New Funding Boost for SEND Support in Bucks

The county's Labour MPs Laura Kyrke-Smith, Callum Anderson and Emma Reynolds have welcomed significant investment from the Labour government into local SEND provision. 

Buckinghamshire Council is to be allocated £4,138,209 to set up a new 'Experts at Hand' offer.

As announced in February's Schools White Paper, the service is designed to provide children with early support and fast access to professionals like speech and language therapists, occupational therapists and educational psychologists. The offer will involve partnerships between special schools, alternative provision and mainstream settings to put support in place without needing to go through lengthy assessment processes.

Families across Buckinghamshire have expressed concerns about long waits in the SEND system, which has led to issues escalating to crisis point before intervention. Labour's reforms are designed to move support earlier in the process, closer to home, without parents having to fight for it.

Bucks Labour MPs (left to right) Laura Kyrke-Smith, Callum Anderson and Emma Reynolds.

The final guidance for Experts at Hand will be published next month, setting out how Buckinghamshire Council should use the funding to start standing up the service and the grant conditions associated with it.

Laura Kyrke-Smith , MP for Aylesbury, said:

"I've heard from too many families in Aylesbury and the villages about the long waits they've faced to get support for their children. 

"This investment is about putting joined-up support in place earlier and closer to home, so children can get the support they need without families having to fight for it."

Callum Anderson, MP for Buckingham and Bletchley, said:

"Families across Buckingham and Bletchley have told me the system just isn't working for them.

"Experts at Hand will help turn that around—bringing specialist support like educational psychologists and therapists directly into schools and cutting the delays that hold children back."

Emma Reynolds, MP for Wycombe, said:

"Parents in Wycombe want a system they can trust—where support is there when it's needed, not months or years down the line.

"This funding will make a real difference by ensuring children can access the right support earlier, in their local schools, and build the skills they need for the future."

Minister for School Standards, Georgia Gould, said:

"Too many children with SEND face long waits for support. We're backing councils to deliver earlier help and ensure every child can thrive."

The announcement follows last month's high needs capital allocations, where Buckinghamshire Council received a further £9,900,642.85 to create new specialist SEND places across Buckinghamshire and enable more children to attend their local school. The funding was part of a record amount allocated to councils nationally.

A public consultation on SEND reforms is ongoing. Parents, children and young people across Buckinghamshire, alongside sector professionals, are invited to share insights, evidence and feedback (external link).