LONDON, March 31 (Xinhua) -- Nearly 20 councils in England have warned they are at risk of insolvency due to overspending on special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) support, according to a recent report by The Guardian.
The British newspaper reported that overspending on SEND services is projected to rise by nearly 2 billion British pounds (2.59 billion U.S. dollars) over the next 12 months. It added that the "mounting" SEND deficits, currently totaling 3.4 billion pounds, are expected to reach 5.2 billion pounds within a year.
The report revealed that among the dozens of councils forecasting SEND deficits, at least nine expect their deficits to grow by more than 50 million pounds. Hampshire County Council has the largest forecast SEND deficit in England, at 312 million pounds.
The County Councils Network (CCN), which represents England's largest councils, warned that unless the government acts "urgently" to address the issue, and if these deficits are added to council budgets within 12 months, it could trigger "a wave of bankruptcies."
According to data from the Department for Education, around two-thirds of special schools in England were at or above capacity last year.
Last week, the British government announced an allocation of 740 million pounds to fund 10,000 new places for pupils with SEND. (1 British pound = 1.29 U.S. dollar) ■
