Sally Judge, headteacher of Delamere School in Flixton, met with local MP Andrew Western to discuss her concerns around SEND provision and SEND funding.

During the visit, Sally spoke about f40 – the education funding campaign group that represents 42 of the lowest funded local authorities for education across England – including Trafford.

This f40 campaign group has acknowledged the Government’s recent SEND and Alternative Provision Improvement Plan and says that some good suggestions have been made – such as making mainstream schools more inclusive and the introduction of benchmarks. However, they are concerned that the report has no mention of the additional funding and resources that would be needed to make them happen. The group says it will take some years for the recommendations to be implemented in full, by which time the crisis in SEND will have deepened even further.

Headteacher Sally echoed these fears and as explained the day-to-day challenges that a lack of SEND funding presents. As Delamere School’s local MP, Andrew Western has agreed to write to the Government to express the school’s worries.

Andrew Western said: “Many local authorities have growing budget deficits when it comes to SEND provision and it’s estimated that by March 2025, the cumulative deficit across England with be £2.5bn.

“Delamere School provides education for some of the most vulnerable children in Stretford and Urmston. The team does an exceptional job, despite the financial challenges they face. I will be writing to the Government to ask how it plans to fund the changes it has outlined within the SEND and Alternative Provision Improvement Plan.”