Overview

• A Public Accounts Committee report warns the statutory override keeping SEND deficits off balance sheets expires in March 2026, exposing up to £5bn in high-needs shortfalls.
• Chancellor’s employer NIC increase has added an estimated £1.1bn in unassessed costs for councils, with compensation covering only around 40% of their extra contributions.
• The Local Government Association says more than half of English councils could face insolvency next year and calls for immediate deficit write-offs within forthcoming SEND reform.
• Councils are spending £121.1bn on late intervention in children’s social care versus just £2.8bn on early support, underscoring a funding imbalance that drives up long-term costs.
• Ministers have announced over £5bn in new grant funding and broad local government reforms, but critics say the measures lack clear timelines and fail to match the scale of the crisis.