chambers and Partners
• Listed Leading Lawyer at Wiselaw
• Member of Resolution

 

SOURCES:

(1) Shearing, H. (2026, February 23). Education care plans to be reserved for most complex SEND cases by 2035. BBC News. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/c98q9j04q39t

(2) Ministry of Justice. (2025, December 11). Annual Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) statistics: Tribunal statistics quarterly: July to September 2025. GOV.UK.
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/tribunals-statistics-quarterly- july-to-september-2025/tribunal-statistics-quarterly-july-to-september- 2025#annual-special-educational-needs-and-disability-send-statistics

(3) Department for Education. (2026, February 23). SEND reform: Putting children and young people first. GOV.UK.
https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/send-reform-putting- children-and-young-people-first/send-reform-putting-children-and- young-people-first-html-version#executive-summary

(4) IPSEA. (2025, October 23). Government delays publication of Schools White Paper on SEND reform until 2026.
https://www.ipsea.org.uk/news/government-delays-publication-of-schools-white-paper-on-send-reform-until-2026

(5) Scope. (n.d.). If school is not following an EHCP. https://www.scope.org.uk/advice-and-support/school-not-following-ehcp

(6) Flood, L. (2025, December 10). Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) reform: Parliamentary briefing. Local Government Association.

(7) Department for Education & Phillipson, B. (2026, February 23). Radical expansion in rights for children with SEND [Press release]. GOV.UK.
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/radical-expansion-in-rights-for-children-with-send

(8) Adams, R. (2026, February 23). The impact of Send changes in England: Four likely scenarios for children. The Guardian.
https://www.theguardian.com/education/2026/feb/23/the-impact-of-send-changes-in-england-four-likely-scenarios-for-children