THURROCK Council expects its Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) funding gap to reach more than £15m by the end of the financial year as demand for support continues to rise.

At a meeting of the council's Corporate Overview & Scrutiny committee on Thursday (8 October) officers said rising numbers of Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) and costly specialist placements were driving a £10.3 million funding gap.

It's the second time EHCPs have made the news in the past week. At an earlier committee meeting. councillors were told the authority was massively failing in is obligation to get them carried out in a timely manner.

The overspend would push Thurrock's Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) deficit to £15.3 million by March 2027.

Council officer David McNamara said councils across the country were facing the same pressure.

He said: "The DSG deficit continues to increase due to SEND demand, EHCP growth and high-cost placements.

"Continued growth may create significant medium-term financial pressures."

Mr McNamara said government changes had also increased EHCP applications and approvals.

He said: "We are seeing quite a large increase in applications for EHCPs and the numbers of approvals are also going up.

"That's locking in spend that will continue once the new arrangements come into place, but we don't yet know what those new arrangements will be."

A council report says this year's £10.3 million overspend is largely driven by rising EHCP numbers, costly independent and out-of-borough placements, and demand for specialist support.

Despite the pressure, officers said Thurrock's forecast included no extra government support.

Mr McNamara warned the DSG deficit could exceed £40 million by 2028/29 if current trends continued.

He said the council planned to expand local SEND provision and reduce its reliance on expensive placements outside Thurrock.

The Government has confirmed a High Needs Stability Grant expected to cover 90 per cent of Thurrock's historic SEND deficit, subject to Department for Education approval of a local SEND reform plan.

Cllr Aaron Green questioned how the council would manage the growing SEND gap in future years.

Meeting chair Cllr Harley Pyman-Brickwood also requested a breakdown of spending on children transported out of the borough and the costs of different school placements.

Officers said they were working with colleagues in children's services to provide the information.