The government is investing £3 billion to thousands of new specialist places for children with SEND.
In a press release today (12/12/2025) the government have announced “£3bn investment to end postcode lottery for children with SEND”.
“Children with SEND will benefit from a brilliant education close to home as the government announces at least £3 billion to create tens of thousands of new specialist places in mainstream schools.
The Education Secretary has today announced a transformational expansion of specialist, calm learning spaces in mainstream schools, equipped with facilities to support children with special educational needs and disabilities, following the launch of the largest national conversation on SEND in a generation.
It will mean young people won’t have to travel miles from home to have their needs met, and can instead get support in tailor-made spaces with the right facilities while also mixing with other classes for subjects or parts of the day that are appropriate for them.”
The main takeaways are:
- £3 Billion Investment: The government is investing at least £3 billion to create tens of thousands of new specialist places for children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND).
- Creating Specialist Places: This investment aims to create around 50,000 specialist places nationwide, specifically “calm learning spaces” equipped with facilities in mainstream schools.
- Ending the “Postcode Lottery”: The goal is to ensure children with SEND can get the support they need closer to home, preventing long commutes and allowing them to thrive alongside their friends at their local school.
- Delivery of Special Free Schools: The government confirmed it will deliver all 10,000 places planned by special free schools, either by building them or by giving local authorities funding to create an equivalent number of specialist places more quickly.
- Focus on Mainstream Inclusion: The investment is part of laying the groundwork for future reforms to the SEND system, aiming to make schools “inclusive by design” so that specialist places in mainstream settings become a core part of the local school offer.
- Prioritising Specialist over Mainstream: To prioritize this investment, the government will not proceed with a number of planned mainstream free school projects, reflecting a focus on where places are most needed given the rising number of SEND pupils and a falling number of primary school pupils.
- Future Plans: Full plans for improving the SEND system will be set out in the Schools White Paper in the new year.
So what should you be expecting over the next 6-12 months?
This £3 billion investment in SEND provision couldn’t come at a better time, with the education system struggling to meet the current demands. So what will impact be on mental health?
For too long, the system has been a real struggle—a genuine ‘postcode lottery’ where families have had to constantly fight for the support their children need, often having to travel miles for a suitable school place. This constant battle inevitably causes enormous stress, or what the press release calls the feeling of being “forgotten.” The most significant immediate mental health benefit is the commitment to alleviating this lowered family anxiety by promising local provision.
The £3 billion capital investment is specifically earmarked to fund a huge expansion of specialist, calm learning spaces within mainstream schools. This is a game-changer for student well-being. These new resourced provisions, including breakout spaces, are explicitly designed to support children who get easily overwhelmed, such as those with autism or ADHD.
By providing these tailor-made environments, the investment directly fosters improved well-being and emotional regulation, reducing the daily anxiety of navigating a busy school environment. As the press release highlighted, existing provisions have already demonstrated a significant positive impact on mental health and well-being, transforming pupils who were disengaged into students who want to learn.
Fundamentally, this push for local provision means reduced stress and increased inclusion. Young people can now stay within their local community and friends, cutting out those long, often solitary, taxi rides to distant schools. A strong sense of belonging is vital for mental health, and this inclusion-by-design approach will provide just that.
Over the next six months, the immediate impact on schools will be primarily preparatory. The Schools White Paper, due early in the new year, will lay out the full reform plans. Crucially, we know that 2026-27 funding allocations will be issued in Spring, so actual building projects will take time.
In the meantime, teachers and headteachers can start preparing now. A great first action is to conduct an internal needs audit: map out the current demand for specialist places and identify which of your existing facilities could be adapted, you can use our free audit tool. Think about your parent and staff engagement, building a shared understanding of what ‘inclusive by design’ means in your school. Start having conversations about how you can integrate these future specialist provisions into your existing school community to ensure every child feels included, rather than separated, from day one.
This groundwork will ensure you’re ready to hit the ground running when the funding arrives.
What support can we offer?
Here at AMHIE we will do everything we can to support you and you team with these changes, from translating the upcoming Schools White Paper into clear compliance guidance to offering accredited training and CPD for all staff. We can support you to strategically develop a cohesive, whole-school approach that seamlessly integrates the new specialist resources, ensuring that the £3 billion investment truly results in better outcomes, well-being, and a genuine sense of belonging for every child with SEND.