The government has approved North Somerset's SEND plan, unlocking a £37.3m grant. This year's council overspend is down to £6.5m, Cabinet hears on Wednesday.
The government has approved North Somerset Council’s plan for special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). That makes the council eligible for a £37.257m High Needs Stability Grant. The council expects the money “in the coming weeks”.
The grant covers 90% of the deficit the council built up on SEND spending up to the end of March 2026. The news is in a finance update report for the council’s Cabinet, which meets at 2.30pm on Wednesday 21 October.
The same report shows the council’s overspend on day-to-day services this year has fallen again, to £6.5m.
Why the SEND money matters
Support for children with SEND is paid from the high needs block of the Dedicated Schools Grant, worth about £81m to North Somerset this year. For years the council has spent more on it than the government gives.
In September the council’s budget monitor put the deficit on that grant at £43m at the start of this year, rising to £73m by March 2027 if nothing changed (Cabinet report, 16 September). A government accounting override keeps that deficit off the council’s main budget, but only until March 2028. The council’s general reserve holds just £10.6m.
The new report says the grant “will significantly reduce the risk this liability would fall to the council to fund in March 2028”. Councils can only get it if the government approves their Local SEND Reform Plan.
It does not cover everything. The report still forecasts high needs spending £30m above the government’s funding this year. For deficits run up in 2026/27 and 2027/28, the government has told councils to expect “an appropriate and proportionate approach”, though “financial support will not be unlimited”. Future help will depend on the council delivering its plan.
The overspend this year
The council set a net revenue budget of £251.464m in February. At the end of August, managers forecast spending of £257.991m. That is £6.527m over, or 2.6%.
It is the third forecast in a row to come down:
- £11.8m at the end of June, the first detailed forecast of the year
- £8.7m at the end of July, reported to Cabinet in September
- £6.5m at the end of August, in this month’s report
The report says this shows directorates “have started to reflect delivery of some of their in-year recovery plans”. Tighter spending controls now apply across the council.
The biggest pressures services report are:
- £6.9m on adult care packages, including more younger adults needing support
- £3.1m on care and accommodation for children in care or on the edge of care
- £2.4m in higher costs and lower income supporting children with disabilities
- £1.9m of adult social care savings not delivered
- £743,000 on waste, from demand, disposal costs and lower recycling income
- £389,000 less than expected from car parking
The report says pressures in adults’ and children’s services “remain a concern” because some are higher than in earlier reports.
To offset them, the council is releasing £2.5m of its contingency budget and £2m from a pension contributions variance. Lower borrowing costs and higher investment income bring in £1.75m. Recovery plans in the directorates add about £5.5m.
Fuel costs hit the bin company
The council’s waste company, North Somerset Environment Company, is forecasting a £335,000 overspend. The report puts £209,000 of it down to fuel. Its budget allowed for a 6% rise in fuel prices; fuel inflation is running at 38%. A pay settlement above budget adds £215,000.
Next year’s gap is unchanged
Looking ahead, the council’s budget gap stands at £40m over four years, with £12m needed in 2027/28. That matches what Cabinet heard in September.
Two capital schemes remain rated red for risk: the Banwell bypass and the Tropicana in Weston-super-Mare. The report says a fuller update on both goes to the full council meeting in November.
The council has spent or committed £178.7m of its capital programme in the first five months of the year, 63% of this year’s budget.
What it means for you
- If your child has SEND, the report does not say the grant changes support for individual children. What it changes is the risk that the council has to find tens of millions from its own budget in 2028.
- The budget survey is open until Sunday 1 November. It asks which services you would protect, where spending could fall, and what you think about council tax for 2027/28 (North Somerset Council). We covered the survey and the gap in our earlier report on the council’s £12m budget gap.
- A draft budget follows in December, with another round of consultation.
- Cabinet is only asked to note the figures on Wednesday; no spending decisions are being made. Papers are on the council’s meeting page.
Your council tax band and what each band pays this year are on our North Somerset council tax bands page.
Sources
- North Somerset Council, Finance Update Report, report to Cabinet, 21 October 2026, for the SEND plan approval and grant, the August overspend, pressures and mitigations, the June forecast, NSEC, the capital programme and the budget gap.
- North Somerset Council, Budget Monitor 2026/27, Month 4 update, report to Cabinet, 16 September 2026, for the July forecast and the £43m and £73m deficit figures.
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