England Councils Spend £2.3bn Transporting 520,000 SEND Children

Councils in England have spent over £2.3 billion on home-to-school transport in 2023-24, with costs rising 70% since 2015-16 largely due to increased demand from children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND). The number of children with SEND requiring transport has surged by 166%, driving the use of smaller, often single-occupancy vehicles, which raises expenses further. On average, transporting a child with SEND costs over five times more than for mainstream pupils, with some cases costing councils over £1 million annually. Local authorities are facing budget overspends of hundreds of millions of pounds and are cutting discretionary services, which can disrupt families and force parents to alter work commitments. The National Audit Office urges alignment of funding with local needs and highlights the importance of upcoming Department for Education reforms to ensure the sustainability of SEND transport amidst rising fuel, wage, and operational costs. The issue is compounded by reductions in public transport services, especially in rural areas, increasing councils' reliance on costly specialist transport solutions.