What Does the Latest SEND Data Tell Us About Buckinghamshire?

The latest SEND data report provides a useful picture of how Buckinghamshire compares with the South East and England as a whole. One of its strengths is that it looks beyond headline figures and helps identify where Buckinghamshire is genuinely different from national trends.

The report highlights several important developments:

Growth in EHCP numbers is slower than both regional and national averages.

More children are receiving SEN Support.

Requests for EHCP assessments fell in 2025.

EHCP assessment and plan timescales have worsened significantly.

Fewer assessment requests are being refused.

Buckinghamshire continues to use fewer specialist placements than many other areas.

EHCPs are more likely to be issued at older ages than elsewhere.

The report presents a balanced picture, recognising positive developments such as lower refusal rates while also highlighting serious concerns around delays.

Perhaps the most significant finding is that Buckinghamshire has a lower proportion of children with EHCPs than the national and regional averages, while also experiencing major delays in the assessment process.

This raises an important question for families:

Are fewer EHCPs being issued because fewer children need them, or because the system is struggling to keep up with demand?

The report presents both facts but stops short of exploring the possible connection between them.

The most worrying statistic is the decline in plans issued within the legal 20-week timescale. Performance has fallen from around 79% in 2021 to just 8% in 2025.

This is a dramatic change with real consequences for children and families waiting for support. The report could go further in explaining what these delays mean in practice, how many children are affected, and what is being done to improve the situation.

The data show that Buckinghamshire issues relatively few EHCPs to children under five and proportionally more to older children.

The report suggests needs may be identified later, but there could be several possible explanations, including:

Delayed identification of needs.

Delayed assessment requests.

Differences in early years practice.

Greater reliance on SEN Support before seeking an EHCP.

These possibilities deserve further discussion because understanding the reasons is essential if improvements are to be made.

The report also notes that only around 1% of completed assessments in Buckinghamshire do not result in an EHCP, compared with around 6% nationally.

This could be seen positively, suggesting that children who reach assessment generally meet the threshold for a plan. However, it could also indicate that access to assessment is being heavily filtered before a request is made. The data alone cannot tell us which explanation is correct.

Overall, this is a valuable and balanced report that raises important questions about the Buckinghamshire SEND system. While there are encouraging signs, including fewer refusals and reduced reliance on specialist placements, concerns remain about EHCP delays, lower-than-expected EHCP prevalence and later identification of need.

For parent carers, the report highlights the importance of continuing to ask whether children and young people are receiving support early enough and whether growing levels of need are being identified and met effectively.