The Work of the Department for Education

Status / emerging findings

• Government has secured £1 billion for high needs block and £740 million capital spending for SEND, but explicitly deferred decision on how to fund the £14 billion historical DSG deficit until 2028-29 spending review — creating a £14 billion financial cliff in three years.
• Teacher recruitment: 2,000 additional expert teachers recruited, but government acknowledges hitting the 6,500 target this Parliament is 'a significant challenge' due to fiscal constraints; primary schools still declining despite secondary growth.
• Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill progressing with unique child identifier pilot launching April 2025, but government rejected auto-enrolment for free school meals and equal legal protection for children (parity with Scotland/Wales) despite evidence.
• SEND 'national conversation' launched with weekly development groups and regional events; detailed reform proposals deferred to schools White Paper next year — specifics of stakeholder input integration remain unclear.

Why it matters

The DfE is promising transformative SEND reform and teacher recruitment while sitting on a £14 billion financial time-bomb; if unfunded, this will cascade into schools within three years and undermine the entire reform agenda.

Tone arc

Cooperative in January, shifted to more critical by December after the government's deferred funding admission; committee probing the sustainability of SEND reform commitments against the backdrop of unresolved £14 billion deficit liability.

Key witnesses

Rt Hon Bridget Phillipson MP (Secretary of State for Education), Susan Acland-Hood (Permanent Secretary, Department for Education)