Last updated: May 2026
Each academic year, SENDadvisor sends a Freedom of Information (FOI) request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 to every upper-tier local authority in England. These are the 153 county councils, metropolitan boroughs, unitary authorities, and London boroughs responsible for statutory SEND provision — including Education, Health and Care (EHC) plans.
The requests are sent to each authority's FOI or data protection team. The data we receive is then standardised, checked for consistency, and published on this site.
Where an authority does not respond, does not hold the data, or provides data in a format we cannot reliably compare, we mark those metrics as "Pending" until we can obtain or verify the information.
Each metric on the leaderboard corresponds to one question in our annual FOI request. Here is what each one measures and why it matters.
EHC plan issuance within the 20-week statutory timescale
How many EHC plans were issued within the 20-week legal deadline (including any permitted extensions). This is the most direct measure of whether a council is meeting its statutory duty on EHCPs.
SEND Tribunal appeals and outcomes
How many families appealed to the First-tier Tribunal (SENDIST), how many cases went to a full hearing, how many were resolved before hearing, and how many were decided in favour of the parent or carer.
Educational Psychologist staffing levels
How many full-time equivalent Educational Psychologists the authority employs and how many posts are vacant. EP availability directly affects the speed of EHC needs assessments.
Educational Psychologist assessment waiting times
The average waiting time for an Educational Psychologist assessment. Long waits can delay EHC plans and mean children miss out on timely support.
Children awaiting specialist school placement
How many children with an EHCP are waiting for a specialist school placement arranged by the authority, and how many have been waiting more than six months.
Overdue EHCP annual reviews
How many annual reviews of EHC plans are overdue, and the longest period a review has been delayed. Annual reviews are a legal requirement and should happen at least once every 12 months.
Children with EHCPs placed in alternative provision
How many children with an EHCP were placed in alternative provision, and whether this was due to a lack of suitable school places.
SEND home-to-school transport expenditure
Total spend on SEND home-to-school transport, including any contracted provision. Transport costs can be a significant pressure on High Needs budgets.
High Needs Block DSG allocation and spend
The Dedicated Schools Grant High Needs Block allocation, actual spend, and the resulting surplus or deficit. This shows whether a council is overspending on high needs provision.
Fixed-term exclusions of pupils with EHCPs
How many fixed-term exclusions were issued to pupils with an EHC plan. Children with SEND are disproportionately likely to be excluded.
SEND-related complaints and Ombudsman outcomes
How many SEND-related complaints the authority received, how many were escalated to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, and how many were upheld or partially upheld.
Each of the 11 metrics (q1–q11) is scored on a red / amber / green scale using thresholds derived from national benchmarks, statutory requirements, and distribution across all 153 authorities.
A green rating means the authority is performing well against that metric. Amber means there is room for improvement. Red means the authority is significantly behind national expectations.
The overall score is a weighted combination of all 11 metric scores, normalised to a 0–100 scale. The overall grade (A–E) is then assigned from that score:
- A (80+): Strong performance across most metrics - B (60–79): Good with some areas to improve - C (40–59): Mixed performance - D (20–39): Below average in several areas - E (0–19): Significant concerns across multiple metrics
A metric shows as "Pending" when we have not yet received or verified data for that question from that authority. This can happen when: - The authority did not respond to the FOI request within the statutory timeframe - The authority confirmed they do not hold the requested data - The data provided was in a format that could not be reliably compared - The request is still being processed We follow up with non-responsive authorities and update the data throughout the year as responses arrive.
Below is the full text of the FOI request sent to each authority. It is sent annually and covers the most recent complete academic year (1 September to 31 August).
