Tower Hamlets Council has published a reform plan for its special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) system, warning that a shortage of specialists poses a "critical" threat to the plan's success. The plan, revealed on Monday (14th), comes as parents and children face long delays for support and the council grapples with a multi-million-pound education deficit.
The plan states it is "very likely" that there will be an insufficient number of specialists needed to implement the changes, which could have a "critical impact" on their success. This warning follows a period of rocketing demand for SEND support across the country, which has stretched council and school budgets.
High demand and statutory delays
In Tower Hamlets, 8.6 per cent of schoolchildren have an education, health and care plan (EHCP), the third-highest rate in the country. However, in recent months, around 40 per cent of plans were issued to children after a wait of more than 20 weeks, exceeding the statutory limit. The high-needs element of the council's schools budget is also in a £35 million deficit, built up over several years.
The council's plan acknowledges that "demand continues to rise, creating financial pressures and a high needs deficit," and that "waiting times for therapies and assessments remain too long." The government has instructed councils to reform SEND services so more children can be educated in mainstream schools and fewer require EHCPs, offering to pay for 90 per cent of each council's high needs deficit in return.
'Experts at hand' scheme at risk
As part of the reforms, the government requires councils and health services to provide more specialists, such as speech and language therapists and educational psychologists, in mainstream schools. This initiative is called "experts at hand." Lisa Fraser, the town hall's director of education, told councillors on Monday (14th) that experts at hand would be "absolutely critical" to the success of the reforms. However, the council's plan warns that it is "very likely" there may not be enough specialists available to make the scheme work.
An investigation by Schools Week magazine found that of 40 councils' SEND reform plans examined, 28 warned of a shortage of specialists. Tower Hamlets' plan specifically cited "limited workforce capacity to meet increased demand for specialist roles (e.g speech and language therapists and educational psychologists)" as having a "critical impact" on the reforms' success.
Workforce vacancies and response
The plan also noted that 25 per cent of community occupational therapist roles at Barts Health NHS Trust were vacant. The trust told the Local Democracy Reporting Service it has since reduced this to 14 per cent. The council's plan says it will "consider" how to reduce staffing shortages and train its existing workforce.
A council spokesperson said: "The Experts at Hand programme has been specifically designed to reflect the context and needs of our local workforce. We are working in partnership with the North East London ICB and have a comprehensive delivery plan in place. This includes a dedicated workforce development strategy to support recruitment, retention, skills development, and the longer-term sustainability of the service." The council did not specify what failure to deliver the reforms would mean for children and young people with SEND.
A spokesperson for Barts Health said: "In April 2026, we had a vacancy rate of approximately 25 per cent within Barts Health's children's community occupational therapy team due to a number of staff leaving, maternity leave and wider workforce challenges. As a trust we have actively recruited for vacant posts and our average vacancy rate between April and August 2026 is now 14 per cent. We also work with local partners to identify opportunities to strengthen the workforce, maximise available capacity and develop sustainable recruitment, retention, training and career pathways for specialist children's occupational therapists."
